The Ultimate Jewelry Cleaner.
by
Pat Ruge
1 Material
2-10 Minutes
Easy
I work with a lot of jewelry in my multi-media art and am in constant search for broken, mis-matched earrings, etc. I buy in bulk when I can get a good deal. The problem is most of this jewelry has been sitting around for probably years, collecting dust, dirt and grime. Yuk.
A $40-60 ultrasonic jewelry cleaner was not in the budget, so I made my own ultimate jewelry cleaner.
Added notation to my original post: This suggestion for cleaning jewelry is meant to be for "junk"/cosmetic jewelry. A number of comments from readers reminds us that pearls and opals are never to be put in water. Sterling silver will likely tarnish. and really you should use caution with any of your expensive jewelry.
First you find a large jar with lid, add warm water and few drops of liquid soap along with a wash cloth. Drop in one or two pieces of jewelry.
Rock it back and forth several times allowing the jewelry to agitate with the wash cloth.
Remove the jewelry, rinse off and pat dry, then hang to completely air dry.
All of this jewelry was cleaned in this fashion, including the pearls, the crystals, the rhinestones, etc. Not one jewel fell out of place. Be care not to add too many at once, otherwise you end up untangling the chains, better to do those one at a time.
The only ones I would not clean this way, are the ones with leather and/or twill bands
I hope you can tell how really dirty this water is after cleaning several pieces.
Comments
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2 of 38 comments
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Speaking of "diluted ammonia water", my mother always let our hairbrushes & combs sit upright, overnite in this little concoction & with 12 people to keep clean, it worked well!
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Just an idea to do multiple chains, use the netting from oranges and garlic, etc. to make individual bags and then clean together.
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?
I have an opal ring that belonged to my mother. The opal has turned dark. Almost a gray. Would you happen to know why this happened and how I can brighten it again? Thanks for sharing.
How do I clean tarnished Marcasite.
You say to use liquid soap. Is that hand soap, dish soap, etc.,?