How to Maintain Diamond Jewellery to Keep It Sparkling

Diamonds are forever, but if you don’t take care of them, their sparkle fades with time. Life happens, and between perfumes, lotions, wearing and taking them off, you don’t even realise when the shine of the diamond starts fading with time.

Diamonds are the hardest substance on this planet. However, they are also grease magnets. It means they attract a lot of dust, dirt, and other tiny particles that eventually dull their shine. Here is everything that you need to know to keep your diamond dazzling forever.

Why Diamond Jewellery Loses Shine Over Time?

One fine day, you notice that your diamond no longer sparkles as much as it did when you bought it. No, your purchase decision was not wrong. Diamonds have a tendency to attract more dirt than any other metal. As you regularly put on your jewellery, it comes into contact with various elements, such as perfume, lotions, other make-up products, and the excess oil and sweat on your skin.

All of these substances collectively make a film on all facets of the stone. It does not let light reflect, thus reducing the diamond's shine.

How to Maintain Diamond Jewellery at Home?

When cleaning your diamond at home, the secret is to be gentle. Most diamonds are held with the rest of the jewellery with the help of claws or prongs. You need to take care of these while you clean the jewellery at home. Here are some diamond jewellery care tips that will help you clean them as gently as possible.

1. Make the magic solution

Put a few drops of a gentle dish soap into lukewarm water, then put your jewellery into the solution. The substances in the dish soap break the compounds and organic oils on the surface of the diamond. Breaking them off naturally would make the cleansing process easy.

2. The Precision Scrub

Gunk is hard to clean from the crevices of diamond jewellery. You need gentle hands, worked into masterful motion, to regain the sparkle your diamond had when it was newly bought. Use a soft-bristled brush. If you can, try using a natural-bristle brush with a wooden handle. After the soak, use the brush with a light hand in a slow, circular motion to remove dirt from your jewellery.

3. Safely dry the jewellery

Avoid using paper towels while drying the jewellery. The tiny fibres can get stuck in the paper towel prongs. Instead, use a microfiber cloth. It would absorb water quickly and leave no residue.

What Cleaning Methods to Avoid for Diamonds

If you are wondering how to clean diamond jewellery? You should read ahead. Diamonds are hard to damage. However, diamond jewellery is made of more than diamonds. They are attached to several other metals, including gold, silver, platinum, and other alloys. When cleaning your jewellery, ensure not only that the diamond sparkles, but that the brilliance of the entire piece remains intact. Cleaning your diamond the wrong way can result in pitted metal, lost prongs, and shattered stones. Here are some things you should avoid when cleaning your jewellery.

1. No harsh chemicals

Some cleaning methods suggest cleaning jewellery with chemicals such as bleach, chlorine, and acetone. You should not do that. It would not only harm the surface but could also cause “stress corrosion cracking”.

2. Abrasive Cleaners

Some hack videos suggest using toothpaste to clean jewellery. However, toothpaste contains tiny abrasive particles that can damage delicate parts and bruise the diamond.

3. Boiling Water

Always remember that only lukewarm water should be used to clean the jewellery. Extremely hot or boiling water can cause thermal shock to the metal. If your piece has internal flaws, they can expand, eventually leading to cracks in the jewellery.

4. Usage of Sharp Objects

Using sharp objects like tweezers, forceps, toothpicks, and other sharp instruments can cause scratches on the metal and the diamond.

How Often Should You Clean Diamond Jewellery?

The cleaning schedule of the diamond jewellery depends on how often you wear it. Before you get confused, here is a quick schedule about how often to clean diamond jewellery.

1. Weekly: Any jewellery that you wear daily must be cleaned at least once a week.
2. Monthly: Any jewellery piece that you wear on the weekends can be cleaned at least once a month.
3. Special Cleansing: Your special event jewellery can also collect dust and atmospheric gunk. So, make sure it's professionally polished before wearing it to an event.
4. Bi-annual check: Extremely heavy pieces must be polished once every six months to maintain their shine.

