Why can t you get diamonds wet?

Diamond jewelry is a stylish, beautiful accessory for all occasions. Depending on the model, the jewelry is suitable for both the office and a festive event. We will tell you in this article how to care for diamonds so that they last a long time, do not fade and are not subject to mechanical damage.

The secret to the popularity of diamonds

A diamond is a cut diamond, a hard mineral. The remarkable appearance and bright shine of the stone is achieved by exposure to high temperatures and pressure. The high cost of a diamond is due to the fact that not all diamonds can be cut. Suitable stones are not easy to find. The main advantage of a natural mineral is hardness, not to be confused with strength. A diamond can only be scratched by another diamond. For a long time, diamonds were not processed, until in the 15th century, jewelers from India developed the technology for cutting them. Small stones were crushed into powder, which was then applied to a grinding disc in a rotating motion. Its use made it possible to create edges that refract light. Today, diamond is the most popular and expensive gemstone. In the 19th century, the stone began to be increasingly used in the manufacture of wedding rings and engagement models. The founder of this tradition was the De Beers company, a monopolist in the diamond market at the end of the 19th century. In the second half of the twentieth century, it carried out a huge advertising campaign, which declared that diamonds are forever. Advertisers insisted that only such an expensive, luxurious stone could become a symbol of true love and marriage. Nowadays, the fashion for such rings has continued; wedding rings made of white gold with diamonds have become especially popular.

What types of diamonds are there?

The quality and price of a diamond are influenced by 4 properties: color, cut, clarity and carat.

Color

The most popular colorless diamonds: there are more jewelry with such stones on the jewelry market than others. Minerals can be of different shades. It depends on the reaction to radiation, minor differences in chemical composition, plastic changes in the atomic lattice. Stones of blue and yellow color appear as a result of a chemical reaction, and minerals of green shades are of a radiation nature. Plastic transformation as the stone moves through a kimberlite pipe gives them a red or pink tint. Most often you can find yellow stones on sale, less often red ones. Whatever mineral you choose, caring for diamond jewelry must be correct; the appearance and lifespan of the stone depends on it.

Cleanliness

Usually, stones have various defects and inclusions that can be seen under a tenx magnifying glass. The voids in minerals are most noticeable, the least visible are light, non-voluminous inclusions. The price of a diamond is affected not only by the number of inclusions, but also by their location. Stones with defects on the edges and back are more expensive, while those in the center are cheaper. We’ll tell you how to care for diamonds with any number of defects a little later.

Cutting

The cut shape is chosen to minimize waste. The most popular shape is round, up to 90% of stones are processed this way. Less commonly used are cuts such as marquise, pear, oval, square, etc. Round minerals are a little more expensive than others.

Carat

Carat is weight. The larger the mineral, the higher its price. One carat is equal to 0,2 g. There is a special table with which you can calculate the ratio of the weight and size of the mineral depending on its cut.

Diamond Care

1. It is better to remove jewelry with cut diamonds at home.
2. It is necessary to avoid exposing stones to chemicals and highly abrasive compounds. To remove scratches and stains, you will have to resort to processing on a grinding machine, which negatively affects the size of the diamond and the quality of the cut.
3. It is recommended to avoid mechanical damage. Diamond is a hard stone, but after cutting, its natural properties are lost to some extent, and there is a risk of chipping. If this happens, it will require re-cutting – a complex procedure that not every jeweler can perform.
4. You need to remove jewelry with diamonds when visiting a sauna, swimming pool, or gym, and do not take them with you on vacation. This will make it possible to avoid the negative effects of humidity and temperature changes.
5. Over time, the fastenings in jewelry with stones weaken. To avoid losing them, it is recommended to periodically take your jewelry to a workshop: the jeweler will assess the condition of the accessories and repair them if necessary.

Caring for your diamond jewelry is important, but storing it properly is equally important. It is better not to put all the accessories in one compartment, as they may get damaged against each other. To store jewelry, you need to choose a box, upholstered on the inside with soft fabric, in which there are cells that tightly fix the jewelry. This makes it possible to prevent abrasion of precious metals and stones, scratches and chips. You can use special soft bags, wrap jewelry in a napkin, or in paper. It is better to store a box of diamond jewelry in a dark place, away from direct sunlight and humidity.

How to clean diamond jewelry

Even if all precautions are taken, diamond jewelry needs to be cared for periodically. Experts offer ultrasonic cleaning, which can only be used on transparent stones; colored diamonds cannot be treated this way. Ultrasonic waves make it possible to effectively and accurately remove dirt from stone. At the same time, the jeweler will check the serviceability of the fasteners and, if they are loose, will correct it. Securing stones in a setting yourself is risky, since the craftsman uses optical instruments and special tools to bend the crown. Doing this using improvised means can damage the jewelry encrusted with precious stones.

How to care for gold and diamonds at home

Caring for diamond accessories at home should be especially careful. It is recommended to wipe jewelry with a lint-free cloth every day. You can also use a damp, soft velvet cloth.

