Jewelry care & repairs

Cared For, Worn Forever

We craft your piece in Surat and ship it internationally — so instead of a mail-in repair desk, we built you the most genuinely useful care guide in fine jewelry, and an honest repair playbook for getting anything done safely by a trusted jeweler near you.

Caring for a Signora piece at home Crafted in Surat · cared for at home
Care finder

Your care guide, in three taps

Tell us what you own and we'll tailor the advice — how to clean it, what to avoid, whether an ultrasonic is safe, and how to store it.

1 · Your piece
2 · Your metal
3 · Your stone

Make your three choices and a care guide written just for your piece will appear here.

Your care guide

How to clean it

What to avoid
How to store it

A Signora tip

Message care team
The golden rules

Six habits that keep it brilliant

Tap any card to see why it matters.

At-home care

Clean it at home in four steps

The safest, jeweler-recommended method for solid gold and platinum set with diamonds, moissanite, or durable colored stones.

01Step one

Soak

A bowl of warm — never hot — water with a few drops of mild dish soap. Let it sit for 15 to 20 minutes.

15:00 Ready when you are
02Step two

Brush

Gently work a soft or baby toothbrush around the setting, paying attention to the back of the stone, where oil and grime collect and kill sparkle.

03Step three

Rinse

In a second bowl of clean water — never over an open drain, so plug it first.

04Step four

Dry

Pat with a lint-free or microfiber cloth, and let it air-dry fully before storing.

Never use these

They erode gold alloys, scratch finishes, loosen stones, and damage treated or organic stones.

Chlorine & bleach Toothpaste Baking soda Abrasive cleansers Acetone & solvents Vinegar on porous stones Hot water or steam on delicate stones

Between deep cleans: wipe with a microfiber cloth dampened in a little soapy water.

A word on ultrasonic cleaners

Home ultrasonic machines are tempting but risky — they can shake an already-loose stone right out.

Usually fineClean, untreated lab diamonds, moissanite, sapphire, and ruby in solid gold or platinum.
NeverEmerald, opal, pearl, tanzanite, turquoise, and any treated, fracture-filled, or glued stone — and never if a stone already feels loose.
When in doubtHand-clean. It's gentler and lets you inspect the piece as you go.
Know your materials

Metals & stones, explained

The metals

Pure gold doesn't tarnish, but the alloys that make it durable can dull and react with chlorine and sulfur — so keep it away from pools and harsh chemicals. Clean with soap and water; a gold polishing cloth restores shine. 18K has a richer color; 14K is a touch harder for everyday wear.

White gold is finished with bright rhodium. That finish wears with contact and a warmer tone may show through — completely normal. A jeweler can re-polish and renew the finish when wear becomes visible; timing depends on the piece and how it is worn. Clean it exactly like yellow gold.

Its blush comes from a copper alloy, which also makes it very durable. Over years it may develop a slightly deeper patina — many people love it. Soap and water is all it needs; there is no plating to maintain.

Naturally white with no plating to wear off, platinum is dense and develops a soft patina of fine surface marks with wear. Leave the patina as character, or have a jeweler inspect and re-polish it to a mirror finish.

Solid 925 sterling silver naturally tarnishes on exposure to air, moisture, and sulfur — a gentle silver polishing cloth restores the shine. Store it dry in its own pouch with an anti-tarnish strip and keep it away from pools, hot springs, household cleaners, lotion and perfume. Hand-cleaning is the safest default; ask a jeweler before ultrasonic cleaning, especially when stones are set.

The stones

The hardest material there is and built for daily wear — but it's a grease magnet, so the oil from a single touch dulls it fast. Clean it weekly and it sparkles like new. Protect it from hard knocks, which can chip even a diamond at the edge.

Extremely durable and easy to live with. Like diamond, it attracts oils and can look filmy, so a quick regular clean keeps its fire bright. Soap, water, and a soft brush are perfect.

Durable colored stones take soap, warm water, and a soft brush. Avoid harsh chemicals and sudden heat.

Treat gently: no ultrasonic, no soaking, no chemicals or perfume. Wipe with a soft, barely-damp cloth. Pearls should be wiped after every wear and restrung every few years if worn often; opals dislike very dry air and sudden temperature changes.

The Mohs hardness scale

Tap a stone to see what its hardness means for daily wear.

