CARE INSTRUCTIONS

All gold or silver plating can eventually fade if not taken care of properly. Want to make your plated jewelry last longer? Here are some helpful tips to care for your hip hop jewelry, so that the plating will last to its full potential. Check them out!

Guidelines to maintain Laie hip hop jewelry

Part I: How To Keep Your Hip Hop Jewelry From Fading Or Tarnishing

Part II: What to Avoid When Cleaning Jewelry?

Part III: How to clean your jewelry? And how often?

Part I: How To Keep Your Hip Hop Jewelry From Fading Or Tarnishing

Laie Jewerly is not liable for items damaged due to improper care. If you want your jewelry to have a better luster and can be worn for a long time, please pay attention to the following points to save your hip hop jewelry at first:

1. Avoid Heavy Sweat

You should keep your jewelry dry and clean. Please keep your sweat off in intense working session during hot days to avoid prolonged exposure of your jewelry to perspiration. Perspiration and the buildup of body oil will change the PH values of the plating.

When you sleep, you may roll around or experience night sweats, and both can contribute to making your diamond jewelry less sparkly. Over time, sweat and dead skin cells can clog the setting around your diamond.

2. Avoid Chemicals

Avoid direct contact with perfume/cologne, It is very important to make sure all body sprays are done before putting on your hip hop jewelry so that the chemicals inside will not contaminate the plated metal of the hip hop jewelry.

You have to take your jewelry off when using lotion or washing your hands. When these substances get onto your diamonds, they leave a film or coating that prevents light from reflecting off the gem’s facets. You can wipe it down with dry microfiber cloth to remove skin oils after wearing your piece of jewellery.

3. Avoid Wearing When Exercising, Bathing, Swimming, or at the spa

Stay out of water. Although diamonds are not harmed by water, the precious metal they are set in can be. Mineral buildup in hard water can scratch the precious metal settings holding the diamonds.

Tarnishing of the plated hip hop jewelry or brass metal jewelry can be caused because easily by the reaction taking place with liquids like oil, nail polish, and chlorine. Sweat can also cause the same problem also, therefore it is mandatory to remove all plated hip hop jewelry when exercising, swimming, bathing, doing laundry, or gardening.

Chlorine, especially at elevated temperatures, can permanently damage or discolor your gold jewelry. When removing jewelry for these purposes be sure to store in a dry area. Gently clean your gold or vermeil jewelry with a soft polishing cloth.

Be sure not to over-polish jewelry, especially vermeil, because it can damage the finish. Friction or contact with a hard surface can produce scratches or wear to the piece.

Also avoid exposing your jewelry to extreme temperatures or to sudden fluctuations in temperature.

Remember that residue can make your ring look and feel dirty. Remove your jewelry before cooking, or applying thick lotions. Oils can get stuck in your setting and discolor your jewelry —especially if your ring, bracelet, or necklace is made of white gold or K gold.

4. Keep It Away from Sinks

It is a helpful tip that you should keep your diamond jewelry away from sinks, so as to save you from experiencing that heart-wrenching moment when your gorgeous piece goes down the drain.

5. Touch Diamonds as Little as Possible

Diamonds' surface may become covered in oils from human skin. When you touch the diamonds in your jewelry, the sebum—an oily, waxy substance in your skin—begins to coat the surface of the diamond, dulling its brilliance. So, try to refrain from touching the diamond during the day. By touching the precious gemstone as little as possible, you keep it sparkling and clean longer.

6. Separate Storage

If your jewelry is not used frequently, keep it stored in the provided dust bag. The temperature should within 0 to 60℃. Good storage boxes are lined with tarnish-proof fabric and have a separate space for each individual piece. If your climate is humid, place a small packet of desiccant crystals inside your storage area. Avoid storing the jewelry with rubber products.

Refer to the picture to see all kinds of situation you have to avoid to do.

What to Avoid When Cleaning Jewelry?

Daily wear and tear and contact with lotions or cleaning products can loosen diamonds and gemstones, bend prongs and wear down mountings. It happens over time and often without visible warning. Here, we suggest you learn what you need to avoid, before cleaning the jewelry:

1. Of course, we can use dish soap and even body wash to clean, but you must avoid products that include moisturizers. Those ingredients tend to leave a film, which is exactly what you're trying to remove.

2. Remember not to use paper towels to dry your jewelry, since they can scratch the metal. Instead, use a soft cotton, microfiber cloth or let it air dry.

3. Do not use any household cleaners such as bleach, chlorine, and acetone. These harsh chemicals can break down some of the base metals in your jewelry.

4. Never use any kind of abrasive products such as toothpaste, baking soda, or any powdered cleaners, which can easily scratch metals, particularly gold.

5. Beware of using ultrasonic jewelry cleaners at home. While they do make jewelry sparkle, the machine works by sending vibrations through the water—movement that can cause stones to become loose or even fall out into the machine.

6. If you want to use hand sanitizer to clean, you have to make sure the material is hard stones and precious metals such as silver, platinum, titanium, or other plated ones.

We recommend removing your rings or bracelet before applying hand sanitizer, if it contains soft stones like pearls or opals, since the alcohol inside could damage them or dull their shine.

7. Never use any jewelry cleaners or antibacterial soaps for cleaning gold plated hip hop jewelry due to chemicals present in them will tarnish the plating quickly.

How to clean your jewelry? And how often?

It is in your best interest to properly care for and handle all Laie jewelry pieces! The good news: most jewelry is easy to maintain yourself. Here is our maintenance advice for prolonging jewelry's service life!

