I remember back in high school, I would polish Grandma's silver. It wasn't real, but it was good silver-plate. We used something that was a white paste and that past got stuck in all the crevices and we had to get it out with a toothpick and toothbrush. It was work!!!
This is Kerry's Grandma's silver and today, I set about polishing it. Notice how black the handles are?
The sugar dish is just terrible!!!
Colleen and I are both senior certified metal clay instructors and in all our jewelry making the past few years, we've learned a few tricks. One of the greatest silver polishers on the market is Blue Magic which you can get at an auto supply store as it's made to polish chrome on cars. But it is amazing on silver. No white paste. It will wash off with soap and water. And it does an outstanding job of polishing silver….with just a paper towel! Who knew?
I wonder if the people who make Blue Magic have figured this out yet?
For more difficult spots, I put a dab of Hagerty silver dip on a q-tip and rub it over the spot until the silver shows back up. Now, this stuff is potent and will literally eat silver-plate away, so use it sparingly, and immediately wash the silver in hot soap and water. Save this for the really difficult spots.
I was able to polish all 9 pieces in less than 2 hours. When I was a kid, this would have taken 2 days! There are some very nice silver plate pieces in here from Reed & Barton, Gorham and others. Going to make a great addition to our little shop. I hope they sell quickly!
Remember the black sugar dish above? It probably came out the nicest of all the pieces! Such a great mirror finish!
Who knew you could use car polish to clean you silver? Hmmm….maybe I should do the car next? Not today….it's snowing here and I'm playing inside!
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