Jewelry hygiene is as important as bodily hygiene, especially when it comes to everyday jewelry pieces. That’s because daily-wear jewelry tends to lose its shine as it comes in contact with dust, grime, sweat and body oils regularly. It also becomes a breeding ground for germs and needs to be disinfected from time to time. While oftentimes, engagement rings and wedding bands get most of the TLC, earrings tend to get neglected. Since earrings can easily trap dirt or bacteria and cause irritation on sensitive ear lobes, they should be cleaned and maintained regularly.
If you wear your earrings every day and don’t remove them often, chances are their backs are covered with grime. And since the earring backs are so small, you won’t even notice that and you might completely ignore cleaning them. Over a period of time, the earrings will appear lackluster and the accumulated grime can cause infection. So, it is advisable to clean your earrings and earring backs at least once a week as a part of your jewelry hygiene routine and keep them looking as sparkling as day one.
If you’ve just had a new piercing, you may not want to remove your earrings to clean them initially. Instead, you can spin the earring or turn it to dislodge the accumulated grime around the piercings. Spin the new hoop earrings or twist the studs gently, only when the earlobes are wet. Do not move or spin the jewelry when the earlobes are dry. For tips on how to clean earring backs for daily-wear studs and other earrings in your collection, read further…
To clean and disinfect earrings and earring backs, you can use one or more of the following products, and they are easily found in most households.
1. Hydrogen Peroxide
Hydrogen peroxide is an excellent choice as it works as a disinfectant as well as a cleanser. To be specific, its main function is to eliminate germs while restoring the luster of your earrings.
- Before you begin cleaning, wash your hands. It will keep the earrings from getting further dirty. Wash between your fingers and up above your wrists for at least 20 seconds.
- Dab some peroxide on a cotton pad and gently wipe all around the earrings, especially the earring backs.
- Make sure the cotton ball gets into all the corners of the earring backs. Spend a few minutes on each earring back and apply additional hydrogen peroxide if necessary.
- You may also soak your earring backings in a small cup of hydrogen peroxide for 5-10 minutes for a more thorough clean.
- After that, rinse them in a bowl of water. Set your earrings on a clean cloth once you’ve finished washing them. Make sure you dry them properly.
It is an effective cleanser for non-reactive metals such as stainless steel and other common metals. Using this procedure, you may quickly clean rubber bullet clutch earring backs and butterfly earring backs. If you’re cleaning silver, gold or other valuable metal earring backs, avoid using hydrogen peroxide since it may be too strong and corrode the metal.
Also Read: What Type of Earring Back Is the Best?
2. Mild Dishwashing Soap
This product is suitable for cleaning the backs of silver, gold and diamond earrings. Mild dishwashing soap is safe to use on the jewelry but you should still be cautious to avoid discoloration, especially of colored gems.
- In a cup of warm water, dissolve 1 tsp (5 ml) of mild dish soap, then soak the earrings and the backings for 20-30 minutes.
- Remove them and gently rub them with a soft-bristled toothbrush. Use a toothpick to remove any ear cheese or muck you can’t reach with your toothbrush.
- Soak them in the mixture for another 1-2 minutes before rinsing under cold water. Allow them to air dry or use a lint-free towel to dry them gently.
3. Baking Soda
Using baking soda is the finest and the safest way to clean tarnished silver. Consider the DIY procedure below if you need to quickly brighten your silver earrings’ backs.
- To begin, take a glass or a baking pan with tin foil, shiny side up.
- Fill the pan with warm water until the earrings are completely submerged, then place the earrings on the tin foil.
- Sprinkle baking soda on the earring backs until they begin to bubble. Soak them for an hour.
- Scrub the jewelry carefully with a soft brush, such as a paintbrush or a soft toothbrush, to help dislodge the dirt and oxides.
- Rinse them in a bowl of clean water and wipe them with a cotton cloth.
4. Rubbing Alcohol
This is one of the most commonly used products for removing dirt and germs quickly off the jewelry. Rubbing alcohol is a cleanser, a solvent and a disinfectant, which provides a fast and impressive solution to clean cruddy earring backs with ease.
To clean the post and the backing, dab some rubbing alcohol on a cotton pad. You may also soak the earring backs for a few minutes in rubbing alcohol. It’s a basic yet effective cleaning method.
5. Hot Water
The hot water will eliminate bacteria and release debris off the surface of your earring backings. And the best part of this procedure is that it is suited for all sorts of earrings. If you’re cleaning plastic earrings, let the water cool down a bit and soak the earring backs when it is lukewarm.
- Boil the water in a pan.
- Remove the water from the heat and immerse the earring backs into it.
- Allow them to soak in the water for around 20 minutes.
- Then, scrub gently with a soft toothbrush.
- Wipe them with a cotton cloth after rinsing them in a bowl of clean water.
Cleaning your earrings with hot water won’t get them as clean as washing them with a solution but it’s an excellent alternative if you’re short on cleaning materials.
Also Read: 5 Earring Backs That Are Comfortable To Wear
Get Your Earring Backs Professionally Cleaned
It is unquestionably the best for someone who has dirty earring backs and does not have sufficient time for DIY cleaning procedures. Professional cleaning equipment is usually available with jewelers and they can easily clean them and restore the luster.
Now that you are equipped with simple cleaning methods on how to clean your earring backs at home, you can clean and maintain them as often as possible.
