Summer Jewelry Care

Everyone loves spending a day at the pool, lake, or beach in the summertime. And who doesn’t enjoy a trip to a beautiful, sunny beach when they are lucky enough to escape the New Jersey winter?

Wherever your travels might take you, here are some important tips for caring for your jewelry in and around water.

• Jewelry and sunscreen don’t mix! Taking off your jewelry before applying sunscreen or lotions will prevent damage to your jewels. Sunscreen coats gemstones, leaving them dull and discolored. As lotion dries, it gets caught under prongs and stones, collects dirt, and can even loosen prongs and force stones out.
• Rinse your jewelry! If you are not in a position to safely remove your jewelry or clean it right away, some stones can become permanently discolored. Sunscreen saves your skin, but unfortunately, destroys jewelry. Try to rinse the piece off with water and bring it to us or a local jeweler where you are vacationing for a quick cleaning to avoid permanent damage.
• Remember to remove your jewelry before entering pools or hot tubs. Pools, hot tubs, and jewelry don’t mix. The various types of chemicals found in both can chemically react with the alloys in precious metals. This reaction can cause your jewelry to dull and discolor, and it will eat away at the metal, wearing away and weakening the prongs. Leave your jewelry at home or in a safe location on pool days to prevent damage.
• Salt water ruins watches! If not rinsed off thoroughly, salt water on watches will build up under moveable bezels and freeze them permanently so they won’t turn properly.

There are a lot of “jewelry dangers” when it comes to the summer season, beaches and pools. If you spend a lot of time outdoors during these months always carry a small baggie for times you need to take your jewelry off. The sand or dirt in the water can stick to your jewelry and scratch the metal and stones. Think about sandpaper…sand and dirt are abrasive, can cause considerable damage, and will make your items appear dirty as well.

Get jewelry professionally cleaned regularly to keep it in top condition.

We recommend that you bring your jewelry, especially your rings, to your local jeweler at least twice a year for a cleaning and professional inspection. At Braunschweiger Jewelers, we provide this as a complimentary service, to prevent unwanted damage and ensure your jewelry is looking its best.

To learn more about jewelry cleaning and inspections, come visit either of our New Jersey jewelry store locations in Morristown or New Providence to talk to any of our expert jewelers.

If you’d like to talk to someone directly about advice on cleaning jewelry, you can contact us online anytime by emailing us at info@braunschweiger.com, or simply filling out our contact form. We’ll be happy to answer any questions quickly!