Jewellery Care
Jewellery is made to be worn, and as long as you look after it in the correct way, it should last a long time.
Jewellery Cleaning Products
You can buy specialist gold, platinum and silver cleaning products if you wish, but as an environmentally friendly company, I would say that you don't really need these. Usually, hot soapy water, an old tooth soft tooth brush and a bit of good old elbow grease are the only jewellery cleaning products you need.
(Tip: Make sure you put the plug in the sink before you start cleaning, this may sound obvious but it's something that's easily forgotten and will save you taking your plumbing system apart if you accidentally drop your slippery soap covered diamond earring!)
Shiny or Matt Finishes
The finish on your jewellery WILL change with wear but I think this just adds to the beauty and your jewellery's life story. Matt finishes will become shiny and highly polished finishes will become duller. This is particularly noticeable on rings as they are much more likely to knocked than a necklace or a pair of earrings.
Restoring your matt finish is actually fairly easy to do at home using a kitchen pan scourer or "Scotch Brite" sponge. Cut off a small piece and rub your jewellery in a circular motion. If your jewellery has become very shiny, then a little pumice powder on the scourer will help this even more.
Tarnishing on Silver
All silver jewellery will tarnish over time and some people find that their silver tarnishes more quickly than others. This can be down to diet or medication but keeping your jewellery away from chlorine, peroxide or sulphur will also help prevent tarnishing. Again, some washing up liquid and very hot water should take this away, you may just need a little more of the elbow grease!
Oxidised silver heart earrings.
Oxidised Silver
This is where the silver is blackened on purpose and can be a lovely finish, but again, it is susceptible to wear, especially on rings. Restoring this yourself is a slightly more complex process. If you do want to try this at home, it's probably best to get in touch and I can talk you through the process as it maybe different depending on the design of the piece. Alternatively, simply return it to me and I can re-oxidise your piece in my workshop.
White Gold
If you buy your white gold from a high street jewellers, you may find that it has been Rhodium plated. This gives it a very white finish, but white gold is in fact more of a warm white in it's natural state. On a ring, this will probably wear off after a year or so and will need to be re-plated.
The rhodium plating isn't really needed and as an environmentally friendly company, I don't believe in applying unnecessary processes. I think that natural white gold is really beautiful, so don't offer rhodium plating as standard on any of my white gold jewellery. This obviously eliminates the need to pay to have it re-plated.
Bespoke 9ct Natural White Gold Cufflinks
I hope this has been a helpful blog post. All of my jewellery is made from the highest quality materials and anything over the required weight will be hallmarked. Obviously, if you do have any problems with the finish or cleaning your jewellery, please do get in touch and I will either talk you through what to do at home or reapply the required finish in my workshop.