Whether purchased as a gift for yourself or another, a great deal of thought and effort goes into selecting the perfect piece of gold jewellery. And what's a better way to show your appreciation for the piece than by taking proper and diligent care of it.
However, no matter how careful you are, you'd need to clean your jewellery every few weeks to ensure it maintains its shine.
Read on for information on the best way to clean gold jewellery.
Understanding More About Your Gold Jewellery & How to Take Care of It at Home
Understanding the properties of your gold will help you appropriately care for them. The purity of gold jewellery is measured in Karats (K); this means that the percentage of pure gold determines its karat value. With the values ranging from 24K to 9K, you might be hard pressed to know the karat value of your gold. But do not fret, as jewellers are required to indicate the gold content of gold jewellery by law; this is called stamping.
To help you keep your pieces good as new, here are some tips to clean gold jewellery at home:
Gold is a soft metal; it’s susceptible to scratches. Please be as gentle as possible when cleaning gold jewellery.
Make a solution of dish detergent, cleaning cream, and warm, not hot, water. You'll want to soak your gold jewellery for a few minutes. And for a more extended period if filthy. Then gently scrub with a soft toothbrush, preferably a soft and baby-sized brush. Finally, rinse using lukewarm water.
Always allow your jewellery to dry before storing completely. You can air-dry the pieces or gently wipe with a cloth or paper towel. While drying, ensure you do not snare the jewellery on the material.
Do not use household items like toothpaste, baking soda, vinegar, or salt. These ingredients contain chemicals that can be harmful to your gold pieces.
If you'd rather use an already made jewellery cleaning solution, replace the homemade solution with one specifically designed for cleaning gold jewellery and follow the same cleaning process.
How to Clean Tarnished Gold Jewellery
24K gold jewellery would never tarnish as pure gold does not mix with oxygen. However, lower caratage gold is alloyed with other metals that react with oxygen and might discolour with time. Your jewellery can also be tarnished by constant contact with body oils, creams or other cosmetic products. You can clean your tarnished jewellery by following the gold jewellery cleaning tips above. Alternatively, you can have your jewellery professionally cleaned and restored.
How to Polish Gold at Home
So your gold piece is clean again. But something's missing: that iridescence. The solution is simple. The easiest and perhaps, safest way of polishing your gold at home is with a polishing cloth. Polishing cloths usually come pre-treated with a small quantity of polish. All you'd need to do is gently rub your gold jewellery with the polishing cloth until its lustre is restored.
It's assumed that nearly every piece of gold that has ever been mined is still available, albeit in a different form. And that’s because gold is an heirloom, and as such, can be passed down to younger generations. So what you have is a gem (pun intended) and should be treated as such. Treat your jewellery with the care and respect it deserves, and it’ll last for as long as you desire.