Travelling With Your Jewellery

The following are a list of obvious but helpful tips that should be followed when on holiday or on any trips away:

• Only take what jewellery is necessary on holiday.
• When travelling by plane do not place your jewellery with your main luggage.
• Your jewellery should be carried with you wherever possible outside your home.
• When travelling by car lock any jewellery items in the glove compartment or boot. Do not use handbags as a place of storage!
• Use safe deposit boxes for safe keeping in hotels.
• Do not wear your jewellery in any situation where you will be undressing, such as changing rooms or on the beach.
• When visiting beaches or swimming pools never leave your jewellery unattended, including watches.

Cleaning & Taking Care of your Jewellery

All jewellery should be cleaned often in order for them to retain their appeal and looks. Diamonds and coloured stone rings are manufactured with different settings, which help hold the gemstone(s) in place, but with wear and tear these settings will need to be checked and repaired every few years. The resetting process is not expensive but is definitely worth it, as it can prevent the loss of valuable stones.

What you can do to reduce the wear and tear on your jewellery:

• Try not to get hairspray or perfume on metals or pearls, this will discolour them
• Remove jewellery when doing housework or gardening, as it will be damaged
• Household chemicals will affect the appearance of your jewellery
• Use jewellery cleaning products that are recommended, if unsure ask a jeweller for their opinion
• Jewellery should be stored in soft-lined boxes or pouches
• Diamonds should be stored individually as they can scratch each other
• Take your pearls to a jeweller for restringing if the string breaks.

Take care of your jewellery as you would with any other personal and expensive possessions. The only way any piece of jewellery will stay looking its best is with a great deal of effort. Wearing an item every day will cause wear and tear, which will eventually lead to your jewellery devaluing.