"I don't."
She showed me a chest full of lovely gold and silver jewelry, some set with precious or semiprecious stones. Some of the silver was almost black with tarnish, and everything needed polished to remove surface dulling.
It's not hard to take care of your jewelry. Nor is it time consuming. You simply need to start out right.
- Store silver away from the air, which is what turns it black, in a zipper-top plastic bag.
- Use a Rouge Cloth, a soft flannel cloth impregnated with a micro-abrasive, to gently polish your Sterling and Gold, Gold Fill or Vermeil pieces. Don't polish silver or gold plated as it will wear this ultra-thin coating off quickly. Buy your Rouge Cloth from me or your favorite jewelry store.
- Make you own jewelery cleaner with a teaspoon of sudsy ammonia, 4 tablespoons of liquid dish soap such as Dawn, and 2 cups of tepid water. Mix it up, and soak your jewelry in it for about 10 minutes. Using an old, soft toothbrush, gently brush to remove dirt. Rinse well, and dry with a very soft cotton cloth. Discard the cleaner because you'll make fresh the next time.
- If it isn't already, compartmentalize your jewelry case with small boxes, padded with poly quilt batting, so each piece of jewelry has a bed of its own. Find the boxes at any organizer store -- or even Target -- and the batting at any fabric store.
- Never soak anything strung on string, cord, leather or silk. Clean these pieces by hand, carefully.
- Pearls and soft or brittle stones such as opals and emeralds require special care. Clean them with a damp soft cloth only. Alcohol will dissolve pearls. Water and temperature changes can shatter opals and emeralds.
- NEVER, NEVER, NEVER use an over-the-counter ultrasonic cleaner unless the jeweler who sold you the jewelry specifically guaranteed ultrasonic cleaning was safe.
There you have it -- 7 easy ways to care for your jewelry.
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