Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Looking Forward to Valentines Day?

Valentine's Day isn't very far away, 12 days. Are you ready? Looking for gifts? Check out my Etsy store at www.demdesigns.etsy.com You'll find earrings and bracelets made with heart charms, and lots of other beautiful jewelry.

Make your old jewelry look new by cleaning it.   Having your jewelry cleaned professionally can be quite expensive, so you might consider cleaning the jewelry yourself. All you need is a few good recipes and "a little elbow grease" (to use my Mom's expression).

Care
Before I talk about cleaning I want to mention care.  One of the most important things to do to care for your jewelry is to take it off before you shower or wash your hands or the dishes.  Keep a ring dish next to your sink.  Soap leaves a film that becomes noticeable after a while and water exposure can loosen stone settings over time, especially pearls.  Store your jewelry in your jewelry box, or an air-tight box if not wearing it every day. Hang necklaces and bracelets so they do not become tangled, there is nothing worse than trying to untangle a chain.

Gold jewelry doesn't actually tarnish, but sometimes it can appear that way because of the other metals mixed in with it.  Because gold is soft it is often mixed with other metals, called an aloy, so it will retain it's shape. The silver and copper in the alloy may react to the oxygen, sulphur and moisture in the air and eventually turn the gold jewelry dark. That is why it is important to keep your jewelry, gold or silver, in an air tight container when not being worn on a regular basis.

In my next  blog I'll give you 4 different ways to clean your jewelry.

Have a great day!

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