Jewellery Care

What your jewellery is made of

Zewarish pieces are artificial jewellery: a brass or alloy base finished in gold, antique brown or silver polish, set with zircon and crystal stones, and on some designs, pearls. It is not real gold, and it is not priced like real gold. Looked after properly, the polish keeps its shine through function after function.

The one rule that matters most

Perfume and hairspray first, jewellery last. Alcohol-based sprays are the fastest way to dull a polish. Get ready completely, then put your jewellery on at the end.

Every day

• Take your jewellery off before you sleep, shower, swim, cook or exercise.
• Keep it away from water, sweat, lotion, oil and cleaning sprays.
• Wipe each piece with a soft, dry cloth when you take it off, to lift off sweat and makeup before they settle.
• Never use toothpaste, soap, detergent or a jewellery-cleaning liquid on polished artificial jewellery. They strip the finish.

Storing it

• Keep every piece in the box it arrived in, or in a soft pouch of its own.
• Do not let pieces rub against each other in one bag. Stones scratch polish.
• Store in a dry place. Humidity is what turns a polish dark over time.
• If you live somewhere humid, a sachet of silica gel in the box helps a great deal.

Handling

• Hold necklaces and chokers by the frame, not by the stones or the chain.
• Open and close hooks gently rather than pulling the piece over your head.
• For tikka and jhoomar, pin the chain to your hair rather than letting the weight hang on one point.

After a function

Wipe each piece dry, let it sit out of the box for an hour so any trapped moisture can escape, then put it away in its box. This single habit does more for the life of a set than anything else.