Cleaning Silver

Monday, May 31, 2010 |
So I never did get around to buying a silver polish, that I mentioned before, considering all the silver things I have been picking up at the thrift store lately.  I did however look into buying some, but I just didn't find anything that I thought looked right for my project.  So I looked online and found a recipe to make homemade silver polish and well, it was so great I thought I would pass it on to you.

But before we get to that I have to show you what I found!!!  I was in the thrift store once again, and I had wandered through the store, had a few things in my cart, and was headed back to the housewares section when I saw a lady who works there, with a cart full of stuff she was about to shelf.  I browsed her cart from a distance when I found this silver thing screaming at me to take it off her cart before she puts it on the shelf and someone else walks away with this beauty.  So I did, I snatched it off her cart and felt wonderful for having it in MY cart.

I didn't know what I would do with it yet, it was just too pretty to pass up.  But moments later it hit me.  My daughter's birthday is coming up!  perfect!!!


Would you have snatched this beauty?

Here is the recipe I followed to clean this set up. (Don't you love google?)

Home made Silver Polish Cleaner
A big pot for all your pieces
Bring water to a boil
Put a piece of aluminum foil in the bottom of the pot
Dump in 1 tsp of baking soda for every 2 inches of water
2 tsp of salt
Let boil
Place silver piece in boiling water and let sit for a few minutes
Remove and place another piece in the water
Dip silver in a sink of warm soapy (not too soapy) water quickly and remove
Dry and rub with a clean dry cloth



Voila!

It worked great!  I love homemade recipes!
Here is the end result:



Now, you may be thinking I am nuts to give this to my daughter who is a toddler, or you may be thinking it's great!  But can I just say that my girls LOVE playing tea party...





and when I bought my older daughter (P) a tea set for Christmas that was SO cute, it ended up like this...



Am I crazy for buying ceramic!!!  Poor tea set.

This ceramic tea set was $8.99, and the silver one was only $9.99!

I figure at least a silver one will last, and it is extremely cute as well!











Her birthday isn't for a few weeks, otherwise I would have caught a few photos of her using them.  I'll have to post some later, after the party.  I can't wait.  She may just love to play it it now, but I think this will be something she will love to keep later!  And if she doesn't, I will!!

Happy Monday!

I am linking to the parties on my sidebar.

41 comments:

Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...

Charity...your silver tea set was a find! I love that you are letting your daughter use it...best Mom ever! She will grow up with a fondness for silver...girl after my own heart. :-)
Oh, appreciate so much a link back to today's Met Monday party so your readers will find the other participants for today. :-)
Thanks!
Susan

Leigh said...

Cute silver tea set! Amazing what a clean and polish can do for it.

I just found your blog on the weekend...love your ideas! I also love finding other Canadian blogs

Rhoda @ Southern Hospitality said...

Great deal on that teaset & perfect for your daughter to use.

Lady Pamela said...

I have the same Tea set. I don't have any little girls in my family, maybe someday.
Thanks for the homemade silver cleaner. I am going to try that out.

Unknown said...

I just learned how to do this! It is really amazing. Even my 18 year old son was pretty impressed with this method.

Cass @ That Old House said...

I think it is EXCELLENT to let your girls play with "real" pieces, especially silver .. no breaking!

I have used your silver cleaning method, and it does work great. The chemical reaction transfers the tarnish to the aluminum foil. Therefore .. it's kind of important not to use an aluminum vessel to do this in ... as the tarnish will transfer to IT as well.

But for polishing LOTS of silver at once, it rocks.
Cass

Samantha @ The Douangphilas said...

I love it. I would have bought it for my daughter too and she's only 4 months old lol! They grow up too fast and I rather be prepared then miss out on great things I wish she had. Great find!

Wendy @ Ramblings from the Sunshine State said...

Great idea! I got my DD a ceramic set for her last birthday and it's not in great shape now either!

Anonymous said...

Following you now from The Girl Creative. Beautiful! Wish I'd have known how to do these things before selling my mom's silver 15 years ago! =) Dawn

Tonia Lee Smith said...

Yes, the homemade work better than the stuff they sell in the store. My Grandmother use to clean hers like this, don't know how she knew but she did

Erin Wallace said...

Great post! I have some silverware that needs a good cleaning! Following you from TTA, please follow me!

xo Erin

Unknown said...

Great post. I wold have never thought to look for a homemade polish.

Following you now on GFC as Thrifty Canucks from TTA. Please check out my blog and follow if you can

http://thriftycanucks.blogspot.com/

Sarah Larsen said...

I'm loving your blog! I came over to follow via TAT!

Marigene said...

What a nice gift for your daughter's birthday...she will love it.

seven thirty three said...

Thanks for the great tip. We have the same ceramic tea set that is set-up on my daughters mini-hutch just for looks, but now that she is almost walking she is always grabbing at it and has already broken a handle off... ;) Thanks for linking up with Sugar & Spice.

