Diamonds are a girl’s best friend. They make you feel special, prized, wanted and not to forget, cost a fortune. It is only fair therefore, that we take good care of our diamonds. A common perception that we have is that a diamond jewelery piece does not need too much care as diamonds are one of the sturdiest gems found. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
While it is technically a rock, its origin is carbon. Carbon is known to repel water but catch dirt and grime, making a good and regular care regimen of diamonds a must. This will ensure that the diamond does not lose its sheen and clarity and shines brilliantly and fierily, just as it is supposed to and lasts you really long. A good care regimen is a must.
Caring for your diamonds – some do’s and don’ts
The most recommended method is regular checkups. Yes, you heard it right. Your diamond jewelery should be regularly inspected and checked by professional jewelers for any possible damage to the stone and the metallic hooks and clasps that hold the diamond in its place. Jewelers recommend the clean up to be done at least once every year. While professional cleaning is definitely the best way to ensure the long life of your diamonds, it makes sense to know the basics of home care.
- Never store your jewelery (diamonds or otherwise) all jumbled up in one box. It is good to have separate soft bag pouches or better still jewelery boxes for storing every single piece separately. Storing the jewelery huddled in one big box, makes it prone to scratches and may tarnish the metal and scratch the stone itself.
- It is good not to wear diamonds when you are using strong chemicals such as bleach, chlorine or dyes as these might react with the metal and may even cover the stone with a film, causing the stone to discolor and lose its shine over prolonged periods of use.
- Remove your rings, neck pieces etc. before applying makeup, hair styling products and perfumes for the reason stated above. It is a good practice to take off your jewelery before sleeping and putting them on only when you are ready to leave and have applied all make up. Makeup, creams, dirt, sweat and grease, when left to build up over time, will result in weakening the setting of the stone and may even cause it to fall off.
Home cleaning remedies
While these are not as good or effective as professional methods of cleaning your gems and jewelery, they are a good way to remove any day to day dust, dirt and grime that is a part of our lives.
- Make a gentle solution of tepid water and a gentle cleansing liquid soap. Soak your jewelery in this solution and use a brush with very soft bristles (a tooth brush would be harsh) to gently clean all visible specs of dirt. Concentrate on the areas that lie closer to your skin (back of the jewelery, metal prongs) as these areas catch maximum dirt. Rinse it in clean tepid water. You could use a soft lint free cloth to wipe the cleaned pieces of any water traces.
- The cleansing liquid soap could also be replaced with ammonia in case the jewelery pieces have not been cleaned for long and are really dirty. Mix 3 parts of water with 1 part of ammonia to make the cleansing solution. Follow the balance instructions as above.
- You could use a wooden tooth pick to gently push away any suspended particles from behind the diamonds. Remember not to use any metallic pins, safety pins etc. as these may end up scratching the stone or the metal which holds the stone.
- It is a good practice to cross check cleansing products available in the market, claiming to be the perfect answer to cleaning jewelery easily in the comforts of your home, with your jeweler. He would be a good judge of the chemicals used to make the product and could guide you to whether or not use the product.
Remember, with regular care of your diamond pieces, they will easily retain the shine that they were once bought with and keep making you feel prized and special!