Your jewelry is an important investment, and it retains its appearance and value longer if it is properly cared for. Here are some tips to ensure the long life of your gems.

How to Clean Gold Jewelry

Gold is tarnish-resistant, although it can get smudged and grimy. Lotions, powders, soaps, even natural skin oils can cover your jewelry and cut down on its brilliance. Jewelry cleaning removes this residue and restores the original luster of your jewelry.

Even though many commercial products are available to clean gold jewelry, a basic solution of detergent and water goes a long way to restore the radiance of gold, and a soft brush helps to gently clean intricate filigree designs and stones. Every now and again it can be helpful to soak the gold jewelry in a mixure of 1 portion ammonia and 6 parts water for about a minute. Make sure to dry and polish your gold jewelry with a soft cloth or chamois afterwards.

Professional jewelry polishing cloths are an efficacious and inexpensive way of keeping your gold collection glittering and radiant. These treated cotton cloths help to dislodge tarnish and to buff jewelry to a brilliant shine.

Never wear jewelry in the swimming pool or while doing chores. Though gold is said to be non-reactive, the fact is that contact with chemicals such as chlorine in pools or household cleaners will discolor or even damage your gold jewelry mountings.

When you are not wearing your jewelry, proper storage is essential. Be careful that pieces don't tumble together in a crowded jewel box if you want to avoid scratching and loss of radiance. Ideally, store your jewelry in a fabric-lined jewel case, or even a compartmentalized box so that every piece of jewelry resides in an individual soft cloth pouch. In damp climates, storing jewelry in small resealable plastic bags can extend intervals between cleaning, especially for silver.

It's important to check the stone settings of your jewelry sometimes for any damage to the bezels or prongs. Immersing the jewelry in rubbing alcohol for a couple seconds will restore the gorgeous sparkle to cloudy stones. It's critical to dry the jewelry thoroughly after cleaning prior to wearing or even storing. Pave set (glued in stones) jewelry should never be soaked in water while cleaning gold jewelry, as these glues, especially those used in older jewelry, are often not waterproof.

Special Gems

Diamonds, sapphires and rubies are relatively hard, though the later two can still sustain scratches. However, pearls, emeralds and opals are softer and need a gentler touch. Emeralds and opals contain water in their matrix and may crack if they are allowed to dry out. Regular application of cod liver oil from the drugstore every few months is recommended by antique jewely dealers. Pearls should be worn frequently to expose them to skin oils. If they dry out, their luster will diminish, so don't clean them with alcohol or detergents . Avoid exposing pearls to vinegar and other acids, as they will dissolve. To clean pearls, simply wipe them with a soft damp cloth.

Ultasonic Jewelry Cleaners

Do not use them on pearls and opals -- they will be damaged.

Silver Cleaner

Line a broad flat dish with tinfoil, then place your silver jewelry in the dish spaced out so they pieces do not touch. Mix together 4 cups of hot water with 4 tablespoons of baking soda. Pour this over the silver and leave for a few minutes until tarnish is dissoved, then rinse and polish with a soft cloth.


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Costume jewelry is often created with non-precious metals, usually gold or silver plated, and with or without beads and stones. Costume jewelry has been extremely popular around the world for thousands of years. The Ancient Egyptians are known to have worn decorative beaded necklaces and Cleopatra is probably one of the original wearers of what we now call costume jewelry. In more recent times the people of the Germanic and Slovak regions became highly skilled at developing intricate patterns in glass beads. However, beadwork used in costume jewelry is not only limited to glass.

A large variety of materials are traditionally used to make beads such as jet, wood, amber, gemstones, pottery, ceramic, metals, horn, coral, ivory, tortoiseshell and pearls. Some modern materials such as plastics, nylon and even polycarbonate variants are also used to make beads. Costume jewelry can be antique, period, or contemporary and there are many collectors of every style of costume jewelry. Venetian glass pieces of costume jewelry are particularly collectable as well as being extremely popular for people to wear.

