Southwest Gems Sterling Silver Care and Cleaning Tips

Care & Cleaning & Tips for your Sterling Silver Jewelry

Storage
Sterling silver is a beautiful metal that will last for generations with proper care. Silver tarnishes when exposed to air, so it’s a good idea to keep your silver in airtight zip bags or an airtight container when not in use. This will help to retard the tarnishing process and protect your jewelry from scratching. Your jewelry is sent in an airtight zip bag and you can always use than one and it will work just fine. Remember, your sterling silver jewelry is to be worn and enjoyed and your body oils also help prevent tarnishing.

Care

Always remove your jewelry before using any product that contains bleach, ammonia, alcohol, fingernail polish removers that contain acetone, and turpentine. Some of these can cause a breakdown in the metal alloys leaving the your jewelry beyond repair and dull or even pit the surface of your gemstones.

Cleaning

A silver cloth is the best way to remove tarnish from jewelry. Rub gently and a lengthwise motion and it will also shine the stones.

Excessive tarnish: A non-abrasive brand name liquid or paste silver polish to remove heavy tarnish build-up. Make sure you remove any trace of the polish from gemstones and rinse thoroughly with clean warm water. Make sure that your jewelry is completely dry it before storing it in an airtight zip lock bag or container. Never use toothpaste as it is very abrasive. Avoid ammonia-based dips as they will eventually eat away the finish of the metal and could be harmful to your stones.

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