Caring for Your Jewelry: What Actually Works

Jewelry care advice tends to be either overly complicated or so generic it's useless. Here's what actually matters — from someone who makes jewelry every day and wears it constantly.

Know what your jewelry is made of

This sounds obvious but it changes everything. Sterling silver behaves differently from gold-filled. Turquoise behaves differently from sapphire. Opal behaves differently from both.

At Natural Earth Collective everything is made from sterling silver or 14k gold-filled, set with natural stones — turquoise, variscite, opal, fossilized coral, ammonite, moonstone, and more. These are porous, relatively soft natural materials. They need a different approach than a diamond solitaire in a platinum setting.

The general rule: the softer and more porous the stone, the gentler your care routine needs to be.

Wear it

The single best thing you can do for sterling silver is wear it regularly. The oils in your skin slow oxidation — which means the ring you wear every day will almost always look brighter and better than the one you save for special occasions. Daily wear is maintenance.

This applies to natural stone pieces too. Stones worn regularly stay conditioned and consistent. It's the pieces left in a drawer for months that tend to look dull when you finally reach for them.

Jewelry is made to be worn. Not saved. Wear yours.

Clean it simply

For sterling silver: a soft polishing cloth buffed gently over the surface is all you need for everyday maintenance. No products, no chemicals, no soaking. A soft cotton t-shirt works just as well.

For heavier tarnish: a small amount of mild dish soap in warm water on a soft cloth, rubbed gently, then rinsed and dried completely. The drying matters — moisture sitting under a stone or in a crevice is where problems start.

What to skip entirely: ultrasonic cleaners, silver dip solutions, abrasive polishing compounds. These can strip intentional oxidation, damage porous stones, and scratch surfaces. They are simply not necessary for the level of care sterling silver requires.

Be careful with natural stones

Natural stones like turquoise, variscite, opal, and fossilized coral are softer and more porous than most faceted gemstones. A few specific things to keep in mind:

Keep them away from prolonged water exposure. A quick rinse is fine — soaking is not. Water can work its way into porous stones over time and affect their color or stability in the setting.

Keep them out of direct sunlight for extended periods. UV exposure can fade some stones, particularly turquoise and opal, over time.

Keep them away from chemicals. Perfume, hairspray, sunscreen, cleaning products — all of these can affect both the metal and the stone. Put your jewelry on last, after everything else is already on and dry.

Wipe stones gently with a soft dry cloth if they need cleaning. That's usually all they need.

A note on opals specifically

Opals deserve their own mention because they have rules that don't apply to any other stone I work with.

Ethiopian opals are hydrophane — they absorb water. This means liquid can temporarily cause the play-of-color to disappear entirely. Don't panic if this happens; it comes back as the stone dries. But it also means you should never clean opal pieces with liquid, soak them, or wear them swimming or in the shower.

Australian Boulder opals are more stable but still porous and sensitive to impact. Opals generally sit lower on the hardness scale than turquoise or variscite, so they're more vulnerable to scratching and chipping from contact with hard surfaces.

For both: dry storage away from prolonged sunlight, no liquid cleaning, no ultrasonic cleaners, and avoid temperature extremes. When in doubt, wipe gently with a dry soft cloth and leave it at that.

Store it properly

Storing sterling silver in open air accelerates tarnishing. The simplest solution is also the most effective: a small zip-lock bag, a fabric pouch, or a jewelry box with a lid. Sealed storage significantly slows oxidation.

Anti-tarnish strips kept in your jewelry storage and replaced every few months are inexpensive and genuinely effective — worth adding if tarnish is something you notice frequently.

Store pieces separately so they don't scratch each other. Natural stones are softer than metal and can be scratched by other pieces if they're jumbled together.

Check your pieces occasionally

Every few months it's worth taking a close look at your pieces — particularly anything with a stone setting. Look for loose stones, worn clasps, or any metal that seems to have shifted. Catching something small early is always easier than dealing with a lost stone later.

If something looks off — a stone that moves, a clasp that doesn't close securely, a setting that seems stressed — reach out. I'm always happy to take a look at a Natural Earth Collective piece and advise on whether it needs attention.

The short version

Wear your jewelry often. Clean it simply. Store it sealed. Keep it away from prolonged water, sunlight, and chemicals. Check it occasionally. That's genuinely all it takes to keep handcrafted natural stone jewelry looking its best for years.

Browse the Natural Earth Collective collection

Jessica Foreman is the maker behind Natural Earth Collective, a handcrafted jewelry studio in Ohio specializing in sterling silver and natural stones sourced directly from sustainable miners and lapidary artists.