Cleaning costume jewelry is extremely simple but needs to be done on a regular basis to prevent tarnishing. Simply use a mild detergent mixed in water to keep your costume jewelry in good condition. It is important not to soak the jewelry and to make sure that you dry it thoroughly before storing it. You can buy anti-tarnish paper for wrapping your costume jewelry in before you put it away for long periods of time but regular cleaning is the best defense against tarnishing. The tarnishing of costume jewelry is typically caused by the metal reacting with the atmosphere and oxidizing.

Unfortunately, there are a large number of people who are unable to wear costume jewelry next to their skin. This is because of their sensitivity to the metals used. It is important to make sure that anyone that you are buying the jewelry for is not allergic to nickel or copper, especially with pierced earrings. Costume jewelry may look beautiful and, especially in the case of contemporary pieces, be reasonably priced but it is not suitable for everyone to wear. For many people a piece of costume jewelry may be the first jewelry that they have worn and it is important to look out for signs of a reaction, especially after extended periods of wear. Often people will not show a reaction if they wear the jewelry for a short amount of time and this can be an ideal way to avoid any possible discomfort. You can also buy a special coating that you apply to the back of the costume jewelry to protect the skin from having direct contact with the metal.

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People have enjoyed jewelry throughout history. It has been given as gifts and as a symbol of relationships. It is not only a beautiful accessory, it helps identify a person. Jewelry can be a very expensive investment so making a wise decision on your jewelry purchase is important to make sure the jewelry is of a good quality and (most importantly) that the recipient is happy.

How to select diamonds

When you're selecting diamonds there are four things that diamonds are measured on. These are called the 4 C's of diamonds:

Cut. This refers to the shape of the diamond, which will determine how much it sparkles when the light hits it.
Carat. This is how big the diamond is.
Clarity. This measures how clear the diamond is. That is, if it has flaws (called inclusions) or not.
Color. This is the measurement of how white or yellow a diamond is.

Caring for your jewelry

Taking care of your jewelry is just as important as the decisions you made when you went to purchase it. For example, be sure to keep it clean as dirt will gouge the jewelry. Clean it very carefully with a soft cloth, or get it professionally cleaned at a jewelry store. Having clean jewelry is very important for its longevity but also, since jewelry is often worn on some of the most sensitive parts of the body, dirty jewelry can cause irritation.

Keeping your jewelry safe

Store your jewelry in a safe place. For example, you may want to buy a safe, or utilize a hidden safe which looks like a household product (like a soda can or a jar of cleaner) but has a secret compartment which thieves might not be likely to look in. Or, if you are jewelry is highly valued, you may want to even keep it in a security box at a bank.

Jewelry is an important investment in style and in your relationship! Buying jewelry wisely and keeping it clean and well maintained will help it hold its beauty and value for your lifetime and allow it to be a legacy to your children.

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Antique jewelry is a timeless classic adornment which can never go out of fashion. It is the epitome of ethereal charm, delicate grace and a gentle reminder of a bygone era. It is that jewelry which has been made during and before the early 1900's.

The jewelry has its own unique character which cannot be copied or imitated. In most cases antique jewelry is handcrafted. It has exquisite craftsmanship and a very special whimsical aura surrounding it, which sets it apart from all other jewelry, however beautiful or expensive they maybe. There is an understated classic elegance inherent in the design and styling. Though widely looked upon as being something worn by only those who are older; perceptions are gradually changing. It is now also seen as a very fashionable ornament which is quite in vogue and is worn by almost anyone, irrespective of their age group.

This kind of jewelry is not available in just any departmental store or some other normal jewelry shop, it can most often be found in niche show rooms, exclusive boutiques, and big auction houses and in antique dealer stores. These are the more reliable places from where you can acquire antique jewelry. Though there are many websites online and other shops which sell this kind of jewelry; it is best to be cautious. The reason being that in many cases the antique jewelry being sold is not actually an original . Also you could charged an exorbitant price for a piece which is not actually that expensive. Unless you have a trained eye and know the difference, it is easy to be fooled.

In many cases antique jewelry has also been handed down from one generation to another and is a part of the family heirlooms. Some antique jewelry can actually be quite expensive and a real collectors item.

