💍 As we head towards the halfway point of the year, we are reminded of the commitments we made, what is important to us and celebrating the milestones we have achieved. It is a perfect time to show appreciation to the ones we love and care for. To show you our appreciation towards you, we would like to offer you 15% off on all jewellery for the next 30 days. You can now show your appreciation and love to your loved one by ordering directly from our online shop or instore: www.penchantdesign.com We are now also available for house calls by appointment. Book directly with me: sales@penchantdesign.com Stay sparkly x Jackie & the Penchant Team +27 21 876 3094

💖 Life does not come with a manual, it comes with a mother. My mom’s birthday is on Wednesday. That means she gets two celebrations in one week – lucky mom! And lucky me for having her as my mum. I like to wish your mom a Happy Mother’s Day too. Please share with me how you are making the day special for your special lady. It is not too late to order your Mother’s Day gift. We can deliver anywhere in the world. I am happy to help you find the perfect gift to say thank you to your extraordinary mom. Give me a call or reply to this email for my assistance. Alternatively, you can browse and purchase directly on our website. Stay sparkly x Jackie & the Penchant Team +27 21 876 3094

POLISH YOUR PEARLS LIKE A PRO We have always maintained that pearls should not be reserved for high days and holidays, and nothing takes the lull out of lockdown quite like glamming it up with your favourite string, ring or pair of earrings. Of course, frequent wear means you may have to spend additional time on jewellery care. And since you won’t be able to visit our store for professional jewellery care until we reach the lower and less strict levels of lockdown, you’ll be happy to know that your precious pearls can be perfectly preserved during this time, as long as you follow a few simple instructions from yours truly.   PURCHASING PEARLS: NATURAL VS. CULTIVATED Pearls are formed in oysters or mussels and can either be cultivated or naturally grown. Like most mainstream pearls, the pearls we use in our workshop are cultivated, but this does not mean that they are man-made or synthetic – it simply means that there was some human involvement in the natural process of pearl formation (i.e. people placed a small object in the mussel/oyster, which then grew into the pearl). Natural pearls are extremely rare and cost a small fortune, which is why we prefer to stick to the cultivated kind. With a hardness (also known as scratch resistance) of two and a half, pearls are particularly prone to scratches, which is why the following guidelines on pearl care at home are so important. WEARING YOUR PEARLS Pearls are porous and do not react well to perfume, since perfume contains chemicals that will damage and break down the pearls. To avoid this, you should never spray perfume directly onto your pearls, or onto any part of your skin where your pearls may eventually come into contact with it. Hand sanitiser, like other chemicals, can also create a residue on pearls, so either avoid using this when wearing a pearl ring or bracelet, or remove your pearls when using the sanitiser. STORING YOUR PEARLS The way you store your pearls is also extremely important, since incorrect storage can lead to permanently (and completely avoidable) damage.  WRONG:                                                                                                                    Correct:   As mentioned, pearls have a very soft surface and storing them with your other jewellery is bound to cause unsightly scratches. For this reason, pearls should always be stored separately, in their own container – this can either be the pouch or box that it was sold in – or carefully wrapped in tissue. CLEANING YOUR PEARLS When it comes to cleaning pearls, less really is more. Due to their fragile nature, pearls should not be soaked or cleaned with soap, and dipping should be avoided at all costs. Jewellery dips are designed to eat away at dirt, and since pearls are organic and porous, consisting mainly of calcium carbonate and calcite, they can disintegrate when left in strong detergents. The very best way to clean your pearls at home is to simply wipe them down carefully with a damp cotton cloth. As you can see, jewellery care at home does not require expensive equipment or an excessive amount of time – all you need is some patience, a little time and a bit of TLC. *This is the final post in our 3-part series on home jewellery care. Please subscribe to our newsletter for more useful tips on diamond care, gemstone care and gold and silver cleaning at home.

3 SIMPLE STEPS TO SHINIER, SPARKLIER STONES Just over 5 weeks after finding out we’d be confined to our houses for an undetermined period of time, we’ve settled into lockdown living like the rest of our South African ‘siblings’. And, except for those precious three hours of outdoor exercise that has been embraced by just about everyone with a pulse, most of our days consist of working, cooking, eating and – let’s face it – a ridiculous amount of cleaning. Who knew living and working in the same space could make such a mess?! So, to give you a break from your usual household chores, we’re continuing our series on home jewellery care with a quick tutorial on diamond and gemstone care at home. STEP 1: SOAK You don’t need fancy jewellery cleaning solutions to get your stones nice and sparkly. Plain and simple dishwashing liquid, like Sunlight, will do just fine. Add a few drops to some lukewarm water, then simply soak your pieces in this soapy solution for 10-15 minutes. During the soaking process, most of the hardened dirt and grime on your pieces should be loosened and ready for the next step. STEP 2: SCRUB Now it’s time to put some elbow grease in… Using a toothbrush (or a soft, small paintbrush), gently and thoroughly scrub your pieces, taking care to really work on the bottom or base of the stones, where dirt really tends to get trapped. The most important thing to remember here is to never scrub your pieces with a metal or plastic scouring pad or cloth, as this can scratch the stones, leaving them looking even duller than before. STEP 3: RINSE AND DRY When you’re done with the scrubbing, you’ll need to rinse your piece one last time to get the excess soap off. You can either do this by quickly swishing it around in your soap and water solution, or running it under a lukewarm tap (just make sure the water isn’t too hot or cold, as the sudden change in temperature is not good for your jewellery). Once rinsed, you can use a soft cloth or even a tissue to dry your piece, taking care to get into all the creases. As you can see, diamond care really isn’t rock(et) science. A few minutes of your time and some basic household items are the only things standing between you and the shiniest stones you’ve ever seen… So, next time you’re wondering how to kill some time without wasting it, roll up those sleeves and bring back the bling! And while you’re at it, why not try some gold and silver cleaning at home too?   **This is the second post in our 3-part series on home jewellery care. For more useful tips, please subscribe to our newsletter to receive a FREE COPY of our Jewellery Wear and Care Guide.

