Salvaging Old Flatware–How To Remove Tarnish from Antique Silverplate

Old flatware pieces have become a recent obsession of mine.

I’m not quite sure where it came from, but I have a deep desire to buy these old, tarnished forks, spoons, and knives whenever I see them at a market.  I feel like it’s my duty to save them from the scrap yard.

I like the variety of these older pieces, as well as thinking through the stories from all of the meals they have seen.  It would be lovely to have a collected set of vintage flatware.

In order to make these pieces usable again though, they need some serious cleaning.  Most of the time, I’ve found that pieces can be brought back to life with a very simple cleaning.

And even the most tarnished of pieces, with rust and oxidized spots, can be made beautiful again.

Here is the best method I have found to remove tarnish, and restore the shine of old flatware.  For full disclosure, it’s not purely my own method, but adapted from many other sources online I have read and tried.

I promise it’s really very easy though, and uses common products that you already have lying around your house.

How to Remove Tarnish from Old Silverware

It starts with a pyrex dish lined with aluminum foil.

Add to the foil roughly a tablespoon of baking soda, a tablespoon of salt, and a half-cup white vinegar (watch out, it will foam up!).

MIx up the solution slightly, then place your flatware pieces in a single layer in the dish.

Pour on top of them enough boiling water to cover every piece.  Allow the pieces to sit for at least a minute, while the chemical reaction from the foil, soda, and vinegar goes to work.

After they soak, remove the pieces one at a time (probably using some tongs, you are dealing with boiling water here!) and scrub each piece with very fine steel wool.

It’s amazing . . . the tarnish just wipes right off.  For the rougher pieces that have rust or oxidization, you will have to scrub a little harder and a little longer.

See?  Minimal effort for a great, shiny, reward.

Some of these pieces I took up to my space to sell, some of them I’m keeping to start my own collection. I am especially fond of any that have monogramming.

So the next time you spot a box of old flatware at a flea market, don’t just leave it for the junk pile.  It can be salvaged!

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