Silver reacts with many materials found in everyday life, and there is no way to protect silver jewelry from turning black. For instance, tarnishing can be accelerated by contact with tap water (because it contains chlorine), a number of foods, cosmetics, and even wool clothing. Tarnishing is a natural process that cannot be prevented, but it can be slowed down. But at some point you will need to clean the tarnished layer.

Clean Your Rhodium-plated Silver Bracelets

1. Regular cleaning – water and mild liquid soap

• Create a foamy solution of mild liquid soap and warm water in a container. Submerge the jewelry in the water solution for 10 minutes.
• Start washing the bracelets with your fingers. Gently rub the jewelry with one hand to clean it. Don’t scratch it or rub it too hard.
• Once the items are clean, rinse them with clean bottled or distilled water.
• To dry the cleaned jewelry, place it on a microfiber cloth and pat it dry. To be sure that it has all dried off completely, leave the jewelry exposed on the cloth for a few minutes or even overnight.
• When the jewelry is fully dried, you might consider wrapping it in tissue paper before putting it away in the jewelry box.

2. Deep cleaning – aluminum foil and baking soda

This method is perfect when the jewelry is heavily tarnished. It is almost guaranteed to remove tarnish and restore the luster of the silver. What’s more, this method is gentle on the rhodium plating because it doesn’t require any contact with the plating. It allows the chemical process that caused the tarnish to simply reverse itself.

• Use a bowl with aluminum foil for this method. Make sure the shiny side of the aluminum foil faces upwards.
• Add equal parts baking soda and salt (roughly 2 teaspoons each) to the bowl.
• Add sufficient hot water into the bowl to dissolve the powders.
• Submerge your silver-plated jewelry in the solution and leave it for about 5 minutes. If the jewelry is not properly submerged, add more water.
• You will notice black and yellow flakes floating away from the jewelry. This is the sulfur, which is what causes the oxidization in the silver. This cleaning method attracts the sulfur to the foil and breaks it away from the surfaces of the jewelry.
• When the tarnish seems to have mostly come off the silver, take the jewelry out and rub it with a lint-free cloth or a paper towel.
• Rinse the silver-plated items clean with bottled or distilled water and dry it thoroughly with a microfiber cloth. Leave the jewelry exposed on the cloth for a few minutes or even overnight.
• When the jewelry is fully dried, you might consider wrapping it in tissue paper before putting it away in the jewelry box.

Caution:

1. Never use any chemicals on your rhodium-plated jewelry.
2. Do not use a toothbrush or toothpaste.
3. Do not use abrasives of any kind.
4. Don’t use polishing cloths intended for use on uncoated silver and gold jewelry.
5. Don’t use ammonia-based products.
6. Don’t place it in an ultrasonic cleaner.
7. Don’t use silver dips.
8. Always consult a jewelry professional if you aren’t sure.

How to Store Your Jewelry

First, do an inventory of your jewelry. Separate fine jewelry, costume jewelry, and silver jewelry from each other. You should keep costume jewelry away from silver and fine jewelry, and you should keep silver jewelry away from fine jewelry. This separation helps prevent the metals from tarnishing when they interact with one another.

Before storing any jewelry, make sure that it is clean and dry. Moisture can cause the metal to tarnish or degrade much faster. For instance, if you wear a silver necklace in a rainstorm, be sure to dry it off before putting it away. We recommend removing tarnish from jewelry that will be in storage for more than a week. Storing dirty jewelry for a prolonged period (no matter what type of jewelry) can cause premature and excessive tarnishing. Also, storing tarnished jewelry with untarnished jewelry can cause both to tarnish faster.