KEEP YOUR BLING LOOKING ITS VERY BEST If you, like us, have been glamming it up at home during the mandatory Covid-19 lockdown in South Africa, you may have noticed that your favourite jewellery pieces are starting to look a little worse for wear. Yes, constant hand-washing and sanitising are definitely recommended for preventing the spread of the virus and other germs, but it can also wreak havoc on your jewels, since water, soap and hand cream are notorious for sticking to stones and tiny grooves. We’d love nothing more than to help you restore your jewellery to its former glory, but unfortunately we can only offer your when our store opens again… Fortunately, however, for most of us lockdown does mean some more free time on our hands, so we thought we’d share are a few simple things that you can do at home to keep those metals and stones shinier for longer. So, if you’re not making notes, now’s the time to bookmark this page for future reference! But before we get into the how of at-home jewellery care, let’s have a quick look at the why. It’s actually quite simple: the better you care for your jewels, the longer you’ll get to wear (and enjoy!) them. And when it comes to caring for your gold and silver jewellery at home, the two most important things you need to remember are RESPECT and RESET.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            RESPECT Like most metals and other materials, gold and silver will start to show signs of wear after a while, including small scratches, little dents and tarnish. This is inevitable, but there are some things you can do to prevent unnecessary damage. Since gold is a very soft metal that will dent and damage quickly, and silver should best be kept away from moisture to prevent oxidation,    always remember to:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Remove your gold or jewellery (especially) when you go to the gym; and Avoid strenuous exercise or outdoor activities such as hiking and swimming while wearing gold or silver jewellery.   RESET No, of course we’re not suggesting you actually reset the stones in your pieces – we’re simply referring to the fact that you can press the proverbial “rest button” on your jewels a with something as simple as a proper clean. If you don’t have a professional jewellery cloth for cleaning your gold or silver at home, simply use a soft spectacle cloth to your pieces a proper wipe and polish until their former fantastic shine reappears. Fine jewellery is an investment, but unlike the investments you have to keep in the bank or stashed away in a safe, your jewels can give you joy on a daily basis. So, while we wait for this lockdown to pass and life to slowly return to what many are calling “the new normal”, take the time to give your precious pieces a decent clean and continue to wear them with pride! *This is the first in a series of 3 posts on home jewellery care. For more useful tips, follow us on Facebook and join our live jewellery care sessions on Fridays.

  SHOP ONLINE Even though we’ve had to close up our custom jewellery shop in Cape Town to ensure our staff’s health and safety (and comply with government regulations), we remain 100% at your service, thanks to the wonder of the internet and a little something called Zoom. From now until lockdown is over, Penchant owner and head designer, Jackie will be doing custom jewellery design consultations. To book a free consultation, simply choose a time that suits you best, and you will receive a Zoom link for the meeting. If you do not have Zoom yet, don’t worry! Once you click on the link provided, your download will start automatically, or you can follow the prompts for a quick installation before we get down to the good stuff – discussing your design ideas and dreams. We are also still taking orders via our , and in addition to 25% discount on all pieces in our silver handmade Oxi-Daisy jewellery range until the end of April, we are also offering free shipping across South Africa for all orders placed during lockdown. Deliveries will unfortunately only commence again when normal trade resumes (even though a strong case can be made that jewellery does, in fact, qualify as “essential items”), but if you place your orders now, at least you’ll have some fine bespoke jewellery to look forward to. KEEP YOURSELF BUSY Lockdown has forced us all to slow down, whether we wanted to or not. This means we not only have time to do those things we’ve been putting off forever, we even have time to try a few new things, like taking up a hobby or getting crafty. We simply love the idea of making a simple DIY ring holder, so if organising your bling has been on your to-do list for a while, check out this video or these easy step-by-step instructions. We’ll be sharing more of these fun projects with you in the coming weeks, so if you’re not following us on Facebook and Instagram, you have exactly 4 clicks to change that 😉 STAY POSITIVE The number of confirmed Coronavirus cases keeps rising daily and we have no idea how or when this outbreak will be contained. With so much uncertainty and negativity surrounding our present situation, it’s only human to start feeling overwhelmed and even depressed. So instead of obsessively and helplessly watching those numbers rise, why not focus on the positives instead? Actively seek out the happy stories celebrating people’s strength, resilience and camaraderie, and share these with your friends and family online. A little positivity will go a long way, so search, share and spread the good news!