The problem is, however, that we think that once we have invested in a piece of jewelry or sun glasses, they will look after themselves. We buy numerous bags but then dump them in a cupboard, paying no heed to their shape or size. With shoes too, we behave in a step motherly fashion – we buy them, wear them and then forget about them. Some of us are even careless with our real, expensive jewelry! Take for instance, wearing gold or diamond earrings when we hit the beach. It might seem normal, but the stone setting can get loose and we may lose the diamond itself! Also, we never bother to clean any of our jewelry or any piece of accessory after use.
So, what do we do? Well, for starters, we follow the below tips to maintain and care for our accessories:
Keep your fashion jewelry clean and dry
To maintain fashion jewelry, be it in white metal, silver or even with stones, it must be cleaned and stored in a dry place. This includes everything – necklaces, chains, bracelets, bangles, rings and even earrings. It is best to keep jewelry away from any perfume, lotion or chemical products. Even exposure to water can tarnish their shine and texture. So wear your jewelry right at the end when all makeup, lotion and perfume is applied.
Most importantly, be free of jewelry of any kind when entering a pool!
Take off your jewelry before sleeping
We religiously take off our makeup or wash our face before we hit the bed. Jewelry needs the same treatment. Wearing them in bed can get them to be entangled in the sheets, cause lint to get stuck in them or simply be uncomfortable. Delicate pieces of jewelry can be distorted when worn to sleep. It is best to remove them and store them in a drawer if necessary. And more importantly, give your jewelry a break! Yes, everything and everyone needs a break. Wear your accessories sparingly. Keep them for an occasion or an event. If worn everyday, they will lose their coloring.
Clean your jewelry
To ensure long life of your jewelry, clean them after every use. It might seem like a daunting task, but a little TLC never hurt anyone! Wipe your jewelry with a plain cloth to remove any residue of sweat or traces of perfume or even water. For example, for the expensive pearl jewelry, one needs to store them in clean mul cloth. This helps maintain their enamel and shine. Also, once pearl jewelry is taken off, it needs to be wiped with a clean tissue.
Invest in the right storage
It is a very common habit to dump our jewelry, all of them, in a haphazard manner in some box or drawer. No wonder our chains get entangled, enamel chips off and some even break. However, jewelry needs to be stored carefully. Nowadays, layered jewelry boxes are available. They have separate compartments for chains, earrings, bangles and so on. Expensive gold, silver and diamond jewelry can be kept in separate velvet or silk pouches. And if space permits, one can maintain their original boxes to place the jewelry.
Fashion jewelry can be hung on hooks.
Use newspaper to maintain bags
We often regret that our expensive bags are ruined due to our poor storage methods. Handbags, expensive or not, need to be filled with paper and then stored as this will help maintain their shape. Also, leather handbags are prone to fungus in months of humidity. We need to add silica gel packets to help absorb the moisture.
Also, use a dry, soft cloth to clean the bags is a must.
Maintaining goody shoes
Shoes speak louder than words! Yes, they are one of the first aspects to be noticed in a well-dressed person and hence, shoes must be maintained! To begin with, one must never wear the same shoe day-in-day-out. A change of pairs is must!
For leather shoes, polishing is a must as it helps maintain the leather for a longer time, keeping it supple. One may spray their new shoes with a water protector spray. If the shoes smell, clean the insides by swabbing them with tea-tree oil or alcohol. However, don’t let these touch the outer side of the shoe.
If the feet sweat a lot, socks or peds can be worn so that sweat doesn’t harm the insoles. If there are blackened toe-pressure marks, these need to be cleaned regularly. For suede shoes, avoid wearing them in the rain and clean them with polish made for suede shoes.
Dust your shoes regularly. Also, air them sufficiently to be rid of the dank shoe smell. And lastly, to retain the shoe shapes, shoe trees can be kept in them.
