How to Clean Your Antique Vintage Ring

Contrary to the way we clean most items, you do not want to clean your antique vintage ring with soap and water. Soap may leave a residue on the metal, dulling its shine as well as on the stones causing them to lose their luster. Be particularly careful of this if you ever want to have your ring appraised as a soapy residue may prevent your ring from achieving its true value.

Acids and alcohols are also the enemy of most jewelry, but especially antique or vintage jewelry. Be sure that the product you choose for cleaning does not contain any ammonia or vinegar. Also, be sure to read all labels carefully so that you purchase the product that is best suited to your piece. What is safe for gold is not necessarily safe for silver or copper.

If you feel your antique vintage ring is actually pretty clean but you just want to dust it off, you can do this with any soft cloth. A lens cloth is perfect or even one of the microfibre cloths that are meant for dusting will work. A super soft brush such as ones for camera cleaning may be beneficial for getting into some of the smaller areas of your ring’s setting.

Once you have selected the right product, and your ring is clean, be sure to dry it well and store it in a dry environment. Moisture can be very damaging to all jewelry, but especially more fragile antique jewelry.
Since you probably won’t wear your special antique vintage ring every day, cleaning is not something you need to do very often as cleaning with even the best chemicals can be abrasive. To be sure that you can enjoy your vintage ring for years to come, only clean it once in a while.