Caring for Your Silver Jewelry: Maintenance Tips for Longevity and Shine

Caring for Your Silver Jewelry: Maintenance Tips for Longevity and Shine

If you’re a fan of silver jewelry and you own a lot of sterling silver pieces, you might have noticed that your jewelry gets tarnished pretty fast. That’s because sterling silver is not pure silver but it contains copper. Copper is more reactive and tarnishes faster.

But that’s not the reason to stop wearing or loving silver jewelry. Quite the contrary, sterling silver pieces are beautiful and timeless, they just need a bit more of your care.

If you’re a fan of silver, you’ll be glad to know these several maintenance tips for longevity and shine.

Regular cleaning is key

When we often wear our silver jewellery, dirt, dust, and oils accumulate on it.  All this buildup causes the silver to lose its shine and luster.

To keep your silver beautiful and shiny, the key is regular cleaning. After each use, wipe your silver pieces with a soft cloth. This will remove all surface impurities and prevent tarnish.

However, that’s not enough. From time to time, your silver jewelry requires deep cleaning. A great way to remove dust, dirt, oils, and tarnish from your pieces is with the help of a small ultrasonic bath

Ultrasonic baths are devices that transmit high-frequency sound waves through a liquid to clean different items including jewelry. Ultrasonic cleaning can help you remove tarnish and restore your jewelry’s shine.

Avoid harsh chemicals

Handling harsh chemicals while wearing silver jewelry can damage the silver. So, if you’re going to be using harsh cleaning products that contain bleach and chlorine, take off your silver pieces.

Also, try to avoid exposing your silver jewelry to perfumes, lotions, and hairsprays because these products can tarnish the silver and damage other embellishments.

Keep it dry

Did you know that the water we use daily can damage our silver jewelry? That’s because water contains chemicals and contaminants that can dull out and tarnish our silver pieces. So, here are some tips that can be handy when it comes to water and silver.

Take off your jewelry before you enter the shower. Showering and silver don’t go well together. If you forget to take it off once or twice, it won’t damage your pieces. However, make sure to dry them afterward.

If you’re going swimming in a pool, take off your jewelry. The water in the pool is mixed with chlorine, a harsh chemical that can damage your silver. So, before jumping in, remove all your silver pieces.

Similarly, hot tubs contain even more chlorine than pools, and on top of that the water is hot. Hot water and chlorine can accelerate the chemical reaction and do some pretty damage to your silver jewelry. 

Store it properly 

Storage is crucial when it comes to maintaining your silver jewelry. If you want to prevent tarnish, dust, and scratches, storing your pieces properly is essential.

Exposure to air can accelerate the tarnishing, that’s why you should never leave silver jewelry lying on top of the dresser, nightstand, or open jewelry holder.

Ideally, you’d want to store your silver jewelry in a dry, air-tight place away from direct sunlight. 

Additionally,  it would be best if you could store each piece separately in soft pouches to prevent tangling and scratching. Just to be sure, you can place silica gel packets in each pouch to provide anti-tarnish protection. 

Additional anti-tarnish techniques

Sometimes, despite all our efforts, silver keeps tarnishing. In that case, you should know additional anti-tarnish techniques.

For instance, different anti-tarnish products can help you slow down the tarnishing of your silver. There are anti-tarnish cloths and tarnish-resistant strips that can absorb moisture and neutralize sulfur compounds. 

Just like silica gel packets, these anti-tarnish products can be placed in a jewelry box or any other type of storage you use.

Polish your silver jewelry

Silver is a metal that requires polishing to stay shiny. As mentioned, over time silver will inevitably start to tarnish. To return the shine to your silver pieces, you should polish them regularly. 

You can use polishing cloths for silver or specialized silver polishing compounds. Simply, rub the tarnished areas gently to remove tarnish and return the shine.

However, be careful not to over-polish because too much rubbing can remove intricate details or patina off your silver pieces.

Bottom Line

Properly cleaning and maintaining your silver jewelry can prolong its longevity and shine. You can have beautiful, timeless silver jewelry for a long time. 

All you have to do is put some effort into carefully handling, cleaning, and storing your pieces.

Wispaz

erin-lane

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