Silver jewellery needs special care to keep shining!

Whether you’ve just begun your silver jewellery journey or already have an established collection, keeping your pieces looking their best requires careful consideration. If you’ve ever wondered why silver jewellery tarnishes, it all comes down to what they’re made of. Silver on its own is often too soft to work into a piece of jewellery, which is why it’s usually used in an alloy form known as sterling silver. Commonly referred to as 925, sterling silver is an alloy that contains 92.5% pure silver with other metals such as copper to provide durability. Our silver collections are also more resistant thanks to 3-micron thickness Rhodium plated finish which is applied to all Leyla Rose and Mr Gregory silver jewellery. However, depending on usage, the plating will wear off and the silver will still eventually tarnish over time.

Thankfully, at Gregory Jewellers, we have developed a care guide to help you preserve the appearance and longevity of your silver jewellery. Here are some of the easiest ways to care for your pieces that will help maintain their shine for years to come.

Courtesy of Leyla Rose and Clementine McVeigh

What is the best way to properly store your jewellery?

Caring for silver jewellery begins with finding a proper place to store the pieces whenever they aren’t being worn. Quite often, people will leave their jewellery on dressers or packed in boxes with other pieces. This increases the chances of the silver reacting with contaminants, causing tarnishing to occur quickly. The best way to store silver jewellery is to avoid air and exposure to moisture.  

Top tips to help with this include:

• Store your pieces in the original packaging whenever it’s not being worn
• Remove your jewellery when bathing, showering and swimming
• Remove your jewellery when sleeping
• Keeping them separated will prevent scratches.
• Keep your pieces away from chemically treated surfaces.

Ultimately, to prevent tarnishing as much as possible, we recommend storing your silver jewellery in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight.

Courtesy of Gregory Jewellers

Tips for cleaning sterling silver jewellery:

Regularly cleaning your silver jewellery pieces will go a long way in keeping them lustrous. At the first sign of tarnish, rubbing it down with a soft cloth is usually enough to rectify the problem. However, if it still hasn’t been removed, don’t worry, there are several other methods for cleaning your pieces:

Method 1: Warm Water with Soap
Using regular dishwater liquid and water is an at-home remedy that is often enough for most pieces of plain silver jewellery.

1. Soak your pieces in a mixture of warm water and mild detergent.
2. Leave them for a few minutes.
3. Remove items and rinse with warm water.
4. Dry with a soft cloth.

Method 2: Using a Polishing Cloth or Mitt
Recommended to natural silver or when Rhodium plating has worn off completely. Silver polishing cloths and mitts are usually made from soft cotton and treated with anti-tarnish ingredients. Simply rub the silver gently to remove any blemishes and restore the metal’s shine while providing longer protection against stains. Take care to avoid any stones or other features on your pieces. We recommend not washing these cloths and mitts after use as the ingredients may fade away.

Method 3: Bring it to Gregory Jewellers
We also welcome you to bring your Gregory Jewellers silver pieces to one of our boutiques, where we offer a quick in store ultra-sonic cleaning service or if you wish to restore to new, a professional cleaning service to ensure they remain beautiful and timeless.

Tips for cleaning cubic zirconia silver jewellery:

Although beautiful like diamonds, Cubic Zirconia is not as hard so they need to be handled with more care. Use a soft brush to gently clean the jewels with warm soapy water to get rid of any dirt on the gem.

We advise cleaning your Cubic Zirconia Jewellery every two to three months to keep it shining. For quick daily cleaning, you can use a microfiber cloth to gently remove any build-up.

Daily tips to prevent silver tarnishing:

Sterling silver tarnishes when exposed to salty air, high humidity, chlorine, bleach and other strong chemicals. To ensure that your jewellery pieces continue to shine as much as possible, we recommend storing them in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight.  Spotting and removing blemishes as soon as possible helps to prevent further damage from spreading to the entire jewellery piece.

Other daily tips to prevent tarnishing include:

• Avoid wearing silver jewellery in environments with moisture and chemicals including, swimming, showering, physical activity and cosmetics.
• Immediately use a soft drying cloth whenever they get wet.
• After removing your jewellery, wipe them down before storing them.

Courtesy of Leyla Rose

Unlike gold, silver jewellery requires special care to ensure it stays looking its best, but the above guide should encourage you to start or continue expanding your shining collection.

If you’re thinking about having silver form the basis of your collection, there’s no better place to look than our Leyla Rose Fine Silver Jewellery at Gregory Jewellers.

With over fifty-five years of experience, we’ll help you choose a piece that will be the perfect addition to your wardrobe.

Be sure to follow Leyla Rose for more silver inspiration.