Jewellery Care

We work hard in our in-house workshop to make our jewellery as sparkly and shiny as possible, and we want it to stay that way for you for years. So here are our tips, tricks, and suggestions on how to keep your new piece of jewellery looking its best.

 

 

Our jewellery is made using surgical grade stainless steel which is considered a hypoallergenic metal. Some designs feature a hard ionic plating of 18 karat gold. Stainless steel is a very durable metal, much harder than traditional silver and gold alloys. It is kind to sensitive skin and even kinder to the wallet!

Crystal common jewellery is designed and made in Eaglehawk, Victoria, right here in our in-house workshop. In fact, if you are ever to visit our retail space, which is shared with Heath Lyons manufacturing jeweller, you will see our workshop and probably hear Amber and Susan working away on new designs. 

Stainless steel jewellery is very easy to take care of and does not tarnish like sterling silver. You should still take care when cleaning your gemstones and crystals as some can be damaged by traditional cleaning chemicals.

Warning: Some gems and crystals will become damaged by silver cleaning liquid solutions. You should never place the following stones in this solution:

• Organics such as pearls, amber, wood, shell, coral & bone
• Porous or soft stones like malachite, lapis, turquoise, or opals
• Any stones that have been artificially surface treated with dyes, waxes, or oils ( which you won't find in our store but are commonly sold elsewhere)

As your stainless jewellery will not tarnish, there is no need to use a traditional jewellery cleaning chemical based product as it will have no effect on the sparkle of your jewellery and will only risk damage.

Sometimes you might need to clean your stainless steel jewellery as regular use of creams, moisturisers and sunscreens might leave a greasy film and dull the sparkle. The safest way to clean your stainless jewellery is to use a plain dishwashing detergent in warm water. Soak the item for a minute or two and use a soft, old toothbrush to dislodge dirt around the nooks and crannies. Give it a good rinse in warm water and dry with a soft cloth. Avoid detergents with added ingredients like citrus oils as these can leave the surface a little greasy. Just the plain, old, cheap $1 a bottle stuff will do the trick. 

 

What NOT to do: Please do not use toothpaste to clean your jewellery. It is a myth that toothpaste will clean jewellery. It is abrasive and can cause scratches and damage to your metal and stones. Not to mention it can be a real pain in the backside to get it out from the small spaces between stones and chain links.

What about those ultrasonic cleaners that you can buy? Our ultrasonic cleaner is a beast, and boy, oh boy, does it get a workout. It is probably the most used piece of equipment in our workshop. However, you need to know that it is a massive unit, up to ten times larger and more powerful than the small ones sold for personal use and that it is not a fix-all for every situation. Not all gemstones can be used safely cleaned in an ultrasonic, and doing so will likely result in catastrophic damage to certain stones. Need an example? I once knew a jeweller who placed a lovely large tanzanite into an ultrasonic and ended up with seven or eight small tanzanite chips when he came back. Yikes! 

Arrrggghhh! Broken Jewellery...

 

Even though surgical steel is exceptionally tough, when we wear jewellery, it is constantly moving as we move. This causes wear, links of chains rubbing together, and wearing away. Eventually, they will wear through and break. The excellent news is that we are able to help you should you experience any breakage. 

We have three people dedicated to our jewellery range. One has been a fully qualified jeweller for over 25 years, another working in the industry as a design and gemstone specialist for 15 years and the third has been an expert in beading, pearl threading and fashion jewellery repairs for another 15 years. We make our pieces ourselves in our fully equipped workshop. This allows us to have complete control over the quality of the materials being used and the craftsmanship. In saying that, if you give a necklace a good pull, it WILL break, even a steel one! If you drop your earring and run over it in your car, it WILL be damaged. 

Wear your jewellery with pride, show it off, and love it hard. Just remember it's not impervious to damage just because it's new. Store it in the pouch or box it came in to protect it from getting scratched and tangled up with other pieces. Be mindful to avoid being too rough with it and treat it with some care so that you can enjoy your piece for years to come.

And as always, if you have any issues with a piece of jewellery you purchased from us, get in contact so we can provide a solution and get you back to your sparkly self in no time.

A Quick note on metal allergies:

Over the years, we have had some clients who have said that they are allergic to silver or gold jewellery. In most cases, the allergy is not to the silver or gold itself; it is due to the inclusion of another base metal in the alloy. Silver is anti-bacterial by nature. This is why we see it being used a lot in medical settings to assist in wound healing. Some cheap, base metals are horrible, toxic, and corrosive and this is where the sensitivity originates from. 

It is not impossible to be allergic to surgical stainless steel, but it is highly unlikely, which is why it is considered to be hypoallergenic. Should you experience any sensitivity at any time, immediately stop wearing the piece in question and seek medical advice.

With the price of silver and gold rising steadily, and to avoid any issues with sensitivities, using surgical stainless to create our jewellery was the best solution to deliver a range that is on-trend, durable and much kinder on both the wearers skin and the wallet.