Jewelry hold a special place in the lives of many people. For some, it acts as a symbol for the undying love that they may have for a loved one, or that a loved one may have for them. For others, it acts a form of fashion and expression. Regardless of the place it holds in your life, the tips in this article can help you choose jewelry.
Sterling silver jewelry makes a great investment. Pieces of jewelry made from sterling silver last for a lifetime and provide endless elegance. Sterling does tarnish, but can be quickly shined up using a polishing cloth. However, pieces of sterling silver jewelry that have specialty coating can last ages without tarnishing.
If you are shopping for sterling silver jewelry, you’ll need a magnet and an eye for the real thing. To spot scams, see if the magnet attracts the piece. If it does, then shout “FAKE!” at the top of your lungs and move to the next store. True sterling silver will also have a mark on it to indicate its quality, such as “0.925” or “ster”. If the item has no markings indicating its authenticity, then be wary.
When jewelry shopping, you need to be prepared to carefully look, and inspect anything that you may want to buy. You need to get a loupe. This is a small pocket-sized magnifier that can show you what kind of quality you will be getting. It magnifies the jewelry so that you can inspect it to see if you are getting something of bad quality or good quality.
Don’t purchase used earrings without disinfecting the posts or ear hooks. Other people have been wearing them, especially true for vintage pieces, and there are plenty of germs lying around. Take some lemon juice or hydrogen peroxide, squeeze some onto a cotton swab and run it over the ear pieces of the earrings. This will kill the germs, making it safe to wear the earrings.
To make sure no one can tell that you’re wearing costume jewelry, choose pieces that have a real metal setting. A gold or platinum setting can give an artificial gemstone a much more authentic look. This will make sure that you still look elegant even when you’re buying your jewelry on a budget.
May’s birthstone is the intense green stone known as emerald. If you truly want to express your devotion to a certain special person, be prepared to pay dearly as this particular stone is very hard to come by. Fortunately, emeralds can be created in a lab and are a gorgeous and affordable alternative that would make an ideal pendant or right-hand ring.
Looking at jewelry you would like to buy, decide how unique you want it to be. If you are having trouble finding a piece that speaks to you, try hand crafted. Hand crafted jewelry is available in any form of style and options. People who usually struggle to find something they like, will love the uniqueness of handmade jewels.
You should check your rings periodically for loose stones or bent prongs. It is best to catch these issues early and have the ring repaired by a professional jeweler than to lose a precious stone. Most jewelers can re-tip worn prongs to ensure your stone stays secure.
Water is typically enough to clean most types of jewelry and precious stones. Simply use a damp cloth and wipe off any kind of residue or dirt that is on the jewelry. If there are any more stubborn problems, you can use a very light cleaning detergent to remove these issues.
When you are purchasing a piece of jewelry, an important thing to consider is the return policy of the store. By looking into the return policy of the store, you can be more certain in the quality of the item you are purchasing if you are not satisfied after your purchase.
If you’re looking for a good piece of jewelry on a budget have you ever considered a pawn shop? Often times people in hard financial times pawn their jewelry, even brand new and in pristine condition. This affords you the opportunity to get a fine piece of jewelry at a fraction of the price!
If your crystals have dirt in hard to reach places, you should soak your jewelry in warm water with mild detergent. Then you should use a toothbrush to carefully scrub your jewelry off. This process will safely get rid of dirt on the outside of your jewelry, without damaging your precious crystals.
When it comes to taking care of your jewelry be sure that you are only using a soft cloth to rub it down. This is critical in ensuring that you are not causing further damage by scratching it. Be sure that you purchase a jewelry specific cleaning cloth and do not use it for any other purposes.
If you have a really expensive piece of jewelry, having a skilled jeweler craft a fake piece identical to the real is a good idea if you’re a frequent traveler. Jewelry is mostly sentimental, so wearing a fake piece on vacation will ensure that you’re keeping the real thing as safe as it can be.
As stated before in the introduction above, jewelry holds a special place in peoples lives. For some, jewelry is a symbol of love. For others, jewelry represents an expression through fashion. If you remember the tips in this article, you can choose jewelry no matter what place it holds for you.