Some of the most popular ways to clean jewelry are:

1. Using warm soapy water. It is better to take liquid soap and dissolve it in water in the ratio of a teaspoon per glass. It is not recommended to use laundry soap. The water temperature should not exceed 30-40 °C. If you put stones in a hot bath, they will fade. The diamond jewelry should be placed in the solution for 10-15 minutes, then removed and the most noticeable dirt should be removed with a soft toothbrush. After cleaning, the jewelry is washed under clean water and wiped dry with a soft cloth.
2. You can use a cotton swab dipped in ammonia. Due to the pungent odor, it is better to open the window when removing dirt.
3. Among the folk recipes is the use of onion juice, which is applied to the jewelry for a few minutes and then washed off with running water. After cleaning, the jewelry should be wiped with a suede or microfiber cloth.
4. It is possible to use pure medical alcohol or vodka, which must be dissolved in water. After the diamond has been left in this solution for several minutes, it must be thoroughly rubbed with a velvet napkin.

Important! You should not clean diamond jewelry with toothpaste or baking soda. Small hard particles effectively remove dirt deposits, but can damage the surface of the diamond. If scratches appear on the stone, you will have to grind it, which is bad for the weight and quality of the natural mineral. Soda can be used to clean silver, but you need to avoid getting it on the mineral, and this is not so easy, so if you are not sure that you will perform the procedure carefully enough, it is better to abandon this method. You should also avoid the following methods of caring for diamond jewelry:

1. The use of bleach, which can discolor the metal, coat the stone with a dull coating, depriving it of its shine.
2. Application of iodine. Frames made of gold or silver will acquire a reddish tint, which is not so easy to eliminate. Most likely, you will have to take the jewelry to a jewelry workshop.
3. Hydrogen peroxide, potassium permanganate and vinegar oxidize the metal and should not be used when caring for diamond jewelry. A white coating may form on the minerals.

Proper care of diamond jewelry ensures its long service life. Even after years of wear, jewelry with precious stones will look the same as the day it was purchased.

CORRECT CARE OF DIAMONDS AND JEWELRY

The lucky owner of a diamond ring or diamond earrings probably wants her wonderful jewelry to always remain as new and her diamonds as sparkling as the day she purchased them.

How to properly care for diamond or diamond jewelry? Firstly, you need to follow a few simple rules when wearing them, so that within a week after purchase you don’t have to go to the jeweler. If possible, try to remove jewelry when you get home. Judge for yourself, peeling potatoes in a diamond ring (even if it is an engagement ring) is not entirely reasonable. It’s better to take it off for a while, putting it aside, and put it back on after cooking. The same goes for diamond earrings. You should not take a bath in them, much less go to the sauna. High humidity and temperature do not benefit the shine of the product; moreover, in such situations you can simply lose the decoration.

Do not forget that it is better to store jewelry not on an open shelf, but in some small jewelry box. This way you will protect your jewelry from dust. It is better if different jewelry has its own box, so that the rings inside it do not rub against each other, but are placed freely on a soft surface.

Be prepared for the fact that after some time a small amount of dirt will accumulate on the jewelry, which is usually located in small hollows of the pattern or simply in the most inaccessible places of the product. In most cases, such “dirt” is even beneficial: it creates an additional effect of depth in the design of a ring or earrings. If this is categorically unacceptable for you, then you can clean your jewelry yourself at home.

Sometimes it is enough to wash the product with soap and water. You can use a soft sponge to do this. This method is especially convenient for cleaning chains and items with large parts (pendants).

It is very good to clean rings and earrings with diamonds using vodka or a weak alcohol solution. In this case, you can pour alcohol into a cup and dip the jewelry there for a few seconds, and for more severe contamination, use a cotton swab dipped in this liquid. There is no need to rub the product with force, just walk over it with moistened cotton wool. This will be quite enough to return the shine to the gold, and to the diamond its unique sparkle.

Remember: never try to clean products with strong abrasives (such as soda), as it can scratch the gold and ruin the appearance of the product. Do not use various household solutions (vinegar, hydrogen peroxide, potassium permanganate) for cleaning. For example, iodine will permanently change the color of gold by entering into an oxidation reaction with it. Such a defect can only be eliminated by re-polishing.

Some people are still convinced that a diamond is the hardest stone, that it does not sink in water and does not burn in fire. It’s not like that at all. This statement is true for a diamond: the raw material from which craftsmen subsequently cut a diamond. Indeed, a diamond is very strong, nature created it with a cloudy, as if melted coating, professionals call it a “shirt.” The “jacket” of a diamond is a consequence of the high temperature inside the earth where the stone was formed. The cutter, removing this layer, gives the diamond the shape of a diamond, and at the same time, to the many positive properties acquired by the stone (brilliance, transparency, sparkle), the fragility of the stone and sensitivity to temperatures above 700 C are added. That is why, never try to check the authenticity of your diamond by blows or fire. In the first case, there is a high probability of a complete split of the stone, in the second, your irresistible diamond will be covered with a thin cloudy layer, which can only be removed by repeated polishing at a cutting factory, but at the same time, your diamond will lose its original size, weight, and, perhaps, the quality of the cut.

Treasure your diamonds, especially if they were given to you with love, take care of them as much as possible. Remember that once every six months it is advisable to take your jewelry to a jeweler to clean it in an ultrasonic bath, and if necessary, polish it to a new condition. And then your irresistible rings, earrings or pendants with diamonds will bring you joy every day!