It’s spring! The snow is melting, the bird are singing, and the trees are budding.
It’s a time or renewal and refreshment. A time when nature starts over with a clean slate.
It’s also a time for a phenomenon known as Spring Cleaning where we clean up our homes, our cars, our yards of the grime and debris left over from the long winter months.
But there is something that we often overlook in our frenzy to follow Mother Nature’s lead. Something filled with oil, dirt, and grime. Something that we wear against our bodies day after day after day, building up filth that doesn’t every get removed.
Our jewelry!
Jewelry is the #1 item that we overlook when cleaning our spaces and ourselves. Sure, they get the occasional spritz of soap and water if you wear them in the shower, or when washing in the sink. But despite your scrubbing of of your body, your jewelry doesn’t jet the same diligent attention.
This constant cycle of wet-dry wear builds up debris in the nooks and crannies of your favorite accessories. Dead skin cells, oil, sweat, and dust get trapped in between links of chain, in the texture of rings and under the band, or in the settings in pendants.
All of the buildup leads to grey, dull, tarnished jewelry or worse… bacterial!
But, it doesn’t have to stay that way! Cleaning your jewelry is quite easy to do at home. As a matter of fact, I’m going to show you one simple trick to get your favorite accessory clean and sparkling right in your home.
How to spring clean your jewelry at home.
Step 1. Gather your tools.
You will need a couple of things to get your clean again.
- A tooth brush, preferably soft bristled.
- Blue liquid dish soap. I find Dawn works best.
- Warm water for rinsing.
- A soft cloth for drying.
- And Anti-tarnish cloth for stubborn tarnish (optional)
Step 2. Remove your jewelry and inspect it.
If you are wearing your jewelry, make sure to take it off and inspect it in a well lit room. Pay attention to the nooks and crannies of eat piece. Do they look duller than the rest? Does it look like there is debris hiding in there? This is what we will be removing.
Step 3. Suds and gently scrub.
At the sink or in your water dish wet down your jewelry and tooth brush in warm water. Apply a couple drops of the dish soap to your toothbrush and then gently scrub your jewelry.
Make sure you get into the crevices where debris and dead skin cells collect.
You want to work up a nice lather over the entire piece to ensure you remove all the oil and accumulated grime. Scrub the entire length of chains, the back of pendants, and the inner band of rings.
Step 4. Rinse and repeat.
Once you have thoroughly scrubbed every inch of your jewelry and developed a nice lather, it’s time to rinse it.
Run each piece under warm water at the sink (being careful not to drop them down your drain) or swish them around in a bowl of warm water to remove the soap. If using the bowl method you may need to change the water a few times to ensure all the soap is removed.
Once rinsed, inspect your jewelry again. Is there any areas that you might have missed, or are stubbornly still dirty?
Give them another scrub and rinse to ensure all the grit is gone. Repeat as much as necessary until your jewelry is clean.
Step 5. Dry.
Take a soft cloth or towel and dry your jewelry thoroughly. Make sure that no trace of moisture remains on easily tarnished metals like sterling silver of copper. If necessary, place your pieces in a sunny window on a soft cloth for an hour or two to air dry.
Once completely dry, your jewelry is ready to be enjoyed again!
Have questions about cleaning your jewelry?
Click here to send me your questions and I will get back to you as soon as possible!