10 Clever Jewelry Tips and Tricks

For six years I worked at a jewelry fabrication shop, and bead store. When I look back on that time in my life, I like to imagine myself as sort of a "bead world wizard". What is "bead world", you might ask? It's the world of beads, gems, minerals and stones. People gathering around in a hotel to sell "fish leather". An old woman who sells filligree brought her pomeranian to the restaurant each morning to watch her eat her sausages. She walked up to me and asked me one morning, "Dining alone?"

1. Use a piece of fabric (I like fur, or lace!) to create a space for hanging earrings on your wall.

2. Clean tarnished metal jewelry with dawn dish soap and a tooth brush, let dry, and then polish with a polishing cloth.

3. A standard necklace chain is 18 inches.

4. Coat inexpensive jewelry that stains your skin with clear nail polish. It will no longer turn your skin green! Reapply weekly.

5. Wearing a charm bracelet with a satin dress is a bad idea. It will snag! This is also true with knit and crochet materials.

6. Don't leave jewelry in your shower, bathroom, etc. The steam will cause it to tarnish/rust!

7. Lose a lot of earrings? Wear mismatched earrings! It's a slay.

8. Make a charm bracelet out of mismatched earrings, broken pendants, etc.

9. Don't sleep in your jewelry. It's more likely to get damaged, fall off, or snag in your sheets.

10. Use a bracelet as an extender for a necklace that is too short!