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Pearl Jewellery Care

So now you've chosen a beautiful piece of our pearl jewellery, you need to know how to care of them to maintain their beauty and prolong their life.  

Pearls have a horrible dislike to chlorine, sun, perfumes, acids, sweat, strong detergents and hairspray and will eventually all play havoc with your pearls. They can potentially damage the nacre and cause the pearls to flake.  

Cleaning 

  • Pearls should never be cleaned in an ultrasonic or steam cleaner. It is best to use a mild detergent and warm soapy water. When cleaning them rub them gently and make sure not to get the silk/thread wet. Then lay them on a flat, soft towel to dry. Don’t forget to buff them with a sumptuous, soft cloth to enhance the lustre. Do not use anything abrasive to clean them.  Furthermore, avoid pulling on them as this will stretch the thread.
  • Pearl is generally stable to light, but heat from intense light can cause dehydration and cracked nacre.
  • Keep away from anything acidic including hair spray, perfume, cosmetics, and even perspiration as acid can cause cracks in the nacre. So do put on your pearl jewellery after allying your perfume, makeup and hairspray etc.
  • Try not to get pearls wet; so don’t sunbathe, go swimming or exercise with them on.  Although the pearls love water, the glue and silk are not fond of water. 
  • We use either carat gold or sterling silver in our pearl jewellery, over the time, the metals may darken slightly. If this does occur, your Lustrous jewellery can be cleaned using a very soft specialist jewellery cloth. Alternatively the metal part of your pearl jewellery can be cleaned gently with a soft toothbrush and warm soapy water or a tiny bit of toothpaste. Avoid using ‘dip’ polish or abrasive jewellery cleaners as these contain harsh chemicals and can destroy your jewellery over time. We also do not recommend the use of any jewellery polishing cloths which have been treated with cleaners or polishing agents.

Storage 

  • After cleaning your pearls, lay them flat and away from direct sunlight. Importantly store them in a soft storage bag or box. All of our jewellery comes with a soft storage pouch  
  • Try to avoid anything coming into contact with them as this may damage the nacre.   
  • The same goes for storing pearls in your shop and avoid displaying them in your window in direct sunlight as this may affect the dye in coloured pearls. Keep them somewhere also that isn’t too warm or dry. If they dry out, they become flaky and lose their lustre.
  • Be careful when handling them, they are very sensitive and even the slightest knock will damage the nacre. Don’t play, twist or stretch them as this will weaken the thread and breakages may occur.

Restringing

  • We recommend restringing your pearls every year to prolong their life. Normally an average pearl necklace will reduce in length up to two inches after restringing.   
  • Where possible restring on silk as using synthetic string can cause static which attracts the dirt more easily.
  • When restringing, make sure knotting between each pearl to avoid rubbing against each other, which will ruin eventually cause cracks and damage to the nacre.  Also, without knots, a large number of pearls risks being lost if there is a breakage. Furthermore, knotting gives your necklace a lovely flexibility so that it moves with the neck and collarbone.