How to Care For Silver Jewelry
Proper storage and cleaning will
keep
your silver jewelry looking its best.
Silver jewelry has a lovely patina, but the sad fact is that the
patina darkens with age, turning from the original brilliant silver,
to a light gold, and if left long enough it will become bronzed
and then a black-blue.
This is due to the chemical reaction of the silver, with sulfides
present in the environment. This is usually due to airborne pollutants,
but can also be transferred to the jewelry on your hands.
One of the first rules of keeping your silver jewelry shining,
is to store it properly in acid-free paper, or cloth especially
for that purpose. Put them in a drawer or other safe place, that
is away from exposure to wood or other types of smoke.
It is best to keep jewelry polished, instead of trying to play
"catch up" when it has become heavily tarnished. But there
are a number of ways to deal with the darkening color.
There are many home solutions, such as using white toothpaste and
a soft brush. However, some jewelers point out that silver is not
tooth enamel, and can't withstand the abrasive content. Although
on things like chains, it's unlikely you would see any resulting
scratches.
Commercial solutions do work, but depending on the nature of your
jewelry (e.g. whether it contains gemstones or pearls), you may
not be able to submerge it completely, and the cleaning will be
uneven.
One basis of both commercial and home cleaning solutions, is the
creation of an electrochemical cell, where there is a metal ingredient
that is anodic to silver. This means that it will help turn the
silver in the sulphide tarnish, back to silver.
A favorite home treatment is to line a pot with aluminum foil,
one of the metals anodic to silver, put your jewelry in, and cover
it with water, then add several tablespoons of baking soda. Boil
gently until you see that the discoloration is gone. Your jewelry
may be completely clean, or may have a white powder on its surface
from the oxidization. This can be removed easily with a baking soda
paste. Remember to exercise caution in cleaning silver jewelry.
If it is not purely silver, like a chain or bracelet, the treatment
you use can damage soft stone or pearls.
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