How to Care for Pearls

Store in soft cloth sack, separate form metallic necklaces.

• Wrap in a scarf or handkerchief
• Pearls are 2.5 - 4 on the MOH scale of hardness.
• Anti-tarnish cloths are excellent for storing precious metals but not useful for storing pearls. Because they are organic, chemicals in the cloth may damage the pearls. A soft cloth is best for storing pearls.

Never use ultrasonic cleaners. Vibrations can shatter cracked or thinly nacred pearls.

Do not use chemical cleaners, especially those containing ammonia & bleach.

• These chemical cleaners will certainly remove the oils and perspiration from the pearls but they will go beyond that and also remove the luster from your pearls.

Remove pearls before washing dishes, doing housework or applying perfume and hair spray.

• Wait 3-5 minutes after applying perfume/hair spray so the volatile chemicals dissipate before putting on pearls.

Do not wear pearls in swimming pools with chlorinated water.

• The chemicals will have an adverse affect on pearls.

Avoid contact with foods containing acids (fruit juices and salad dressings)

Expose pearls regularly to humid conditions. If stored in a safe, place a container of water in the compartment with them.

• Pearls are 82-86% calcium carbonate, 10-14% organic conchiolin, and 2-4% water.
• A safe box is very dry and is usually cold.
• Cold air contains very low amounts of humidity and leaving them in these dehydrating conditions is not good for pearls.

Treat pearls like fine silk.

• Wearing pearls in daily sunlight exposures are generally safe. Continued exposure to very bright lights over a long period of time, be it direct sunlight or intense halogen lights, can fade natural colors as well as treated colors of pearls
• Don't leave them on display in the window with sunlight streaming on them. This will guarantee you a problem with changed colors in pearls.
• If you want to bleach them out to a lighter color, perhaps this will work for whitening pearls, but the results for colors may not be what you want.

Wipe with a slightly damp cloth after wearing.

• The moisture on a towel after drying off from a shower or bath is adequate.
• Simply wring out a hand towel and use that to wipe off the residue on the pearls.

Occasionally wipe with a cloth dampened with a mild soapy solution. Follow with a cloth dampened with clean water and pat dry.

• Do not pull on the strand--only pat and rub the pearls to clean them.
• Contrary to popular belief, the acidic oils and perspiration from human skin can damage the surface of a pearl.

Restring pearls periodically.

• If the individual pearls move freely between the knots, it is time to restring.
• If the knots are soiled, it is time to restring. This time can vary from a few months to 2 years depending on how often the pearls are worn.
• Silk thread with knots tied between the pearls is most often used to prevent abrasion and ensure that all are not lost if the string is broken.
• Silk is the preferred choice of thread for stringing pearls.
• Silk makes a finer and tighter knot.
• Silk also comes in a wide variety of colors for matching pearl strand colors.

Storing Pearls in a safe.

• Storing pearls in a safe which is opened and closed on a day-to-day basis shouldn't have any adverse on pearls. It's only when pearls are stored in a vault over months at a time that they may dehydrate which can affect the overall appearance, color and longevity of the pearls.

Acknowledgments

The page is presented courtesy of Betty Sue King. Please visit King's Ransom, The Pearl Goddess, and tell her you found her at Jewels by Mala.

Acknowledgments

The page is presented courtesy of Betty Sue King. Please visit King's Ransom and tell her you found her at Jewels by Mala.

Bibliography

Landman, Neil H., Mikkelsen, Paula M., Bieler, Rudiger & Bronson, Bennet, Pearls: A Natural History, Harry N Abrams, Inc. in association with The American Museum of Natural History & The Field Museum, New York, NY, 2001