Just a simple piece of antique jewelry can greatly enhance your over all appearance, add to your appeal and lend a sophisticated charm to your entire persona. Being the beautiful pieces that they are, this jewelry can easily attract attention and can become the focal point of any conversation. However not every one can carry off antique jewelry, you have to have a certain inner beauty and dignity to wear it.

One of the best things about antique jewelry is that its value only appreciates with time. In fact some of the pieces are valuable collector's item and can fetch huge sums of money. They can in the long run, actually prove to be good investments.

Antique jewelry is a wonderful thing to buy for yourself, a delightful possession and also a great thing to gift to some one special in your life. Whether it is your daughter, mother, wife, girlfriend or sister; antique jewelry is that gift which lets the other person know how much they mean to you. Also this jewelry is not just restricted to women; there are beautiful intricate pieces which are there for men too

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Since ancient times body jewelry has been a part of the culture and heritage of different religions. It has been known to be an essential part of the clothing and appearance of the people in many regions of the world. At different parts of time through the centuries it was also used to signify the class demarcations prevalent in society at that point of time.

How ever in recent times it has acquired a new dimension. Body jewelry has never been in such high demand. The human body is not merely a body, it is a piece of art which has its own innate beauty and body jewelry is the perfect way to enhance the beauty of your body. Not only can you decorate your body with it, but you can also use it to bring into focus certain parts of your body or to enhance the beauty of certain parts.

Body jewelry items are usually for particular places on the human body. These more common places for body jewelry include the nose, eyebrow, nipple, ear lobes and naval, along with ear plugs (both curved and straight barbells). As fashion trends keep changing, the various parts where you can use body jewelry and the manner in which you can use it also keeps changing.

Nose body jewelry comes either in the classic captive circular barbell, or in the form of a nose screw. The nose screw can either be jeweled or plain, depending upon your preference. Eyebrow body jewelry is similar to that of the nose, in the sense that the eyebrow body jewelry also has the small captive barbell. This is now being made with a dangling, sparkling charm to hang from the upper most part of your eyebrow barbell. The eyebrow body jewelry can be either curved or straight with a charm of any style or color dangling from the top.

Nipple and naval body jewelry is one of the more popular types of body jewelry, it sis especially popular amongst the youth or the more adventurous in spirit. Nipple body jewelry includes the nipple barbells and the nipple shields. Naval body jewelry designs are also endless.

Whatever kind of body jewelry you use or wear it is important to keep some pointers in mind. Such as what kind of material is that specific body jewelry made off, is your skin allergic to it and is the piercing for the body jewelry done in a sterile and antiseptic environment.

This kind of jewelry is available for almost every conceivable part of your body. There are endless styles, designs, colors and textures in which body jewelry is made. What ever your budget, whether it is low end or high end; body jewelry is available in every range to suit your pocket as well as your tastes.

Body jewelry is not merely a decorative fixture; it is also a personal style statement. You can use it to bring attention or to take away attention from a specific part of your body. It is quite in vogue these days and has been in existence since time immemorial. If you have the attitude and the panache you can carry of any kind of body jewelry.

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Sterling Silver & 14kt Gold:
Both will tend to tarnish over time.
-Store all precious metal jewelry in a zip lock bag to protect it. This does not stop the discoloration, but will drastically slow the process.
-Use a polishing cloth as needed for cleaning your jewelry.

Jewelry with semi-precious stones and crystals:
-Store all jewelry with semi-precious stones and crystals in a zip lock bag to protect it.
-Check the instructions on your jewelry cleaning solution prior to placing any items with stones in it to be cleaned. Some stones, such as turquoise, and freshwater pearls cannot be placed in most jewelry cleaning solutions.
-Do not wear your jewelry when you are showering or washing dishes.
-Use caution when wearing lotions and perfumes, for they will discolor gems such as turquoise.

Pearls: Special care should be taken with pearls. They are much more fragile than most gemstones.
-Use caution when using hairspray and perfumes. Let dry completely before donning your pearls.
-Cleaning pearl jewelry: wipe with a clean dry soft cloth after wearing them.

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