How to Polish & Clean Gold Jewelry Like A Pro

At Goldmania, we know gold. It’s right there in our name, after all. If you are looking for advice related to any of your gold pieces, the power of the web has brought you to precisely the right place.

Gold is an incredibly durable, long-lasting material – but it needs a little help along the way to look its best. That’s where this post comes into the picture. With the right care, your gold pieces will sparkle each time you put them on. But that’s not all. You’ll also keep the pieces in great shape to stand the test of time and maintain their value.

So, will you need to spend all of your free time tending to your gold jewelry to get great results? Not at all. This can be a quick and easy task, and with a little practice, you may even come to enjoy the ritual. Let’s get started!

The Gentle Everyday Method for Solid Gold Jewelry

First, we’d like to outline a basic, everyday process for cleaning your solid gold jewelry. The word “solid” is important in that previous sentence – the practices we share in this post are all designed for cleaning real, solid gold jewelry. If you also own some gold-plated items, other techniques may be needed to clean those pieces safely.

You won’t need any fancy tools to get started with this first cleaning method. In fact, you probably already have everything listed below somewhere in your house –

• A small bowl of warm water
• A few drops of mild dish soap
• A soft-bristled toothbrush
• A microfiber cloth

With those supplies assembled, you are ready to start. Mix a bit of dish soap in with the water and stir it around for a moment. Then, drop in the piece of jewelry and just let it sit for 10 minutes or so.

After a soaking, use the toothbrush to gently scrub off any residue on the piece – the key word is gentle! There is no need to be aggressive with the toothbrush at this time. With the scrubbing complete, rinse the jewelry under the sink and then lay it out on the microfiber cloth. Use the cloth to pat the gold dry and you will be finished.

This is an excellent, versatile method for the pieces you will find here at Goldmania, such as our beautiful necklaces and timeless bracelets.

One important note: never rinse off your jewelry over an open sink drain. That’s just asking for trouble. You can either plug the sink before you start rinsing to make sure you don’t drop the jewelry piece down the drain or add a little filter basket in the drain to catch anything that might fall.

For Heavier Tarnish: A Stronger Method to Polish Gold

The process above will give you great results most of the time. Occasionally, however, you may need to clean a piece that has been neglected for a while and needs a more powerful approach.

One option in such a situation is to use ammonia rather than dish soap. This is only a good option when dealing with a solid, plain gold piece. Don’t employ this technique if the jewelry item in question has other features like gemstones included in the design.

Your process will be very similar to the one we outlined above. Be sure to use just one part household ammonia for every six parts water in your bowl, and don’t let the piece soak for any more than 60 seconds. After the soak and brushing, thoroughly rinse off the gold and dry it.

Professional Cleaning – When It’s Time for the Experts

You can also turn to professionals to get great results when cleaning gold jewelry. This isn’t going to be necessary frequently, but from time to time investing in a proper cleaning by an experienced pro will go a long way toward making your jewelry look great.

The key here is picking the right pieces to turn over to the pros. Most of your standard, basic gold jewelry can likely be cleaned safely and effectively at home. However, for things with a higher value – whether sentimental or financial – pro cleaning makes a lot of sense. The possibilities include heirloom rings, vintage gold chains, items with multiple settings or prongs, and pieces that have been badly neglected for a long time.

Professional jewelry cleaners have an advantage over what you can do at home not only because of their experience but also because of their equipment. Specifically, it’s common for such services to use ultrasonic cleaning machines that use the power of sound waves to remove grime from jewelry without doing any damage. These machines can clean in even the tiniest spots – places you’d never be able to reach with your standard toothbrush.

What NOT to Use on Real Gold Jewelry

By this point, you should have a pretty good idea of how to approach the task of cleaning your real gold jewelry. Just to be safe, we want to provide you with a quick list of a few things that you should never use in this process. Always avoid the following when cleaning gold jewelry –

• Toothpaste

• This might seem like a good idea, but it is much too abrasive and can cause tiny scratches on the surface of the jewelry

• Bleach

• Consistent use of bleach on your gold items can weaken the metal over time

• Undiluted vinegar

• Using vinegar around the house for cleaning tasks is common, but it is too acidic to use safely with gold items

• Harsh scrubbing pads

• Anything you use to scrub your gold should be relatively soft and gentle – many scrubbing pads will do damage to the surface of the gold

The rule of thumb to remember here is to play it safe and be gentle. You don’t really need a lot of force or power to get gold clean – you just need to care for it consistently using the methods we’ve already described.

How Often Should You Clean Your Gold Jewelry?

We’ve mentioned “consistency” as being a key throughout this post. But what counts as being consistent? How often should you really clean your jewelry?

If you have real gold pieces that you wear often, cleaning them quickly once a week is a great practice. Even if that frequency doesn’t quite fit into your schedule, cleaning once a month will still keep your collection in good condition.

For items that don’t come out nearly as often, an annual or semi-annual cleaning should be good enough. Once your items are clean, store them in a lined box or soft pouch, and keep each piece separate so they don’t scratch each other.

Closing Thoughts: Keep the Glow Going

Consistency is key when caring for your gold jewelry. This is a case where doing just a bit of work on a regular basis can save you from ever having to do a deep clean on any of your pieces. And, if you do have a badly tarnished gold item that needs to be restored, do that work properly once and then get into the habit of consistent polishing so it never gets back to that point.

Quality jewelry also goes a long way in this discussion. Real, solid gold jewelry from a trusted retailer like Goldmania will make it much easier to always have something in your collection that looks great and is ready for whatever occasion is on your schedule. Take a moment today to browse our collection and feel free to reach out if you have any questions. We can’t wait to serve you!