I usually try to keep this on hand, mostly for repair jobs. Many times I'll need to take a stone out of a setting that's been kept in with a 2part epoxy. This stuff is fantastic! It's safe on pearls & every other stone I've used it on. I just put a little bit in an air tight jar, put the piece of jewelry in, and swirl it around a bit. You'll start to see all the epoxy residue coming out. I repeat the swirling about every 15 minutes during a 45 minute period. It works fairly quickly, sometimes less than 45 minutes. There are 2 main things to know about this product: DO NOT USE IT ON DOUBLETS or TRIPLETS (it will remove the adhesive that is keeping the pieces together). And last, make a TINY hole on the top to dispense the liquid. It does evaporate quickly, so the smaller the hole the better! Put the lid back on as tight as you can. If you use a large opening hole and put the lid back on, it will tend to evaporate in the bottle.