Two weeks ago I wrote a blog about how I started using polished silver every day rather than just on special occasions.  Every time I cooked food or made a cup of tea, I enjoyed a small taste of beauty with each meal.

The blog was called, Polished Silver, Polished Life and several people emailed asking for the formula my assistant, Lisa, used to quickly and easily clean the tarnished utensils.  She was the one who inspired my decision to polish them in the fist place.

I forgot to share the formula in the blog, so this week I’m passing it along.  But before I do, there are a couple of other things I wanted you to know.

First, if you have silver pieces packed away, please read the blog so you’re inspired to get them out and cleaned so you can use them every day, too.  You can read the blog here.

Second, last week we had a mishap in the kitchen that taught me a few things.  We have a farmer’s sink with a garbage disposal attached underneath.  After work one day, I went into the kitchen to make supper and noticed the sink wasn’t draining as quickly as it normally does.  I figured something might still be in the garbage disposal so I turned on the cold water, flipped the switch, and wound up getting a bath when the dirty water came flying out of the sink spraying me and the counters.

Not what I needed at the end of a busy day.

I went on YouTube to look up ways to unplug a sink and discovered there were a variety of choices (what did we do before the internet anyway?).  After trying different mixtures of boiling water, vinegar, salt, etc., I gave up and decided to unplug the sink the old-fashioned way:  I called a plumber.

Two days later Tom showed up.  After snaking the sink more than twenty-five feet and only releasing a bit of the obstruction, he decided to try something different.  He plugged up the sink, ran the water until it filled to the brim, and then pulled the plug.  The force of the water did the trick and the sink unclogged with the pressure of the liquid draining out.

Who knew?

Before the plumber left, he told me, “By the way, be sure to put ice in your garbage disposal now and then.”  Ice? I said, with a puzzled look on my face.  He laughed and nodded, “Yes, ice.  It will keep the blades sharpened, break up any grease build-up, and help keep the reservoir clean.”

I don’t know about you, but I just love helpful tips like that.  I had no idea ice would sharpen the disposal blades (okay, truth be told, I’ve never even thought about sharpening the disposal blades).

Sometimes self-care comes in the form of simple ideas that make life easy.  To that end, here’s the formula for cleaning your silver.  Many thanks to my assistant, Lisa, for making the suggestion, and for making my silverware sparkle.

Here you go…

Quick and Easy Silver Cleaning

It’s a good idea to wear latex or rubber gloves.

Line aluminum foil along the bottom and sides of a large bowl or for large pieces you might need to use a bucket.*

Fill the bowl with a gallon of hot water (not boiling) and add:

1 TBSP of baking soda

1 TBSP of table salt

Gently mix the water so the baking soda and salt dissolve.

Place the silver in the water and make sure each piece is touching the foil. Watch as the tarnish disappears!

Some pieces might require a few minutes in the solution to clean. If, after a few minutes, the piece still doesn’t look tarnish-free, take a pinch of baking soda and rub it onto the tarnished area. The remaining tarnish will come right off, turning the baking soda gray.

Be sure to rinse the pieces in water before drying.

After a few batches of silver are complete it may be necessary to add more hot water and 1 TBSP of both baking soda and salt. Always be sure to dissolve the salt and baking soda before adding the silver.

*If you’re using a bucket, be sure to increase the amount of baking soda & salt to the water, so the ratio will be correct.

There you have it.  Enjoy!

xo Cheryl

PS – There will be no Facebook Live this week. You can view past sessions on my YouTube channel at CherylRichardsonTV here.

PPS – I’ll be a guest expert on The Anxiety Revolution series that runs June 3^rd – 7^th.  You can learn more about it, here.

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