In general, gently clean your silver gold or vermeil jewelry with mild, fragrance-free soap, warm water, or a soft toothbrush is all you need to keep your plated jewelry looking its best.

Make a solution with warm water (almost hot) and dishwashing soap. Soak your jewelry for about 20 to 40 minutes, very gently brush the stone with a very soft toothbrush, and then rinse under warm running water. Rinse thoroughly, and if needed, repeat. Be sure to take your time—intense brushing can loosen or damage diamonds. Not to over-polish jewelry, especially vermeil, because it can damage the finish.

Make sure your rinse and dry the jewelry with a soft jewelry polishing cloth immediately to avoid mineral residue from the water.

It is very important to remove any dust or dirt that may b stuck to your hip hop jewelry after each and every use by cleaning it with a cotton ball or soft cloth. You can bring back the shine to the gold plated hip hop jewelry as well by rubbing its surface with a soft jewelry cloth.

Always place your gold plated hip hop jewelry in a separate jewelry box or in a soft jewelry cloth after cleaning to avoid scratches and blemishes.

Below are the best ways to clean hip hop jewelry, according to what your jewelry's metal type:

1. Gold & Rose Gold Plated

Dipped and coated in real 14 or 18 karat gold. With high quality sterling silver or jeweler's brass as its bass, this is a beautiful and affordable option without breaking the bank. Rose Gold has a mixture of real gold and copper alloy to create it's blushing pink colour.

Care Tips:

If your gold jewellery is made with sterling silver, it will tarnish with time.

Always keep gold plated hip hop jewelry away from hard surfaces to prevent scratching and remove before showering or cleaning.

Store your gold plated hip hop jewelry in jewelry box with a velvet inside or wrap it in a soft jewelry cloth that will prevent scratches. Or store this in a soft, cool, dark place in an air-tight packet.

Lightly wipe your gold plated hip hop jewelry with a damp cotton cloth. This will help to take away any dust or dirt from accumulating on the surface and wearing away the gold plating. Use a non-abrasive jewelry polishing cloth and gently rub the gold plated Hip Hop jewelry to restore the shine.

2. Sterling Silver

Sterling Silver is a beautiful and solid precious metal that lasts a lifetime. It oxidises when in contact with sulphur particles in the air and water. Tarnishing is completely natural.

Care Tips:

Wearing it often will help prevent tarnishing!

Avoid chlorine water and rubbing with paper products, which can scratch the silver.

Be sure to have a silver polishing cloth handy so you can easily restore its shine. When not in use, be sure to store it in a dark, cool place in an airtight packet, away from light and air to prevent excess tarnishing.

For sterling silver pieces containing stones, pearls and crystals, we recommend using polishing cloth only, as some specific liquid jewelry cleaner can damage some stones.

3. Gold Vermeil

Gold Vermeil means that a item is gold plated over 925 sterling silver. Sterling silver Hip Hop pendants can be gold plated. It is a good way to incorporate the look of gold at a fraction of the cost, especially for hip hop pendants.

Care Tips:

You can clean gold vermeil by washing the jewelry in warm soapy water. Use lukewarm water do not use hot it can crack some stones) and a couple drops of non-film leaving dish soap (not antibacterial). Use a soft toothbrush to get into tight places. Rinse and dry with a soft polishing cloth immediately to avoid mineral residue from the water.

4. Gold Filled

Beauty, durability and affordability in one. Made with a thick layer of real 14k karat gold bonded with high heat and pressure over high quality jeweler's brass. Gold filled is much more durable than gold plated and definitely more affordable than real gold. Comes in real 14 karat Rose Gold too.

Care Tips:

Contact with water is acceptable. No tarnishing will occur. Store in a cool, dry place out of any direct sunlight.

Always wipe your jewelry carefully with a soft cloth to keep it nice and clean.

The best way to clean in places that a polishing cloth will not reach is to use a small pan that will hold about a quart of water and line it with aluminum foil.

Add hot water and a tablespoon of Tide washing powder (not liquid or with bleach) and stir. Place your jewelry in the solution for about 1 minute and rinse with clean water and air dry.

If you have a build-up of dirt in hard to reach places, just put a little dish washing liquid in a bowl of water and soak overnight. This will keep your hip hop jewelry clean.

5. Surgical Steel

316L surgical steel is one of the approved grade of stainless steel to be used in healed piercings. Tarnish proof and durable so you can wear it everyday without worry! We carry gold and rose gold plated items in surgical steel.

Care Tips:

Requires minimal care. No tarnishing will occur. Store in a soft, cool place out of any direct sunlight.

6. Solid Gold

We carry real 14 karat solid gold jewellery! Find out more about our luxury collection here.

Care Tips

Durable, tarnish-free. Store in a soft, cool place out of direct sunlight.

How often to clean the jewelry?

The frequency with which you clean your diamond pieces depends on your lifestyle and how often you wear the jewelry. For diamond rings or necklaces worn every day, consider cleaning them at home once per week.

If you wear a diamond piece often, it might also be a good idea to take it in to be professionally cleaned about twice a year.

For pieces you might not wear as often, giving them a good cleaning every three to five months to keep them looking best. That's enough to keep everyday grime at bay and sparkle at its max. Not only will regular maintenance keep your jewelry sparkling, but it will also shorten the cleaning process in the long run.

Now that your hip hop jewelry is feeling fresh and looking brand new, the only thing left to do is wear it and regularly clean it to ensure the longevity! If you have any additional questions regarding product care, please feel free to contact us!