Pauline said...

I have a similar silver teapot but no milk jug or sugar bowl. What a bargain too, well done :o)

Have a blessed day.

Unknown said...

Now thats just crazy! THanks for joining us for Anything Related! ~Bridgette

Diane said...

Looks brand new and YES I would have snatched that find up as well :o)

Hope to see you over at Pittypat Paperie sometimes. I came here via HOH.

Pam said...

This is perfectly perfect for your daughter's tea party/birthday party! Thanks so much for the homemade recipe to clean silver; I'm bookmarking it. Pam @ Sallygoodin

Robyn said...

WONDERFUL FIND! I definitly would have snatched that in a heartbeat! AND yes I WOULD let my little ones play with it...you are not crazy!

Robyn said...

BTW saw this on HOH! and so glad I did!

Stacy of KSW said...

She's going to love it soooo much! Can't wait to see pics of you guys all dolled up using it :)

Charity said...

Oh yay! Now I can't wait to share after pictures of her playing with them.

suzanne said...

I'm totally writing down this 'recipe'! The set looks brand new. Your daughter will surely love it.

Atticmag said...

That silver polish method is absolutely amazing. I just worry that the salt will pit the silver over time but if it's a thrift set no harm. But it's much better than all the rubbing and scrubbing and the set is a great find! Hope you'll stop by and check out of glass vessel sink giveaway if you have time. Jane F.

Red Door Home said...

Great find. I would definitely have "snatched' this too! I have lots of thrift store silver and will be giving your cleaning method a try. Thanks for sharing.

brooke said...

How wonderful! Isn't it every little girls dream to have a real silver tea set? The first set was cute too, but isn't it amazing how things can get destroyed by shorties? It looks like it got lots of "love".

My Dream Canvas said...

Great idea,this is beautifful.Iwould love for you to visit my blog. I have a Giveaway from CSN for $ 40 dollars!

The Redhead Riter said...

I had NO IDEA that cleaning silver could be so simple!!!! I'm am so surprised!!! I've got to get my silver out now LOL

Lisa said...

Saw you on the SHOWOFF PARADE...the silver came out great--love the recipe for homemade polish...Thanks!

Stephanie Lynn @Under the Table and Dreaming said...

What a fabulous find! I am amazed at your cleaning technique - it seems so easy and simple. I just adore the idea of letting the little ones use this...adorable! Thanks so much for linking to the Sunday Showcase party! I greatly appreciate it! Hope you have a fabulous week! ~ Stephanie Lynn

Stephanie Lynn @Under the Table and Dreaming said...

Hello! I’ll be featuring your silver cleaning tips today! Stop by and grab a featured button if you like. Thanks again for joining the Sunday Showcase Party! ~ Stephanie Lynn

Kelli W said...

Thanks so much for sharing the recipe! I have a set of candle sticks that need to be cleaned, but I keep forgetting to by the cleaner at the store! I have all of this stuff at home...so I can get them cleaned up soon!

Jess said...

I am featuring this on FTF tomorrow! Stop by if you would like a Featured button!

Samurai Mom said...

I got that tea set at a thrift store too. I think they came from target originally but they get used and used well.

Anonymous said...

What a wonderful idea! I'm sure that it will be cherished long after childhood tea parties come to pass. A treasure to pass on to the next generation.

Erica said...

I found your blog at the perfect time! I had just found a silver tea set like this at Goodwill that I wanted to use for my daughter's upcoming 2nd birthday party and this thing needed a loving touch! I used your recipe and it turned out great!! I am adding a link to think page for the recipe on my blog if that's okay? :) Thank you so much for finding this recipe!!

Carla - Hello You said...

I have a set similar to this in the attic. It was from my mother and now i's mine, but I never really gave it importance. I'm going right now upstairs to get it! Thank you!

I'm your newest follower. You can find me here: http://arteemanhapt.blogspot.com/

Kiss from Portugal

Unknown said...

How lovely! I have just purchased 23 pieces of silver and silver plated serving utensils for $18. over ebay! I am in the midst of cleaning them and they are BEAUTIFUL! However, I am almost out of the polish and it was EXPENSIVE! I am going to give this a try! I love your silver set and your regular excursions to thrift shops (me, too)! It is such a fun way to get the goodies we want, as well as the items we need, but don't mind getting 'previously owned'! I love the idea of Tea Parties and just bought the sweetest book about little girl tea parties. They are lucky to have you! Susan :-)

Anonymous said...

The teapot looks just like the one I was given at a yard sale! I got a couple of other pieces with it, and all three are rough looking but I'm going to try that recipe to bring them back to their prime. By chance do you have any tips for bronze?

MamaBear said...

I picked up a similar set at a garage sale for $1 for my daughter'a fairy tea party 7th birthday in a few weeks. This is exactly what I was looking for! Why buy polish when you can let this recipe do so much of the work. I can't wait to try it out!

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