Green Tip Tuesday – Cleaning Silver Jewelry

One thing on my “to do” list this week (as I’m off of work) is to clean my silver jewelry. These pieces just seems to be very, very tarnished…

tarnished silver jewelry — honestly, the flash makes these pieces look less tarnished than they really are

probably from a year of hanging out in the open (as opposed to being tucked away in a jewelry box).

Earrings hanging on a framed piece of mesh wire — My earrings hang on a framed piece of mesh wire outside my closet door, and

necklaces hanging on a rack inside my closet door — my necklaces hang on a rack inside my closet door.

One non-toxic alternative I have is to scrub each piece ever so gently with toothpaste. Since I’d really like to get a bunch of pieces clean all at once (and I feel kinda lazy this rainy winter week), I thought I’d try this method:

Ingredients:

Aluminum Foil
Baking Soda
Salt
Boiling water

1. Line a container with aluminum foil.

2. Place silver into container on top of aluminum.

3. Pour in boiling water (I poured in about 3 cups)

4. Add approximately 3 tablespoons of baking soda and 2 tablespoons salt.

At this point, I need to warn you, the baking soda and salt will make the water foam a bit and give off a not so pleasant smell…it’s not horrible, but definitely not in line to be a perfume someday.