Jewellery cleaning and maintenance

Sterling silver and amethyst earrings showing serious tarnish on the right hand earring.

Sterling silver tarnishes over time. This is due to a chemical reaction that takes place with the copper that sterling is alloyed with, and the air. Pure silver is too soft to make into jewellery. Sterling is 92.5 percent pure silver and the remaining amount is copper and usually zinc.

This means that over time, the silver will get a dark residue on the surface called tarnish. There are a few ways to deal with this.

One is to buy an anti-tarnish jewellery case or to keep the piece locked away in a small airtight container, like a tiny ziplock bag, or a box within a larger ziplock bag. It will still tarnish but it will take a much longer time. Pieces don’t usually tarnish while you are wearing them because your skin will rub any residue off.

There is a rare situation when people’s skin chemically reacts with silver to tarnish it immediately when they put it on, and I would recommend that these people wear gold or refractive metals like titanium instead of silver, since there isn’t really any way of keeping this chemical reaction from taking place. I went to school with someone who had this issue, and she had the hardest time working with silver because it would tarnish the moment she touched it with her hands.

Another way to prevent tarnish is to have your piece rhodium plated by a jeweller. The plating will slow the tarnish process by a lot. It isn’t possible to do this with every piece, but many silver pieces can be plated with rhodium for a fee, or if you are ordering something custom made you could ask for rhodium plating when it is being constructed. Plating is a very thin layer of metal and will wear off over time, so this works best on earrings and necklaces that aren’t in constant contact with the skin like rings, or pieces that won’t be worn every day.

Once your piece is tarnished there are a few ways to clean it. One option is to buy a silver cleaning dip. This is a chemical solution you can put the whole piece of jewellery into for a few minutes and it will come out tarnish-free. This is especially good for cleaning chains because it gets into the spaces on the inside of the links. Follow the instructions on the container, and wash with soap and water after you remove the piece. You can buy this online, or if you are in Toronto it is sold at Arton Beads. Since this is an immersion product, it should not be used on any piece that has a porous or soft gemstone such as amber, pearl, lapis, turquoise, malachite or opal. You can always research a gemstone to see if it is safe before you dip.

For harder gemstones, like garnet, peridot, amethyst, diamond, sapphire, etc, immersion is fine, but be sure to check first. There may be an issue with some emeralds so I would use caution in that case as well.

Rub-on chemical silver cleaners are fine to use as well, but again, be very careful around gemstones, using the same metric as you would for the silver dip.

Don’t use baking soda or toothpaste, as those will dull the polish of your silver, even if they do remove the tarnish.

Another option is a silver polish cloth, which can be easily ordered online. You can rub your silver pieces with a polish cloth, and it will remove some surface tarnish. These are less effective than chemical cleaners, so it is recommended that you use them more frequently, for maintenance. They are safe to use in pieces with pearls etc, so that is a plus, but they aren’t much use for chains.

For pieces that have soft stones in them, such as those mentioned above, and fine detail that is hard to reach when using a polish cloth, I recommend storing them in a tarnish resistant container, and when they do get tarnished, ask a jeweller to clean them for you. Most jewellers will do this for a small fee.

For gold jewellery, tarnish should not be an issue, but there can be a build-up of dirt over time around gems and in recessed areas, especially with rings.

The best way to clean them at home is to plug the sink so they will not accidentally fall down the drain, and then use a soft toothbrush and warm water with some gentle hand soap to clean the piece. You can use the toothbrush to get into the low areas and underneath the claws of the gem, if there is one, and inside the ring, if there are any recesses. Once you have cleaned it you can rinse it and dry it gently with a soft cloth. This should be safe for any piece as long as you are using a gentle soap without strong scents. Be careful when you are drying the piece not to use a terry cloth towel, because it can get hooked on claws and losen them. Something with a closed weave like a t shirt or dishcloth is better.

Strong chemical scents may damage pearls or opals. If the piece has a gemstone, I also recommend shaking the piece by your ear before you clean it. If you hear rattling, the stone may be loose and I would recommend talking to a jeweller about getting the stone tightened before you clean to prevent the stone from being knocked out.

Jewellery that is worn frequently, especially rings, will also get surface scratches over time from regular wear and tear. For the most part, these can be polished out by a jeweller. So if you would like your piece returned to that new, shiny look it had when you first got it, talk to a local jeweller about polishing. In this case, they will be using professional techniques to remove surface scratches rather than removing tarnish, which is a chemical process.

If you have any questions about jewellery cleaning, or would like to have some pieces cleaned or polished, feel free to contact me at info@handmaderevolution.org