would love to clean up these 2 antique pieces...please help!!??

[Maxine]

I love these 2 old pieces and used to wear them....don''t know what they are made of , but when my dad was around and in the business, they were cleaned up.....now they are black! I''m afraid to mess with them, and don''t want to bother a jeweler if they are junkl!! But they are very old and very uniqie...would love to wear them agin....the larger one was probably hand made...please excuse big pics...I''m learning....

 

[Maxine]

Hers the back of th big one...can see where bottom was soldered....

 

[belle]

those are very nice and unique pieces maxine! i hope you are able to find out more about them and share with us what you learn!!!

 

[pearcrazy]

I definately don't think that they are junk. Even if they were made of plastic, they're not junk as long as they're worth something to you, right?

They look to be made of sterling silver. I'd take them to the jeweler and ask him to polish them up or perhaps you can dab just a bit of silver cleaner to the back of the larger piece to see if the tarnish clears up.

 

[Maxine]

The larger one is actually a gold color...might be 10K..(might be rose gold)..the other is goldish tone also....what is the silver color material on the filigree that doesn''t tarnish???

 

[perry]

you can either chemically remove the tarnish - or abrasively remove it.

I would find someone who knows how to properely clean these using the chemical methods (silver tarnish can be removed with a simple houshold product recipie with the piece placed on aluminum foil in the solution (the AL drives a galvanic corrosion action that removes the tarnish).

I dont remember the exact recipie of what is added to the water. I would think that the recipie would be findable by an internet search.

similar things can be done with other metal tarnishes - but it might not be household products that are mixed.

Best of luck with this.

Perry

 

[valeria101]

Hm...

The amethyst pendant should be gold (or gold washed silver? - not too likely). The seed pears would be destroyed by chemicals and definitely do not allow cleaning by abrasion. The underside could be cleaned easily without touchin the pearls, but that's just half the work. I don't know what is the safe way to clean it. No matter what, I would have this one plated with high carat gold. Otherwise the tarnish would be back in no time. Since one of the small pearls seems to need replacing, this one might benefit from a trip to the jeweler, I think.

Most honestly I like the other one as is... but it should be easy to clean. I'd do it by hand (with some chemical cleaner, not abrasive -I can't say abrasize cleaners are ever a good idea) to keep a bit of the patina on the silver as opposed to the stark "brand new" finish. Is the metal lace silver or silver topped (in this case the backside should be gold) ? If silver topped hand cleaning is even more of a good idea, IMO, because it doesn't risk as much to carve through the layer of white silver finsh.

Just my 0.2, of course.

Both pieces are so very nice! No wonder you want them out of the closet

 

[Maxine]

Thanks, Ana ....on my way to the antique jewelry dealer in town....will let you know her opinion.........................

 

[mary]

Have you tried baking soda and a toothbrush? It works great on old pieces and is not too abrasive.

m

 

[RockDoc]

IMPORTANT NOTE!

Cleaning and restoration of antique items should be done by a pro who is an expert in this area.

I know Dave Atlas is out of town (in India) but he is a great source for learning what should be done to "improve" these items.

Do NOT attempt to use anything yourself. Antique pieces are valued because of their condition, and part of that may be what is called a PATINA, that if removed can ruin the value of the item(s).

I would recommend that you hold off until Dave return or can reply to this. Of course, there are other who specialize in knowing what to do too. Maybe they will chime in to advise you.

There are quite a few professional dealers who participate in the forum, who may be able to offer you sound advice on these items.

Rockdoc

 

[valeria101]

Date: 3/5/2005 12:43:39 PM
Author: mary
Have you tried baking soda and a toothbrush? It works great on old pieces and is not too abrasive.

Not on pearls...

 

[solange]

We have collected antique silver for many years. Many jewelers and dealers buff pieces to a high finish which takes away part of the value. You do not want to completely remove the patina. Also, if there is a gold wash over the silver, heavy polishing will remove the wash.

We use a silver polish called Twinkle. We've tried many and like this one. It is not too abrasive if used gently. You should have the pieces tested to see if they are sterling. The second one particularly looks as if it may be. Are there any marks or a number 925 anywhere on either of these pieces?

Do not remove the black areas in the crevices. If you want to just brighten them up a bit, polish with a soft cloth and silver polish in the high areas. Do not use the soaking method with aluminum unless you find that the pieces are of little value because you will remove the whole patina.

