If you regularly wear earrings, then you know how they can become dull and dirty with oil, dead skin cells, and beauty products over time. That's why it's important for you to regularly clean your earrings — especially if you wear them on a daily basis. For the specifics on exactly when and how you should clean your earrings, we reached out to the experts.
"Earrings that you wear almost daily should be cleaned once a week," Victoria Ellis, the founder of Earrings Bae, a statement earring brand, tells Hunker. "For more sensitive ears, consider cleaning your more frequently worn earrings 2-3 times per week." Ellis adds that while you can buy a product specifically for cleaning earrings, warm water and a gentle soap will also work.
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When asked for the earring cleaning instructions she gives clients, Dr. Sharon Wollaston, a board-certified pediatrician and medical ear piercer in Los Angeles, tells Hunker, "For jewelry that doesn't have porous stones, I recommend that before going to bed, they take them off, put isopropyl alcohol in a little glass, put the earrings in there, and have them sit overnight."
In the morning, if your earrings still have residue on them, Dr. Wollaston recommends using a cloth or soft toothbrush to scrub it off.
As for earrings with porous gemstones, like pearls or opals, the same exact process will work, but instead of using isopropyl alcohol, you should go with Ellis's advice: use a mild soap and water. For extra fragile earrings, you should also use a cloth for scrubbing, instead of a toothbrush, so that you don't risk damaging the earrings.