Design

But rinsing and rubbing fragile jewelry too much can cause unnecessary damage and premature wear—and cleaning too little can cause your beloved pieces to degrade over time. To find out exactly how (and when) to clean your jewelry the right way, we tapped experts for their tried-and-true techniques on cleaning everything from gold and silver to costume jewelry and gemstones. How often you clean your jewelry depends on how often it is worn, says Kathleen Plate, the founder of Smart Glass Jewelry pieces that get dirtier more often, like earrings, can be cleaned as needed or bi-weekly.