Caring  for your Jewelry   Care of  Gemstones top • Keep your jewelry free of dirt, cosmetics, hair spray, perfume, and perspiration. Avoid salt water and harsh chemicals such as chlorine or detergents that can harm gold and gemstones. • After wearing, wipe your jewelry with a clean, soft, damp cloth. This will enhance the luster and assure that your jewelry is clean before being stored. • Store your jewelry in a soft pouch or felt lined box.   Care of  Diamonds top • Do not wear your diamond ring when you’re doing rough work. Even though a diamond is durable, a strong blow can still chip it. • Don't let your diamond come in contact with a chlorine bleach when you're doing household chores. It can damage and discolor the mounting. • Do have your ring checked and cleaned at least once a year. In between, you can keep your diamond clean by lightly brushing it with an old toothbrush in a bowl of warm, sudsy water. Rinse thoroughly and pat dry with a soft cloth. • Store your diamond jewelry separately because diamonds can scratch other jewelry or each other. • The packing of your diamonds and other precious pieces for travel should be given care. There are many types of carryalls, especially designed for jewelry travel, available in all price ranges. They come in all sizes, shapes and patterns. Most have velvet pads inside to attach pins and earrings, and special compartments for bracelets and necklaces. • Don't leave your ring on the rim of a sink when you remove it to wash your hands. It can easily slip down the drain. Care of  Cultured Pearls top • Put your pearls on after applying cosmetics, hair spray or perfume, and never wear your pearls while bathing, swimming, or while working with chemicals. All of these substances will damage the luster of your pearls. • Use a clean, soft, dry cloth to wipe your pearls after your wear them. • Ordinary wear and air pollution will weaken the threads on which pearls are strung. Have your pearls checked annually. Care of  Gemstone Jewelry top • Do wipe your precious gemstone jewelry thoroughly with a clean, soft, damp cloth after wearing. This will enhance the patina and assure that your jewelry is clean before being stored. Store in a soft pouch when not being worn. • Don't expose your precious gemstone pieces to salt water or harsh chemicals, such as chlorine or detergents. These chemicals may slowly erode the finish and polish of gems. Use of hair spray, perfume and the presence of perspiration may cause jewelry to dull. Also, do not subject gemstone jewelry to sudden temperature changes. Care of  Opaque Stone Jewelry top • Stones such as lapis, turquoise, coral, onyx and malachite are sometimes treated with dye to enhance natural color or luster. Although this dye is generally colorfast, it may run upon contact with hair spray, perfume, perspiration or chemicals. • Never wear these stones while bathing, swimming, or while working with chemicals or detergents, as they may ruin the finish of the stones. Care of  More Fragile Gemstone Jewelry top •Opals, emeralds and tanzanite require more care than other gemstones. • Avoid cleaning solutions, perfume and hair spray while wearing them. • Never use commercial cleaning solutions to clean them. Use only a soft cloth and lukewarm water. • Don't boil or use hot water for cleaning. • Store your opal and emerald jewelry in cotton, never plastic. • Never store these gemstones with other jewelry, as they are easily cracked and scratched. • Never wear your opal jewelry in very cold weather, while washing dishes, or handling frozen foods. Extreme temperature variations may cause cracking. Care of  Gold Jewelry top • Remove all jewelry before showering, swimming, or house cleaning. Soap can leave a film on your jewelry making it appear dull and dingy. Chemicals such as chlorine or cleaning solutions can damage fine gold. • For light cleaning of your gold jewelry, use a soft cloth with liquid detergent and lukewarm water. • Grease can be removed by dipping your gold jewelry into plain rubbing alcohol. • Protect your gold jewelry from scratching by using pouches or a compartmentalized jewelry box.   Care of  Sterling Silver Jewelry top • Don't expose to air and light when storing because it will cause silver to tarnish. And, don't wear sterling silver in chlorine water. • For basic touchup polishing, use a polishing cloth or piece of felt. Other materials will scratch the silver. • Store your jewelry in a cool, dry place individually wrapped in a soft pouch or cloth. If you are not sure on how to care for a specific piece of jewelry, contact a professional Jeweler. And remember to have all your jewelry checked on a regular basis for chips, broken catches, loose mountings, etc.