Hardness is scratch-resistance, not toughness. Your Signora diamonds and moissanite sit at the very top — ideal for everyday rings — while softer stones are happiest in earrings and pendants that take fewer knocks.

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Lab diamond Mohs 10

Diamond is the hardest common jewelry stone, but another diamond can scratch it and a sharp edge knock can still cause a chip. Gentle cleaning removes the everyday film that dulls its sparkle.

Storage & everyday wear

Where it lives when you're not wearing it

Keep pieces apart

Store each piece in its own soft-lined compartment or pouch. Diamond and moissanite can scratch softer stones and metal, so avoid piling jewelry together.

Chains

Hang them, or lay them flat and fasten the clasp so they can't knot.

Lining

A fabric- or anti-tarnish-lined box protects finishes.

Climate

Keep jewelry out of direct heat; very dry air can harm opals and pearls.

Travel

Use a padded travel case with separate slots; never loose in a wash bag.

The maintenance calendar

A simple rhythm of care

Weekly

Gentle clean

A soap-and-water wash for anything worn daily, to lift the oils that dull sparkle.

Monthly

Prong check

Glance over the prongs and give each stone a gentle wiggle test at home.

Every 6 months

Professional inspection

A jeweler checks prongs and settings under magnification and re-secures anything loose.

As needed

White-gold finish

Ask a jeweler to inspect and renew the rhodium finish when visible wear or a warmer tone appears.

Annually

Deep clean

A thorough professional clean and polish to bring everything back to new.

Downloads a calendar file (.ics) for a prong check and deep clean. Calendar file downloaded — open it to add the reminder.
Repairs — an honest note

We don't run a mail-in repair desk —
and that's deliberate

We make your piece in Surat, the diamond-cutting capital of the world, and ship it to you directly. Because of that, we don't run a mail-in repair service — sending fine jewelry across borders for a small fix is slow, costly, and risky for something this precious.

What we can do is make sure any repair is easy and safe: below is exactly how to tell what's needed, how urgent it is, and what to ask a trusted jeweler near you. And our care team is always on WhatsApp if you'd like us to look at a photo first.

Send a photo on WhatsApp A second opinion is always free
Repair triage

Is it DIY, or a jeweler's job?

Pick what you're noticing — we'll tell you what it means, how urgent it is, and exactly what to ask for. (Spoiler: fine-jewelry repair is almost never a DIY job.)

Choose a symptom and we'll walk you through what to do.

DIY:

What it means

What to do

Say this at the bench

Never attempt fine-jewelry repair, soldering, or super-glue at home — it almost always increases the final bill and can damage the piece beyond an easy fix.

Common repairs explained

What each repair actually involves

Rough costs are a US guide only and vary by jeweler, region, metal, and design — always get a written estimate.

Prong re-tipping / tightening

The most important repair. Prongs wear from daily contact, and loose prongs risk your center stone. Have them checked every 6 months.

~$25–75 per prong

Ring resizing

Resize options depend on the metal, setting and amount of change. Eternity, channel and full-pavé bands can be limited; use our ring resizing guide before authorizing work.

Ask for a written estimate

Rhodium re-plating (white gold)

Restores the bright white finish as the plating wears. Typically every 12–18 months on daily-worn rings.

~$40–150

Chain soldering / clasp

Re-joins broken links or swaps a worn clasp; ask them to test the whole chain for other weak points.

~$25–60 solder · ~$20–50 clasp

Stone tightening / replacement

Re-secures a loose stone or sets a matched melee. For a lost center stone, coverage depends on your policy and documented selection.

Accent ~$30–100

Re-polishing

Removes scratches and restores luster — and re-plates white gold at the same time.

Often part of a service

Pearl restringing

For pearl pieces, every few years if worn often, before the thread weakens.

Varies by length
At the jeweler

What to ask your local jeweler

How to choose one

Ask whether the work is completed in-house or sent to a specialist, and how your piece is documented, tracked and insured while it is away.
Look for credentials and reputation: a trained goldsmith, Jewelers of America or American Gem Society affiliation, and strong long-standing reviews.
Insist on a written estimate and intake photos before any work begins.
Ask whether your piece is insured while it is in their care.
Ask if they can handle your specific setting — pavé, channel, halo, tension — without damaging it.

Protect your stone

These steps help document your stone before and after a repair.

