Jewellery Care

General Advice

You should aim to keep your jewellery dry at all times and store it where it will not bump or tangle into other pieces. Please also avoid contact with chemicals, many of which can react with metal and stone.

To protect both you and your jewellery, remove it prior to sleep or any other situation where it may cause injury or become damaged.

In particular, wearing jewellery in the gym is not a good idea despite recent trends encouraging this.  Chains can get caught and rings can become brittle or bent out of shape if you repeatedly lift heavy weights in them. Sweat and jewellery is also a bad combination.

Lastly, please don't wear your jewellery in the sea. Seawater is abrasive which will affect the polish on metal and stone, and the patina on oxidised pieces. Tiny particles of sand can also work their way behind stones and may compromise the setting. 

Maintenance

If your silver becomes tarnished, the best option is an impregnated silver cloth. Town Talk is my preferred brand. These are inexpensive and widely available.

If your jewellery becomes dirty (different to tarnishing) - use warm water, mild soap and a soft sponge or cloth to wipe it clean. Rinse with running water and dry thoroughly, and buff it with a soft cloth. 

Oxidised Jewellery

It's important that you never scrub oxidised jewellery as this can remove the patina.

Tarnishing and dirt can be removed as described above - just avoid applying pressure to any recesses with patina.

Gemstones

Some gemstones are softer and easier to break than others (i.e. turquoise, sodalite, moonstone) so extra care is needed for these... although all stones can obviously be damaged with improper care.

You should also never clean your gems with strong chemicals, submerge them in water or blast them with a hairdryer to dry them (a very low heat is ok).