How to Take Care of Your Jewelry

1. Avoid contact with acidic and alkaline substances. Specifically, avoid getting perfume and hair spray on your pearl jewelry if you can. Perfume, hair spray, some lotions and makeup contain chemicals that can dull the luster of your pearls. Put on your pearl jewelry after applying these substances, not beforehand.
2. Don't wear your pearls constantly. It's best to take off your pearl jewelry before doing any strenuous work that may make you sweat or get the pearls dirty, such as housework. In addition, take off your pearls before swimming or taking a shower.
3. Perform regular maintenance. Check your pearl jewelry regularly to make sure there are no loose pearls. Pearls can be cleaned using water and a soft cloth, or soaps formulated to be very gentle, such as baby shampoo. If you wear a pearl necklace frequently, you should have it restrung at least once a year. Make sure your jeweler sets a knot between each pearl in the string, to prevent the pearls from rubbing against each other and abrading their surfaces.
4. Don't use toothpaste to wash pearls. Toothpaste contains rigid particles that can damage the surface of your pearls. The best cleaning substance for pearls is a very gentle soap, such as baby shampoo.