Silver Jewellery Care
All jewellery is a work of art and needs to be taken care of. Its life and beauty depends on how well it is taken care of.
Exposed to the atmosphere, all silver is prone to oxidation/ blackening and consequent tarnishing. Tarnish or blackening is a result of a chemical reaction that occurs when silver comes into contact with moisture in the air or other chemical substances, this does not in any way signify that the Silver is impure. Purity of Silver can be checked only by a certified assayer so please refrain from believing in hearsay from so called experts.
Polishing, Repair, re-plating are all chargeable services only available at our store.
Silver is a metal that requires extra maintenance and care to keep it shining. Follow these simple guidelines to keep your silver jewellery shining.
1.How to Store your Silver Jewellery
- Store individually in airtight plastic covers/ containers. All KO Jewellery is packed in re-sealable plastic covers when it is delivered to you, please retain these covers and use them to store the jewellery.
- Certain semi-precious stones are soft and tend to scratch if stored together, please pack jewellery in sealable covers and store separate from each other.
- Storing jewellery in air tight containers prevents it from being damaged due to oxidation which leads to silver being tarnished or becoming black.
- Do not place any weight on jewellery, pack it in a box while traveling. Jewellery is delicate and any impact, pressure or mishandling can cause breakage or damage.
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All Gold plated ; Rodium plated ; Rose gold plated silver jewellery has to be stored in an airtight plastic cover. Keep it away from moisture, water and sweat. Proper storage will ensure that the gold-finish, rodium or rose-gold plating stays for a long time.
2.Care for Oxidised Silver Jewllery Pieces & Silver Gifts/Articles
My Silver Jewellery has turned black, Why? Does this mean the silver is not pure?
- Tarnish or blackening is a result of a chemical reaction that occurs when silver comes into contact with moisture in the air or other chemical substances, this does not in any way signify that the Silver is impure. Purity of Silver can be checked only by a certified assayer so please refrain from believing in hearsay from so called experts.
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Pure sterling silver jewellery has a tendency to tarnish especially when it's not worn.Tarnishing or turning black does not mean that your sterling silver is not pure
- While tarnishing is a natural process that cannot be prevented, it can be slowed down by protecting silver from moisture and humidity.
- To maintain the luster of your jewellery, place it in airtight plastic covers before putting them into a container to prevent it from oxidation / tarnishing.
- All our silver jewellery is polished by hand before being despatched. Gentle rubbing with a silver cleaning cloth or soft cotton cloth will restore the original brilliance of the surface
- If tarnishing does occur then you can always clean/polish the jewellery or get it re-polished from a professional.
My ornaments have turned from shiny white to a blackish color. Why so?
- Silver naturally tarnishes due to a process called oxidization. There are 2 ways of dealing with this - minimise the oxidation by storing the ornaments in air-tight pouches, and secondly, by gently polishing with a soft, dry cotton cloth.
- Once cleaned, remember to wipe dry and re-pack in air-tight pouches.
How to avoid tarnishing or oxidisation
- Silver jewellery has a tendency to tarnish especially when it's not worn, to maintain the luster of your jewellery, always store it in airtight plastic covers before putting them into a container to prevent it from oxidation / tarnishing.
- Never store silver jewellery directly in jewellery boxes made of any material as these are not airtight and will lead jewellery to tarnish faster. Jewellery boxes are for gifting only and not meant for storage.
How to Polish Silver Jewellery
- Take a soft dry cotton cloth and wipe clean.Use a jewellery polishing cloth for best results. Hold the cloth and softly rub the surface of jewellery to remove any tarnish.
3. Care for Gold-dipped ; Goldplated Silver Jewellery Pieces
How long will the gold-plating on my silver jewellery last?
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The brightness of the gold finish on gold plated jewellery depends on a number of factors like usage, weather conditions ( humid weather dulls gold finish faster) and appropriate storage.
- Gold plating will fade with regular use and frequent exposure to air and water. It will need re-plating.
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We do not provide any guarantee for the gold plating on the jewellery.
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We advise you to use gold dipped pieces occasionally ; completely dry them of sweat / moisture after use and store in air tight plastic covers.
