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Care of your Diamonds
Diamond requires periodical cleaning to retain its beauty and luster to
last for a lifetime. Through day to day activities, diamonds get smudged
and soiled. Even when they are not worn, they collect dust. Lotions,
soaps and natural skin oils, can cause development of a film of grime
over the gem and inhibits their brilliance. Diamonds require regular
cleaning so that maximum light can be reflected and refracted giving out
fiery brilliance.
Professional Advice
Taking the opinion of a professional can be of great help as he/she may
inform about the condition of your diamond or diamond jewelry.
Handle your Diamond Sparingly
Diamonds attract dirt and grease. The natural oils from the skin,
moisturizers and dirt keeps collecting on the gem over a period of time
and may alter their appearance and luster. Therefore, if possible, the
diamond jewelry should be used occasionally.
Mild Liquid Detergent
Soak your jewelry in a small bowl of warm, soapy water made with any
mild liquid detergent. Gently brush the diamond jewelry with a soft
toothbrush while it is in the suds. Then, rinse each piece under warm
running water. Pat it dry with a soft, lint-free cloth. Make sure to
always stopper your sink.
Household Ammonia
Another method for getting a sparkling diamond is to soak the diamond in
an ammonia based household cleaner, overnight, once or twice in a week.
In the morning, remove the diamond from the cleaner and brush it with a
soft, clean toothbrush (one that has not previously been used in any
way, and that you reserve exclusively for cleaning your diamond) to
remove any leftover dirt. Take extra care to brush the back of the
diamond as this will be the area that has collected the most oil and
dirt. Swish in the solution a second time, rinse and drain on tissue
paper.
Jewelry Cleaner
Use any reputed brand name jewelry cleaner and use it according to the
instructions given on the label. Avoid harmful solutions. Chlorine (as
in household bleach) or abrasives (such as household cleansers or
toothpaste) should never be used when cleaning diamonds, especially
those which are set in jewelry. These erode some of the metals often
used in diamond settings, and may loosen prongs, or even dissolve the
metal completely.
Ultrasonic Cleaner
By sending high frequency sound waves through a detergent solution,
ultrasonic cleaners cause vibrating fluid to remove accumulated dirt and
grime. However, they can also shake loose stones from their mounting, so
this method shouldn't be used on fragile settings (or estate jewelry),
and is best undertaken by a professional jeweler.
Avoid Touching the diamonds or diamond jewelry:
Touching clean gems with fingers may cause dirt and natural skin oils to
stick to its surface. Therefore handle diamonds with a lint free cloth
as much as possible.
General Care
Occasional cleaning of diamond jewelry is not enough to keep a piece of
jewelry as good as new for a long time. Proper care of the jewelry
includes, along with cleaning, visit to a jeweler once a year. Make him
check for any lose mountings or prongs that hold the diamond in place.
This would help preventing the diamond falling out of its setting and
being lost.
Lose diamonds should be stored in a fabric lined
jewel case or in a proper jewelry box where these lose diamonds can be
kept separately from other jewelry. Each piece of diamond in the jewelry
box should have its own compartment to avoid scratching of diamonds from
one another as well as other jewelry.
Diamond jewelry should be removed while doing
physical work. Bleaches and household cleaners should not be allowed to
come in contact with diamond, because they can change the color of
settings or mountings, and can chemically react with diamond’s surface
and produce color changes.
Extra care should be taken while storing the
jewelry while traveling. There are many specially designed cases for
jewelry available in different sizes. They have a velvet lining inside
to attach pins and earrings and compartments to place bracelets and
necklaces.
Wrist Watches Containing Diamonds
A wrist watch containing diamonds should not be
"dipped" in any liquid. The best method for cleaning diamond watches is to
use a jeweler's polishing cloth to clean all metal surfaces of the watch and
bracelet. Clean gently on the diamonds, rough abrasive polishing can loosen
them in their settings. Never let any jewelry come in contact with chlorine
bleach.
Wearing a diamond ring 24 hours a day can lead
to accumulation of soap scum and oils etc on the diamond especially the
girdle and inside the setting. So it demands regular cleaning.
Periodically see your jeweler at least once a
year get the jewelry checked for any lose settings or professional
cleaning. If you have not purchased your ring yet, consider getting
platinum over gold due to platinum’s superior strength. Platinum jewelry
is safer in settings for diamonds. A two toned ring with platinum head
for diamonds and a gold shank can be an option to save on budget.
Spotting a Fake Diamond
In this world of advanced technology it is almost
impossible to simply look at a diamond and determine whether it is real
or not especially if you don’t know much about diamonds. There are some
steps that you can take to avoid buying a fake diamond, however...
Read more...
Beware of Mall Jewelry and Other Expensive Jewelry
Stores
Common sense should suggest that
the only way such stores can make high profits is to cover all high
costs (of the glitter, lighting, display, advertising and aggressive
salespeople paid with high commissions on your sale) in your prices. In
today's commerce with the rise of online shopping, these stores are
facing stiff competition from online stores that offer certified diamond
jewelry of quality at lower prices by keeping their operating costs down
and being able to turn over larger volume. Please take the time to
compare prices, quality and and take advantage of....
Read more High Price Stores and
their Price Gimmicks..
Read about Diamond History, Diamond Facts..
A symbol of innocence, justice,
faith and strength, the diamond was believed to make its wearers
courageous and victorious over their enemies. When set in gold and worn
on the left side, it held the power to drive away nightmares and soothe
savage beasts. Diamonds were even thought to be so powerful that they
could stop lechery. Diamonds have lured and fascinated us....
Back to Diamond
Information Summary...
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How To Take Care of Your Diamonds
