How to look after accessories so they last
Six materials, and the one thing that ruins each of them. Most accessory damage is a single avoidable mistake.
Almost nothing in an accessory drawer dies of old age. It dies of one specific thing done to it repeatedly, and the things are different for each material. Here is the short version for the six that matter.
Plated metal — the enemy is friction, then moisture. Gold plating is measured in microns and wears through at contact points: the inside of a ring, the back of a clasp, the fold of a bracelet. You cannot stop that, but you can slow it enormously by taking pieces off before hand-washing, showering, swimming and sleeping. Perfume and hairspray attack the plating chemically, so jewellery goes on last, after both. Store plated pieces dry and separately — in a bag, not loose in a bowl where they abrade each other.
Pearls and shell — the enemy is acid. Both are porous calcium carbonate, which means perfume, hairspray, sweat and even lemon juice etch the surface permanently. On last, off first, wiped with a soft damp cloth before they go away. Never in an ultrasonic cleaner, and never stored in an airtight bag — pearls need a little humidity or the nacre cracks. A soft pouch in a drawer is right.
Leather — the enemy is drying out, then cracking. Leather is skin and it loses oils. A bag stored unused for a year in a dry cupboard cracks along its fold lines. Stuff bags with tissue or a cloth so they keep their shape, store them in a breathable dust bag rather than plastic, and condition the ones you care about once or twice a year. Water is survivable if wiped and air-dried away from a radiator; heat is what actually ruins wet leather.
Suede — the enemy is water and, second, denim. Water spots and the marks are hard to lift. Dark denim transfers dye onto pale suede permanently. A protector spray before first use genuinely works and is the highest-value ten dollars in this whole article. A suede brush lifts the nap back after it goes shiny at the corners.
Silk — the enemy is water, oddly. Water spots silk exactly as it spots suede, which is why a caught-in-the-rain silk scarf comes back marked. Hand wash cool with a tiny amount of gentle detergent, or dry clean; never wring, and dry flat away from sun, which fades silk fast. Store rolled rather than folded, since fold creases in silk eventually become splits.
Wool and cashmere — the enemy is agitation and moths. Pilling is friction, which a fabric comb fixes in about a minute and which no amount of careful washing prevents. Wash rarely and cool; wool is naturally antibacterial and needs far less washing than people give it. Store clean — moths are attracted to the traces of skin and food on worn wool rather than to the wool itself, which is why the jumper you put away dirty is the one with holes in it.
The general rule underneath all of it: most accessories are damaged in storage rather than in use. Things kept in a heap in a drawer scratch each other, tangle, and get crushed. Ten minutes of separating them does more for their lifespan than anything you do while wearing them.
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