Cleaning silverware at home

All owners of silver jewelry, sooner or later, face darkening of products and the loss of their appearance. Knowing little tricks, you can clean silver at home from blackness and return them to their original shine and former beauty.

How to clean darkened, blackened silver

Silver jewelry is very beautiful, they are loved not only by women, but also by men. But their main beauty is in cleanliness and shine, any darkening looks sloppy, so you need to monitor them regularly. Knowing how to clean silver at home, you do not need to constantly turn to jewelers for help.

The main thing, when cleaning, is not only to remove blackness, but also to minimize the frequency of processes, all cleaning agents violate the integrity of the polishing layer, which must be regularly replenished.

With large items, the cleaning process will not cause any particular problems, but earrings, rings with curls and complex elements, chains with small details can be a hassle. Blackness is formed precisely in hard-to-reach places.

Before proceeding with cleaning, you need to know what alloy the jewelry consists of: matt silver, coin alloy, enamel or gold plated.

Important! Silver is a metal that easily enters into a chemical reaction, so cleaning must be done carefully, otherwise the product can be damaged.

How to clean silver at home

There are many products sold in stores that can be used to clean jewelry made of any metal. But you can use the old proven methods that our grandmothers used. The main thing is to know which one is suitable for a particular product, and how to apply it.

But in any case, it is necessary to prepare improvised materials that will be useful in the process: this is a used toothbrush, its bristles are much softer, two enamel bowls for washing products, a mild detergent to remove greasy deposits and rags for wiping and polishing, the best velor will do. Before starting the cleaning process, you must wash the jewelry from grease and sweat with a mild soapy solution and a toothbrush or soft sponge.

Home remedies for cleaning jewelry without stones and dusting:

• Ammonia.Products are cleaned only with a solution: two teaspoons per 0.5 liters of water, add fifteen drops of hydrogen peroxide and a drop of any hair shampoo. Immerse the product in the solution for 15-20 minutes, remove, dry and rub with a soft cloth until shiny. The ammonia removes blackened particles and the peroxide restores the shine.

• Vinegar. The combination of a mixture of vinegar and soda is used to deeply cleanse jewelry. Pour half of the vinegar into a glass and add two teaspoons of baking soda, when the foamy reaction starts, dip the silver into the glass and let stand for two hours. Next, take out the products, wash and dry. When using vinegar for cleaning, avoid concentrated acid, when diluting it is easy to mistake the ratios and ruin the product.

• Lemon acid. Pour 100 grams of citric acid into half a liter of cold water, heat in a water bath until completely dissolved, place a piece of copper wire or a copper spoon in the solution, dip the decoration into the solution. Boil the product in the composition for about an hour, depending on the state of the decoration, then you need to get it out, rinse and dry it. This method brightens the silver perfectly and brings back the shine.

• Soda or salt. It is necessary to prepare a solution: for half a liter of water, two tablespoons of soda with a 5 cm piece of foil, heat it to dissolve the soda, and soak the jewelry for 15 minutes. In a solution with salt and foil, the products are first soaked for one hour, and then boiled for 10 minutes over low heat. Do not rub the products with dry soda or salt, small scratches will remain on the surface, which will quickly become clogged with dirt - this will only aggravate the darkening situation.

• Toothpaste. It is used as a soft abrasive: apply a little paste without fillers and dyes to a damp brush and clean the product with gentle movements. Next, the decoration must be soaked in water for 10-15 minutes so that the remaining paste dissolves in hard-to-reach places, rinse with running water and dry.

• Alcohol. Prepare a solution for half a liter of water: a tablespoon of 96% alcohol with the addition of ten drops of ammonia, bathe the silver for 20 minutes, rinse with clean water and dry with a cloth. The solution will soften all greasy deposits, which can be easily cleaned with a toothbrush.

• Foil. Line a small bowl with foil, place the decorations on the bottom and cover with baking soda to completely hide the items. Boil half a liter of water with two tablespoons of salt and pour into a bowl while hot. A foaming reaction will follow, which will clean out all the hard-to-reach places. After cooling down, wash the silver with clean water, if necessary, complex dirt can be rubbed with a little brush.

Each of these methods can help recreate the original look of jewelry, whiten and add shine.

