How to polish extremely tarnished silver tea set?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The tin foil/hot water/baking soda thing fixed a necklace I thought was a lost cause. It took a few times but it’s like new again!

This method can damage silver plate, though.

[Anonymous]

Toothpaste, but try on underside first.

[Anonymous]

Try dabbing the green spots with hydrogen peroxide on a q-tip.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree with silver plate theory.

Also know though that sterling silver is permanently stained by water if not promptly dried, and polish will not remove it.

How can you find out for sure? I am pretty sure it's sterling b/c it's been in the family a long time but it's possible it got wet and didn't dry. It was with a family member who didn't take care of it and I am trying to salvage.

Does it say Sterling, 925, 9.25, or SS on it?

+1 this

[Anonymous]

I didn’t read second o of comments but do Not do more of the baking soda foil thing esp with sterling. You need a less abrasive technique: order Twinkle (you may find it in store), it is marvelous and won’t damage the silver.

[Anonymous]

PP here: actually Blitz or Twinkle might be the ones to look for. This is a great resource:
https://hermansilver.com/silver-polish-abrasion-ratings.htm

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree with silver plate theory.

Also know though that sterling silver is permanently stained by water if not promptly dried, and polish will not remove it.

How can you find out for sure? I am pretty sure it's sterling b/c it's been in the family a long time but it's possible it got wet and didn't dry. It was with a family member who didn't take care of it and I am trying to salvage.

Look at the hallmark. If it is sterling it will say Sterling and/or 925.

[Anonymous]

You can take a photo of a piece of the silverware and upload to replacements.com to identify the pattern.

[Anonymous]

Try FLINTZ but read the label first to see if it works on your material

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If this is plated silver wearing off, you can get it replated.

It isn't worth the money to do this. Most silver plate has little to no resale value and you can find tons of it for next to nothing at thrift shops.

Not necessarily. If it’s cheap modern US plate, yes, but 19th century Sheffield Plate has value. I know because I inherited a silver collection that included some Sheffield Plate serving dishes that the general appraiser told me were worthless. A silver expert subsequently valued them at $1,500 - $3,000 a piece.

[Anonymous]

Another vote for twinkle. It smells a little strange but it doesn’t linger and the product really works

[Anonymous]

Wright's silver polish