This tip comes from reader Julie.
I've field tested this on sugar spoons, a porringer, and a baby cup, all tarnished beyond recognition. I think every Church Lady worth her salt has opened a drawer in a sacristy and made a Horrible Discovery - something beautiful and abandoned to tarnish into dust. This will make those things polishable in fairly short order.
My whole family is trying this - as a chemistry teacher (by day... Church Lady by night!), I felt compelled to lead the way!
This was cool and I can't wait to try it. Do you think it would work with old rosaries whose crucifix or the centerpiece is tarnished? I recently got a new (old) rosary that has those caps on the Our Father Beads. They look grey/black. I want to shine the whole thing up.
ReplyDeleteI have one question: the guy says to use a "solution of salt and baking soda" but he doesn't say how strong a solution, what are the proportions? Thanks for any help.
He doesn't say because it doesn't really matter and depends on how much solution you are making. For a rosary, something like an 8" x 8" (glass) baking pan would be perfect - a big, flat piece of aluminum foil, say 1/4 teaspoon of each of the baking soda and salt, and hot, hot water deep enough to completely cover the item - just make sure everything is dissolved before you put anything in. Let it soak for a few hours, and you will have something that will be fine as is, or eminently polishable if you're like that (you know who you are).
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