September 7, 2010

Waterford crystal is a great place to start a new beautiful crystal collection. Buying this fine crystal online has become more and more popular over the last few years.

But unfortunately people don’t spend as much time on caring their Waterford crystal as they spend on selecting it. That’s why more than one Waterford crystal vase broke due to a wrong treatment or the carelessness of its owner.

If you want to protect your priceless possessions, this beginner’s guide is for you.

First things first: Don’t put your crystal in a dishwasher, no matter how dirty it looks! I know this should be self-evident, but lately a lot of companies advertise with dishwashers that have special crystal settings. People trust these advertisers and then end up with broken or foggy crystal and the companies advertisting push all the blame on the consumer.

I don’t want to say that all dishwashers are bad. I just want you to ask yourself if taking the risk is actually worth it. Even if it does not break, a machine can never give your crystal the care that you can.

Now that we know that we don’t want to put our Waterford crystal vase into the dishwasher, how do we care for it?

The answer is: Lukewarm water. Using hot or cold water might stress the crystal and a sudden change in temperature might cause fractions. Always use lukewarm water.

Instead of vigorous rubbing, use light, circular movements to clean the crystal or you might cause some minor scratching.

Some people swear that denture tabs are great to clean your possessions, but I want to give you a word of warning. The chemicals can actually cause a leeching of the lead content. If you’re not careful you might actually drink small amounts of lead with your beverages! Never take the risk to use denture tabs to clean your Waterford crystal.