GAUGE piece is a timeless investment. Looking after your jewelry properly will help maintain its splendor, shine and lifespan. Below, we offer you a few useful tips on how to care for and maintain your jewelry.

Maintaining shine

All GAUGE articles have been treated with a technique that helps to prevent loss of shine.

However, it is still important that you follow our suggested care instructions:

1. Your jewelry can lose its shine when exposed to air during a long period of time.

2. Loss of shine or tarnishing is a natural process that can be recovered through a special washing (as described later on).

3. We strongly recommend taking off your jewelry before going to bed, showering, or taking part in any physical activity.

4. Exposure to certain chemicals or environments may compromise the integrity of your jewelry. This includes (but is not limited to): perspiration (sweat), perfumes/colognes, cleaning products, chlorine, salt water, or silver polish, etc.

Cleaning your jewelry

Mix a little soap with lukewarm water and rub the item with a soft toothbrush. Toothbrushes are perfect for cleaning jewelry with difficult-to-access corners. If dirt persists, carry out the same process in clean water. Important: gold-plated items require greater care. Rubbing too hard may cause loss of plating. It is therefore important that you do this gently in order to avoid any damage. A special silver-polishing cloth is a great tool to make your jewelry shine again, in the event that it becomes darkened over time. However, this technique will not remove any scratches or dents present on the jewelry.

Storing your jewelry

Your jewelry should be kept away from any exposure to sunlight or warm places, ideally in a padded jewelry box or tarnish-resistant bag. You can also keep these in individual airtight plastic (polyethylene) bags. Never use rubber containers, as these can result in accelerated tarnishing and are likely to cause the jewelry to darken. Under no circumstances should you keep your jewelry in a bathroom or any humid locations. Keep in mind that GAUGE boxes are not designed to keep items in perfect condition for prolonged periods of time, as they are not airtight containers, and color alteration may occur due to lack of use.

Please note

GAUGE cannot guarantee that the gold-plating of our items will last forever. Gold-plated items are, by their nature, more fragile and susceptible to losing color over time. The speed at which this color fades will depend on various factors, such as the use of chemical products on the skin, how much the wearer sweats, or even the pH level of the individual’s skin. For this reason, it is particularly important to ensure suitable care of your gold-plated jewelry.

Here’s a mantra to remember: your jewelry is delicate, and should be treated as such. For rings, gently remove from the sides, and never from the top stone. We suggest removing jewelry before swimming, as chemicals used to treat pools may damage jewelry and cooler temperatures can make your fingers shrink, and your precious rings may slip off. It is also best to remove your jewelry before showering, as soaps, shampoos, etc. can affect the lustrous surface of your jewels. If you prefer to keep your jewelry on, it is important to stay on top of routine maintenance.

When you remove your jewelry for bed, swimming, showering, and any other activity that may affect the integrity of your piece, please store each piece individually to avoid tangling and scratching. Please keep in mind, solid gold is durable but malleable, and scratches are to be expected with time and wear.

There are many ways to store your jewelry, but it is important to remember that some of them can be harmful. Never use rubber containers, as these can result in accelerated tarnishing and are likely to cause the jewelry to darken. Under no circumstances should you keep your jewelry in a bathroom or any humid locations. 

Follow our recommendations:

• Separate jewelry by metal: this separation prevents the metals from tarnishing when they interact with one another.

• Clean your jewelry before you store it: storing dirty jewelry for a prolonged period may cause tarnishing.

• Find a dry (and dark) spot to store your jewelry: humidity is jewelry’s enemy!

• Make sure the pieces do not touch each other, or scratching might occur.

Important: Please keep in mind that GAUGE boxes are not designed to keep jewels in perfect condition for prolonged periods of time, as they are not airtight containers, and color alteration may occur due to lack of use.