How To Take Care Of Your Emerald Tips and Tricks

No matter the quality of your emerald, it is an investment that is meant to last for many life times. Even the emerald jewelry that Cleopatra wore around 40 BC are still in great condition after centuries! Keeping that investment emerald looking stunning for more centuries to come, nonetheless, will require proper care and handling. A couple of essential tips can help you maintain the allure and shine of the stone so that you can pass on your inheritance from generation to generation and at the same time enjoy your emerald jewelry.

Emeralds typically and normally have inclusions as these are type III gemstones. They have very good durability and rank a 7.5-8 out of 10 on the Moh’s scale.The natural inclusions are special characteristics that make each emerald unique, similar to a fingerprint or one's own DNA. Inclusions even help gemologist determine real earth mined stones from fakes. They are typically oil-treated to improve the clarity.

Due to the nature of an Emeralds inclusions and treatments, it should never be cleaned with steam or any cleaning solution that contains petroleum distillates or any other organic solvent. Even if the cleaning solution is a recommended "jewelry cleaner", most of these cleaning methods are not compatible with the oil /resin treatment of Emeralds and can dissolve or remove the treatment.

How to Clean Emeralds

The best way to clean emerald jewelry is with warm, soapy water, or a warm soapy cloth. Do not soak emeralds in soapy water and avoid harsh detergents that might dilute or remove any treatment from the stone. Never soak emeralds in solvents such as alcohol, acetone, or paint thinner.

Step-by-Step Home Cleaning

1. Fill a bowl with lukewarm water and put some mild dish soap in it. Place the jewelry into the soap and water mixture for a minimum of 1 minute.

2. Use a soft toothbrush to remove the oils and dirt accumulated on your piece (Please be extra careful with pavé). Be sure to use the brush to get into those hard-to-reach areas and clean them thoroughly. We recommend cleaning the inside/backside of the item, never brushing directly on the top of the stone.

3. Fill a second bowl with lukewarm rinse water. Submerge the jewelry fully in it and check to make sure that no soapy residue is left on your emerald/gemstones.

4. Dry the jewelry with a soft clean micro-fiber towel. Once the jewelry is dry, it is ready to be stored or worn again.

Make sure to not use an ultrasonic cleaner on emerald jewelry.

Also, avoid using commercial jewelry cleaner on your emeralds.

Ultrasonic devices and commercial jewelry cleaners could remove the oils that the emeralds have been treated with.

Wearing and Storing Your Emeralds

Try to avoid wearing your piece while doing rough or hard manual work (ex. gardening, washing dishes, chlorine-bleach, while in a pool or hot tub.) To protect the beauty of your emerald, keep it in a separate box to avoid scratching with harder stones like, Ruby, Sapphire and Diamonds. They are not as tough as they are hard and can be brittle in some cases depending on the amount of internal inclusions.

It is recommended that you shield your emeralds from abrupt blows or physical impacts. This also includes any other fine gemstone like diamond for an example can fracture if not taken with proper care.