Jewellery Care
Caring for Your Precious Jewellery
Please handle your Earthly Beauty Jewellery with due care and respect.
Avoid Contact with Chemicals and Detergents
Be wary of water, soap, detergents and household chemicals such as bleach, tanning lotions, insect repellants, polish remover etc, that may eat into porous stones such as turquoise, lapis lazuli, sugilite etc, and organic gems such as coral and amber. This can result in irreversible damage to your beloved stones! In addition, bonding substances that give extra security to the stone setting may be dissolved or damaged by such substances, resulting in loosening the stone.
All Stones are Evolving
The colour of any of the more porous stones and even some translucent stones such as amethyst, rose quartz and kunzite, may fade in contact with the substances mentioned above or even in strong sunlight or intense heat. This is a natural process and does not indicate that any artificial colour has been added or any defect in the stone. So care should be taken to avoid prolonged exposure to sunlight, such as leaving your jewellery on the dashboard in the car or storing on the window-sill. In addition, such exposure dries out the moisture content of the more porous stones and makes them more brittle and prone to breakage with knocks or drops. Pearl, opal, emerald, turquoise, amber, coral and onyx are all examples of delicate, soft or porous gemstones.
The hardness of all precious and semi-precious stones varies greatly. On the Moh’s hardness scale of one to ten, diamond is 10 and amber is 2-21/2; iolite and tourmalines are 7-71/2 and chrysocolla is 2-4. There is great variety in the hardness of stones as well as varying densities.
Metallic Gems
Pyrite and most of our Meteorites are iron-based and as such, they can be prone to rusting or discolouration if not cared for properly. Extra caution must be taken when wearing these unique pieces. Our Meteorites have been treated with a protective coating however it is still important to avoid contact with water, chemicals and abrasive surfaces to avoid stripping this coating, which will allow the meteorite to be affected.
Delicate Gemstones
Opals and Opal doublets can contain up to 20% moisture. A such, it is specially susceptible to dehydration. Though generally stable, Opal can be irreversibly damaged by heat, even intense light and sudden temperature changes. This can cause fracture lines called 'crazing', as well as the loss of play-of-colour.
When storing your Opal jewellery, it is best to do so in a cool, dark place or in a sealed plastic bag or jewellery pouch with a damp cotton ball to prevent dehydration. Always remove Opal jewellery before sports activity, washing hands or showering. Any exposure to chemicals and oils may effect the play-of-colour and general body colour of the stone and this may be irreversible. Opal jewellery should never be cleaned with silver polish or in solutions.
Fossils are another special category of material. They are 'imprints' of ancient animals and plants which have been preserved with the replacement of organic material by inorganic materials or minerals. There is a vast variability in the hardness and porosity of these replacement minerals and many fossils remain delicate and must be treated with great care.
Amber
Amber is a different type of fossilized material in that the pre-historic and ancient resins from the conifer trees from which the Amber comes, undergoes a process called polymerization, in which the organic material itself, becomes hardened and 'fossilized'. This may have started over 70 million years ago in the case of Baltic and other Ambers. As a transformed type of organic material, Amber remains especially prone to alteration and damage from chemicals, scratching, or rough treatment. In addition, this process of fossilization has not stopped once the Amber is set in jewellery, but it is in a continuous metamorphosis, so even too much sunlight may damage and dehydrate the amber resulting in degradation. It should be cleaned only with warm water and a soft cloth.
Try to understand your stones and their needs and they will give you many years of enjoyment and benefit.
Avoid Dropping Your Jewellery
Different stones may be split along flat planes, giving the particular “cleavage” of the stone. Such stones may fracture upon the application of heat or pressure, which is also a natural quality of the stone and not indicative of any flaw or fault. So caution should be paid to avoid dropping your jewellery or even rough handling when removing to avoid breakage.
Common injuries to stones occur when rings are knocked while worn doing the washing-up or housework and bracelets caught on protrusions when walking through doors or playing sport. Try removing your jewellery when you play sport, swim, do the housework etc. and your stones will thank you!
Silver Care
Our sterling silver jewellery is made with Italian low-tarnish alloys but be aware that all silver tarnishes with exposure to air and moisture. In addition, for those who regularly take more acid foods such as vinegar, grapefruit, garlic etc, may experience an extra reaction between their skin and their silver jewellery. This may even result in a thick black tarnish as the acidity reacts with the metal. In this case, do not despair! If a wipe over with a ‘silver cloth’ does not remove this tarnish, it can be removed using silver polish and a soft cloth. Remember not to use silver polish with organic gemstones and opals.
Both impregnated silver cloths and sliver polish are available at most supermarkets and jewellers.
All of the above is to give you some idea of the infinite variety and uniqueness of your stones and jewellery.
Remember, that even after thousands of years we can see beautiful Egyptian, Aztec and African and even Neolithic jewellery, made from coral, turquoise, amber, jet and other organic as well as mineral gems in museums and galleries, So with due precaution your silver jewellery and semi-precious stones will give you much enjoyment and pleasure for many years.