Quote:
Originally Posted by pearlshoppe  Ok I've read everyone's take on cleaning of pearls. I've never run mine under water because of fear it would stretch silk too much, but I do rub my hands in a little olive oil, very light film on hands, and gently roll beads in hands and finish by rubbing with soft cloth. They always look beautiful and I've never had any regrets. I do like the idea of beeswax with the exception of it getting into drill holes and gunking up.? Have I been doing it wrong? |
I haven't been cleaning pearls as long as others here, but I don't think you're doing anything wrong.
FWIW, I've only stretched wet silk when I momentarily lost my mind and pulled the pearls through a cloth to dry them. That's what I do after wearing, but when wet I pat them dry. I do dunk them in distilled or filtered water last if I use chlorine-treated fluoridated tap water just to try to flush those chemicals away.
By IOOC standards,
Extra-virgin olive oil contains no more than 0.8% acidity. the US isn't a member, but many companies we import oil from are. I don't know how to compare that percentage to pH, but this means extra virgin oils imported from IOOC countries will be less acidic and would therefore seem to be the best choice for seasoning pearls to perfection.
