Gemstones are beautiful and delicate stones that require great care to maintain long term quality. Try the master jewellers tips to cleaning and storing your precious gems.

Diamond

Using warm water, gently massage the diamond with a soft toothbrush to remove grease. Even though diamonds handle heat and wear well, mechanical cleaning may damage the surface of the diamond. Therefore we always recommend for you to hand clean your diamonds.

When exercising, cooking, cleaning or sleeping, store your diamonds in a fabric-lined jewel case or separate compartments of a jewellery box. Alternatively, you can also wrap them individually in tissue paper to prevent diamonds scratching each other or other jewellery pieces.

Peridot

Similar to diamonds, clean your peridots with warm water. It is important to regularly clean peridots as exposure to perspiration can deteriorate the surface of the gem. Additionally, using acids and heat may cause fractures to the gem, or damage the finish of the stone as it is very soft.

Turquoise

Gemstone care for your turquoise is simple as long as you have a soft and clean silver polish cloth and gentle dish washing liquid. A gentle jewellery cleaning brush is also required.
When the stone is clean, store it in an airtight plastic bag to ensure it won’t tarnish from moisture in the air. This can then be kept in your jewellery box until the next time you use them.

Amethyst

Treat this great stone with care as high temperature can discolour or scratch the surface. Take your amethyst jewellery off before having a cleaning in the kitchen or washing your hands, as steam and hot water contribute to discolouration. Similarly, store your amethysts away from direct sunlight as ultraviolet radiations can also affect their appearance.

Garnet

Use warm water, a soft brush and detergent to clean your garnet jewellery. Like amethysts, garnet stones are heat sensitive so avoid hot water or prolonged exposure to warm water. For stones with fractures, ultrasonic cleaning is not safe for your gemstone.

Ruby

Gently clean the ruby with warm water, detergent, and a soft brush. The use of mechanical cleaning removes the oil added to the surface of the ruby, so we always advise to hand wash your stones, however ultrasound cleaning also maintains high quality sparkle of your stone. Like most gemstones, avoid storing rubies in bags with other stones and store them separately to prevent damage to other softer gems.

Pearl

A damp, soft cloth is all you need to clean your pearls. Wipe the surface and remove stains with a mild soapy solution. Do not dip the pearls into the solution as this may discolour the surface. Unlike most gemstones, pearls need oxygen to maintain the high quality luminous shine. It is important to avoid airtight bags and plastic containers, and keep away from direct sunlight.

Aquamarine

Using warm water, detergent, and a soft brush, wipe the surface to remove oils then store in a soft pure cotton cloth before putting in a jewellery box.

Emerald

Clean your emeralds with warm water and a soft cleaning brush. If your stone does not look ‘as good as new’, ask your trusted jewellery expert for their opinion to see if the stone needs oiling. Maintain the lustrous shine by storing your emerald jewellery in individual jewellery box compartments to avoid scratches.

Topaz

Gently clean topaz jewellery with a soft brush that has been dipped in warm water. Store this gemstone away from other stones to avoid it damaging other softer stones. An easy storage solution is to use jewellery pouches.

Opal

Like emeralds and topaz gems, use warm soapy water with a soft cleaning brush to clean your opal jewellery. However, be careful when handling opals and these gemstones are very sensitive to pressure, heat and moisture. Be sure to wipe all the water off the opal before storing in a plastic bag, or wrapping in a soft fabric.

Sapphire

Use warm soapy water and a soft brush to gently clean the surface of the stone. As sapphires are a soft gemstone, it is important to store your beautiful blue jewellery away from diamonds’ harsh edges.