Let’s talk about water!
Jewellery Care
Jewellery Care
Every day we’re in and out of water and sometimes that annoying task of taking off all your jewellery is easily forgotten! You’ll be happy to know all our Jewellery is water friendly! Meaning they can be worn daily without having to remove them when you jump in the shower, or go for a quick swim!
Not all water is the same! Our natural oils in our skin and water exposure helps to keep our jewellery shining! However, any harsh or abrasive chemicals can damage your jewellery so we recommend removing before swimming in a chlorinated pool or chemically heated water
Let’s break it down!
Shower Water
As mentioned - The natural oils present in our skin help to naturally clean our jewellery. Water itself has no significantly harsh chemicals that have a negative effect on our pieces, making showering in your jewellery perfectly fine! Mild soap and water can actually help to wash away any lasting residue picked up from your skin or dirt in the air. Please note that any harsh chemicals used for your hair can cause damage. Be wary when using tinted shampoos and treatments on your hair.
Swimming Pools
Most pools are treated with chlorine. It’s not recommended to take your jewellery swimming with you in this case. The abrasive chemicals can cause Sterling Silver to dull & cause the Gold Vermeil to erode. If you’ve forgotten! Don’t panic ❣️ Give your pieces a gentle clean with mild soap and water so the chemicals don’t sit on the jewellery.
Hot springs & Spas
There is generally more chlorine in spas & lots of minerals, specifically Sulfur in Hot Springs, which leads me to saying it’s more important to remove your pieces prior to a dip. The chemicals mixed with the heat can fast track the negative effects. Rinse with cold water and mild soap and completely dry if exposed to these components.
Salt Water
Although it’s okay to swim in the ocean with your jewellery, Salt can naturally be quite corrosive, so it’s recommended to rinse your jewellery after swimming to remove the residue that sits on your jewellery.
You can easily clean your jewels with a silver polishing cloth to wipe away any oxidization buildup ❤︎
Lovingly hand-designed
The Gatherer's Grove pieces are crafted with high quality materials -
Made with certified recycled Sterling Silver & 18K Gold Vermeil.
Just like cleaning your clothes your jewellery will greatly benefit from occasional cleaning and a little TLC.
I've created a comprehensive cleaning & materials guide below to help you maintain the luster and shine of your beautiful pieces and make sure their enjoyed for many years to come ❤︎
Your Gatherer's Grove pieces are water-friendly, please visit our Jewellery Care Guide here to give you an idea on which water to avoid exposing your jewellery to.
Sterling Silver
925 Sterling Silver is an alloy made of 92.5% pure silver and 7.5% other metals for strength and durability.
100% pure silver is too soft and malleable for jewellery crafting, which is where 925 Sterling Silver is the chosen material for jewellery making.
Naturally hypoallergenic & free from nickel and other harsh materials, our pieces are perfect for all skin types, including sensitivities.
CLEANING STERLING SILVER
When Sterling Silver is exposed to corrosive or harsh chemicals it begins an oxidization process, where your piece may experience dullness or patches of black or gold discoloration. The good news is this is only a
surface level reaction with Sterling Silver and is 100% reversible.
925 Sterling Silver will not rust or turn your fingers green like costume jewellery.
The natural oils in your skin actually help your pieces to stay lubricated and shiny. The oxidization process generally starts when your jewellery is left off for a period of time, or high acidity levels in your skin where your piece touches your skin (you'll generally notice this with earrings in ear piercings)
A quality polishing cloth will remove the discoloration from your jewellery. Sterling Silver Jewellery cloths are impregnated with anti tarnishing agents which will polish off the
discoloration and bring your shiny silver piece back to life!
You can purchase a Sterling Silver Jewellery polishing cloth from any local jewellery mall store.
Sterling Silver Cleaning FAQ
Why does Sterling Silver Oxidize?
There are a lot of factors in why Sterling Silver can begin to oxidize. Lucky it is only surface level and can be reversed with the right care and maintenance.
I will discuss the most common factors and reasons your jewellery can discolor -
Although showering with your pieces is absolutely fine as shower water has no corrosive chemicals, the products you use in the shower can - Mainly colour treatment shampoo's & conditioner's, tan removers, hair masks etc
Similarly products used daily like moisturizers, perfumes, spray tans, sanitizers can all contain harsh chemicals that can sit on the jewellery & mixed with oxygen will begin to oxidize.
A polishing cloth will help to remove & storing your pieces in a clean & dry place when not being worn.
