5 Simple Tips for Cleaning and Curating Your Jewelry Box
Every treasure in your jewelry box should make your heart happy and make you feel good wearing it. This selection of one-of-a-kind and limited edition jewelry pieces by Michelle Pajak-Reynolds is perfectly suited for wearing every day and on special occasions. Photo credit: Michelle Pajak-Reynolds Studios
It’s that time of year again when the calendar turns to a bright, shiny new year, and we set new goals for ourselves. A common resolution is to become more organized, and one area that often gets overlooked is our jewelry boxes. Unlike the overwhelming task of reorganizing your wardrobe, junk drawers, or closets, cleaning out and curating your jewelry collection is a fun, sparkling way to spend your time. Plus, it often brings joyful trips down memory lane, leaving you feeling rejuvenated and happy.
Here’s my 5 simple tips on caring for your jewelry and curating a collection you'll cherish and be proud to pass down through generations.
1. Let’s talk jewelry storage!
If you’ve been haphazardly storing your treasures in trinket dishes, tossed on top of your dresser, or in some other nonchalant way, it’s time to get organized with a proper jewelry box or storage system. You’ll save tons of time because everything will be all together and in its proper place. The days of hunting for missing earrings or untangling necklaces that have woven themselves into piles of spaghetti noodle knots will be no more. Jewelry boxes are available in all shapes, sizes, and styles to complement your décor and budget. Whatever style you choose, one with small compartments in a variety of sizes for earrings, necklaces, and bracelets or watches is a must. Some larger boxes and tabletop jewelry “trees” have little hooks ideal for hanging chain necklaces. Pearl necklaces – and any jewelry pieces strung and knotted on silk – should lay flat, as hanging them will cause the silk to stretch and eventually break over time.
If you already have a jewelry box, carefully empty it out and give it good cleaning. With frequent use, a lot of dust, debris, and (if you’re a pet-parent like me) pet hair can end up in your jewelry boxes alongside your beloved jewels, so it’s important to give your storage solutions as much tender loving care as the treasures inside them. A lint roller or brush attachment on your vacuum cleaner is great for cleaning velvet or satin-lined compartments. Giving the mirror or glass a good cleaning with glass cleaner, and dusting/polishing the outside of your box on a regular basis, are good habits to get into too.
A soft polishing cloth is the safest way to remove tarnish and keep your sterling silver jewelry sparkling. Photo credit: Michelle Pajak-Reynolds
2. Clean Your Jewelry
Now that everything is emptied out, clean your jewelry. The safest way to clean your pieces is with a soft polishing cloth. Jewelry polishing cloths are available at most jewelry stores and large retailers and made in a variety of sizes. Polishing cloths are safe to use on high quality costume jewelry and sterling silver, gold or platinum jewelry. If your jewelry is really dirty, it may require a good soak and gentle scrub with an old soft toothbrush. My favorite liquid cleaning method is a few drops of baby shampoo mixed in a little bit of warm water. Before giving your treasures a bath, it’s important to know some items should NEVER, EVER be cleaned in any liquids. This includes pearls or other gemstones or beads strung on silk as the silk inside the pearls or beads doesn’t completely dry and often stretches out when wet. I also don’t recommend using ultrasonic jewelry cleaners at home unless you are absolutely confident that your gemstones are 100% secure in their settings.
Because ultrasonic cleaners vibrate at super-fast speeds, any loose gemstones will only get looser and potentially fall out. In my early jewelry studies decades ago – and long before I knew better – I made the mistake of not checking a gemstone ring I inherited from my grandmother under a jeweler’s loupe or microscope to make sure each gem was secure before putting the ring in the professional-grade ultrasonic cleaner at school. When I went to check on it, a tiny rose-cut diamond had fallen out; and even after filtering the cleaning solution, it was never found. This happened 24 years ago, and while I found another diamond to fit in the ring, it’s not the same one she wore and loved, so I’m still heartbroken over it.
Also, some gemstones like emeralds, pearls and opals, can be permanently damaged by ultrasonic cleaners. More information about how to care for and clean specific gemstones and birthstone jewelry is available on my Jewelry Care Tips page.
3. Sort Your Jewelry
After everything is clean and sparkling again, it’s time to sort your jewels, making sure earrings have their backings and mates, and clasps on bracelets, necklaces, and watches are all in working order. Try on your rings and make sure they fit comfortably and securely. Put aside any pieces that need repair/sizing and set a date on your calendar to take them to your favorite local jewelry store, ideally one offering onsite repairs. If you know the jewelry designer who made your jewelry, contact them about the repair and sizing services you need.
One of a kind jewelry pieces, such as this 14K Fairmined gold, red zircon and Songea sapphire necklace from Michelle Pajak-Reynolds’s Elementals Fire Collection, make any jewelry collection a special treasure for jewelry lovers. Photo credit: Julie Stanley/JuleImages
4. Edit Your Jewelry Collection
After jewelry pieces needing servicing are put aside, it’s time to evaluate each item in your collection. Create three piles for each jewelry category you own:
LOVE IT! – “Must have,” “Live my life in this,” “I would feel naked without it,” “Makes me smile just thinking about it,” etc.
Maybe…. – “I feel attached to this and just can’t part with it, even though I don’t wear it.” Put these items in a special place in your jewelry box and think about how you might wear them in rotation with pieces from your LOVE IT designs.
Not me anymore – “This doesn’t suit my me, my style, or my life anymore.” Time to think about handing these jewelry items down to a loved one or redesigning them so they move to the LOVE IT pile.
When sorting, don’t be hard on yourself or stress out. This process is about creating a collection of pieces that you deeply love and will enjoy wearing.
Statement jewelry isn’t only for special occasions. A bold yet neutral necklace, like Michelle Pajak-Reynolds’s Undina Collection Venus necklace, looks amazing worn with a nice t-shirt and jeans, suit, little black dress or formal occasion gown. Photo credit: Julie Stanley/JuleImages
5. Curate Your Dream Jewelry Collection
Now that your jewelry collection is full of pieces that make your heart do a little tap-dance, it’s time to create a wish list to fill in any gaps. I like using the Rule of Three as a guideline and think long-term style, not trends.
To maximize the versatility of each jewelry category in your collection, it’s a good idea to have:
1 casual piece
1 statement piece
1 in-between piece
When it comes to crafting your personal style, you know yourself and your needs best. So if a particular gemstone, or all statement pieces, or only minimalist designs are “your thing,” then totally go for it.
As you think about your wish list, are there gemstones or designers you have a lot of, or ones missing from your collection? Think long term, because a jewelry collection is part art collection and part autobiography. Well-made jewelry is worth the investment – because it will last and become treasured family heirlooms for current and future generations that will also include priceless stories of family history.
Every treasure in your collection doesn’t have to be extraordinary or unique. It should make your heart happy and make you feel good wearing it.
Jewelry featuring raw gemstones like these 14K Fairmined gold, Umba sapphire and champagne zircon Taygeta dangle earrings from Michelle Pajak-Reynolds’s Pleiades Collection adds a pop of color and gorgeous texture to your jewelry wardrobe. Photo credit: Julie Stanley/JuleImages
Visit Michelle Pajak-Reynolds’s online shop to discover something new to add and love in your jewelry box.