If your Signora lab diamond carries a laser inscription noted on the exact grading report, ask them to verify that number at drop-off and again at pickup.
If it isn't inscribed, ask them to photograph it and note a recognizable inclusion under magnification on the repair ticket.

Copy-and-paste scripts

Tap to copy, then paste into a message or read aloud at the counter.

Loose stone

"One of my stones feels loose — can you tighten it and check all the prongs under magnification before it's at risk?"

Worn prongs

"My prongs are worn and catching on fabric — can you re-tip or replace them and re-secure the center stone?"

Resize

"Can you resize this from size ___ to ___? Will it affect the design or stones, and will you re-secure everything afterward?"

White gold

"My white gold has turned warm/yellow — can you re-polish and re-rhodium plate it?"

Chain / clasp

"Can you solder this broken link / replace the clasp, and test the rest of the chain for weak points?"

Stone protection

"My diamond's supplied grading report confirms this inscription number — can you compare it at drop-off and pickup?"

Repair glossary

Sound informed at the bench

Re-tipping

Rebuilding the worn tip of a prong so it grips the stone securely again.

Prong / head

The little metal claws — and the unit they sit on — that hold a stone in place.

Re-shank

Replacing the worn lower half of a ring's band.

Solder

Joining two pieces of metal with a fused seam — how a broken link is mended.

Laser welding

A precise, low-heat weld used near stones without removing them.

Rhodium plating

The bright white finish applied over white gold; refreshed as it wears (a "rhodium dip").

Melee

Tiny accent stones, like the pavé or halo around a center stone.

Bezel / pavé / channel

Ways to hold stones — a metal rim, a field of tiny shared-prong stones, or a recessed row.

Crazing

A network of fine surface cracks that can appear in opal.

Nacre

The lustrous surface layer of a pearl.

Patina

The soft, fine-lined finish metal develops with wear — prized on platinum.

Appraisal

A valued, documented description of your piece, used to insure it.

The Signora promise

Care guidance from the people who made it

Made to its specification

Each listing or approved specification identifies the piece's metal — including 9K, 14K or 18K gold, Pt950 platinum or 925 sterling silver where offered — and its lab-grown diamond, moissanite or colored-gemstone details where present.

Warranty

Signora reviews reported manufacturing defects; normal wear, accidental damage, loss and third-party work are assessed separately.

Keep your documents

Store the Signora Jewelry Certificate, receipt, any supplied grading report and any appraisal your insurer requests. Bring the relevant records to a repair appointment.

Ask the care team

Questions about caring for your piece? Message our care team on WhatsApp or email us anytime.

Design details shown where specified
Optional detail 01
A hidden Signora Stone, when specified
Optional detail 02
Inside-rim milgrain, when specified
Optional detail 03
A comfort-fit half-round band, when specified
Optional detail 04
A Signora wordmark engraving, when specified
Questions, answered

Care & repair FAQ

Better not to. Take pieces off before showering, swimming, and the gym — chlorine, saltwater, and sweat are harsh on gold alloys, and lotions and oils film up stones. A good habit is last on, first off: jewelry goes on after you're ready and comes off first at day's end.

A gentle soap-and-water wash weekly keeps a daily-worn ring bright; occasional pieces need it less often. Between deep cleans, a quick wipe with a microfiber cloth lifts the oils that make diamonds and moissanite look dull.

Not as a universal home-care rule. Treatments, fractures, coatings and setting condition all matter, and vibration can worsen an existing problem. Hand-clean unless a qualified jeweler has examined the exact piece and confirmed that professional ultrasonic cleaning is appropriate.

No — that can be normal wear. White gold has a bright rhodium finish over a warmer gold alloy; a jeweler can inspect and renew the finish when the warmer tone becomes visible.

We don't, and it's deliberate. We craft and ship from Surat, and sending fine jewelry across borders for a small fix is slow, costly, and risky. Instead we show you exactly what's needed and what to ask a trusted local jeweler — and our care team will happily look at a photo first on WhatsApp.

When the exact supplied grading report confirms a laser inscription, ask the jeweler to verify that number at drop-off and at pickup. If the stone is not inscribed, ask them to photograph it and note a recognizable inclusion under magnification on the repair ticket.

Not sure? Just ask.

Send a photo, describe what you're seeing, or ask anything about caring for your piece. Our Surat care team replies within 24–48 hours.

Or message us on WhatsApp

We reply within 24–48 hours (IST). Crafted in India. Made for her. Worn forever.