It's no mystery: Diamonds in Engagement Rings Dull up and
Lose their Sparkle and Shine.
This all happens for one simple reason: The Diamonds get dirty!
Dirt and Debris have a lovely way of attaching themselves to Diamonds just like oils from our finger prints. They stick to the Diamond!
Once this dirt and oil gets on the stone, it keeps light from entering, which makes it lose its Sparkle and Beauty.
The good thing is, this is NOT permanent!
Diamonds can be cleaned easily and will look brand new forever....
If you know the Secrets!
5 Secrets
There are 5 Secret Tips to keeping your Diamond Engagement Ring looking Bright and Shiny. It's a matter of HOW you Clean your Diamonds and WHEN you Clean your Diamonds.
Let's dive in...
The 5 Secrets to keeping your Diamond Engagement Ring Clean...
1) Ammonia
Ammonia (or Mr. Clean) is a powerful cleaner that works wonders and keeps your Diamonds clean. Ammonia won't hurt Gold or Platinum (has no bleach in it) and is perfect for cleaning Diamonds.
Ammonia isn't expensive like a lot of Jewelry Cleaner Solutions are. You only need a little Ammonia (one part), to about 7 parts of Water (plus add in a small squirt of Dish Soap). That's it! It makes the perfect Homemade Cleaning Solution. (This is what we use at the Jewelry Store, even though we also sell bottled Jewelry Cleaner.)
Try it! It works!
2) Hot Water
If you Clean your Rings in Cold Water, you won't clean them very well.
Use HOT water, like Coffee-Hot, and you'll be able to clean away any Dirt, Debris, Dust or Oils from the Diamond.
Just be careful if you own Fancy Colored Diamonds (Diamonds that are Fancy Yellow, Blue, Green, Red...), because the heat from Hot water could make the Colors fade!
3) Use a Toothbrush
The soft bristles of a toothbrush are awesome for reaching all the little nooks and crannies of a Diamond ring.
Dab at the Diamonds gently. Don't be too rough or pull on the prongs. You don't want to loosen your Diamonds, pop them out, or even scratch the Gold or Mounting.
Clean carefully!
4) Clean Your Bottom!
The #1 spot that gets dirty on a Diamond is the bottom. The point of the Diamond (Pavilion) is the dirt catcher. This gets dirty fast because it sits down into the Mounting, Head, Prongs or Baskets.
You need to make sure you flip your ring over and clean underneath the Diamonds. Clean the base. Dab at it and get the bottom of your Diamonds clean.
You'll notice a big difference doing this. Especially with Baguette Cut Diamonds, which get dull and dirty underneath pretty quickly.
Clean the bottoms of your Diamond and they will sparkle like crazy.
5) Clean them often!
Many times people will put their rings on and NEVER clean them! GROSS! Don't do this! You wouldn't wear anything else without cleaning it... Clean your Rings!
Even cleaning them once a month is NOT enough!
Make it a point to clean them at least once a week.
Yes, it can be a chore, but cleaning them once a week will make them look stunning!
Cleaning your Rings OFTEN does 2 things:
Believe it or not, but there is more than one reason to keeping your Diamonds clean...
A) No Cement!
Cleaning them once a week (mark it on your calendar) keeps dirt or debris from building up like cement on the bottom of your Diamonds. When crud gets built up, you may not be able to clean them by hand anymore. You may need to take them to a Jewelry Store for a professional cleaning which could take hours.
B) It keeps your Mounting from Wearing Down!
That's right! A Dirty mounting wears down faster! Most people don't know this. Dirt rubs against the Metal, it eats away at the Gold, it can weaken your Prongs, Channels and Band. Dirt is harmful to your Ring and makes your Diamonds look Dark and Lifeless!
When Diamonds lose their Sparkle they don't look pretty anymore. That's sad for an Engagement Ring! Make it a habit to clean them every Friday (or whatever Day). Get them shiny for the weekend. Take your rings off if you're doing hard physical labor, like working in the garden. And do keep them away from BLEACH! Bleach can kill a Gold Mounting. Don't wear your rings when doing laundry!
There you go. 5 Secret Tips and Tricks to keeping the Diamonds in your Engagement Ring looking brand new and shiny forever! :)
Better get the toothbrush!
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Copyright © 07-13-2010 Jewelry-Secrets.com