I am curious to hear what the jeweler says.

 

[Maxine]

Just went to try to find the girl who specializes in antique jewelry...they had closed 10 minutes before I got there...will stop in Monday....I don''t plan to do anything until I talk to her, believe me!!!

 

[Addlepated]

From http://experts.about.com/q/689/3316746.htm :

1. Get a large plastic or glass pan, deep enough for the silver items to be covered with the solution. Do NOT use metal. Plastic and glass keep the reaction between the silver and the aluminum with no interference from other metals.
2. Line the entire bottom and sides of the pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil.
3. Place a heaping amount of baking soda on the foil and pour in very hot water. The water should not be at a boil but near a simmer when poured in. The “heat” seems to be one of the conditions to get good results. Hotter water makes it work.
4. Place the silver on the foil. The silver MUST touch the foil. You will see some bubbly action and smell a slight sulphur(eggy) odor. If this doesn''t happen, add more soda.
5. Change the foil and add more hot water and soda as needed. This is a feel your way through event.
6. If the foil starts looking grey in color and dull, change the foil.

This method is fantastic, and I believe that it''s safe for delicate items, although you might want to check with an expert to be sure.

 

[Maxine]

The large one is definitely not silver....I "brightened" the picture some....

 

[Richard Sherwood]

If you want to keep the antique look and patina, I would just use a soft cosmetic brush and Ivory liquid soap to clean them.

If you want them to look bright and new without damaging the pearls, I would have them cleaned in an ionic jewelry cleaner, such as that shown at this link:

http://www.jewelrycleanersonline.com/

As they are nice but not particularly high dollar pieces, I don't think there would be anything wrong with making them bright and new looking if you prefer.

 

[fire&ice]

Date: 3/5/2005 1:43:28 PM
Author: RockDoc
IMPORTANT NOTE!

Cleaning and restoration of antique items should be done by a pro who is an expert in this area.

I know Dave Atlas is out of town (in India) but he is a great source for learning what should be done to ''improve'' these items.

Do NOT attempt to use anything yourself. Antique pieces are valued because of their condition, and part of that may be what is called a PATINA, that if removed can ruin the value of the item(s).

I would recommend that you hold off until Dave return or can reply to this. Of course, there are other who specialize in knowing what to do too. Maybe they will chime in to advise you.

There are quite a few professional dealers who participate in the forum, who may be able to offer you sound advice on these items.

Rockdoc

I would like to reiterate what Rockdoc said. With antique jewelry - less is more. Just to give you some insight, I would not buy for resale or for my collection any old piece that has been professionally wheel polished. To me, it *strips* it of its value.

That being said, I can not get a handle on either piece from the pics. The first could possibly be Chezc. It may or may not be gold. It could be brass. The second pendant (lavalier) seems to be a vermiel w/ perhaps rodium plated silver accents - prolly dates around 20-30''s could be earlier if the metals turn out to be better than what I described. This is not my specialty. And, I suspect, as Rich suggested, that these are more in line of "costume". But, this is just from looking at the pic.

As for cleaning, I do test spots. For most of my jewelry, tissue paper usually does the trick. I use a polish called "Simichrome" usually applied with a Q-tip. Please keep in mind, every time you polish something you are stripping off the metal. Too much polishing leads to lose of detail. I''ve been doing this "cleaning" for years; so, I can''t really recommend it as a do it yourself if you aren''t use to working with the old stuff. I also use a soft bristle toothbrush on many items.

You best bet is to take it to a vintage jewelry dealer. If you are respectful and they are not busy, most LOVE to talk about pieces. They can offer a more hands on approach. BUT - be leary of anyone who wants to over do it. They just don''t get it.

It''s your pieces and you can do what you want with them. I''m just offering my perspective as a collector.

 

[Maxine]

Thanks for the tips...I''m going to take them in tomorrow to have them looked at...what is the metal most likely used in old costume jewelry? and Is there a way to clean up old 10K gold????
I''ve just been replacing old chains w/14K, and old siver chains w/14K white gold....much less trouble.....

 

[Maxine]

Went in to check on these...the larger one is gold filled...the others? (whatever costume jewelry wais made of back then) I also took two ather pieces in...she recommended possibly simichrome(?), but then said no, just a light polish w/ a cloth...because if there if protective plating on pieces, too much polishing will wear THAT off....thanks for the input!!!