Joined: Sun Oct 16, 2005 12:22 pm Posts: 21602 Location: San Francisco
I purchased some faceted Ethiopian beads about 2-3 years ago. Thy could use a cleaning. Since most of these opal absorb anything in a liquid state, how can I safely clean them? Soft dry cloth just ain't gonna do it.
If water alone will clean off whatever is on them then I would use a cloth dampened with slightly warm water.
Clean with the damp cloth and wipe dry with a soft dry cloth.
Yes, they are hydrophane and will absorb water. But they are not sponges and won't absorb much during the brief time they are exposed to wipe them.
What little water they do absorb will not hurt them, and will evaporate out in a few days at most.
It is when they absorb some chemical or oil that doesn't evaporate easily and yellows or stains when drying that you will have a problem. The skin oils , and cosmetics they are exposed to when wearing a strand of beads represent a bigger risk long term than cleaning with warm water.
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