The maintenance tips & tricks for all your Oogst jewellery
We get that you don’t want to take your Oogst jewel off ever again. However we do recommend taking all your jewellery off when you shower, swim, work out, renovate, garden or even sleep. This way you’ll enjoy your lovely pieces the longest.
Cleaning your jewellery
You can clean your Oogst jewels at home by using some warm water, a mild liquid soap and a soft tooth brush. Once you’ve dried it with a soft cloth it will be shiny again.
Having your jewellery repolished or rematted by us
Have you been wearing your Oogst jewel for a while now and is it a little dull compared to the first day? We can repolish or rematt it. Step on into the shop when you’re nearby and we’ll take care of it. We’ll also check the setting of your diamond or gem stone at the same time, to make sure everything is still going strong like it should be. Most of the time you can pick up your beloved Oogst jewel a little later that day.
Polishing silver
You’ve probably noticed that silver jewellery gets a little tarnished over time. Some people do react to silver more than others, their pieces darken more quickly. Cleaning your silver is easily done by dipping it in Silver Dip or Silver Clean, a liquid solution by Hagerty, you can find it at a chemist or online. Rinse well with water, and all the oxidization is off.
An old fashioned tip for polishing silver is adding some soda and aluminum foil to some warm water in your sink and letting it soak. Still works like a charm.
If you want to polish a large silver piece, like a candelabra, you can use silver polish and a soft cloth to rub it. For our matt jewellery we advize against this, using the Silver Dip or Silver Clean is best.
Pearls and their luster
Do you wear pearls? Be careful with hairspray, body lotion and perfume. Pearls have quite an open structure and chemicals dull their shine. Because this is a natural luster this layer cannot be repaired. Of course a pearl can be replaced in a beloved piece of jewellery once it’s lost it’s luster.
We advise against wearing your pearl ring or earrings while showering or swimming. The bonding of the pearls might loosen. If it does come off, we can of course fix it.
Restringing your pearls or gem stones
Lustrous pearls and colourful gemstones are strung on a nylon thread with some knots for security. These can be added every now and again or between each pearl.
These knotted pearls and gem stone necklaces or bracelets move easily around your neck or wrist. Over time the thread will stretch a little bit and will wear down. Then this necklace or bracelet will need to be re-strung. You’ll know when the time has come once you notice a lot of space between each separate gemstone or pearl, or you see a bit of ragging of the thread.
Book an appointment and bring your beloved Oogst piece to us, we’ll mend it to it’s original state.
The hardness of gem stones of the Mohs scale
Not all gemstones are wear-resistant. The hardest gemstone we know, diamond, is the hardest material in this world. The hardness of gemstones is defined by a number. The German mineralogist Friederich Mohs created the scale back in 1812. Diamond was a 10 and limestone a 1.
Sapphire, Spinel and Ruby (9 at the Mohs scale) are very hard and very suited to use in a ring design. These gem stones will not scratch easily.
Softer gem stones like Moonstone or Labradorite (6 on the Mohs scale) will need extra careful treatment, when set into a ring. On your hand your gemstone sees a lot of action, just imagine doing groceries, lifting a crate, smashing into the wall or using your weights at the gym. Your Oogst earrings or pendant will endure a lot less, so a softer stone is more suited for those jewels.
Our tips: Never take off your jewellery above a hardstone floor, like your bathroom, when they fall they can get damaged. And Dutchies beware of your sturdy bike lock, this can really smash against your lovely gemstone ring.
Once a gemstone has dulled, it can be re-polished by our gem-cutter. They’ll look anew.
Check your setting.
Remember it’s important to have your diamond and gem stone settings checked once a year. Sometimes a stone get’s a bit loose, by hitting something you really hadn’t even noticed. And a diamond is actually harder than the gold it’s set into, it can wear down the gold if it gets loose. By having your settings checked regularly you’ll avoid loosing them.
We’ll also clean and re-finish your Oogst engagament ring or wedding rings when you come in for the checkup. So it will sparkle like it did on your wedding day or at the proposal.
