How to clean gold and diamonds?

Why do you need jewelry care?

Caring for jewelry is an essential part of use and should not be neglected. During wear, jewelry comes into contact with the skin, sweat, body fat, and interacts with the environment. This leads to darkening and accumulation of dirt. In addition to the fact that dirt looks terrible and spoils the appearance of products, it is also dangerous to health, as it can lead to inflammation of the earlobe, irritation, wounds, etc. And if you consider that earrings, rings, bracelets, chains and pendants very quickly become covered with grease and dust, then the lucky owners of luxury jewelry need to clean their gold and diamonds monthly.

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To do this, you can contact a specialized jewelry workshop, where a craftsman will professionally, quickly and efficiently return the items to their original shine and charm. Or try getting rid of dirt at home.

Professional help or cleaning at home?

Every owner of precious items is faced with the right to choose how to clean gold and diamonds. What to choose is up to you, because each method has its own advantages:

Professional cleaning is a guaranteed result. The jeweler knows exactly how to handle precious materials and stones, has the necessary solutions and tools to restore the shine and charm of masterpieces, and preserve the filigree work of the master.

Before you start cleaning, you need to determine the type of dirt and only then choose a cleaning method. Do not forget that gold is considered a soft material and it is quite easy to damage it. Gold also contains other metals such as copper, zinc, silver, etc. If they come into contact with moisture, they may turn green or black. Even small black and green spots can make a big difference in the appearance of your jewelry. Therefore, it is better to trust complex, expensive or exclusive jewelry in the hands of a professional.

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The only drawback to professional cleaning is the money that you will have to pay each time. But this amount is not commensurate with the risk that exists due to inept handling, inexperience and lack of knowledge, which can lead to serious consequences. And if you consider that the cost of gold jewelry and diamonds is high, then it’s probably not worth the risk.

You can clean gold and diamonds inexpensively at home. This is the main and, perhaps, the only bonus of self-cleaning. You can also note the time savings, because you don’t have to go to a jewelry workshop, adjust to work schedules, or leave the kit behind. You can start cleaning your jewelry at any time convenient for you. But the risk of making a mistake is extremely high. The indestructibility of a diamond is known to everyone, but after cutting, even the smallest scratches become noticeable on the surface. Lack of knowledge and experience can cause incorrect selection of cleaning compounds and reagents, as a result of which cleaning will be ineffective or will lead to even more problems: loss of shine, clouding, stains or scratches. And mechanical stress and temperature increases can cause cracks in the crystal. In addition, there are cases when cleaning the products alone is not enough and after a set of measures it is necessary to perform polishing.

If you really value your jewelry, it is better to leave the cleaning in the hands of a professional.

Useful tips

Quite often, owners of emeralds make common mistakes . To avoid becoming one of these people, you should follow some recommendations.

Oil processing

Many owners of jewelry with precious stones neglect oil treatment. This procedure is necessary to eliminate minor scratches and mechanical damage. As a rule, cedar oil . It is quite thick, so it is suitable for filling cracks.

it is not recommended this procedure on your own. You can’t do it without the help of a master, since this is exclusively jewelry work. Therefore, before purchasing an accessory, you should ask the seller whether such a service is provided and how often to use it.

Proper wearing of the stone

Emerald jewelry should be worn only after applying makeup, creating a hairstyle and image. Cosmetics contain chemical compounds that negatively affect the structure of the gemstone. For example, if you wear earrings with this gem and then apply hairspray, you can significantly deteriorate the quality of the mineral.

Therefore, jewelers recommend completely eliminating contact of the crystal with cosmetic products.

How to clean diamonds at home?

The shine of diamonds begins to fade and gold begins to darken? How to clean gold and diamonds safely? For self-cleaning, experts offer several safe recipes:

Soap solution. To do this, pour water into a small container and add liquid soap or shampoo. You can immerse the diamond in the prepared solution for a few minutes, then remove it and rub it with a toothbrush. This method does not remove all types of contaminants, but it effectively combats yellowish plaque.
Ammonia. To prepare the solution you will need: water, a few drops of ammonia. It is enough to immerse the product in the prepared solution for 30 minutes, then clean it with a toothbrush and put it back into the solution for a few minutes. After this, just gently wipe with a napkin and you can wear it.
The vodka solution is made in a 1:1 ratio. The decoration is placed overnight, and in the morning it remains to be brushed, rinsed and wiped.
Some jewelry stores offer quick cleaning of gold and diamonds using special means. Therefore, it won’t hurt to purchase them along with a new masterpiece for the collection.

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(price on the link) And don’t forget that prevention is always more effective and simpler than treatment.
Therefore, if you wipe your diamond with a napkin every day and remove traces of dirt during the day, your jewelry will retain its original shine and charm for a long time. By the way, you don’t have to worry about searching for napkins. Wipes are perfect for LCD screens and monitors. They do not spoil the stone and dissolve dirt perfectly.

How to clean white gold?

White gold has a special alloy. It involves gold, copper, nickel and palladium. It is nickel that replaces silver and gives products an amazing white color. Most often, jewelry is coated with rhodium to increase resistance to external factors, but over the years this coating can wear off and the surface becomes vulnerable.

White gold should only be cleaned with a soft cloth and you should absolutely not use powders, pastes or a toothbrush.

