Silver necklaces
Silver necklaces require adequate care for it to maintain its clean luster. Over the years, ways of cleaning silver jewelry have remained the same. People are, however, coming up with homemade ways of maintaining the ornaments. There are proven ways of cleaning various jewels, including necklaces. These are also the most recommended. To better idea the best way to clean your silver necklaces, follow the steps outlined below.
Preventive Care
The most crucial step in keeping your silver necklaces clean is by wearing them often. When you wear silver jewelry, usually, your skin’s oils naturally clean the silver keeping it shiny. The next step is avoiding exposure to substances or environments that could cause corrosion or tarnish. For instance, avoid exposure to rubber, chlorinated water, wool, latex, and other household items containing Sulphur. Remove your silver necklace when doing household chores as most substances within the house cause corrosion and tarnish. Also, avoid direct sunlight to keep your silver from tarnishing. Another major thing is preventing exposure to hair products, perfumes, lotions, and other cosmetics. These substances accelerate tarnishing, which explains why you are supposed to wear your jewelry last.
Polishing
Polish your silver necklace to prevent it from tarnishing. This is the best way of cleaning silver that has been oxidized. Also, since silver is easily scratched, use a silver cloth to polish your neckpieces. In place of silver cloth, you can use a nonabrasive material. Avoid using tissues or paper towels. They contain fibers, which can scratch your silver.
When polishing, make sure to do it in a back-and-forth motion. This allows the polishing to mirror the silver’s grain. Avoid rubbing in circles. This motion magnifies tiny scratches. As you polish, change the section of cloth you are regularly using to avoid placing tarnish on the silver surface. When trying to reach for areas with detail, use a Q-tip.
Professional Care
When your silver necklaces are heavily tarnished, this requires adequate time to polish. You might not find the time. If you do, you will not do an excellent job. Therefore, take the pieces to a professional. Also, note that valuable and old silver pieces should be made to a professional cleaner.
Homemade Cleaning
You can also keep your silver necklaces clean by putting together certain ingredients. You only use this method when the polishing cloth is not enough to remove the tarnish on your silver. Your first choice in home cleaners is soap and water. Use warm water and dishwashing soap that is free of ammonia and phosphate elements. The second choice is water and baking soda. Make a paste using water and baking soda. Use a cloth to apply a portion of the adhesive on the silver and polish. For etched pieces, make the paste thinner using water. Then use a toothbrush with soft bristles to polish the crevices. Then run the neckpieces under warm water and dry them with a clean cloth.
If you have some lemon juice, you can choose to avoid using water. In this third choice, add the lemon juice to olive oil (1/2 cup of lemon juice and 1 tsp of olive oil). Mix the solution in a large bowl. Place a microfiber cloth in the solution and wring it. Proceed to polish the silver necklace before rinsing and drying it. There are other ways of cleaning your silver necklaces by mixing household elements. They include a mixture of baking soda and white vinegar or a combination of boiling water, salt, baking soda, and aluminum. You can use either of these two additional mixtures to get rid of the tarnish on your silver. If the tarnish is severe, consider using some of these mixtures in succession to bring back the shiny luster.
For the best collection of silver necklaces, visit https://icecarats.com/collections/necklaces.