01
May
How do you test silver with an eraser?
One way of testing if silver is real, or just silver plate is by rubbing it with a pencil eraser.
How could that possibly work, I hear you ask! Well, it’s quite simple actually. Both Sterling silver and silver plating tarnish equally, but Sterling cleans up so much better.
By rubbing the eraser lightly on the surface of the silver, you rub off the tarnish. With silver plating you will find it takes much more work to get the tarnish to rub off.
Does silver tarnish in water?
The question does silver tarnish in water depends on three things. 1. What is the content of the silver, is it 100% silver or is it an alloy? 2.What is the content of the water, is it pure distilled water or is it seawater or somewhere in between? 3. Time: how long is the silver going to be in the water? Depending on these issues, the speed of tarnishing will be determined. Silver has a proclivity to oxidize in almost any environment.
How do you clean sterling silver?
Buy some silver polish ( Goddard’s is excellent if you can get it) or if you can’t find any grab a tube of toothpaste. Apply a gob of polish or toothpaste (about as much as a pea-sized dollop) to a soft cloth – a microfibre cleaning cloth is good, an old T-shirt is great. Use that cloth to clean the silver all over with your polishing substance for two or three minutes in small circular motions. It should turn dark grey or even black.
Then use a clean bit of cloth to buff the silver until all the polish is removed and the surface has a brilliant, bright shine. Clean under the tap with a small amount of soap if you want to be absolutely sure that the silver is free from polish residue.
If your piece has a lot of nooks and crannies, do the first step of the process with an old toothbrush with polish or toothpaste on it. Be advised however: this will remove the antique-y blackening that you get in the creases and details of ornate old jewellery, which is great if that’s what you want, sad if it’s not! Use a cloth if you want to preserve that effect.
