Rather, she suggests using a soft dust cloth to gently wipe down the surface, without using any liquid at all.įor sterling silver, Maker recommends a clever old-school trick: Place some tin foil on the bottom of a glass bowl, add a tablespoon of salt, and fill with boiling water. But hold the cotton pad for pearls: "Rubbing alcohol could ruin the very, very delicate finishing that pearl has," Maker explains. If you're looking to clean the stones of your earrings (whether to remove buildup or just to shine up any hazing), the rubbing alcohol method will do just fine for gold, platinum, and diamond earrings. "If costume jewelry remains wet, it'll discolor," Maker says. If you do add water to costume earrings, just be sure to dry those pieces super well. If they're really looking drab, you can use a little drop of gentle soap (like this baby soap) and water on your toothbrush to give it a better clean. ![]() When it comes to ornamental or costume earrings, Maker advises using a dry toothbrush to gently loosen any dirt or dust. Keeping your jewels sparkling is yet another reason to clean them regularly, no? Then you can lay your pieces in a microfiber cloth to gently buff them shiny. "That steam will help to loosen any dirt," she explains. If you don't have any rubbing alcohol on hand, Maker suggests another product-free route: Simply boil some hot water in a kettle and hold your jewelry up to the steam. "Just a little bit of rubbing alcohol on a cotton pad to clean the post and the backing." Simple, sure, but effective: Rubbing alcohol is a cleaner, a solvent (meaning it can dissolve buildup), and a disinfectant, making it a quick and easy way to remove all that gunk and sanitize the metal. "The technique that I've always used is simple," she tells mbg. No sweat: We enlisted the help of Melissa Maker, green cleaning expert and founder of Clean My Space, to master the art of earring cleaning. You might think a simple shampoo in the shower is enough to wash away that gunk, but even leftover hair products can build up around the earring post and accumulate in and around that tiny earring hole. "Earring posts can accumulate retained skin oils that help yeast, fungus, and bacteria overgrow," explains Ciraldo. ![]() ![]() Once that hole seals, however, "it's exceptionally rare for you to get an infection from a dirty earring," she says.īut that doesn't mean you should neglect those piercings: Even if you've had your piercings for years, cleaning those jewels regularly is essential. That's because before the earring hole forms a new skin covering around it (a process called "re-epithelization," says board-certified dermatologist Loretta Ciraldo, M.D., FAAD), your newly pierced ears are more prone to infection. If you have pierced ears, chances are you know the drill: For newly bejeweled ears, it's imperative to clean the area once a day for about eight weeks.
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