How to Clean Tarnished Silver and Gemstone Jewelry

Silver bangles and baubles need a good touch up once in a while, especially jewelry pieces that are engraved or etched. There are a few simple jewelry cleaning solution and tips which can drastically improve the condition of your favorite pieces and easily remove the buildup of tarnish from your silver jewelry. Cleaning your delicate silver jewelry is a snap with tried and true silver polisher or other silver jewelry cleaners as a tarnish dip solution. However, any chemical cleaner with a gritty consistency can do damage to your rings, bracelets and pendants, so be sure to test a cleaning solution between your fingers to ensure it has a mild and soft appeal.

Jewelry cleaning solution for sterling silver jewelry with engravings such as antique and vintage jewelry, may take a bit longer than an ordinary wash and wipe with your usual cleaning solution. For sparkling clean jewelry with deep etchings, you may use an ultra soft toothbrush to dip in the cleaner and lightly scrub in a circular motion into the imbedded design. Rinse well and pat dry for new found luster and a gleam.

Once your sterling silver is ship shape and ready for display, you will want to minimize the amount of times you are going to have to clean it. Tarnish prevention strips are excellent and can last three to four months keeping your silver looking great. In addition, plain chalk gets rave reviews to stave off the tarnish bug and may be the most economical choice for stores with large amounts of silver jewelry to clean.


Different metals and stones require different cleaning techniques so please ensure you are following the relevant instructions. If your gold or silver jewelry contains softer porous gemstones you should follow the cleaning instructions for the gemstones and not the metal, these gemstones are quite sensitive and can be damaged easily.

To clean silver jewelry which contains gemstones create a solution of mild detergent and warm water. Now gently buff small sections of the jewelry taking care not to touch the gemstone. Rinse and dry to complete the process. If the jewelry is heavily tarnished or still requires cleaning you may require a specialized silver cleaning paste or professional jewelry cleaning solution. Keep in mind that the harsher the cleaner the more likely your jewelry will be damaged.