Gold jewelry is a sign of success, wealth, and it’s just a good investment. Unfortunately, over time your favorite pieces will lose their appeal if you do not care for them on the regular basis. Let’s figure out how to make your favorite jewelry shine again at home.
Ways to clean gold items
Metal oxidizes and changes its color under the environmental influence. The jewelry can fade, and its curves and holes can get stuck with dust and dirt. Such changes influence the appearance of jewelry. Therefore, it must be cleaned from time to time. Restoring the gleam of fine jewelry can be done quite easily at home. The means used to clean gold are not expensive at all and can be found in the house of any woman.
Method 1
If there are diamonds on your jewelry, then this is the best method to clean it, because this is a delicate way to get rid of dirt, dust, and grease.
Actually, you just have to wash your jewelry.
- Put it in warm soapy water (add 1-2 drop of liquid soap, shampoo or other cleansing agent).
- After a couple hours clean the jewelry with a soft brush. Fine bristles will reach all the tight areas and remove the dirt.
- Then rinse the jewelry with clean water and wipe with soft cloth.
To make the jewelry shine, it is recommended to wipe it with a flannel.
You have to do it regularly to preserve the good appearance of gold.
Method 2
Well-known ammonia perfectly cleanses the metal from the dirt and oils.
- Put a few drops of ammonia into a non-metallic container.
- Put the jewelry in a container with ammonia solution and leave it there until you notice the metal has brightened. Usually, it takes at least a couple of hours. But you can leave it for the whole night.
- Then rinse the gold items in clean water and wipe with a soft cloth.
Method 3
This method of cleaning at home is very fast. It takes less than half an hour.
- Mix 40 ml of hydrogen peroxide and a teaspoon each of liquid soap and ammonia in a glass of warm water.
- Leave the jewelry in this solution for about 20 minutes.
- Take it out and rinse with water.
- Wipe with a soft cloth.
Using the same components, you can manage an express cleaning.
- Pour hydrogen peroxide, ammonia, and detergent into the container (you can even use powder detergent) in the same proportions as in the previous recipe.
- Leave the pieces in the solution for 5 minutes.
- Close the container and shake well.
- Remove the jewelry, rinse it with clean water and wipe dry.
Method 4
- Pour half a glass of hot water and pour 3 spoons of salt into it.
- Leave gold in this solution overnight, and rinse in water and wipe with a soft cloth in the morning.
Method 5
- Take a shallow container, for example, a plate and cover it with aluminum foil.
- Put the gold items onto the foil.
- Pour the following solution over them: a glass of hot water with 2 tablespoons of soda.
- Leave the jewelry on the plate for 8-10 hours.
- Rinse and wipe them.
Method 6
This is the way to make your gold jewelry shine brightly, not to clean it.
- Put 3 teaspoons of sugar into a glass of water.
- Leave the jewelry in this solution overnight.
- Rinse and dry with a soft cloth.
Method 7
The regular contents of a women’s handbag will help clear gold from accumulated dirty plaque. We’re talking about lipstick. Its ingredients will help to restore gold’s gleam, and it is just perfect for this procedure. Although you can use tooth powder, lipstick’s texture is still softer and tenderer.
- Apply the lipstick to a cloth or cotton pad.
- Polish the jewelry until it shines.
- Remove the rest of lipstick or tooth powder with a clean wipe.
Method 8
- Put some gel toothpaste onto a cloth or a brush.
- Carefully polish the jewelry.
- Rinse it in a water and wipe it dry.
Cleaning gold jewelry with a tooth-brush is not a good idea. It is better to use a piece of cloth. But if the bristles of your brush are soft enough, you can use it for cleaning in hard-to-reach areas.
Method 9
This is the way to get rid of dark spots on gold.
- Prepare some lemon juice.
- Dip a cloth in the juice and apply it to the item.
- Leave it for 2 hours.
- Rinse with water and wipe it dry.
Method 10
The melting point of gold is extremely high at 1064 ° C so it can be boiled without any fear.
- Put some water in a pot and put it on the stove.
- Add a few drops of dish soap or a little detergent to the water.
- Boil the gold in a pot for 10 minutes.
- Then rinse and clean.
You can also boil the jewelry in a solution of water with citric acid (half a bag).
Method 11
You can soak gold in a contact lens solution, leaving jewelry for the night.
Cleaning white gold
Items made of white gold are easy to damage, so they should be cleaned with great care, avoiding hard brushes, powders, and other abrasive substances.
To brighten the appearance of white gold, you can use the following method.
- Mix one spoonful of ammonia and a drop of detergent (liquid soap, dish soap or laundry detergent) in a glass of clean water.
- Put the jewelry in the solution for an hour.
- Then rinse and wipe with cotton.
White gold does not like moisture, so wipe it carefully.
Cleaning the items decorated with gems
When gold items contain gems, you should be careful in choosing the cleaning method. Some types of precious gems (turquoise, amber, opal, etc.) should not be exposed to water and can lose their color or deform from excessive moisture. In addition, you cannot soak gold jewelry where the gems are glued.
There is an easy way to make gold shine and to return its former beauty. You just need to moisten a cotton ball or cloth with cologne or alcohol, and wipe the surface of the metal. Then you do the same thing, only with a cloth soaked in water. And complete the procedure by wiping it dry.