Copper is a beautiful metal for jewelry, but it oxidizes (tarnishes) more quickly than silver, so it requires a bit of extra care if you want it to stay shiny. I recommend cleaning your copper jewelry after every time you wear it. Use a mild soap and water, rinse completely, and dry with a soft [...]

It’s been a while since I last wrote about caring for jewelry – and since I use a lot of silver and pearls in my work, it seems appropriate to mention how to care for these materials. The key to preventing tarnish on silver is keeping it clean, and storing it sealed off from air, [...]

Argentium silver is my current favorite metal to work with. It resists tarnishing, which means less maintenance for both me and my customers. It also fuses better than traditional sterling silver, which makes a lot of the metalwork I like to do easier. I just heard that in a recent Lapidary Journal, an article stated [...]

The Pearl Book, 3rd Edition: The Definitive Buying Guide: How to Select, Buy Care for & Enjoy Pearls By Antoinette L. Matlins This book is the most informative guide to pearls I have read. If you love pearls, this book will give you lots of information on how to determine pearl quality, the kinds of [...]

I make a lot of sculptural freeform pendants out of sterling silver wire. Because my designs are ‘open’ in structure, I make a point of using fairly thick wire so that the jewelry won’t easily get pulled out of shape. I have a few other tricks to make the pieces durable, but it is possible [...]

Since resin jewelry is so different from metal jewelry, I thought it would be useful to post a few tips on caring for it. Resin is a kind of plastic, so it can be cleaned with water and hand soap or dish soap – very easy! Resin jewelry doesn’t need to be polished. If it [...]

A while ago, I posted the aluminum foil/washing soda/hot water recipe for cleaning tarnished silver. If I didn’t mention that baking soda can be substituted for washing soda, I probably should have, because washing soda is really hard to find. None of my local grocery stores or drug stores carry it (believe me – I’ve [...]

Caring for pearl jewelry is a little bit harder than caring for all metal, or even metal and stone jewelry, because pearls are more easily damaged. Here are a few things to remember: Pearls are softer than most stones – so they can be scratched more easily. I advise storing pearls wrapped in a soft [...]

Here are a few tips for preventing (or at least slowing) the tarnishing process: Store jewelry in a clean, dry environment Before storing your jewelry, clean it, and wipe metal parts with a silver polishing cloth (many brands contain chemicals that will help prevent tarnish from forming; they will also remove slight tarnish that has [...]

Here’s an easy way to clean sterling silver jewelry that has gotten a little tarnished: Put a piece of aluminum foil in the bottom of a bowl. Place the jewelry on top of the foil. Cover the jewelry and aluminum foil with not quite boiling hot water, and add baking soda. I’ve heard it works [...]