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Care Your Balanced Beads should last more than a lifetime, especially if you take care of them! Try to keep your pieces away from harsh chemicals like cleansers, hairspray, or makeup. A good rule is that that jewelry should be the last thing you put on and the first thing you take off. If you do need to clean your beads, a gentle dish detergent & water should do the trick. With proper storage, the metal elements of your jewelry should stay bright, but a simple paste of baking soda and water can be used as needed; just minimize contact with natural beads, especially pearls! Last but not least, always make sure to completely dry your jewelry after cleaning to prevent oxidation and mold. |
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Storage Proper storage is an important part of caring for your Balanced Beads. Longterm exposure to moisture, air, and sunlight can cause tarnish or mold, spoiling the looks of your piece. Small containers with cotton or silk linings are best. In fact, our free gift boxes & velvety bags are perfect for storing your jewelry! Also, try to keep pieces separate, especially from hard faceted stones or rhinestones. The sharp edges and casings of this type of jewelry can scratch delicate finishes on beads, marring their brilliance. | |
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Tangles |
Avoid frustration by preventing tangles in your jewelry. Keep earrings & bracelets separate, these small pieces can easily become part of a larger tangle. This will help to prevent loss as well. Always fasten bracelets & necklaces before you put them away, so that they can't become knotted. Sometimes, you may need to coil your necklaces so that they'll fit back in the box without kinking (please don't bend your jewelry, the wire resists kinks, but it still can be damaged by excessive manipulation). Be especially careful when coiling multi-strand necklaces, you don't want the clasp to get twisted through one or more of the layers, because it can be tricky to figure out how to realign everything. Below, my lovely assistant, Pauline, demonstrates how to coil a multi-strand necklace... | |
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1st Strand |
Start by draping the necklace over one hand so that the smallest strand faces out towards the end of your fingertips. I usually make sure that the clasp is in my hand, so I know where to find it! Next, use your free hand to grab the bottom of the first strand & gently extend it across your body. Flip your wrist over to twist the strand, then bring it back to the clasp, as shown below.  
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2nd Strand |
Use the same technique for strand #2. Remember to place the 2nd strand outside the first when you bring it back to your start hand.  
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3rd Strand |
Repeat this procedure for the remaining strands of your necklace. Again, be careful to work from the inside out, so that the larger strands "enclose" the smaller.  
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Done! |
Now that you've coiled all the strands, bring your free hand up under the coils to "flatten" them, or just lay the coils in their box for storage. When you're ready to wear the necklace again, just grab the clasp & lift it out with few if any tangles!   
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