Top 10 Ways to Protect Your Jewelry

Brought to you by the jewelry experts at Finch Jewelers

• Jewelry is an investment, a token of extreme sentimental value, and a piece of you. You want to protect it at all costs to ensure it shines as bright as the day you received it. Imagine the rush of emotions you’ll have time and time again when your wedding ring looks exactly as it did on the day your significant other placed it so gently on your hand. There are 10 simple ways to protect and care for your jewelry to insure it looks beautiful for many years to come.

1. Put On Jewelry After Applying Makeup

• The oils in makeup can tarnish and slowly destroy jewelry over time. The best way to protect jewelry from this type of damage is really pretty simple. Make sure to remove all jewelry before applying makeup. After your hands are clean and makeup free, it will be safe to put all of your jewelry back on.

2. Avoid Swimming Pools While Wearing Jewelry

• Chlorine in pool water is detrimental to the color and structural integrity of your jewelry. Repeated dips in the pool can completely ruin the metals and ultimately make your jewelry beyond repair.

3. Remove Jewelry While Active

• Whether you’re exercising, playing tennis with friends, or shredding a snowy slope, it’s always a good idea to leave your jewelry at home. The more active you are, the easier it is to accidently lose or damage your prized possessions. If you remove your jewelry during these activities, it will be much easier to keep track of and not worry about it.

4. A Winter Warning

• Speaking of shredding the slopes, winter is a rough time for jewelry. The cold weather tends to cause fingers to shrink, which can easily result in rings slipping off your hands without you noticing. It’s also important to be aware of winter accessories that can snag or damage jewelry. Carefully remove gloves because the fabric can snag on ring prongs and loosen stones. Heavy winter coats and sweaters can pull earrings out and damage necklace clasps. If you remain conscious of your jewelry and handle them with care in the winter months you will not have to worry, but it is a good thing to keep in mind.

5. Stay Away From Harsh Chemicals

• Cleaning supplies, especially bleach, will destroy the metals and coating on all types of jewelry. It’s best to avoid cleaning while wearing any jewelry. This goes along the same lines as not wearing your best clothes to clean the house. You don’t want to wear jewelry while cleaning the house either.

6. Store Jewelry Separately

• Storing jewelry separately is another simple, yet effective way to minimize damage to your precious belongings. If jewelry is thrown together in a bag to be transported or even in the same drawer of a jewelry box, they can clang together and ruin the appearance. Make sure to out jewelry in dividers or separate bags to protect your precious metals.

7. Use Jewelry Cloths for Cleaning

• There are specific cloths used to properly clean jewelry without being too abrasive. Use these cloths each time you clean up your precious metals. A good cleaning increases the look and the overall integrity of your jewelry.

8. Try to Avoid Sharp Blows to Jewelry

• Watch where you’re swinging those arms! It can be hard to not walk into things every now and again or even to resist the urge to play drums with your hands on a hard surface, but being more careful in general will protect your jewelry. Sharp blows to precious metals – especially soft metals – will yield awful results.

9. Do Not Try to Clean Damaged Jewelry

• If any of your jewelry is damaged, get it repaired immediately. Don’t try to clean it up before taking it in to be looked at. A professional will repair and then clean your jewelry for you. Over handling of damaged jewelry can make the problem worse.

10. Inspect Jewelry Regularly

• Now we finally have arrived at the most important tip on this list – inspection. Take a few minutes every now and again to bask in the beauty of your jewelry, but also give it a good look for imperfections, damage, and loose stones. These inspections will save your from further damage and loss of expensive stones. Plus, who doesn’t want to gaze at their gorgeous jewelry every now and again?

• We hope these tips have been helpful and will keep your jewelry sparkling for years to come. Proper care is pretty simple with the right tools. Remember to be careful, clean frequently, and inspect for damage.