Tarnish on sterling silver has become the bane of my existence! (No
surprises there.)
I have been reading up on methods of preventing tarnish, both as
suggested by previous posts to Orchid and other articles online. My
plan is to do a series of tests of the methods I have found. So far,
this includes regular plastic bags vs. polyethylene plastic bags vs.
cardboard boxes vs. archival cardboard boxes, camphor cakes,
aluminum foil, 3M anti- tarnish strips, anti-tarnish tissue, pacific
cloth, and Renaissance wax. I have used several of these with
success,
but here are my questions: where can I buy solid cakes of camphor? Do
pharmacies carry it? Where can I find pacific cloth, specifically,
the type embedded with tiny silver particles manufactured by
Wamsutta?
Are there any other tests you’d like to see
My plan is to do a series of tests of the methods I have found.
I hope you will include 3M TaniShield and Goddard’s Long Shine
Cloth.
Then write an article-- I bet Art Jewelry or Lapidary Journal would
be interested. If not, I’d love to have it for the Chicago Metal
Arts Guild newsletter-- though there’s no money involved with that.
What a valuable thing you are doing. I’ve never seen a report on a
comparison of anti tarnish methods. It certainly warrants writing an
article. One other substance I’ve used says it prevents tarnishing
for 1 year–Tarn-X Silver Glaze. I bought mine in a large hardware
store.I hope you will let us all know your test results.
Where can I find pacific cloth, specifically, the type embedded
with tiny silver particles manufactured by Wamsutta?
I don’t know about the Wamsutta stuff - but I’ve bought lots of
silvercloth from Denver Fabrics online - www.denverfabrics.com search
for silvercloth or go to the decorator section and click on
silvercloth. It comes 58 inches wide for $9.00US. It is the best buy
I can find on the web. There is some cheaper, but it is only 29
inches wide. I cut it into 6 inch square pieces and wrap my jewelry
in it. It retards tarnish and also preserves patinas beautifully. It
doesn’t seem to ravel so I don’t finish the edges but put it in a
satin bag for my clients.
Of your choices, I’ve tried most of them and this is the best I’ve
found. I’m looking forward to your research results.