How to care your silver jewellery – Apiliotis Jewellery

Knowing a few industry terms will help you understand the physical attributes of your silver jewellery and how to care for it. The purity of the metal, for instance, determines how malleable the silver is and how quickly it will tarnish: .950 sterling silver will bend more easily and tarnish more quickly than .925 sterling silver because of its increased purity, so extra caution should be used to take care of .950 silver jewellery.

“Oxidized” is another term used to describe silver. For some works silversmiths intentionally allow parts of the jewellery to  darken and oxidize (as mentioned above), typically small details, to make them stand out more. This detailing can be lost,  though, with excessive cleaning and polishing. So be sure to identify any purposefully oxidized silver bracelets, earrings, rings or necklaces you have and set them aside for separate cleaning.

We use Recycled Sterling silver (0.925) without any plating for all our jewellery.

Here are some instructions that will help you keep you silver jewellery clean and shiny for longer!

SILVER CARE

When silver jewellery become black, they are made 100% by silver.

How to prevent that:

Wear them! The oils of your skin will clean the silver and keep it shiny.

Avoid exposure with cleaning chemicals.

Avoid exposure with creams, beauty products & perfume.

Avoid exposure to moisture. For example, don’t leave them out of their case in the bathroom.

Do not wear your jewellery in thermal baths or any lakes with sulphur content! 

HOW TO CLEAN SILVER JEWELLERY

Warm water and ammonia & phosphate soap is the first thing you can try.

A non-whitening, non-gel toothpaste and warm water are good for cleaning also.

Use 1/2 cup of lemon juice and 2 tbsp of oil. clean the piece with a microfiber cloth.

You can use white vinegar & baking soda for heavy tarnish with an old toothbrush.