JEWELRY CARE

How to care for and protect your jewelry

Delighted with your new jewelry!
We hope you love your jewelry and wear it often! Treat it with love and care, and they'll keep sparkling for you for a long time. Our costume jewelry has a similar look and style as fine jewelry, but without the high cost of solid gold and diamonds. A stunning look made affordable and guilt-free!

A few items are made of sterling silver, but most of our jewelry pieces are made with high-quality brass, carefully selected to balance quality, beauty, and durability. This brass base is then professionally plated and receives an anti-tarnish lacquer coating for protection. We cannot guarantee all our pieces are nickel free as brass may sometimes contain small traces of nickel. Our sterling silver pieces which are of course nickel free.

The rule of thumb
The best advice we can offer: jewelry is the last thing you put on in the morning and the first thing you remove in the evening. To keep your jewelry looking their best, we recommend removing your jewelry when showering, swimming, exercising or when applying perfumes and lotions. For stones, be careful with light and heat. It's best to avoid leaving them out in the sunlight as the color of the stone may change.

That said our pieces hold up amazingly, so an occasional dip in the water is fine. Frequent water exposure however can - over time - affect the durability of the plating. To maintain the shine and longevity of your jewelry, it's important to rinse your pieces with fresh water after a dip in the pool or ocean or a workout, and always pat dry with a microfiber cloth, and store them in a dry place.

Cleaning your jewelry
To keep your jewelry looking its best, we recommend to regularly wipe it with a soft, clean cloth. Store your pieces in a dry place. Avoid abrasive materials that can scratch the surface.

For our sterling silver jewelry, polish it regularly with a (silver) polishing cloth. If you let it go too long without polishing and your sterling silver piece has turned black, dull browny-red or a copper color you can use baking soda and aluminum foil to remove it. Click here for a tutorial. With proper care sterling silver jewelry can last you a lifetime.

If you prefer to use a silver dip cleaner for your sterling silver or silver plated pieces make sure to read the fine print and follow the directions. This product checks all the boxes, but using it is at your own risk.

Can I swim and workout in my jewelry?
To maintain the beauty of your pieces we recommend removing them before showering, swimming or exercising. That said our pieces hold up amazingly, so an occasional dip in the water or wearing them during a workout every now and then is fine. Make sure to rinse with fresh water afterwards and pat dry with a microfiber cloth. We have customers shower with their jewelry on a regular basis without issue. Please know that everyone's skin PH is different, and reacts differently to metals. It is best to avoid contact with water and any oils, lotions, and perfumes to protect the plating and any stones.

What causes silver to tarnish?
Pure silver, like pure gold, does not tarnish. But pure silver is also incredibly soft so it cannot be used for jewelry making. To make it stronger an alloy metal is created by combining pure silver and a small amount of copper and zinc. This alloy with 92.5% silver and 7.5% other metals (typically copper) is called sterling silver.

The addition of copper makes it stronger, but it is also the metal that tarnishes when exposed to sulfur which naturally exists in the air around us. Many day-to-day items such as soaps, perfumes, and foods (eg. onions and eggs) also contain sulfur compounds. Other elements that will react with silver are chlorine, tissue paper (as this often contains acids) and the PH levels of our skin. Some people have silver pieces turn black overnight whereas others can wear it for years without a reaction. And some pieces may tarnish quicker or different than others.

This reaction dulls or discolors silver, but fortunately the corrosion doesn't do any harm and can be cleaned by polishing.

Extend longevity with our jewelry storage box
You can extend the longevity of your jewelry with proper care as explained above and with proper storage. We recommend this little box, as we've found that it simply does the trick best, even for our sterling silver pieces.

How long costume jewelry lasts depends on a number of factors: the way you care for them, your skin composition, how often you wear it, and the air around you. Air causes metal to oxidize, and a storage container keeps the air out as much as possible.

For ultimate protection put your pendants and chains in a small plastic bag first. Make sure the pieces are dry and get rid of as much air as possible before sealing the bag. Then place the plastic bag in our simple storage container. It's a true care-taker and is also perfect for travelling.

TIP: Silica gel packets or a piece of chalk also give added protection.

Additional tip: How to keep delicate chains from tangling
If you have problems with chain necklaces getting tangled, use a straw. Simply thread one end of the chain through the straw, close up the necklace, then store your jewelry items as normal.