How to clean silver with enamel inserts

Products with enamel require a very delicate attitude. The material is afraid of temperature extremes, and coloring pigments are afraid of the influence of aggressive cleaning agents containing acids and alkalis. It is better to entrust the cleaning of such jewelry to jewelers, but if this is not possible, then the only remedy that will not spoil the enamel insert will be ammonia.Dissolve a tablespoon of ammonia in a glass of warm water no more than 40 degrees and add a drop of mild detergent or shampoo. It is enough to soak the jewelry in the solution for about 20 minutes, wash it in running water and dry it with a hair dryer with cold air.

Cleaning silver at home with gold plating

Gold is applied to silver jewelry in a very thin layer, so the main condition when cleaning such items is not to break the gilding. If blackening occurs, wine alcohol will help, it is enough to apply a small amount to a piece of soft cloth and rub.

To wash away the blackening in the recesses, a solution will help: dissolve baking soda in a glass of warm water, until the jelly thickens and lower the jewelry for 30 minutes, then you can rub problem areas with a toothbrush and paste and rinse with running water.

Features of cleaning silver items with stones

Jewelry made of silver with stones look especially exquisite and beautiful, caring for them requires a special approach to each product.

When cleaning such jewelry, only solutions are used; acid and alkaline compounds cannot be used, which will simply ruin most stones.

You need to know what kind of stone is in the jewelry in order to know the approach to it. Organic stones have a very porous surface structure that quickly absorbs liquids. And solutions containing acids will quickly destroy the stone. Minerals are more resistant, alcohol solutions can be applied to them.

Compositions for cleaning silver with stones:

• Coral. It is better to entrust it to a specialist who will take out the stone before cleaning the metal.
• Amber and ivory. Able to withstand mild soapy water when using a toothbrush.
• Pearl. Products are cleaned with liquid starch gruel or an aqueous solution of toothpaste or powder by soaking.
• Turquoise and malachite. Jewelry can be washed with ammonia and a mild detergent solution.
• Ruby, pomegranate and topaz. You can use wiping with vodka and rubbing the product with soaked powder to clean your teeth.

If you do not know the name of the stone that is in the decoration. The safest method for all stones: cut a medium potato in half and put it in a liter of room temperature water along with the decorations for 30-40 minutes, then rinse the product and wipe it with glycerin or rubbing alcohol.

Or make a very sweet sugar solution and soak the jewelry in it for about an hour, then it will be enough just to wash and dry the product. These methods are safe for all mineral stones.

Important: so that the stones do not tarnish after using detergents, after washing, it is better to dry all products with a hairdryer with cool air, it will quickly remove moisture from the surface without leaving stains that are very visible on transparent minerals.

They polish and return shine to products with special polishes or GOI paste, which is safe for both metal and any stone.

Jeweler's Tips for Wearing Jewelry and Caring for Silver

The best experts in caring for silver items are of course jewelers, but it is very expensive to contact them often, it is very expensive and inconvenient to go to the workshop with every ring or chain when they require care. Master jewelers approve of home cleaning products to maintain the beauty of the product, but they recommend that you seek professional help if the product is heavily soiled.

Here are some important tips to help you clean up less often:

• For long-term storage, without wearing it, it is better to wrap silver in a soft cloth and store it on the refrigerator door, where creams and serums are often stored in women, so the oxidation process will take place more slowly.
• Do not store silver with jewelry made from other metals in the same box and in large quantities, the most expensive jewelry needs separate suede or velor bags.
• Do not wait for the obvious manifestation of blackness on jewelry, it will be easier to clean the silver when it starts to acquire yellow spots. Such deposits are removed much easier and the metal is less injured during cleaning.
• Do not swim or shower in silver jewelry, water accelerates metal oxidation, and organic minerals in the product quickly absorb moisture and begin to break down.
• Avoid contact of jewelry with cosmetics that clog small fragments and accelerate darkening processes in these places.
• To prevent the products from turning black, they must be regularly polished with special polishes that prevent oxidative processes.

An ancient belief says: silver loves constant contact with a person. The less often we put on jewelry made of silver, the faster it loses its luster and begins to blacken. With regular wear and respect, your jewelry will always shine and delight with its beauty.

VIDEO: 3 ways to clean silver at home.