Gold jewellry can be a real antique when properly taken care of, but how to clean gold jewellery is often a mystery to jewellers themselves. It’s an art you practice, so it’s certainly an art you learn. There are several methods that you can use to clean your precious metal, but it all depends on how your jewellery is made, where it’s from and what it’s made of.
First, you must start at the beginning, before everything, which is cleaning. Place your gold jewelleries in a small glass bowl with warm, soapy water. Allow the items to sit for about 10-minutes, then swish the items around the glass basin. Rinse thoroughly under hot, clean, water and let it dry. Let the items dry thoroughly before putting them away, which is why you have to do this outside. Dry cleaning gold jewellery is not recommended for very old jewelleries as the process can damage the metal.
To clean gold jewelry, you should first know how to clean silver and gold pieces separately. In case you don’t know how, here are a few pointers. Silver jewelleries and gold pieces should first be cleaned using mild soap and warm water. Let them dry completely before putting them aside.
For silver jewellery using a bowl as a cleanser, mix ammonia and salt together to form a lather. Dip your clean fingers into the mixture and rub it into the gold or silver piece until it’s absorbed. Dip the fingers again and rinse them off, then brush out the mixture on the item you’re cleaning. Repeat this process until all of the piece are clean.
For golden pieces of jewellery, you need to keep them away from any acidic substances or liquids to prevent tarnishing. The best way to achieve this is to put the items inside a clean and tidy jeweller’s box or basin. Fill the container with cold water and mix in a pinch of baking soda as well. Once the water has dissolved the baking soda, add a few drops of lemon juice and let it sit for thirty minutes so that the solution will be neutralized.
Then you can transfer the items to your jeweller’s box or basin and fill it again with cold water. If the gold is mostly worn, you need to clean the pieces more frequently but using a different bowl or basin every time won’t hurt the value of your jewelleries. Simply take some soft, dry cotton wool and dip it into the solution you’ve prepared. Dip the piece of jewellery into the solution a few times, shake off the excess water and leave it for a while until all the water is soaked out. Now it’s time to rinse. Dip the piece of jewellery into the bowl of water and rinse with warm water to remove the excess solution, and then gently pat it dry with another soft dry cotton cloth.
Now if you have rusted items, you should clean gold jewelry using a solution of one part vinegar to two parts warm water. For sterling silver items you can use a solution of one part ammonia to three parts water and then rinse. It’s important to get latest price quotes on sterling silver since this is a precious metal and most people find it difficult to get latest prices. Remember to mix the solution according to the package instructions otherwise it could damage your jewelleries.
With your jewelleries cleaned, dry them in a clean, soft cloth and store away in a cool, dry place. This will help protect your investment. Make sure that you follow the package instructions on how to clean gold. These are the simple yet effective ways on how to clean gold so that you can enjoy its beauty for a long time. Try these tips and get latest price quotes for your gold pieces.