Taking Care of Celtic Jewellery

It can be observed that most of the traditional Celtic Jewellery is made of plain precious metals. This means that there are no insets of precious stones and if there is, it is very minimal. The modern types of Celtic Jewellery are now made with semi-precious and precious gems that help enhance their appeal, appearance and value. Taking care of Celtic Jewellery will greatly depend on its style because plain precious metal jewellery and those that are studded require varying degrees of care.

Plain Precious Metal Celtic Jewellery

Be it Silver, Gold or Platinum your Celtic Jewellery has to be taken care of properly in order to preserve its value. The care for your jewellery should depend on the kind and design that you have. By its nature, Celtic jewellery has a lot of intricate designs. This is of course very attractive and adds to the visual appeal of the item. But it can also be a medium forgathering dirt and may even make cleaning difficult.

Well, there is no cause for worry. If your Celtic jewellery is made of Sterling silver, your utmost problem will be tarnishing – especially if it is not used regularly. For tarnish, you can use commercially available silver cleaners or polish to help remove the discolouration and to regain the metal’s luster.

For other metals like gold and platinum, you can expect less tarnishing. A periodic cleaning may be necessary in order to regain the luster and shine of the metal. For these preciousmetals, (also applicable to silver) you can wash the jewellery in lightly soaped water. Soak it for a few minutes, scrub it very gently with a baby’s toothbrush and dry it thoroughly.

Remember not to use a hard abrasive brush on your gold metal since it will scratch easily.

Jewelled Celtic Jewellery

Other variations to Celtic jewellery are those that are jewel encrusted or at least have a precious stone or two incorporated into the design. If you have this kind of Celtic jewellery then you have to take special care in cleaning them. If you are not careful, you can cause the stone’s setting to loosen.
The cleaning process would also depend on how the stone is set in the piece. Check if the stone is held with the traditional metal setting or if it is set with the use of jewelers cement.

If it is held in position with a prong type attachment, then you can clean the piece by soaking it in warm water and brush it lightly with no concern for damage. For this kind, always make periodic visits to your jeweler in order to re-fasten the setting. If it is set with jeweler’s cement however, you have to be careful not to soak it for longer than 1 or 2 minutes and you should not use hot water in doing so. Make sure that no jewellery cleaning liquid find their way near the setting as it can soften or dissolve the cement.
Taking care of your Celtic valuables is quite simple, always wear it with pride and give it a little care and respect.

Add comment February 16th, 2008

Celtic Wedding Rings

Celtic Rings have always been valued for the meaning and the symbolism that are incorporated into their design. The value stems from the incredibly intricate Celtic knot work that adorns most Celtic Jewellery. The symbol carried by the knot work is the reason why it is used as friendship rings, commitment rings and most often wedding rigs. 

Meaning of the Designs

A lot of jewelers and historians would tell you that understanding the meaning of the knot work found on the rings is next to impossible. Before anyone can have the idea as to what that design means, you would have first to figure out from what year it came from. This is because the meaning of designs changes from era to era.
Since the early Celts did not keep any written record or guideline as to what each design signifies, there really is no way of knowing what particular sentiment was it made for. Some would say that you do not need to find the exact ancient meaning of it in order for the ring to have value for you. You can choose your own interpretation for the ring, be it love, unity, infinity, fidelity for that special someone. A lot of young jewellery designers nowadays are coming up with their own variant of the Celtic knot. They are attaching their own emotion to the designs that they have created.

Use as wedding Jewellery

Celtic rings are the popular choice of the Irish people as a wedding ring. Even those who are of Celtic and Irish decent have the same mindset when wedding bells are heard. The knot work on the rings as well as it symbolisms make it appropriate as wedding bands. Most jewelers now make paired wedding bands for both the bride and the groom. 

The Claddagh and the Triquetra

The Claddagh and the triquetra are two of the most popular Celtic wedding ring designs. The Claddagh ring symbolizes love, loyalty and friendship while the Triquetra symbolizes unity. These two symbols are not only applicable in wedding band but also in special friendship and promise rings. Both the Claddagh and the Triquetra have found their way into modern culture acceptance since they were often seen as fashion accessories in Television shows. To this day, the Claddagh ring remains to be the most popular wedding rings in all of Ireland.

Plain or Studded

By the middle of the 20th Century wedding rings were traditionally made of plain precious metals like silver, gold and platinum. Lately wedding bands have become more luxurious and have found themselves studded with diamonds and other precious stones, you can even customized the ring to include each others birthstone.
The same goes for Celtic wedding rings. More and more jewelers are creating rings that have precious and semi-precious stones included in the design. The studded rings can also be used as an engagement ring. The “Irish wedding band” or Claddagh is now being reinvented by talented craftsman, but the symbolism it represents still rings true.

Add comment February 15th, 2008

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