Building an Eternal Jewelry Collection

Once you've decided that you are interested in buying jewelry and expanding your personal collection of precious stones or metals for any occasion, you will be embarking on a major and eternal investment that will last for many generations. You will want to make sure that you get jewelry that is as flattering to your body type, your complexion, your hair and your wardrobe as possible.

• Know thyself: Are you a flashy person? Do you have an outgoing personality? Or are you perhaps shy, demure, and as likely to sit against the wall at a party as opposed to seeking to be the center of attention. Do you prefer ostentation, or do you have a strong sense of tactful modesty? Knowing all of these things about yourself and keeping them in mind will help you to shop for the proper jewelry pieces, colors and stones.
• Know your price range: If you don't have a lot of money to spend, you can still build a basic starter set of eternal jewelry to suit your needs. You can choose between a single, expensive stone, or build a collection of smaller, less expensive stones that accentuate each other and your style. A wonderful jewelry collection can start very simply with a piece that goes with just about anything such as a gold or silver chain, a simple band for your finger, or a pair of small diamond stud earrings.
• Consider your looks: If you have blue eyes, consider using sapphire jewelry in order to provide a match and bring out the color. If you have a dark skin complexion, consider cooling it with lightly-colored jewelry and gems, such as a platinum chain or a clear diamond. If you need further assistance understanding your face and body type or complexion can relate to the jewelry you are interested in, you can seek assistance from the various jewelers that you are considering buying from.
• Don't forget your insurance: Something that most people forget, is to add their jewelry to their homeowners or renters insurance policy. This way, if the jewelry is every stolen from the home or damaged in a fire (most gemstones can't be damaged by fire, but the gold or silver settings for them may be), your insurance will pay to replace your valuable jewelry. Building the perfect eternal jewelry collection means preparing to take care of it and protect it in the future.

Taking Care of Your Jewelry

Part of having a magnificent jewelry collection is in maintaining the jewelry itself. The gemstones have different recommendations for cleaning them based on their composition and hardness, but taking care of the metal setting, if applicable, is also critically important.

• Platinum: Platinum is a white metal that is much purer than gold, 35 times more rare, and much more difficult to mine and refine than gold as well. It should be stored separately from other jewelry, including other platinum jewelry as it may cause scratches. Cleaning platinum can be done with your standard store-bought jewelry cleaner or gently rubbing with a solution of 50% ammonium and 50% warm water.
• Gold: Softer than platinum and always sold as an alloy (combined with another metal), gold is valuable in jewelry for its beauty and flexibility, caring for gold properly requires a little more work than platinum but if done properly, it can last for generations and maintain its beauty.
  • DO store gold in a soft, velvet-lined hard case. Do not use a pouch as this will enable the gold to rub against itself or other pieces and erode the metal.
  • DO clean gold using a detergent-free soap and warm water bath with a soft-bristled brush.
  • DO NOT go swimming with your gold jewelry on, as the chlorine can erode the metal, allowing your diamonds or other gems to fall out of their settings
• Silver: is another pliable metal, chosen for its beautiful color and ability to contrast with non-diamond gemstones. The best way to keep silver from tarnishing is to keep it out of the air and light when you are not wearing it, such as in a soft, cloth bag. Remove tarnish with a store-bought solution, or make your own cleaner by combining 2 tablespoons of baking soda and 2 tablespoons of salt in an aluminum pan. The pan must be aluminum, since there is a chemical reaction with it that makes the solution work. Once its thoroughly mixed, drop your silver in for awhile, then rince and wipe dry.