Caring for your handmade jewellery

A lot of care and attention goes into making handmade jewellery, so the same should be said for how it is looked after.

I set out any materials used for each piece of my handmade jewellery so this will help you to understand how to look after certain pieces.

I rarely use plated wire as I like to use solid and precious metals and materials but if plated wire has been used, it will be stated against the item. The carat of any gold used will also be stated against each item. The silver used will either generally be sterling 925 or fine silver (which is typically used for bezel set stones).

Leaving jewellery exposed to air (or displayed) can speed up the oxidising process, which can occur to raw and precious metals (where they have not been deliberately oxidised for style). In order to minimise this, you may like to store your handmade jewellery from I Love Dolly in sealed airtight or anti-tarnish bags or it is sometimes recommended to keep items individually wrapped in tissue or a soft cloth. You can purchase special jewellery cloths or anti-tarnish pouches from retailers. If you have any questions about this, please email me as I may be able to help you source these.

If the metal on your jewellery item starts to show signs of tarnish, a very gentle polish and buff with a clean cloth will usually bring the shine up on your piece. Please do not use abrasive polishes or chemicals to clean your jewellery. Always be gentle when polishing. 

When you wear your jewellery, be careful to avoid them coming into contact with cosmetics, hairspray or perfume as these can damage or discolour jewellery. 

Please do remember that jewellery is very much organic! Pieces which have been deliberately oxidised or which have received a brushed silver or satin effect may lose this over time the more the piece is worn. I would recommend this kind of jewellery does not come into contact with water or chemicals as it may speed up the process. I would also recommend that sea glass pieces set in a bezel setting have minimum water contact as if water gets behind the sea glass it can tarnish the metal back plate. See more about this below.

Some of the jewellery I make may have semi-precious or precious stones and some pieces are lucky enough to be made using old coins, upcycled materials or beach finds. These are either natural or historical components (or a combination) and must be handled with care. Glass is, of course, fragile and although the sea glass in these pieces will have been sea tumbled, please be sensible when wearing this type of jewellery to avoid damage. If a historic coin is used in a piece of jewellery and has been given a patina, please avoid putting this in water as the patina may wear or discolour (in the same way as something which has been deliberately oxidised).

Sea glass should be cleaned as little as possible (especially if within a bezel setting) but if it does become dirty, use warm soapy water and an old, soft toothbrush to carefully clean the top. Applying a very thin layer of a baby oil to sea glass can also remove grime but will intensify the colour and may affect the natural characteristics of authentic sea glass (which is the frostiness on the glass). Washing with soapy water should again return this to its frosty appearance.

When using any metal dips, please ensure you read the manufacturer’s instructions as this can damage some gemstones and is not recommended for beach finds jewellery.

If you have any particular queries when purchasing my handmade jewellery, please let me know at the time of purchase.