How Do I Clean My Gold Jewellery? [2 minute read]

How often should I clean my jewellery?

This depends on how often you wear it, how long you wear it for and what activities you undertake whilst wearng it. The easiest answer is to say, clean it when when metal starts to lose its lustre or shine or settings start to look a little dirty. A clean should bring it back up to its original shine and sparkle.

Some people like to make cleaning fine and demi-fine jewellery an annual event. Once a year taking them for a professional clean and check with a jeweller, to ensure no settings are loose or wearing down and risking losing a precious stone or the piece breaking. Other people prefer the ‘as necessary’ approach, which means they clean their jewellery when they feel it needs it. 

Professional or home clean?

As mentioned, a professional clean can be a great way to get it checked for damage at the same time. Some jewellers may even offer a discount if you take several items in at once. On the other hand, you may want to do a standard clean at home, or in-between clean. 

Always give your jewellery a wipe before storing it. Also when you take it off for washing is a great time to give it a wipe to remove skin oils and any light dirt. A soft cloth should be adequate for every day quick cleans.

Hints and Tips

• High carat gold. Wear this less often than lower karat gold, or other metals. The higher the carat the softer the gold. Therefore the less durable it will be and more affected by wear. We add metals to gold to make it harder wearing (as well as lowering the price point). So a 9ct gold item will be more durable than an 18ct gold item as a rule. 
• Remove gold jewellery before cleaning, gardening, swimming or visiting the beach. This is because chlorine, salt and sand can all damage gold. As can cleaning products. Whilst gardening can cause unnecessary wear and tear. Removing your gold jewellery for these things will mean you get much longer wear from your gold.
• Store gold items carefully. Store items individually in their box, or in a suitable soft piece of cloth. Gold will get damaged if it’s allowed to rub against other items like gemstones or harder metals. There are a number of storage options, from individual soft pouches, the box they came in, or jewellery wraps. Which are long pieces of material used to lay down and roll up fine jewellery like bracelets and necklaces in a swiss roll style. This has the added benefit of preventing the chain jewellery from tangling up together. Hanging up chains is another option, though leaving them hung up for long periods can expose them to chemicals in the air and cause them to tarnish.

How Do I Clean Gold?

• A regular wipe and buff with a soft cloth to remove skin oils and dirt will help keep your gold shiny.

Cleaning Method at Home

• Use a squirt of mild, non-abrasive dishwashing liquid in warm water.
• Soak your gold jewellery in this for 10-15 minutes before carefully rinsing in clean warm water,  drying and storing it.
• If dirt remains on the piece, then you can take a soft toothbrush and gently clean your gold with it.
• For intricate detail, you can also use an earbud dipped in the soapy mixture, to clean it up.