Best Ways to Store Diamond Jewellery to Avoid Damage

To keep your jewellery safe from any dirt, dust, or atmospheric gunk, you can store it in a place where nothing can damage it or fade its shine. If you are wondering how to store diamond jewellery, here are some tips that will help you:

Follow the single occupancy rule

Keep only one piece in one storage box or jewellery clothing sheet. Friction between two pieces can cause multiple scratches on one of the pieces.

Jewellery Storage, compartment box

You can invest in one storage box with multiple compartments. That way, you can easily organise your jewellery without losing it in multiple storage boxes.

Prevent the Tangle

Necklaces with diamond pieces and earrings with thin threads can tangle with each other, resulting in damage. To prevent tangling, make sure you put them apart in an organized manner.

Climate Matters

Climate might not affect the diamond, but it may damage the alloy with which the diamond is attached. Gold, platinum, silver, or any other alloy may tarnish due to changes in temperature. Make sure you store the jewellery in a cool, dry place.

Travel fine

If you are travelling with the jewellery, keep it in a roll and away from any cosmetics or toiletries that could leave a film on the diamond or damage the piece.

When to Go for Professional Diamond Cleaning

Professional Cleaning of your jewellery is like a health checkup. Sometimes, a soak in dishwasher liquid and soft natural brushes may not do the trick. But how would you know when the time is to go for professional cleaning? Below is a tiny professional diamond cleaning guide that will help you.

The Bi-annual check-up

Even if your jewellery looks clean, you should get it checked by the professionals every 6 months. They check the pieces with high-grade ultrasonic cleaners and steam machines that blast away compact dirt, leaving the jewellery spotless.

When the gunk is stubborn

A well-crafted piece of jewellery is extremely delicate. And gunk can go and sit anywhere. When it is hard to clean it at home, you should consult a specialist. Show them the pieces and get them shining like new.

The Prong and Claw Inspection

The prongs and claws on any jewellery piece may loosen, and you may lose your precious diamonds. Hence, it is advisable to have them professionally checked. Once they clean it, they will tighten the claws and prongs. Hence, keep your diamonds intact.

After a heavy impact

If you accidentally bang your ring against the granite countertop, you may fear that you will lose the diamond. Or the hold of the diamond might have loosened up. In that case, you can get it professionally checked.

Before a major event

Wedding in your family? Any special festivities? You must be planning to wear your jewellery after a long time, so you need to get it cleaned and tightened to ensure the diamonds complement your shine at the event.

FAQs

Can I clean diamond jewellery with toothpaste?

No, you should never use toothpaste on your jewellery. Even though it seems like a good idea, toothpaste has very fine particles that can damage the diamond by bruising it and also damage the metal setting, such as gold or platinum, causing it to permanently dull.

How often should diamond jewellery be cleaned?

The rate of cleaning depends on the frequency of wearing the piece. For pieces worn daily, it is advisable to clean them every week, while those worn over the weekend can be cleaned monthly. Moreover, heavy jewellery should also be checked bi-annually by a professional to ensure that it is in pristine condition.

Can diamond lose its sparkle permanently?

A diamond does not lose its lustre forever, but it does serve as a "grease magnet," attracting oils, lotions, and dust. These materials form a layer over the facets of the diamond, preventing the reflection of light, and as a result, the diamond appears dull. However, a proper cleaning job will remove this layer and restore the diamond's original brilliance.

Is ultrasonic cleaning safe for diamonds?

Ultrasonic cleaning is a very efficient professional cleaning method that uses sound waves and steam to blast away compacted dirt. Although it is safe for diamonds, it is best done by a professional who can first examine the item. This is because the vibrations may potentially loosen stones if the prongs or claws are already weakened or damaged.

How do jewellers professionally clean diamonds?

Skilled jewellers employ a blend of top-quality ultrasonic cleaners and steam presses to clean away obstinate grime from difficult-to-access areas. In addition to merely cleaning the gem, the process also involves a "health check-up" where the jeweller examines and secures the prongs and claws to verify the diamond is firmly in place.