Any piece of jewellery is expensive; be it gold or silver. Jewellery items, especially in India, are an investment for most families. As such, it is important to take care of your jewellery items to ensure that they don’t lose their shine or worse yet, get damaged in any way.
How to clean your jewellery is a vital question and you’ll find a lot of hacks and ideas on the internet. But, do they work? While some may do, others might be unreliable. So, instead of taking unnecessary risks, it is best to start with basic jewellery care tips or better yet ask your jeweller what is the ideal way to maintain your jewellery to have a professional opinion.
Taking care of your kids gold/silver ornaments right from the beginning can not only increase their durability, but also save you a large sum of money that would be required to restore them. Most importantly, when it comes to gold jewellery items for kids, it is of utmost importance to ensure they are beyond reproach so that they cause no harm to your child .
Tips to Care For Your Kids Jewellery
Here’s a list of some effective yet basic jewellery maintenance tips that can help preserve your jewellery from damage.
1. Keep it away from sunlight:
Tarnishing is something you need to save your jewellery from. Direct exposure to sunlight for a longer period can make your jewellery look washed out. High humidity can also cause the jewellery to lose its shine. Hence, to increase longevity, storing jewellery in a cool, dark place – after use – is important.
2. Store them carefully:
One of the common jewellery care instructions is to store your jewellery items separately in a storage box to prevent exposure to dirt, chemicals, etc. Keeping or throwing your jewellery on a dressing table can lead to accidental damages and/or scratches. To this end, a storage box is an ideal option, which will help you preserve your jewellery, protecting it from harm. You can also use Zip-lock bags to store your jewellery as they ensure the polish of the jewellery doesn’t wear-out due to oxidisation.
3. Remove jewellery before sleeping:
Before sleeping, make sure to remove your jewellery. Follow the rule ‘wear it last, take it out first.’ Also, while it is okay for adults to sleep with small jewellery items such as rings and chains; for infants, it can be a cause for concern as chains, especially, can get entangled and cause harm. Also, sleeping while wearing your ornaments can bend or break them. Thus, to avoid this, it is recommended that both adults and kids remove their jewellery before sleeping.
4. Keep them away from beauty products:
Did you know that personal care products can ruin your jewellery pieces? That’s right! Be it skincare products or perfumes, you need to keep them away from your jewellery items. Few jewellery care tips here would be to apply your make-up before you wear your jewellery; this also applies to hair spray and lotions. Gems are also extremely sensitive to oils and other chemicals that might be present in these products, which can lead to tarnishing.
5. Make sure to clean them every 6 months:
Cleaning your jewellery as soon as you remove them is a top jewellery care tip. That said, it is advised to get your jewellery cleaned by a professional twice a year and check if it needs any polishing or other requirements. Jewellers have a unique gold paper to polish gold jewellery, which can make your jewellery as good as new. Professional cleaning also ensures that simple wear & tear are fixed post-haste, which limits the risk of major damage and helps improve longevity.
6. Keep gold and silver jewellery apart:
Another critical jewellery care tip that you must follow; always store your gold, silver, diamonds and pearls jewellery items separately. While diamonds can scratch gold items since gold is a malleable metal, pearl jewellery can get entangled with other items and lead to breakage. Likewise, storing silver jewellery with fake jewellery items could lead to tarnishing. Thus, make sure to separate your varied jewellery items based on the metal type to prevent any mishap.
7. Clean them with a damp cloth to keep their shine:
As mentioned above, cleaning your jewellery once you remove it is a must as a lot of times dust, grime and sweat gets accumulated in them. If left uncleaned, this could lead to a build-up which could make cleaning them later difficult and would require professional help. Also, the accumulation of dust, grime and sweat can damage your jewellery over time. Thus, always make use of a clean damp cloth to gently wipe your jewellery after you remove them. Just ensure that the cloth is not too moist as not all ornaments react well to water and can be damaged easily.
8. Do not use harsh chemicals:
There are specific chemicals available in the market to get your jewellery cleaned, but if you are not familiar with these avoid using them. Harsh chemicals can have an unfavourable effect on the jewellery such as discolouration or it can blacken your gems. Hence, it is best to use cleaning supplies suggested by your jeweller or make some home-made DIYs (Do It Yourself). You can also use baby shampoo to clean your kid’s jewellery as kids products are mostly chemical-free.
9. Get it checked with your local jeweller:
When it comes to wear and tear of your jewellery, ensure that you get it checked with your local jeweller immediately. People make the mistake of visiting the jeweller only when their ornaments are on the verge of getting damaged. This makes it difficult even for the jewellers to restore damaged goods. Also, even though they might salvage a jewellery piece from total damage, it won’t be as good as new. Thus, make it mandatory to get your jewellery checked by your jeweller at least once a year.
Jewellery Care Tips: Other Things to Consider
- Remember to remove your jewellery before bathing, washing dishes (rings) and/or before dipping into the pool.
- Remove your kid’s jewellery before bedtime as it might hurt them if the jewellery has sharp edges.
- Put on jewellery after putting on make-up and/or after using a hair spray.
- Make sure to wipe your hands before removing, putting on and storing your jewellery.
- Do not put pressure or force while removing your chain as it can break or bend.
- Store your pearls in a flat position and don’t store them in a dry environment as pearls need moisture or else they’ll crack.
#Conclusion
Jewellery maintenance can be a task if you are no aware of the dos and don’ts. Above were just a few jewellery care tips that’ll help you to take optimal care of your kid’s jewellery and your jewellery as well.
Following the jewellery care instructions will prevent any type of allergic reaction, thus protecting your kids from harm. It will also ensure that any wear and tear is taken care of at the earliest possible, thereby preventing any major damage that can’t be easily restored.
As a jewellery brand that specialises in customised kids jewellery, we at Doodles ensure that our jewellery is crafted with high-quality materials that offer greater safety as well as durability. Thus, check out these top kids jewellery gift ideas and make a purchase today.
