Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Taking Care Of A Gold Plated Jewelry

By Jensen Carlyle


Since a set of pure gold accessories is very expensive, you may have thought of getting gold-plated ones as a substitute. Being made up of a good base metal covered with a thin layer of gold, an item of this kind can really make you shine for the night. However, the issue with gold-plated accessory is that, they lose shine as time goes by. If you have no idea on how to take care of the item, the golden layer may only last in a few weeks. To prevent this from happening, you must learn everything about how to give proper care for gold-plated jewelry.

Keeping it Away from Fading

Scratches, dirt and oxygen are the top reasons why the gold in gold-plated jewelry is fading away. In order to protect your jewelry, you would need to take some steps to avoid the above given elements that could destroy it slowly but surely. Secure your jewelry in a box lined with velvet or a soft cloth to prevent it from being scratched. Avoid wearing the gold-plated jewelry while working as this is a good opportunity for bumps and scratches to remove the gold layer faster.

Wipe the jewelry lightly of damp cloth if you see dust and dirt accumulating on its surface. You can also make use of cotton to clean the layer. Aside from a jewelry box, you can store the gold-plated accessory in a dry and seal-able plastic. Make sure that you have squeezed it enough to remove the excess air as this will result to tarnishing.

Proper Cleaning and Buffing Steps

Dirt accumulating on the surface of your jewelry can cause the gold layer to wear away. There will come a time that the gold-plated jewelry will lose its shine because of this and in order to bring it back, cleaning and buffing can be a very good solution. On cleaning the item, make use of a gentle dishwashing detergent or hand soap. Use a tooth brush to remove the dirt that has been stuck on the edges and engraved parts. Dry it using a paper towel and let the item dry completely on its own to eliminate moisture.

To revive the shine of your gold-plated jewelry, buff it with a jeweler's cloth or soft microfiber cloth. Do not use too much elbow grease as it will cause the gold to flake off. If the results given to you by cleaning and buffing are not good, make use of a gold plating kit to renew its shine. You can also bring the accessories to your local jeweler if the plating had started to worn off. They can replace the gold layer bringing back its brand new form.




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