Clean silver jewelry and cutlery can lose their shine over time. This is something known as tarnishing a result of chemical reactions between silver and sulfur in the air or other elements. It can also happen if a silver item has been dropped on concrete, metal bleachers, steam rollers, or run through the washing machine. The main reason why silver jewelry seems to “shrink” is because of heat exposure. Wear it too long in the water while bathing or showering, wear it while exercising, etc… Also, liquid chlorine bleach on sterling silver can cause skin changes. That reduce its surface area thereby causing the piece to appear to contract when it really is just rusting/oxidizing.
In fact, some items may even turn black. This is due to a reaction between sulfur in the air and the silver medal. This can be caused by wearing these items frequently when they are used near-certain substances like cosmetics, detergents, and air fresheners among others. Fortunately, this chemical change or tarnishing can be reversed easily enough with a few trusted tips and tricks to clean your beloved accessories; plus there are ways you can maintain them so they look shiny and new for much longer than you expected!
Check some products for clean silver jewelry
1 Aluminum Foil + Laundry detergent
2 Aluminum Foil + Baking Soda
3 Cornflour + Water
4 Ketchup Clean-up
5 Hand Sanitiser
6 Toothpaste
7 Lemon-lime Soda
8 Window Cleaning Detergent
9 Ammonia + Water
10 White Distilled Vinegar + Baking Soda
11 Baking Soda + Water
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Aluminum Foil + Laundry detergent
Take a clean bowl and cover the bottom with aluminum foil. Fill the bowl with hot water and drop in a tablespoon of liquid laundry detergent. Stir well before dropping your silver items inside and allow to soak for a minute. Remove it from the water using tongs, rinse it off with lukewarm water and dry it on paper towels so that no spot remains!
You might have a drawer full of tarnished silverware or jewelry. But this doesn’t mean that those pieces are done for. There is an easy trick you can do using a few common items to help shine them back up again. Flatten out a piece of aluminum foil and set it inside a bowl that has been thoroughly cleaned with soap and water. Pour in some laundry detergent (liquid, NOT powder!) and stir the mixture well until the detergent is dissolved in the water. Next, place your silver into the bowl, slowly one piece at a time if you have more than one item to clean.
Completely submerge the items into the mixture, leaving them. Therefore about 30 seconds before carefully lifting them out with kitchen tongs (metal spatulas work best!). Once again, rinse off your newly shiny silverware/jewelry with warm water and lay it down on paper towels to dry completely before putting it back away in your drawers!
Use this cleaning trick for silverware that is slightly tarnished or silver jewelry. Fill a bowl with hot water and add a tablespoon of laundry detergent. Stir thoroughly and drop your jewelry inside for about one minute. Take out your jewelry with tongs and rinse with lukewarm water. Lay on paper towels to fully dry!
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Aluminum Foil + Baking Soda
Combine aluminum foil and baking soda in a glass pan to create an anti-tarnish bath that’s perfect for cleaning silverware, and other items such as candelabras or tableware. Place this handy tin onto a fire to boil the water. Then submerge your valuables for 10 minutes to dissolve the tarnish and leave with a lustrous shine. When washing silver cutlery also remembers never to use anything from your kitchen sink. As metal filings can cause discoloration on sensitive silver surfaces.
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Cornflour + Water
If you’re like most people who own silver jewelry or utensils, you have likely noticed that over time. They can begin to look dull. This is due to tarnishing which happens when the silver reacts with oxygen and moisture in the air. You may also notice white streaks on your utensils if a lot of acids are present in foods you frequently use them for. Luckily there is a very easy way to restore the shine back to your silverware and it only takes about 15 minutes.
If your silver looks less shiny than it should, try this trick to polish and restore its luster. Mix together water, cornflour, and cream of tartar until you have a nice paste then apply. It to the silver item using a sponge or cloth. Let the mixture dry and wash it off with a clean wet cloth.
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Ketchup Clean-up
To use ketchup to clean tarnished items, squeeze a few drops of ketchup on a paper towel and gently rub the cleaning cloth against the silverware or jewelry. If there are old, tarnish-built-up places, apply ketchup directly onto these areas for about 15 minutes and then gently rub with a microfibre cloth before being rinsed with water. Some items like fancy candle holders or silverware have more intricate details which require that you use a soft toothbrush to help reach between crevices and clean them.
Using ketchup to remove rust from silver may sound crazy if you’ve never heard of it before, but this weird trick actually works shockingly well. All you need is a small dab of ketchup and some paper towels or a microfiber cloth. Squeeze a couple of drops of ketchup on the armpit areas where they won’t be noticed. Dip your finger in the ketchup on the paper towel and gently rub the tarnish on your silver. If there is old or built-up tarnish, apply the ketchup directly onto these hard-to-reach areas and leave it for 15 minutes. Before wiping clean with a clean cloth. Keep in mind that sometimes items made from silver have details. (such as intricate carvings or engravings) That can get easily damaged; in those situations. Use something soft like an old toothbrush to reach into all those little grooves!
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Hand Sanitiser
If you need access to a quick solution for polishing your silver ring but do not have the necessary tools on hand, it can easily be solved by using a hand sanitizer instead. Squeeze out a small amount of product from the bottle and gently rub it over the tarnished metal with a soft paper towel. The mess will come off instantly and your clean metal is reflective and shiny again! Ensure that the metal being used in this formula is silver as there are many ingredients found within hand sanitizers that could potentially mar your mineral crystal.
Hand sanitizer is an effective way to clean your jewelry on the go. Simply pour some of the hand sanitizers into a small, soft cloth, then gently rub your jewel. Do not try this recipe with jewelry containing encrusted mineral stones. As the ingredients found in some types of hand sanitizer can damage such stones.
