Do you love silver jewelry, but hate how tarnished it can get if you don’t wear it regularly? Silver cleaning chemicals are often expensive, harsh and smell horrible! Try this DIY jewelry cleaner recipe instead!
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Dirty Silver Jewelry?
I have a lot of silver necklaces and bracelets, and I try to rotate through them all, but there are some that just don’t get worn very often. When I do want to wear them, they are dull, black and… well… gross looking!
Last year I had a silver cleaning emergency! No seriously, I really did!
It was a few days before my wedding and I had decided to wear my mother’s old silver bracelet (she had passed away a few months earlier). However, when I pulled it out the jewelry box, I was horrified at home tarnished and dirty it looked. No way could I wear such a special piece of jewelry looking like that on my wedding day!
Then I remembered an old DIY jewelry cleaner recipe that my mother had taught me to get silver jewelry sparkling again without having to spend hours scrubbing it or deal with harsh, smelly chemicals.
I quickly grabbed all the ingredients and got to work! It didn’t take long and my beloved silver bracelet was shiny and sparkling again!
As you can see it’s a pretty fragile bracelet with lots of nooks and crannies. It would have taken me ages to scrub this bracelet and I risked damaging it too. This silver DIY jewelry cleaner is the perfect solution for cleaning your jewelry without a lot of work or fuss!
And here’s a photo of me wearing it during the ceremony (we got married in a hot air balloon!). Yes, I know the bracelet has come undone… it does that a lot, that’s why I don’t wear it very often!
Homemade Jewelry Cleaner
Before we get started I want to offer a few words of warning!
I’ve only ever used this jewelry cleaning method on silver or silver-plated jewelry. I’ve no idea if it would work on gold jewelry or other types of metal. If you try it, do so at your own risk!
Also, please don’t use this DIY cleaner with porous stones like pearls, opals, emeralds, amber etc. Check out this resource for tips for cleaning soft and porous stones.
OK, with that over with… it’s time to get started!
DIY Silver Cleaner Recipe
I really do love this jewelry cleaning method because it’s so easy and you don’t have to spend ages scrubbing, brushing or polishing. I’m all about making cleaning easier and faster!
It also uses very common household products that you probably already have sitting around your kitchen.
- Aluminum Foil
- White Vinegar
- Baking Soda
- Salt
- Boiling Water
Yep, that’s it! Honestly… these few ingredients are going to get your silver jewelry sparkling again in no time!
Scroll down to get a full printable recipe.
Line A Pan With Foil
The first step is to line a baking pan or shallow dish with aluminum foil. Make sure the shiny side is facing up!
Lay your jewelry in the pan and try not to let it overlap or touch.
Water Mixture
Mix together the boiling water, salt, and baking soda until they are completely dissolved.
As you can see from the photo, I actually sprinkled the salt and baking soda in the dish first and then added the boiling water. It’s much easier to mix them first, as you can stir it to make it dissolve faster.
Add Vinegar
If you have kids, you might want to call them over for this part… it’s really fun!
Slowly pour the vinegar into the dish and watch it bubble and fizz! All that fizzing action is going to get your silver jewelry shiny and clean!
Wait
After the fun of the bubbles, now is the toughest step! You have to wait! Be patient!
Allow your jewelry to sit in the DIY jewelry cleaner for at least 10 minutes. The dirtier your jewelry is, the longer it will take to clean,
Rinse & Enjoy
Once you’ve let the jewelry sit for a while, you can carefully remove it from the solution and rinse it with clean water. Gently pat the jewelry dry with a soft towel or paper towels.
Once it’s all clean you can wear it and enjoy!
Before & After DIY Jewelry Cleaning
Check out some of these ‘before’ and ‘after’ photos of my jewelry. I did them all together in one batch and it took less than 15 minutes.
You see… I said it was easy!
DIY Jewelry Cleaner
Quick & easy homemade silver jewelry cleaner - No scrubbing, brushing or polishing
Materials
- Aluminum Foil
- 1/2 Cup White Vinegar
- 1 Tbs Baking Soda
- 1 Tbs Salt
- 1 Cup Boiling Water
Tools
- Baking pan or shallow dish
Instructions
- Line the dish with aluminum foil. Ensure that the shiny side is facing up.
- Lay jewelry in the dish.
- Mix together boiling water, salt, and baking soda. Carefully pour into dish.
- Slowly pour white vinegar into dish.
- Allow to sit for at least 10 minutes.
- Carefully remove from the cleaning solution and pat dry with a soft towel or paper towels.
- Enjoy!
Notes
If you are using a larger dish or cleaning a larger quantity of jewelry you can double or even triple this recipe.
