Nobody cleans silver like my mother, my uncle or Martha Stewart. The only difference between the three is how they do it.

Whilst Mum and her brother use a high quality silver foam, polish cloth and good old fashioned elbow grease, Martha cleans hers effortlessly in about 10 seconds flat.

We have some silver items that are gorgeous, but that highly toxic silver foam is most certainly not. Nor do I have a whole afternoon to commit to cleaning. So I don’t. And my silver is black. Until now.

Martha again has come to the rescue and shone her domestic light upon me.  I share with you her magical silver cleaning trick and some rather remarkable photos to prove it.

Please note: this method is not recommended on items with good tarnish (ie a desirable patina and dark crevices in a pattern). They risk being removed as well.

Happy cleaning!

What you will need:

  • aluminium foil
  • a pan big enough to hold all your silver
  • boiling water
  • 1 tablespoon baking soda
  • salt
  • tongs to pick hot silverware out of boiling water
  • suitable cleaning music. (I like anything Pop or repetitive that will take my mind off the task at hand.)

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  • Put the water, baking soda and aluminium foil into a saucepan. If your saucepan is aluminium, you won’t need the alfoil.
  • Bring to the boil.

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  • Place your silverware into the saucepan, a couple of pieces at a time.
  • Leave for approximately  10 seconds. It they are super-tarnished, pop back in for a smidge longer.
  • A chemical reaction occurs between the alfoil and the baking soda and VOILA!
  • Silver that is not being used, should be wrapped in plastic Laura Palmer-style and stowed away. This way it is airtight and will remain clean and sparkling.

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Now marvel at just how Martha-like you are, but do conceal inevitable feelings of absolute smugness. It’s tres unattractive.

Do you have any super-fast cleaning cheat strategies to share? Let me know and let’s all save some time!

Have a lovely Wednesday MMs. x