Whether you inherited some jewelry, received a piece as a gift or purchased a item for yourself, the world of jewelry can be a little confusing. Where should you look to find quality information about this time-honored craft? This article will address a few useful tidbits about jewelry to help you be a better educated consumer.
Be cautious of storing all of your pieces of jewelry together. You can protect your jeweled investments with hooks, boxes and holders that keep each piece intact and prevent tangles. Resist the urge to jumble all your pieces together in one box or basket. This not only harms the fragile pieces, but it can also cause items, such as necklaces, to get badly tangled up with the other pieces of jewelry.
Use a polishing cloth to keep your jewelry pieces. This is a very easy way to make them shine and not have to use any chemical cleansers or solvents. Use the two-sided cloth to gently buff your jewelry as if you would a delicate glass. Use one side for polishing and the other to polish it.
This can dull your stones and the metal of the piece.
Keep your jewelery in a space that is dry and doesn’t have any air flow. For maximum protection you can choose to store them inside of a small drawstring or a closed jewelry box. Both air and humidity can lead to tarnished metal. You can restore the precious metals back to their former glory, but plated jewelry is different. Trying to polish those pieces can reveal the non-precious metals underneath, such as copper.
Sterling Silver
When you go shopping for sterling silver jewelry pieces, it is a good idea to bring a small magnet along with you. If the piece you are examining is not silver and is made from non-precious metal, it is not sterling silver! Only non-precious metals can be drawn to a magnet.You will always find a hallmark stamp such as “.925” or “STER.” on genuine sterling, or alternately, it might simply say,” or “.925.”If your silver is not marked, you might be looking at a cheap imitation.
If you are shopping unmarked sterling silver jewelry, then by all means bring a magnet. Jewelry made with non-precious metals will be attracted to the magnet, revealing any fakes. Also, look to make sure that silver is hallmarked and stamped with .925, sterling or ster. If the piece of presumed silver is not marked, be skeptical that is real silver. It could very well be a fake.
Know which kind of gems before you make a jewelry purchase. The types of gems available are synthetic, imitation and synthetic. Natural and synthetic gems are real stones, but imitation gems are probably just colored glass or plastic. Natural stones are dug up out of the ground and synthetic gems are created in a lab.
Before you buy any gemstone, find out if it has been treated, if any, how. The kind of care your stone differs greatly depending on how it was treated.
Be sure to at least inquire about the insurance that is available when you buy jewelry from a reputable jeweler. Many stores offer a policy where you can bring broken or damaged jewelry back to the original jeweler for repair at little to no cost. You should also think about getting additional insurance in cause of theft or loss.
You could save huge amounts of money if you are savvy. Check ads in the newspaper, in the newspaper, and even storefront windows. If you wait to buy jewelry until that particular style is going out of fashion, you can save a lot of money.
Plastic Wrap
You need to know how to care for each piece in your jewelry collection. Not all types of jewelry can be cleaned in the same manner. What is beneficial to one stone or setting may hurt another. If you’re not sure of how to properly care for your jewelry, seek advice from a reputable jeweler.
Untangle your knotted necklaces with delicate loops. It’s easy to get frustrated with tangled necklaces, but try using some plastic wrap before you call it quits.Put the necklace on the plastic wrap and cover it with a little mineral oil or baby oil.Use a sewing needle to untangle the necklaces. Use ordinary dish soap to remove the oil and let dry.
When photographing jewelry for online sale, make sure you present it in the best possible way. This is quite key since your customer can not physically see and feel the person that may purchase it cannot hold it before purchasing it.
When you want to sell jewelry on the Internet, you should try to show it off in an attractive way. Handling jewelry often helps the customer make up his mind but this is not possible with online transactions. Take photos that clearly focus on the jewelry, without a distracting background.
A diamond’s cut and clarity may be more important than its size. You also need to think about who will be wearing the jewelry.
You can keep your necklaces organized by length, then hang your necklaces in groups by color or length. This little display looks appealing and help you select the best necklace for your outfit.
This includes both dry and steam saunas. The amount of moisture and heat can damage the pieces.
If you are saving up for an investment piece, then make sure to buy a piece that will last a very long time. Although you’ll almost always get high quality when the item is expensive, there are other factors to consider. Something that is trendy at this time may not look ridiculous in a few years. Look for pieces that will not go out of style.
The increasing cost of gold can be a hindrance to owning that piece you really desire. An 18 karat gold piece is made up of at least 75 percent pure gold, which is generally considered by many to be the most optimal combination of quality and price.
Take the time to compare your options when shopping for diamonds. No diamond is without its flaws, and every piece is unique. Seeing a diamond in person will help you determine whether you can accept a given imperfection. Every jeweler is able to price point differently, depending on the flaw. You can make the most of your investment if you take the time to comparison shop and hunt down the best diamond that falls within your price range.
By now you understand there are many amazing details regarding jewelry. Do your homework, and identifying the best investment pieces of jewelry will be easy. Welcome to the exciting, and always changing, world of jewelry. These tips can help you start your journey armed with knowledge.