If you have abandoned wearing your silver jewellery because it’s tarnished, you need to try this DIY cleaning hack. This homemade solution will clean your tarnished silver jewellery easily, no scrubbing needed!
Four years ago, I got my first silver necklace from Tiffany & Co. Within a period of 6 months, I had two necklaces from Tiffany’s. One was for my 30th and the other was for our wedding anniversary.
I remember being so excited about owning my first piece of Tiffany & Co (I’ve even kept the boxes and bags), so it’s embarrassing to admit, both necklaces had been left in my jewellery organiser because both had tarnished severely.
I had made a mental note to take my necklaces to a jeweller to get cleaned so I could wear them again.
My tarnished necklace
But then I saw a Facebook post showing how to clean silver with ekoWorx or Koh. I dunked my necklace into the solution, but it didn’t do much to take the tarnish away.
Necklace in Koh – Didn’t do much to take the tarnish away
So, I googled some homemade recipes and decided to mix a few of the tips to see if I’d get a shiny, silver necklace.
I did a similar process a few years ago, when trying to remove the tarnish from a silver sugar bowl Jacob received from his late Nanna. It worked a treat, but didn’t quite take all of the tarnish away.
For my experiment, I put some aluminum foil into a container, placed my necklace on top, then I added 1 tablespoon of bicarb soda, ¼ cup of vinegar and another half cup of boiling water on top. I left my necklace in the container for half an hour. I used tongs to get my necklace out and I was impressed with the results.
My Tiffany & Co silver necklace was no longer tarnished. I used the same solution to clean my other key necklace, which worked just as effectively.
After
The key to the success of this cleaner is the chemical reaction that occurs between the silver and the aluminum foil.
The silver sulfide atoms transfer from the silver jewellery to the aluminum. This means there is no heavy scrubbing as the electrochemical reaction does all the cleaning.
The best part of this hack is you will most likely have all the ingredients at home.
I’ve now got two Tiffany & Co necklaces I can wear with pride again. And when they start to tarnish, I know what I’ll need to do to get them looking new again.