Wear:
– Avoid exposing your pieces to harsh chemicals, including in perfumes and hair products, as these may cause discoloration in some gemstones. Although our jewellery is designed to be able to be worn daily, it is recommended to remove your jewellery when exercising, showering, cleaning, and during any other activities that may reasonably result in damage to your piece.
Cleaning:
– Jewellery can be wiped with a soft cloth after wear to remove any dust. For a more in-depth clean, they can be gently washed with a soft brush or cloth using a mild soap and water to remove dirt. Avoid using hard brushes and scrubbing with force, as this can damage the stone and setting.
Storage:
– Store your pieces in a safe jewellery box where they will not be scratched by other jewellery.
However, do caution that some cheap, or even more expensive, jewellery boxes can unfortunately contain chemicals such as sulfur in their lining that can accelerate tarnishing in sterling silver, leading to tarnished pieces that were thought to be safely stored away. Due to this, ensure that your jewelry box or pouch is advertised as tarnish resistant or anti-tarnish to ensure your pieces are stored safely.
Restoring Pieces that have Tarnished
– If your Sterling Silver Jewellery piece does happen to get tarnished, do not panic as many cases of tarnishing can be fixed.
To clean minor tarnishing, gently polish the piece with a silver polishing cloth and a good quality silver polish if needed to remove the tarnish and restore shine.
For more severe cases of tarnishing, the aluminium foil and baking soda method can be used to help reverse the tarnish. First, line a bowl with aluminium foil, shiny side up. Next, place the tarnished piece on the foil and cover it with baking soda. Then pour over enough hot water to cover the piece. Let it sit for a few minutes, or up to 30 minutes for heavily tarnished pieces, before removing, rinsing thoroughly with water, and polishing with a soft cloth.
Please be advised that this method is not safe for certain stones such as opals, turquoise, and pearls, but should be safe to use with all Jemagic stones if necessary. Be careful not to scrub the piece with baking soda (just let it sit in the solution), as this can cause scratching in some softer stones.