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If your jewellery becomes dull it can be re-polished or gold dipped again at a nominal cost . You need to contact our store or customer care for this. Gold plating is a service for which we charge based on size/weight of ornament and the time taken is 1 week.
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We gold-plate our jewellery with 24 carat gold which gives it a real gold look. We do not use laquer or other harmful chemicals.
- If you wear your gold-plated silver jewellery for continously for a long time, the plating will eventually wear down. To restore its appearance, you can have it re-plated.
Is there any colour gaurantee for gold-plated silver jewellery?
- We do not provide any gaurantee for the gold plating on the jewellery. Our gaurantee is only for the purity of metal used in the jewellery which is 92.5% Sterling Silver.
- The colour of gold (on our gold-dipped or goldplated silver) depends on the frequency of usage and how the jewellery is stored.
- Please note that gold-dipped or gold-plated silver jewellery is meant for occasional use only, it cannot be used regularly on a everyday basis. With occasional use and proper storage (stored in a dry airtight container when not in use ) the shine on gold-dipped jewellery tends to last longer.
The gold plating on my ornament has lost its sheen. What do I do? How to repolish gold dipped jewellery?
- All plated jewellery does lose a bit of it's colour over time. However, if maintained properly, this is mimized to a large extent.
- Store gold-dipped jewellery in air tight plastic covers after use,
- Re-polishing for gold-dipped silver jewellery can be done only by professionals (at extra cost). Contact our stores/customer care for this service.
- You can get it re-plated at stores which offer such services. If you are in Bangalore, you can visit our store with a copy of the original bill and we can get the gold-polish done for you at a nominal cost.
- Gold plating is a service for which we charge based on size/weight of ornament and the time taken is 1 week.
- Please note we offer this service only at our store in Bangalore and the jewellery needs to be dropped off at our store physically. We do not offer this service for outstation clients or those who are unable to visit the store .
- Your product needs to be examined by our staff who will communicate the charges on the spot. Minimum time taken for all polishing is 1 week. Polishing charges are determined by us on a case to case basis.
4. Care for Rhodium plated and Rosegold plated Silver Pieces
- Store Rhodium plated or Rosegold plated silver jewellery in air tight plastic covers after use,
- Please note that Rhodium plated or Rosegold plated silver jewellery is meant for occasional use only, it cannot be used regularly on a everyday basis.
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We do not provide any gaurantee for the Rhodium plating or Rosegold plating on the jewellery. Our gaurantee is only for the purity of metal used in the jewellery which is 92.5% Sterling Silver.
- The colour of Rhodium plated or Rosegold plated silver depends on the frequency of usage and how the jewellery is stored.
- We do not provide replating/ repolishing for Rhodium plated and Rosegold plated jewellery .
- Especially avoid pouring hot water on Rhodium plated or Rosegold plated silver jewellery as this will make the plating wear off faster.
- With occasional use and proper storage (stored in a dry airtight container when not in use ) the shine on gold-dipped jewellery tends to last longer.
5. Do you offer repair services?
- Yes one of the advantages of crafting our jewellery is that we can also repair any piece of jewellery made by us.
- Repairing, if possible, is a chargeable service.
- Please note we offer this service only at our store in Bangalore and the jewellery needs to be dropped off at our store physically. We do not offer this service for outstation clients or those who are unable to visit the store .
- In order to determine whether your product can be repaired it needs to be examined by our staff who will communicate the charges on the spot. Minimum time taken for all repairs is 1 week and it could take longer depending on the process involved. Repair charges are determined by us on a case to case basis.
6. Avoid wearing jewellery when:
- You are performing activities like cooking, household cleaning, etc. to prevent its contact with sweat, perspiration & chemicals.
- You are bathing or applying makeup – Colognes, Perfumes, Hairspray, Cosmetics, Soap and lotion can contain chemicals that can often react and damage jewellery, therefore wear them after your makeup to prevent exposure and damage.
- You are playing any sport. Sporting activities – Chlorinated water , perspiration can damage the metal and the polish of the jewellery.
- Keep your jewellery away from soaps, perfumes, cosmetics, chemicals,humidity and extreme temperature.
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