Jewelry Care

 

Care Instructions:

Brass and sterling silver naturally oxidize over time with exposure to air and water. This darkening of the metal can be easily removed with a metal polish (such as Flitz or Goddard) or a silver polishing cloth. We also have customers who prefer to use either lemon juice or baking soda for a more natural polishing method.

To keep from constant polishing we advise keeping your jewelry away from water as much as possible, drying it when it does get wet, and keeping it in a dry, air tight container when not wearing.

Brass is an alloy made up of copper and zinc.  Our pieces are cast in San Francisco, and the castings are cleaned by us in our Oakland studio with rotary tumblers, hand polishing, and love!

Sterling Silver is an alloy made up of 92.5% silver. Our pieces are cast in San Francisco, and the castings are cleaned by us in our Oakland studio with rotary tumblers, hand polishing, and love!

Gold-filled describes a material created by bonding a layer of solid gold to jeweler’s brass with heat and pressure. Unlike gold plated (aka electroplated or "dipped") metals, gold-filled is legally required to contain 5% or 1/20 gold by weight. Gold-filled is tarnish resistant, does not flake or rub off, and does not change color over time - a much better alternative to solid gold then gold plating.

14k and 18k gold is fine to shower and to sleep in, as long as you are comfortable in it. We do not recommend wearing any of your jewelry in pool, hot tub, or salt water, especially jewelry with gemstones. Gold is a soft metal and scratches do appear overtime - they can be buffed out if you prefer a constant high shine surface, but we like to think gold pieces age with you and help tell your story through their tiny imperfections.

Leather is an organic material that will age with time and wear. To get the most out of a leather piece, try not to wear in water, as this corrodes it over time.

Some of our pieces contain gemstones that have their own unique care requirements. Turquoise, pearls, and opals, for example, are rather soft stones that can also react if exposed to cleaning products, perfumes, or other chemicals. Gemstones can also be scratched, chipped, or otherwise damaged with physical impact. Our team is happy to provide more gemstone care information as needed, feel free to reach out.