Silver Tarnish Cleaning

General care for sterling silver and gemstone jewelry: No jewelry should be worn in a chlorinated swimming pool or tub; the harsh chemicals are very detrimental and can even damage solid gold. All jewelry should be protected from sunlight when not being worn. It is best to put your jewelry on after applying makeup and hair products, to prevent a buildup of residue that will later have to be cleaned off. Storing your jewelry in a simple ziplock bag is one of the simplest ways to protect it and keep it clean and sparkling for your next use. An even better option is to use an anti-tarnish pouch. Hagerty makes a set called "Tarnish Intercept Pouches" that are inexpensive and claim to protect for up to five years.

What is tarnish and how does it form? It's an unfortunate fact of life: silver tarnishes. Tarnish first appears as a yellowish tint, then shifts to gray and black. Some people like the "antiqued" look of tarnished silver, and in fact some jewelry designers deliberately apply a heavy tarnish to their pieces. You may opt to allow your jewelry to tarnish if you simply don't wish to bother maintaining it, or if you like that look.

Tarnish is caused by sulphur. Sources include sweat, wool, felt, eggs, leather, latex, and various other sources, so limiting exposure to them can help. Storing your silver in an airtight container with activated charcoal or commercial anti-tarnish strips is a good way to prevent tarnish when storing your jewelry.

Removing tarnish: Silver polishing cloths are effective at removing tarnish, especially if used before the tarnish becomes too heavy. They are most useful on smooth silver; they lose their effectiveness on textured surfaces or small silver components. Chemical tarnish removers can be quite effective, but many need to be avoided or used with care around gemstones, pearls, and other jewelry components. I use Hagerty Silversmith's Wash on my sterling silver and silver/gemstone jewelry. It is much quickler and easier to use than a polishing cloth, and it's amazingly effective at removing tarnish quickly and easily. It also leaves Swarovski crystal with a lovely sparkle. It is relatively safe to use on jewelry containing gemstones, but repeated use can dull some stones, so when possible keep the wash off your stones, and wash it off quickly and completely.

Black and oxidized/antiqued silver: Gray and black silver are actually silver that has been chemically tarnished. Tarnish removing products should not be used on black silver; they will not completely remove the finish, but they will discolor it. In pieces that combine bright silver and black silver, simply polish the bright silver with a silver polishing cloth, or apply cleaners with care to avoid contact with the black silver.