Thread: How To Clean "Tribal" Jewelry?

Hello All:

Any ideas on how to clean those "Tribal/Kuchi" or "Tribaret" style jewelry items? They're often made of cheap metal or a combination of odd metal elements. I don't expect miracles, but any useful suggestions would be appreciated.

Thank you!

I use toothpaste, like Arm & Hammer's Baking Soda toothpaste, and a **very** soft toothbrush, or if it's antique jewelry, even just my fingerips. I learned this a long time ago from an antique/estate sale jewelry dealer, it works well on old paste ( pot metal) jewelry from 1920's and '30's, ( with or without rhinestones) and it's great on Kuchi jewelry.
it's not super-abrasive, much less acidic/toxic than metal polish.
wet the pice, rub in the paste,, rinse it, pat it dry.

It removes dirt, but keeps the vintage look & won't strip the metal.

Thanks, Princess!

Commercial jewelry cleaner is usually a dilute solution of mild liquid soap and ammonia. There are recipes online.

How to clean a piece of old jewelry depends on what kind of cleaning you need to do. If it is obviously encrusted debris, you will probably need something like a Q-Tip or brush to dislodge it. It's often not a good idea to soak the piece, because soaking can remove not just dirt, but also glued-on stones, the silvering on the back of rhinestones, and the finish on artificial pearls. If you are going to need to scrub (gently, of course), it's a good idea to test on the back of the piece first. Pot metal can be pretty soft, and you wouldn't want to find that using a toothbrush left abrasion marks on the front. You definitely want to make sure you are not using too hard a brush, either. A soft paint brush will work if the dirt isn't too stubbornly lodged in. Alternatively, you can purchase a cheap child's toothbrush at the store and run it through the dishwasher to take the edge off.

If the dirt is actually tarnish, that's a judgment call. Some people feel that removing the patina on a piece detracts from its value. Others don't like too much "antiquity" in their accessories. If you want to remove tarnish, then you will probably need a chemical solution prepared for that particular metal. Brass doesn't like silver polish, and silver doesn't like brass polish. Some people swear by stuff around the house like non-gel toothpaste for silver, and ketchup for brass--you can find more discussion online about that. Tarn-X will pretty near take the bark off a tree, so save that for the last resort. Use your best guess as to which metal you have, and don't forget to spot test on the back first.