There is no such thing as knowing too much when it comes to jewelry, especially when what you know is useful, practical and extensive. You could lose a lot of money through easily-avoided mistakes, if you don’t cultivate at least a little bit of jewelry know-how. This article provides several practical tips about jewelry. The tips given here can guide you in acquiring jewelry and steer you away from some common mistakes people make.
Don’t use things that contain harsh chemicals like bleach, ammonia, acetone or turpentine, to clean your jewelry. Harsh chemicals will dull your stones and dissolve the enamel on your jewelry.
Be cautious of storing all of your pieces of jewelry together. It’s better to keep pieces separate by using boxes, holders, hooks and other containers. Do not just throw them into piles in a box. Not only will your necklaces become hopelessly tangled, you risk harming any fragile pieces as they bump and scrape against each other as you search the box.
If you want to buy sterling silver pieces, use a magnet and examine the jewelry very carefully. Use the magnet to detect fake jewelry; real silver will not be attracted to the magnet, but the cheaper metals will. You will always find a hallmark stamp such as “.925” or “STER.” on genuine sterling, or alternately, it might simply say, “STERLING”. Silver jewelry that lacks a hallmark may be a fake or composed of other metals.
When shopping for a diamond, it’s crucial that you do comparisons. Closely examine pieces you like, and compare them with similar items you are interested in. Some diamond sellers use misleading practices to try to increase the apparent quality of their merchandise, so you should be wary of these tactics.
Caring for your jewelry properly is important; you should definitely give it some consideration. Each type of stone, metal, and setting requires different type of care. Each piece is individual in its needs so don’t assume what works well for one piece will work well for all. Ask a jeweler to make sure you know how to maintain your items.
Costume Jewelry
Costume jewelry does require some special care. That’s because a lot of the costume settings are not set-in; they have usually been glued. Don’t submerge costume jewelry in water or clean it with abrasives. To care for it best, wipe your jewelry with a damp, warm cloth and dry it with a different cloth. This will keep your costume jewelry clean and shiny.
For a special and personalized gift, have a jewelry piece custom made for your recipient. If you buy something that will go along with their personality it will show them you thought about them!
When you list jewelry for sale online, make sure you present it in the best possible way. This is very important because a customer cannot look at the jewelery if they are buying it online. Take your jewelry photographs in a manner that focuses only on the piece, not anything in the background, and keep the background very plain.
Hit up several different stores when looking for diamond jewelry. No diamond is without its flaws, and every piece is unique. Some flaws may not seem that critical to you when you see the diamond in person. Jewelers have some flexibility with the price depending on the severity of the flaws. Shop several different jewelers to find the ideal diamond in your price range.
Well, it’s easy when you know how. This article has just touched on a few of things that you should know about this very rewarding hobby. There is much to learn, but at least you’ve now got a few good ideas to put to work.