The following will come to help:

Ammonia solution
25% aqueous ammonia solution
Lipstick.

The last method may surprise you. In fact, explaining the effectiveness of lipstick is simple. It contains titanium dioxide, which effectively removes blackness from products. It is enough to apply a little lipstick on a cotton swab and wipe the product. Then carefully polish it.

If you are careless, a drop of iodine may fall on your white gold ring. If this happens, there is no need to be upset. Immerse the ring in a hyposulfite solution for 20-30 minutes. This is a special composition that photographers use; it can be easily purchased in specialized photographic stores.

In general, prevention and proper storage will help preserve its original charm. And you won’t have to think about how to restore the shine to gold and diamonds.

How to wear an emerald ring

Signets and rings are usually worn on the little finger or ring finger. But if the gem is used as a talisman, this rule does not apply.

Depending on what the owner of the stone wants to receive, the finger on which the ring will be placed is selected:

if you lack stamina and eloquence, use your index finger;
in order to become a little more confident in matters of the heart - on the nameless;
for protection from various misfortunes and troubles - on medium;
to strengthen the cardiovascular system - on the little finger.

Proper storage will make care easier!

Proper storage of gold and diamonds is a whole science. And if you want to wear them, you must master it perfectly:

You should not leave jewelry in the bathroom; high humidity has a negative effect.
Products must be stored in a dry, dark place, reliably protected from direct sunlight.
Pearl products must be distinguished from other jewelry.
It is advisable to use closed boxes and containers that protect from dust.

Yellow gold diamond ring, SL;
white gold diamond ring, SL; rose gold diamond ring, SL; (price at the link) If you follow these simple rules, you can be sure that you will have to clean gold and diamonds much less often. The following is also important:

Never attempt to clean gold with abrasive materials.
Do not use untested methods. Remember, chemicals can be destructive to stone.
It is strictly forbidden to use hot water or blow-dry diamonds.
Even if you can clean gold and diamonds at home, you need to show your jewelry to a jeweler once every six months. He will check them for scratches and damage, remove dirt and germs with an ultrasonic bath, and, if necessary, strengthen or polish them.
If we are used to cleaning silver jewelry with soda, then it will not work for gold and diamonds. They will lose their shine and become dull.
Hydrogen peroxide, potassium permanganate, and vinegar oxidize gold and contribute to the cloudiness of the diamond.
Bleach discolors gold.
Household detergents and cleaners contain a high percentage of alkalis, which have adverse effects.

Treat precious jewelry with care, study the list of prohibited cleaning products so as not to spoil the noble shine of the precious stone and keep the jewelry in impeccable order.

Remember that only systematic care can guarantee the mesmerizing shine of diamonds. And the plaque accumulated over the years can only be removed by re-cutting.

How to identify a quality emerald

The main indicators of the quality of any gemstone are:

Despite the fact that it is almost impossible to find a perfect emerald in nature (which is due to the methods of extracting the stones), the purity indicator is important when assessing the value of the mineral, although it is not the main thing. The thing is that the value of a muddy stone is several times lower. For example, if you take several different emeralds in size, color and density, the most valuable will be the one with the highest level of transparency. You can determine the purity of a stone visually; for this it is not necessary to use various magnifying devices.

And although emeralds of ideal purity are practically never found in nature. But there are specimens in which visual defects create a unique pattern on the surface of the stone, thanks to which the price of the gem increases significantly and exceeds the cost of even the purest emeralds. In addition, the presence of visual defects in gems is confirmation that the stone is genuine.

The color range is quite wide as for natural stone. It's not just all kinds of shades of green. Depending on the deposit of the gem, it is possible that there may be a secondary color - for example, yellow or blue shades. Secondary coloring directly affects the overall color of the stone as a whole. The most flawless color is considered to be deep green, but consumer demand for emeralds of different shades may change based on changing fashion trends.

The determining indicators of color depth are the saturation and tone of the stone. If a stone has a grayish color, it is considered shallowly saturated and has no interest in jewelry, but is popular among collectors. But jewelers consider dark minerals, almost black in color, to be the most valuable, but these are extremely rare. Therefore, emeralds with saturation, which provides the stone with a traditional green color, are considered the most sought-after.

The determining indicator of the cost of stones is the quality of cutting and polishing. The latter allows you to improve the natural characteristics of the emerald, highlighting its noble radiance and beauty.

An important indicator of quality is its weight. Weight determines the number of carats in a stone (0.2 g equals 1 carat), and carats determine the value of the gem.

Small emeralds are up to 0.49 carats in size, medium ones are from 50 to 1 carat, large ones are stones up to 10 carats. More than 10 carats are very large stones. The price of which can reach several million dollars.

Also, when choosing emeralds, pay attention to the density of the stones. It may vary depending on the deposit. For Colombia and Siberia this figure is 2.72 g/cm³, for Africa – 2.77 g/cm³, for Brazil – 2.67 g/cm³. This situation is observed due to the fact that the density of the stone is affected by the presence of the metals rubidium and cesium in its structure.

GoldPrice employs professional gemologists. All products presented on the site have undergone high-quality testing and examination (both the stones themselves and the jewelry), which completely eliminates the risk of purchasing a fake.