Nothing is worse than noticing one day that your favorite piece of silver jewelry is tarnished and black. You may be tempted to throw it in the trash, but there are simple cleaning solutions for silver chains and other pieces. You have to first come to terms with the fact that silver tarnishes, you can’t stop it and it doesn’t matter if it is pure silver or mixed. It oxidizes because of a chemical reaction, called silver sulfate, and that is why it has tarnish and black marks on it. You could try to wear your silver all the time, but that limits your fashion style too.
Polishing cloths are what jewelers recommend to keep the silver looking new. Some companies today produce these with a polishing agent and tarnish inhibitor worked into the fabric. These are soft and are perfect for buffing the chain, removing tarnish and dull areas.
When the cloth isn’t sufficient some will turn to a commercial silver cleaning polish. This is usually a liquid that you dip the silver in, let it set for the recommended amount of time, rinse, dry, and buff afterwards. These are powerful solvents so you want to be careful with which one you choose, some available now are non-toxic.
A lot of people prefer to try a home remedy before purchasing a commercial cleaner. One that has been around for a long time is the toothpaste technique. You rub white toothpaste, not the get type, onto the chain. Then you use a soft bristled toothbrush to gently clean the silver and then rinse in lukewarm water when done. A soft cloth helps to bring the shine back after you clean. Jewelers don’t like this method because the brushing can cause scratches on silver.
Another popular home technique is to use baking soda and aluminum foil. Using a shallow pie pan or something similar, line the pan with aluminum and pour boiling hot water till it is about halfway full. Then add two tablespoons of baking soda and two tablespoons of salt and stir. Once it is dissolved completely, lay the chain in the pain, making sure it is in contact with the foil and lying flat.
Once the silver is in the pan, just let it soak for five to ten minutes, gently clean any stubborn spots. Afterwards you just rinse clean, dry, and buff. With this method, the aluminum, salt, and baking soda react to cause a magnet that pulls the tarnish from silver.
Silver jewelry is fun, versatile, and affordable and it is hard to resist owning several pieces. You’ll never be able to stop it from tarnishing, but handling it only with clean hands does help. The next time you find a favorite piece all black try one of these methods to clean your silver chains and save yourself the temptation to just toss it.
Mr. Pauer is expert in silver jewelry, working nearly two decades in silver jewelry business. The production company (Silver.Ag), he works for, physically stock about 114.000 pcs of jewlery to be able to dispatch satisfied customers orders within 24 hours. The company has over 500.000 satisfied customers worldwide.
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
Related posts:
- Silver.Ag Manual: How To Find A Perfect Ring Whether you are celebrating your birthday, a proposal, graduation, or...
- Cubic Zirconia Rings Rings have been around since the early days of history...
- Beautiful Jewelry With Initial Jewelry Everywhere you look there is someone wearing initial jewelry. Initial...
- Baby Clothes Need Proper Care To Ensure Cleanliness For Your Baby Clothes right off the shelves come from industrial factories or...
- Promotional Gifts And Your Business A carefully thought out marketing and advertising campaign, whether for...
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
