Simplify and Turn Clutter into Cash!

“Imagine yourself living in a space that only contains things that spark joy” - Marie Kondo

August marks the end of summer and time to prepare for fall – the perfect time for National “Simplify Your Life Week” and its focus on organizing and decluttering. A great place to start is to declutter that jewelry box that has been collecting pieces for years. With some quick sorting and a little investigating, you can easily decide which pieces you would like to keep, what needs repair or re-sizing, and what to consider parting with.
 
Getting Started

Creating a “capsule collection”, which is a collection of essentials, can be a great start to your decluttering process. It will help you focus on core pieces which stay in style, highlight your best features, and make you feel good. These should be pieces that you can build off of, too.

Consider paring down your necklaces, to keep only a few different lengths of chains, and maybe a mix of white and yellow gold. If you no longer wear that charm bracelet, just keep the most meaningful charm and wear it as a pendant. Keep any pieces with your favorite gem or birthstone. Even hang onto your favorite costume pieces that, while they don’t typically hold as much value as fine jewelry, are fun to wear and show off personality.

Feel the Good, Not the Guilt

Now what to do with those extra and unneeded pieces? Let our experts help you sort through and determine what is real vs costume, what its value is, what can be repaired, and how you can customize pieces to fit your style.

Remember: jewelry is supposed to make you feel good, not guilty! If you are feeling obligated to keep a piece that does not “spark joy,” consider reworking it or trading it for something you would cherish. This is especially true for gifts and inherited items that aren’t your style, but which you could exchange for a piece that will have fond memories and fill a gap in your curated collection.

Tip: With record-setting gold and silver prices lately, your broken chains and too-small rings could be worth more than you realized on a trade-in or cash-out.

What’s “Real”?

There are a few steps you can take at home to determine if an item is fine jewelry (gold, silver, or platinum) versus costume (base metal, copper, or other alloys).

Tip: This can be a great chance to get those curious minded kids and grandkids involved! All you need is a strong magnet and a magnifying glass.

 

 

 

 

Golden Rules

Gold, platinum, and silver do not attract to a magnetic field. Hold your magnet over a piece. If it sticks, it is not fine jewelry. (Exception: the clasp of a necklace or bracelet will often stick due to the spring inside the clasp.)

Once you have identified your non-magnetic pieces, you can delve deeper by looking for specific markings to determine their fineness and designers. Almost all precious jewelry has an indented stamp or hallmark. It can be hard to find, but is often on the clasp, inside the shank of a ring, or even on the post of an earring!

The most widely used gold values are 14 karat (14k) and 18 karat (18k). The karat (k) values are units of measurement for the fineness of gold out of 24 (24k). The remaining non-gold parts are a metal alloy. This chart helps explain what you have!

  
Scouting Silver 

Silver has a different fineness scale than gold. Sterling silver is denoted by the mark “925” which means 92.5% silver. Sometimes you’ll see 800 or 835 which means it has less silver mix.

Tip: If you are unable to find a mark for sterling, let the piece sit for a moment and when you pick it up it should quickly match the ambient temperature. This happens because silver has the highest conductivity of all metals! 

 

“Simplify, Simplify, Simplify” - Thoreau 

Organizing your jewelry box is a small part of a life-long process. There are many steps you can take to create a more simplified lifestyle, and we are here to help. Living more simply can completely change your state of mind!

Call, text, or come visit us if we may be of any assistance. We look forward to helping you simplify and love the jewelry in your collection!