Caring For and Cleaning Pearls

Care Of Pearls

To keep pearls looking their very best you need just a little knowledge on how to care for them correctly.

The products that harm pearls most are the very things that the woman who loves pearls probably wears without a second thought.  You’ve guessed it already – the most harmful product to a pearl is the application of perfume, hair spray and cosmetics and face creams when the owner is wearing the pearls.
These grooming products and other household chemicals if sprayed near pearls can build up on the pearl and damage the lustre.  If sprayed near pearls, they can build up on the pearl and damage the lustre. The nacre can become marked, dull, pitted and generally lose that marvellous luminous lustre that defines a pearl.

 

Rules of Pearl Care

The most important way to prevent damage to your pearls is by following the golden rule of putting your pearls on as the last thing you do when finishing your grooming.  Put the pearls on after you have applied make up, perfume and hair sprays, never before.  Don’t spray your perfume on the neck area where the pearls will actually sit and avoid touching your pearls when you have just applied hand cream. If you need to reapply hair spray at some time, slip the pearls off for a moment and put them well out of the damage zone.
Likewise make pearls the first thing you remove after a night out, before you wipe your face and neck with cleansers or facial wipes, or night creams.  As you remove your pearls wipe them with a soft damp cloth.  Buff them occasionally with a silk cloth to enhance their shine and lustre.  Try not to fling them in a jumble on the dressing table, but discipline yourself to put them back in their original container.

 

Cleaning

Jewelers can clean pearls or you can buy a special pearl jewelery cleaning solution.

Don’t clean pearls using any of the jewelery cleaners especially for gold or silver on the market. Such products usually contain an ammonia base.  Also don’t use the ultrasonic cleaning sets as the vibrations can make the pearls rub against each other and cause scuffing.

After wearing your pearls, it’s a good idea to wipe them with a soft cloth; again, to minimize their contact with harmful elements. The oils in your skin are actually fine for the pearls – it maintains their luster and keeps them from drying out. However, the acids in your skin can be very harmful. A quick wipe is all you need after wearing.

If the pearls are old and the lustre is dulling wipe them with a soft damp cloth that has been dipped in a very gentle natural soap solution, next wipe them with a detergent free damp cloth and then allow them to dry flat on kitchen paper.  After the pearls have dried, a cloth with a fine smear of olive oil will help restore some lustre.

Pearls are much softer than stones and gems and can easily be scratched. Consider storing your pearls separately in a soft bag or pouch.

Store your pearls away from radiators, sunlight or other areas which become very hot.
Consider restringing your pearls regularly. Water, which is fine for pearls, will begin to disintegrate the silk on which most pearls are strung. And cosmetics, powders, pollution and grime will eventually attach to the silk, attaching both the silk and the pearls.