My piece has developed a small patch of discoloration?
That's okay! Oxidization is a natural process that can happen to Sterling Silver & just like your clothes need a wash, your jewellery does too.
For a small patch of discoloration will simply require a Sterling Silver polishing cloth that with easily rub away the oxidization exposing your shiny silver underneath!
My piece needs a deep clean - Is there something I can do?
Yes, absolutely!
If your piece has oxidized and you need more TLC than your polishing cloth. We have a simple at home method that can help you with this!
What you'll require is;
- A bowl
- Aluminum foil
- Baking Soda
- Water
> Line your bowl with the shiny side of the aluminum foil facing upwards
> Add a couple of teaspoons of baking soda to your bowl & then add your Sterling Silver
> Pour boiling water to your solution and watch it fizz
> Feel free to add some more baking soda is needed
> Leave for 5 - 10 minutes, carefully stirring occasionally
> You will see the the discoloration lift visibly from your jewellery
> Remove after 10 minutes and most importantly rinse your piece thoroughly to wash away any baking soda residue & pat dry with a microfiber or soft cloth.
A little sciency, but this is how this method works -
The aluminum (Al) and baking soda (NaHCO3) form a “bridge” between the silver and pulls the sulfur attached to the silver off because Aluminum loves to bond with Sulfur, creating Aluminum Sulfide (Al2S3). You can do this with cold water too, but the boiling water acts as a catalyst and causes the reactions to happen a lot faster. It’s important that the silver makes some contact with the aluminum to make sure the process of electrolysis happens. After after a while, the sulfur bonded to the silver is carried through the water/baking soda solution and will bond to the aluminum instead, leaving your silver to be alone.
Only use this method on Sterling Silver without gemstones & DO NOT use on gold jewellery, see our 18K gold vermeil cleaning instructions below
Jewellery with gemstones use a bowl of warm water with mild soap and scrub with a soft toothbrush and/or a smooth cloth like a glass cleaning cloth.
18K Gold Vermeil
18K Gold vermeil (pronounced ver-may) requires a thick layer of 18k gold coated over Sterling Silver at 3 microns thickness, which gives the pieces it's long lasting color. We use 18K gold that is a minimum of 3 microns thick layered on sterling silver.
Much like Sterling Silver this makes our Gold water-friendly, but also needs to be worn carefully to avoid harsh chemicals that can wear the gold.
Naturally hypoallergenic & free from nickel and other harsh materials, our pieces are perfect for all skin types, including sensitivities.
CLEANING 18K GOLD VERMEIL
When Gold Vermeil is exposed to corrosive or harsh chemicals it can impact the long-lasting plating or cause surface level oxidization.
18K Gold Vermeil will not rust or turn your fingers green like costume jewellery.
The natural oils in your skin actually help your pieces to stay lubricated and shiny. The oxidization process generally starts when your jewellery is left off for a period of time and the surface level oxidization starts to occur.
For general cleaning, its recommended that you use a soft cotton or microfiber cloth (like your sunglasses cloth). Don't use a polishing cloth as this can have a small impact on the gold plating. For a deeper clean, its recommended to use WARM (NOT hot) water and dish soap. Use a sunglass cloth and dip it in the soapy water and gently clean it, then rinse it off using another cloth with ONLY water, then pat it dry.
18K Gold Vermeil Cleaning faq
18K Gold Vermeil requires different care to Sterling Silver due to it coating, please do not repeat any cleaning advice used specifically for Sterling Silver.
Does 18K Gold Vermeil oxidize?
18K Gold Vermeil is less prone to oxidizing due to the Sterling Silver being coated in high quality 18K gold.
If your piece does experience any oxidization or dirty grime build up a simple solution of warm water with dish soap and use a soft cotton cloth or ideally a glasses cleaner cloth to dip in to the solution and softly buff your piece back to shine.
Will the Gold coating on my jewellery last?
Yes! Your 18K Gold Vermeil piece can last for years & years! Tried and tested!
Avoiding exposure to harsh chemicals is the most important step to making your piece last.
We use a very thick 3 micron layer of 18K gold on your jewellery to insure you get the lasting beauty of your gold collection.
When your coating begins to slowly wear, you piece will fade to a lovely light & pale gold.
Why Gold Vermeil?
Being able to offer high quality jewellery at an affordable price for every budget is so important to us at The Gatherer's Grove.
18K Gold Vermeil is high quality, perfect for sensitive skin & is only a fraction of the cost of pure gold!