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CARE for JEWELLERY

Works by YING CHU are created to be your lifetime companion. They are handmade and of the highest possible quality. 

With time and interaction, the piece will develop subtly its own character. But there are also some considerations you could take in so to ensure that the pieces remain in original condition for the longest time possible. Learn more about how to take care of them.

General care

  • Swimming, showering, sauna or exercise is not recommended, as it will tarnish the metals over time. ,

  • Always protect jewellery from knocks, scratching, chemicals, perfumes, and body lotions and extreme heat or cold.

  • When the jewellery is not on your person, store it in a cool, dry place, preferably in its box or a bag.

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With the normal wear, some of the finishing looks will fade or disappear over time. Please be aware of the surface treatments and processes are not permanent.

 

Fine Silver

The pearly white finish in the sterling silver piece is created by a technique which brings the fine silver preserved in the metal to the surface. The surface is achieved in the workshop by repeating many time of treating the silver with fire and acid. This finish will fade over time, but it is possible to recreated at home xif desire.

 

  1. Take a bowl which can resist high temperature and place a tin foil inside.

  2. Add a little baking soda and boiling water. It is enough to just cover the jewellery.

  3. Put the jewellery inside the mixture and make sure it is in contact with the tin foil.

  4. Leave the jewellery there for 1-2 hours.

  5. Take the jewellery out and clean it with water. The fine silver surface should be recreated now.

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Oxidised silver

Oxidizing is a chemical process used to blacken the Silver, and as other surface treatments that are not permanent. All oxidised silver piece will fade away with time and change with natural wear. When the oxidation starts to fade, you can re-oxidised yourself at home.

 

  1. Clean your jewellery with some dish soap. Meanwhile, boil an egg until its well cooked, which takes normally 10 to 15 minutes.

  2. Separate the yolk from the egg whites and put the whites in a zip-lock bag.

  3. Mash the egg whites into small pieces and put the jewellery in the egg mash.

  4. Put the jewellery inside the bag and leave it overnight.

  5. Take the jewellery out and clean it with dish soup. Now your jewellery is re-oxidised.

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Gold Plating

Gold plating is a process where a thin layer of gold is applied to metals such as silver, steel or copper, which makes jewellery look like gold. It’s a chemical process. When an electric current applies a thin layer of gold to another metal, it partially dissolves that metal; this is when the chemical bond is created. YINGCHU uses 18K gold plated on Sterling Silver. The surface will ware-off with time and usage, therefore the silver colour might be visible. It is difficult to predict when would this happen, depending a lot on how you wear and take care of your jewellery. It is rather complicated to recreate this surface at home, but it’s possible to refresh the look by sending the jewellery back to me or to a local goldsmith.

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All the surfaces are possible to re-create. You can go to your local goldsmith or contact me.

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