The Best Way to Store Your Jewelry

Whether your jewelry collection is large or small, you’ve undoubtedly noticed how easy it is for necklaces and bracelets to get tangled and for earrings to go missing. You may have even had the unfortunate experience of having precious stones damaged due to being scratched by a harder gemstone, too much (or not enough!) humidity, or other pitfalls that might affect jewelry. One way to minimize damage to your heirlooms and costume jewelry alike is to store it properly. If you’re not sure how to do that, here are some tips:

You’ve probably heard that diamond is one of the hardest stones on earth. Because of this, it’s important to keep your diamond jewelry away from your other pieces; letting them sit together in the jewelry box is a great way to let your softer stones get scratched. Also, letting your diamonds mingle with each other could cause nicks, as diamonds can scratch one another. The best way to store your diamonds is to place each piece in its own velvet-lined compartment in a jewelry box. You could also place each item in its own small fabric bag.

Opals need to be exposed to some humidity in order to prevent drying and cracking. It’s not really a consideration unless you live in an area that is extremely dry or you are running a dehumidifier in the room where you store your jewelry. In normal conditions, the main issue is that opals are fairly soft, like pearls, and they need to be protected from harder stones. For this reason, keeping your opals in a jewelry bag or lined compartment is important.

If you have silverware, you probably know that silver tarnishes. In order to slow down tarnishing in your silver jewelry, it’s important to keep it in a jewelry pouch. This will protect it from the air when you’re not wearing it.

Gold is easily scratched, and should be kept in a velvet- or satin-lined box. Storing it in a jewelry pouch will allow necklaces and bracelets to rub against themselves and can cause scratching and other damage.

Most items are best kept in satin- or velvet-lined trays. These can be part of a dedicated jewelry-storage system, or you could have one installed in your closet as a closet accessory. Individual compartments will prevent scratching and tangling. You could also hang bracelets and necklaces from separated pegs, as long as they are kept far enough from each other that natural air currents in the home won’t cause them to rub against each other. Store earrings on a long ribbon, if you’d like to save space in your jewelry tray but don’t want to lose any earring backs. Pins and brooches can be kept the same way.