subject: How to clean Silver and Gold Jewellery - UK [print this page] How to clean Silver Jewellery How to clean Silver Jewellery
Pure silver would be a soft metal, far too soft to be made into silver jewellery that could withstand daily wear and tear. Therefore, most silver jewellery comprises sterling silver, an alloy of silver, strengthened by other metals.
The standard sterling silver (925) alloy is a reference to it's composition; 925 parts per thousand silver, 75 parts per thousand other metals (usually copper). This recipe enables beautiful silver jewellery pieces to be created without losing any of their splendour.
Air, perfume, chlorinated or salt water and household cleaning products can all damage or tarnish your silver jewellery.
Silver jewellery can be cleaned simply by polishing it with a soft cotton cloth, which may be impregnated with a silver cleaner and anti-tarnish agent for greater effect, although care should be taken if delicate gemstones are also featured.
How to clean Gold Jewellery
The purity of gold is measured in carats. 24ct is pure gold; any carat below this is a gold alloy, a mix of gold and other metals.
The colour of gold yellow gold, white gold or rose gold is achieved through the mix of metals in the alloy. By definition, it isn't possible to find 24ct white or rose gold.
As an alloy with the lowest gold to metal ratio (9 parts gold, 15 parts metal), 9ct gold makes the most durable gold jewellery, suitable for daily wear and most resistant to scratching.
Chlorinated water (from swimming pools or hot-tubs) and household cleaning products can all damage your gold jewellery.
Gold jewellery can be restored to its former shine by polishing with a soft, lint-free cloth.
