One of the reasons I began designing my own jewelry was because I was tired of paying $16.99 for a pair of really cute costume earrings that tarnished the first night out :( So the materials that are used ARE very important but even with the cheapest accessory there are ways to prevent premature wear and tear to make your accessory budget stretch a little further!
General Tips for Caring for all Jewelry:
I. ALWAYS MAKE THE ACCESSORIES LAST MINUTE--> Whether it's a belt, hair clip, scarf, or the more obvious things like necklaces, bracelets, earrings and rings... always try to put your accessories on last. Many metals sold in the retail jewelry stores out there are using very cheap metals that will oxidize in an instant if mixed with any kind of cosmetics such as makeups, lotions or oils, perfumes or body sprays or anything else containing various combinations of chemicals. I won't get into specifics but a good rule to follow is if you can spray it; It will fade it.
I always used to wonder why the clasps and buckles on my really nice belts and purses would fade and begin to look ding after a week or two and I am positive now that body spray was the culprit!
Additional Note: It also helps to allow time for all cosmetics to dry or set completely.
II. REMEMBER TO REMOVE YOUR JEWELRY FOR THE DAY--> With higher quality jewelry such as sterling silver, gold, platinum, and precious stones this is not necessarily a major risk. There is a phenomenon, primarily in women, that will cause discoloration to the skin and possible oxidation in even fine metals. Some theorists think that this is because of iron levels in the body but there is no scientific reason, as of yet, as to why this happens in certain people.
But in cheaper metals that are used in a variety of costume jewelry and accessories today it is usually made using a mixed metal base with a cheaper coating or finish that could be thin or not very strong. When the finish wears off, the bottom layer of metals, or base metal, will oxidize and rise to the top resulting in ugly tarnish. Long exposure of heat and other chemical factors related to our bodies can not only cause the oxidizing of cheaper finishes but it can also soften metals causing them change shape such is commonly found in wedding rings!
I'll mention this again below but wiping the off and storing them is also very important!
III. KEEP YOUR ACCESSORIES CLEAN AND DRY--> After wearing your accessories for the day take a damp cloth, preferably a jewelry cloth, and wipe them off dry them thoroughly and store them. You can get jewelry cloth for a few bucks at any local craft store...Hobby Lobby and Michael's have 40% coupons! I'll post links to these digital coupons below....
Hobby Lobby Printable coupon
Hobby Lobby Digital coupon for cell phones
Michael's Printable and text link for coupon
IV. STORE ACCESSORIES SAFELY--> In this economy today it is always a great, fantastic, super good idea to find any way at all to save money! Where ever we buy our jewelry from and however much we pay for it... we expect it to last for a little while and have at least a touch of it's original luster and pizazz...When I ship any of my accessories I bag it in a fitted ziplock bag and attach an anti-tarnish strip to the inside. Voila no tarnish worries for 6 months! I use a product called Shine-On and I actually did a test run on some stainless steel earwires for a little over 1 year and it had remarkable results.
To purchase Shine-On click here: --> Shine-On Anti-tarnish Strips
Just cut a small square for ziplock bags or whatever size you need for the area of space you are trying to protect...take a small piece of scotch tape and tape the top of the strip, (red writing side down), to your storage container, jewelry box, pouch, or ziplock bag and your jewelry is protected!!! Works ideally in an air tight container.
We all probably already knew some or all of this but I wanted to write this blog to share some tips and share great products that helps me keep my jewelry looking great!
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Please feel free to share your jewelry cleaning secrets and tips in the comments below!
Best,Lisa
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