Common Mistakes People Make With Their Jewellery

Jewellery is one of the most beautiful and forever gifts that we can give to the special people in our lives. Whether a gift for a special occasion or a “just because” gift, jewellery is a sign of love, beauty, and prosperity.

Here are a few common mistakes that people make when it comes to the care, storage and removal of their jewellery. Hope that you enjoy this blog!

1. People do not remove jewellery before taking a bath/shower or going to sleep
   Many clients tell me that they never take their jewellery off before they take a bath/shower or go to sleep. I realize that sometimes we simply want to be in and out of the shower very quickly or we are soooo tired that we just want to crash and go to sleep, but here are a few reasons why I suggest that you take a minute to safely remove all jewellery:

• Necklaces and chains, especially the dainty ones, may get tangled, twisted, caught in your hair, and could potentially break.
• Rings could be much harder and potentially impossible to take off without intervention as your fingers may swell overnight (especially during hot weather)
• Jewellery accumulates oils from our skin. The more you wear it the more the oil accumulates. For those who suffer from night sweats, the oils will release even more.
• Jewellery will accumulate soap and shampoo and will require more frequent cleaning.

Can necklaces/chains be fixed if they get tangled or broken? Of course, they can – but why risk breaking your jewellery and having to pay for repairs?

Can jewellery be cleaned? Of course, it can – especially with our amazing polishing cloths or professional ultra-sonic cleaners. However, to lessen the accumulation of oils/soaps/shampoos, take the time and remove all jewellery before you bath/shower or go to sleep. It is a small effort to make and is well worth preventing damage to your beautiful jewellery.

2. People panic when taking off a ring that is too tight
   We can assure you that there is always a way to remove even the tightest of rings – even without having to cut your ring off. The following are just a few suggestions we’d like you to keep in mind so that you can reduce your stress level:

• Remain calm, don’t panic! There is always a way to take a tight ring off.
• Don’t be forceful when trying to pull off a tight ring as your finger will become very red, and swollen, and guaranteed that is when the panic will set in
• Don’t try to pull your ring straight off over your knuckle. Instead, slowly turn your ring as you try to take it off. This will reduce redness and swelling.

If none of the above suggestions work for you, don’t worry as there is something else that you can try:

• Find a sink with a faucet.
• Make sure that the drain is blocked (by closing the stopper, placing a towel/paper towel over the drain, etc.) so that your ring does not go down the drain.
• Run your finger under cold water for a while, lather it up with soap and keep turning your ring around your finger (360 degrees) until it comes off.

3. People put their jewellery on first and then apply cologne/perfume
   This is a common mistake made by men and women alike. They get dressed, put their jewellery on and then decide to put their cologne or perfume on. Instead of doing this, I suggest that you do the opposite and put your cologne or perfume on first, allow it to dry and THEN put your jewellery on. This is a great habit to get into as you’ll prevent your jewellery from developing a thick film over time and potentially becoming dull.

Can precious metals be cleaned? Can the film be removed from precious metal jewellery? Yes – it can be removed and cleaned. For those of you who have real silverware at home, you are very familiar with having to clean and polish it. Silver (925) jewellery is no different. It too may have to be polished at the best of times if it has not been rhodium plated. If you repeatedly apply cologne or perfume over silver, it will get a thick film and may discolour. Silver jewellery can usually be restored by using our polishing cloth. If not, then the ultrasonic cleaner and steamer will come to the rescue.

Ladies, this is especially important if you are wearing rhinestone jewellery. Please get into the habit of applying your cologne/perfume first, letting it dry and then putting your rhinestone jewellery on. If you do not, it can get very dull over time and stones will not sparkle as much – I speak from experience!

4. People use DIY jewellery cleaning solutions at home but are not aware of the damage it can cause over time
   Here are a few DIY solutions that people are known to use but that I recommend that you don’t:

• Baking soda and a toothbrush – may slightly scratch your high-polished metal jewellery pieces. If done repeatedly, you will need to have your pieces re-polished. 
• Vinegar and witch hazel – are bad for plated jewellery and soft metals as it is somewhat acidic. So, if you are wearing a rhodium, yellow or rose gold plated piece, over time the plating will wear, and you will need to get the piece re-plated.
• Toothpaste and an old toothbrush (one of the most common DIY solutions) - may scratch stones and soft metal jewellery.

Before I started in this industry, I too experimented with how best to clean my jewellery. I would buy these little cleaning solutions that came with little brushes. I did not realize, however, that over time the brushes were scratching my jewellery until a jeweller pointed it out to me and besides the solution never did a good job anyways. Similarly, I tried very many mini electric jewellery cleaners. They removed dirt but were nowhere as strong as the heavy-duty professional ones I use today.

It took me a while to figure out what worked for cleaning jewellery, what didn’t and why. I can tell you that if you have the right polishing cloth, you can clean your jewellery at home by doing a quick polish and buffing yourself. Over the years, I have tested many a polishing cloth and found that some work better than others. I thought we found the best one at one point but continued the search by trying out more. Finally, the verdict was in, and we ended up going back to the original polishing cloth and am happy to say we have been sharing these cloths with our customers over the years. We have been gifting our clients with a cloth and teaching them how to use it properly to clean their gold, silver, and platinum jewellery. Our polishing cloths are easy to use and there is nothing else like them on the market. Our cloths will polish up a piece of jewellery in a flash. Sometimes we run into tarnished silver that needs more love and attention, so we simply apply some more elbow grease by using our professional ultra-sonic cleaner, steamer and polisher (only when needed).

So, if you want to clean your jewellery as you wear it, our polishing cloths are fabulous! Please don’t try to create your DIY cleaning solutions as I am sure you do not want your jewellery to scratch or dull over time. You may not notice it right away but over time you will. If you are interested in purchasing one of our polishing cloths, please contact us. If you would like to bring your older jewellery back to life, a good cleaning service will do it. Contact us about cleaning your precious metal, diamond, and other jewellery. You will be amazed at how much better your jewellery looks.

5. People don’t remove their rings before washing dishes
   For those of you (women and men) who remove your rings before handwashing dishes or taking a bath/shower – kudos to you!

For those of you who don’t, here a just a few reasons why you should:

• Your ring could fall off your finger, land in the water and you may not even notice that it has.
• If your ring falls off, it may go down the drain when you drain the water, and it may be too late to recover it.
• You can damage a claw by banging it, stones can loosen and potentially fall out and into the water and stones can be scratched depending on the type and how badly you bang them.

I hope that these few tips have helped and you will consider caring for your jewellery a little differently going forward.

If you have a jewellery story to share with us, please contact us to share it. You can also call us toll-free at 1-833-399-GOLD.