Tips on cleaning jewellery?

[sparkwell]

Has anybody any tips on cleaning jewellery? I have some chains that have become tarnished I think they are silver plated. I normally use washing up liquid in warm water to clean my jewellery but these need something stronger.

[Gormal]

this might sound odd, but have you tried toothpaste? works wonders on silver cutlery. lol you will probably have to use the toothbrush too. Massage it on and rinse off.
I'd be interested to know if it works.

[lolo1]

Hi another crazy idea but i have tried and tested this myself and it realy works leave your jewelery in a bowl of fizzy coke overnight and then wash gently with warm water and wash up liquid in the morning and they should be bright and sparkly again but be careful if the jewelery is silver or gold plated as this can wash off and then your left with the metal only Let me know how you get on
Kindest Regards
Lolo

[Pepperpixie]

Found this info on another website:

Silver-plated jewellery must be cared for properly or it may tarnish or rust. Caring for it means cleaning it regularly. While you can have it professionally-cleaned, it is less expensive to clean silver-plated jewellery at home. You don't even need silver polish or dips to do it. All you need are a few items you probably already have in your kitchen pantry

Things You'll Need:

* Baking soda
* Salt
* Hot water
* Cold water
* Shallow plastic or glass bowl or dish

How to Clean Silver-Plated Jewellery
Step 1

Mix together equal parts baking soda and water to form a thick paste. Dab this paste liberally onto your silver-plated jewellery and let sit for an hour.

Step 2

Scrub the jewellery gently, using an old toothbrush and the paste. Rinse the paste off completely, and let dry.

Step 3

Place a sheet of aluminum foil in a shallow plastic or glass bowl. Sprinkle 2 tbsp. of baking soda and a 1/2 teaspoon of salt onto the foil.

Step 4

Put your silver-plated jewellery on top of the foil. Pour hot water into the bowl, on top of the jewellery.

Step 5

Cover the bowl and wait 5 minutes. Remove the cover and take out your jewellery. The foil, baking soda and salt (which must be dissolved by the hot water) creates a reaction that removes the tarnish from the silver.

Tips & Warnings

*
Do not use a metal bowl, which can interfere with the reaction between the foil and baking soda/salt.

[Belarus]

Here goes. This is my twopence worth. Put some Vodka in a glass and steep your jewellery in it. You could use a fine brush (like a make up brush) to brush small parts of the chain or whatever jewellery you have. You just dry it off with tissue and it shines like new. I have used this several times on gold but not on silver but maybe it will also work on that. Worth a try. Let me know how it goes. Best of luck and Happy Easter.

[sparkwell]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions.
I am a bit afraid of the coke one as I'm nearly sure theya re silver plated but can see the link with toothpaste and baking soda so I'm going to try those tomorrow and see which one works best. Unfortunately no vodka in the house so that one is out!!
I'll let you know how I get on.

Happy Easter to you all

Sparkwell

[sparkwell]

Well here are the before and after photos of my cleaned up jewellery.

I tried toothpaste first it did take a little of the tarnish off but heavier duty cleaning was needed so I followed Pepperpixie's tips above. I found that after taking them out of the last solution there were still a few spots of tarnish on one chain in particular, so I used the paste again from Step 1 and used the green part of the kitchen sponge to rub the problem areas. I finished off with a good rinse with warm clean water and them dried everything well. I am particularly pleased with the first chain with the claddagh symbol which had gone black! It is now shining and you can see the stones clearly.

Many thanks to you all - I'm thrilled with the results!

PS I also used the leftover paste to clean my kitchen and bathroom taps so they are gleaming too and nothing was wasted!!

[Gormal]

Excellent what a difference.

[Pepperpixie]

oops that's some difference alright, from the piccys the heart one looks to have cleaned up really well!!!!

[lolo1]

Hi Sparkwell thats an amazing difference fair play to you and Perrerpixie thanks for the tips and the realy good advice
Lolo