Why Maintenance On Your Jewelry Is So Important

One of the great joys for any jewelry lover is growing their collection adding new, special, and unique pieces that continually increase the versatility and beauty of their wardrobe of accessories. There is a downside however and that is, as the collection grows, so do the jewelry care requirements you really should engage in.

If you have a wide range of fine jewelry in your jewelry box, then you need to know just how important it is to put the effort into looking after everything. From necklaces to gemstones to pendants to diamond rings to all the different kinds of precious metal, all types of jewelry require special and varied types of regular maintenance to keep them in perfect condition.

It isn’t as simple as wearing a piece of jewelry one day and then throwing it back in a box until the next time you want to put it on again. Each piece of jewelry requires special care and attention to retain its most valuable and attractive qualities.

With all of this in mind, here is some information about the importance of the various kinds of maintenance that you can do or your jeweler can perform for you on request.

Jewelry Inspection

It’s easy to make the mistake of not thinking to get rings and other jewelry inspected until you notice something is wrong but gradual everyday wear and tear is inevitable. The most susceptible part of a ring in particular is its prongs, which are designed to hold the gemstones in place on the band setting. Prongs are very prone to get snagged on clothing and bumped which can make them loosen or bend out of shape over time which may also result in a lost stone.

Ultimately, replacing gems is a much more expensive task than having a jeweler repair a faulty prong, but this isn’t something that you can always see with the naked eye. The general advice is that you should have your fine jewelry inspected at least once every six months to ensure it keeps its condition.

Jewelry Cleaning

Though there are plenty of great products and tools to help you clean your jewelry at home, a lot of fine jewelry in particular is much better suited to professional cleaning.

Something particularly precious like an engagement ring or a wedding ring deserves to be treated with special care and attention. They deserve the attention and care that a professional cleaning job can give. Other valuable and expensive items like family heirloom pieces are also good candidates for professional cleaning to ensure that you don’t make silly mistakes with harsh home cleaning products.

Jewelry Repair

Whilst jewelry maintenance and inspection is the most important thing to do, you will inevitably need to enlist help for some kind of jewelry repair over time.

As soon as you notice a problem with any of your pieces of jewelry that needs more than just a cleaning, you should be packaging it in a safe, protective way and get it to a jeweler as soon as possible. Even if the problem is relatively small and only requires a small fix, it will be better to fix it now rather than wait for the issue to become a larger repair job in the future.

You can also schedule an appointment with Moyen & Co. to get your jewelry repaired by our team of model makers, bench jewelers, stone setters, and master craftsmen.

What Can You Do At Home?

Alongside all of the above-mentioned maintenance tasks that can be performed by a professional in a jewelry store, there are some actions to take at home to avoid the need for repair services.

This can be broken down into two main responsibilities:

Safe And Sensible Storage

Jewelry needs to be stored properly to stay in its best condition. Things like velvet-lined boxes and keeping soft gold separated from harder metals like sterling silver are essential because it prevents the pieces from rubbing together and getting scratched.

Pick a dark, dry spot to store your jewelry collection, because direct sunlight and moisture are a combination that can cause items to tarnish which will have to be rectified with professional jewelry maintenance.

Gentle Cleaning

We have already stated that professional cleaning is the best thing for most pieces of fine jewelry, but you can perform a gentle cleaning at home to maintain your jewelry for a longer time. 

However, Moyen & Co. knows that jewelry is precious and for many, each piece can hold sentimental value as well as intrinsic monetary value. If you have jewelry you're looking to repair, appraise, or redesign, bring it in so our team of model makers, bench jewelers, stone setters, and master craftsmen can carefully consider what your needs are. Click here for a full list of our jewelry services and to make an appointment today!