Summer is here and with it comes all of our favorite warm weather activities. While you may love splashing in the pool or lounging in the sand at the beach, your jewelry doesn’t fare as well. Many summer activities can actually be detrimental to your fine jewelry. To help keep your jewelry safe and maintain its sparkle, we’ve compiled a list of summer jewelry care tips:
- Remove your jewelry before going into the water. The chlorine in pools and hot tubs can damage many types of fine jewelry. It can cause metals like gold, silver, and platinum to become discolored and can erode the finish and polish on many gemstones. Salt water can have a similar effect. Natural hot springs can also cause damage to jewelry, especially silver, which can turn black in mere seconds.
- Don’t wear your rings in cold water. The cold temperature can cause your fingers to temporarily shrink, making your rings fit more loosely and making it more likely for your rings to slip off your fingers.
- Don’t wear your watch in the water unless it is truly waterproof. Waterproof and water resistant are not the same thing.
- While sunscreen protects your skin while out in the sun, it’s not so friendly to your jewelry. Sunscreen, lotions, and bug sprays can all form a film on your jewelry, making it look dull. Protect your jewelry by removing it before applying these products.
- If you’re headed to the beach, leave your jewelry at home. The sand can scratch your gemstones, wear the shine off of metals, or get lodged in the settings and loosen them. Also, if your jewelry slips off in the sand, the odds of finding it are extremely low.
- Leave your bling at home if you’re taking part in active sports, such rock climbing, river rafting, or even summer sports like volleyball or softball. Jewelry can become lost, stones can be scratched or knocked loose, and sweat can tarnish or damage metals and stones.
- Don’t wear your jewelry while gardening. Rocks or gardening tools can damage your jewelry, scratching them or causing gems to come loose.
- If travel is included in your summer plans, be sure to pack your jewelry in your carry-on bag and take advantage of the in-room hotel safe. Also, be sure your jewelry is sufficiently insured before takeoff.
- To keep your jewelry looking its best, clean it regularly with a soft, clean cloth and store it in individual soft pouches or a lined jewelry box. At the end of the season, take your jewelry to a reputable jeweler, like The Diamond World, for a professional cleaning and inspection.
