Jewellery Care Tips: Keep Your Treasures Sparkling

We all need a bit of TLC every now and then, and that includes your jewellery! Keeping your jewellery clean and polished is important to keep it looking it’s best. Here are my top tips to help you keep your favourite jewellery pieces looking their best.

1. Avoid Water, Lotions & Perfume

Jewellery doesn’t love moisture, and neither do many gemstones. Always take your jewellery off before swimming, bathing, or applying products like hand cream, perfume or sunscreen. These can dull the shine, damage delicate stones or even tarnish your sterling silver pieces. You can see on the image when I didn't follow my own rules and went for a swim and everything turned black - woops!

Tip - Put your jewellery on last when getting ready — after makeup, perfume, and hairspray.

2. Take It Off at Bedtime

As tempting as it is to leave it on, sleeping in your jewellery can cause chains to tangle, rings to bend, or settings to loosen. A quick removal before bed can prevent a lot of wear and tear.

Treat yourself - Get yourself a cute trinket dish to keep everything safe until morning.

3. Clean your Jewellery Gently at Home

Tarnish is natural, especially with sterling silver, but it’s easy to clean. Use a soft polishing cloth to bring back the shine. For a deeper clean, mix a little mild soap with warm water, use a soft toothbrush, and gently clean your jewellery — especially around settings or granules. If it is really bad, you can also try a little tick with bicarb (magical stuff!) - line a small bowl with aluminium foil, add a little bicarb and hot water and then pop your jewellery in and let the magic happen. You can then rinse the pieces and dry off.

Avoid - Harsh chemicals, silver dips or abrasive cloths — these can strip finishes or damage stones.

4. Store your Jewellery Collection Carefully

Jewellery likes a dry, dark place — ideally in a soft pouch or separate compartments to avoid scratching. Keeping pieces in a jewellery box (or even the box it came in) will slow down tarnishing and protect more fragile designs.

Top tip - keep a little piece of chalk or some of those silica gel packets in there too so slow down tarnishing.

5. Give It a Check-Up

If you wear something often — like your favourite ring or everyday earrings — it's a good idea to check for signs of wear. Loose stones, bent claws or open jump rings are better spotted early! I’m always happy to advise if you’re unsure.

Bonus Tip: Handmade Needs a Little Extra Love

Because each piece is made by hand, it might be a little more delicate than mass-produced jewellery. That’s part of its charm! A little care goes a long way in keeping your handmade treasures looking their best.

Got a specific question about a piece you bought from me? Or unsure how to care for something sentimental? I’m always happy to help — just get in touch or pop into the shop!

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