How to Clean Acrylic Body Jewelry

Acrylic body jewelry enjoys huge popularity. The plastic accessories are available in a virtually limitless array of colors, shapes, sizes and styles. The bad news about acrylic body jewelry is that it should be cleaned following each use, but it can't be easily sterilized. Traditional sterilization processes for jewelry such as boiling or the use of alcohol, acetone and peroxide are destructive and must not be used for acrylics. You can clean your acrylic body jewelry and sterilize your precious pieces without damaging them.

Things You'll Need

• Mild high quality antibacterial soap
• Soft, lint-free cloths
• Old toothbrush

Instructions

1. Soak a soft, lint-free cloth in warm water. Make sure that the temperature of the water is not so warm that it's uncomfortable for you to handle. If it's too hot for you, it's too hot for your acrylic body jewelry.

2. Apply a few drops of mild high quality antibacterial soap to the cloth and rub it in, forming a little bit of lather on the cloth.

3. Wash all of the jewelry piece's surfaces gently with the soapy cloth.

4. Wet the bristles of an old toothbrush with warm water and apply a drop of the antibacterial soap to them.

5. Gently scrub the acrylic body jewelry piece with the soapy toothbrush, paying particular attention to any indents or crevices that you were unable to reach with the cloth.

6. Rinse the piece thoroughly under warm running water. Pat it dry with a soft, lint-free cloth. Place it on a clean dry cloth to air dry completely.

Tips & Warnings

• Never have your acrylic jewelry autoclaved, which will probably destroy the piece.