To keep your jewelry and gems in stellar condition you must make sure to take good care of them! Down below I have highlighted important care instructions you can do to keep your show stopping jewels and gems shiny and pristine.

Basic care instructions for all jewelry:

• REMOVE before exercising, taking a shower/bath, and sleeping.
• AVOID contact with moisture such as water, perfume, and other chemicals (with exception to cleaning/polishing)
• STORE in a dry cool place out of direct sunlight. 
• POLISH with a jewelry polishing cloth. Not needed for upkeep but it helps bring back the shine of the metal. Please keep in mind that polishing oxidized jewelry can result in the oxidized color to be removed. You can still polish oxidized jewelry to remove unwanted tarnish just be careful not to remove too much. Oxidization is the chemical process to "tarnish" metals quickly by hand. I personally use liver of sulfur to oxidize my pieces.
• KEEP OUT OF REACH FROM CHILDREN *not intended for tiny hands*

Extra tips and tricks 

Most of us love to cleanse our stones in sunlight and water but some stones shouldn't come in contact with the elements. Here is a list of gems and jewels that SHOULD NOT stay in direct sunlight for extended periods of time due to fading, discoloration and sometimes even becoming brittle:

• Amber
• Amethyst 
• Ametrine
• Apatite
• Aquamarine
• Calcite
• Chrysoprase 
• Citrine
• Fluorite
• Kunzite
• Opal
• Clear Quartz 
• Rose Quartz
• Smokey Quartz 
• Spirit Quartz
• Sapphire
• Super Seven 
• Topaz 
• Turquoise 

Stones that SHOULD NOT be submerged in water due to fading, discoloration, becoming brittle, or even toxicity:

• Grape Agate (purple chalcedony)
• Ammonite 
• Apatite
• Aragonite 
• Azurite
• Bismuth
• Blue Calcite 
• White Calcite 
• Chrysoprase
• Chrysocolla 
• Dragon stone
• Fluorite 
• Raspberry Garnet 
• Hematite 
• Bumblebee Jasper
• Kunzite 
• Kyanite 
• Labradorite 
• Larimar 
• Lepidolite
• Moldavite 
• Moonstone
• Opal
• Peridot 
• Pyrite
• Angel Aura Quartz 
• Tangerine Aura Quartz 
• Selenite
• Sunstone
• Tanzanite
• Tigers Eye
• Green Tourmaline 
• Paraiba Tourmaline 
• Watermelon Tourmaline  

Sadly, breaking a stone can never be undone but I do have some tips to bring back the luster and shine of Ethiopian Opals. Opals have a high water concentrate and they absorb water like a sponge. If your opal is too dried out it can take as little as a rub with your finger to bring back the moisture in the stone. Mineral oil is also a good alternative to give your opals some shine but be sure to clean them with a polishing cloth as long exposure to water can cause opals to crack.

Polishing

Jewelry can also be polished with a polishing wheel/dremel, a jewelry/rock tumbler, or an ultrasonic cleaner depending on the type of stones/materials used. As mentioned before, polishing can affect the oxidization color of your jewelry. If you wish to keep the color of your jewelry how it is then I would recommend using a polishing cloth. Metals tarnish/oxidize naturally with time so regular polishing will ensure that your jewelry will stay bright and shiny. Certain stones cannot withstand extended periods of time being submerged in water or are too fragile to be tumble polished so when polishing stones like opal, using the tumble polish or ultrasonic method would not be advisable. These should be hand polished with a dremel or polishing cloth instead. Certain metals should also not be polished with anything beyond a polishing cloth. all solid bare copper, silver, and gold jewelry is fine but anything that is stated as "plated silver/gold" is not as the plating will be removed with anything other than a polishing cloth. Metals should be labeled "filled" or "solid" in order to withstand polishing.