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 Costume Jewelry: Revive Your Worn Out Costume Jewelry |
06 Mar 09 |
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By: TaTanisha Howard |
Costume Jewelry: Revive Your Worn Out Costume Jewelry
We love costume jewelry for many reasons. However over time our
favorite necklace, ring,or bracelet can become damaged from wear and
wind up getting tossed in the back of a drawer or box never to see the
light of day again. But there is hope. You can easily restore some of
those items by folowing a few easy steps:
Worn out gold or silver plating:
Because typical costume jewelry plating is very thin it can
eventually rub off from wear or become damaged from the use of harsh
chemicals, creams, or perfumes. If this happens there are several
options in gold and silver re-plating solutions that can be found
online. Some are fairly simple and can be performed without the use of
heat or electricity while others are a little more complex. I found one
website in particular that offers a very good variety of plating
options (e.g. immersion plating, pen plating) and general plating
instructions for precious metals including gold, silver, platinum, and
rhodium. It is www.shorinternational.com. Click on the contents and
search box and then plating gateway. One word of caution: I would
recommend buying only cyanide free plating solutions as cyanide is
poisonous. For silver lovers there is one product that I have
personally used that has worked well for me and it is called Silver
Brite. This easy to use cream polishes, cleans and re-plates in one
step. It is very easy to use and fairly inexpensive. Just rub the cream
on with an applicator sponge or a Q-tip for small items and rub off
with the buffing cloth that is included with the kit. The result is a
clean, sparking silver finish.
Tarnished or dirty:
Cleaning costume jewelry is simple but choose your cleaner wisely.
Only use a jewelry cleaner that specifically states that it is safe for
costume jewelry and read the ingredients to make sure that it does not
contain alcohol, acids, or ammonia because these can strip the gold or
silver plate. Use a children's soft bristle tooth brush for cleaning
around costume jewelry stones. I do not recommend submerging rhinestone
jewelry as the stones may become loose and fall out.
If your costume jewelry items are only lightly tarnished a good
buffing with a soft dry jewelry cloth may do the trick. For more
heavily tarnished items a jewelry polish can work wonders.
Loose or missing stones:
If a stone such as a cubic zirconia, plastic, or glass has become
loose or fallen out a drop or two of super glue will do the trick. Just
be careful not to use too much. You certainly don't want the glue to
leak out and cause the piece to stick to your skin or another object.
Most of the time a single drop will suffice unless it is a very large
stone in which case you may want to use two drops. If you cannot find
the missing stone there are companies online that sell loose cz stones
if you have a special chain or ring band you want to salvage. Simply do
an internet search for cz stones.
Broken clasp:
If your necklace or bracelet has a broken clasp make sure it is the
actual clasp that is broken. The problem may be a broken jump ring
which is a tiny metal ring that is open in one spot which connects the
clasp to the chain. If this is the problem it can be easily fixed.
First identify what kind of clasp it is. There are several types (e.g.
lobster clasp which is shaped like a lobster claw and has a tiny spring
loaded lever, a magnetic clasp which is just as it sounds) then visit
your local craft store or do a search online for jewelry clasps and you
should find what you need. If the clasp is soldered on you will need to
contact a jewelry repair professional.
Outdated:
If you want to provide a more contemporary appeal to your older
costume jewelry pieces its easy to mix and match. If you have a special
pendant that you are especially fond of give it a new life with a more
contemporary chain. Add new charms to your favorite bracelet or
re-plate that old silver necklace with a shiny new gold finish. Be
creative!
By: TaTanisha Howard
www.articlerich.com |
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