What will oxidize silver

Boiled eggs can be used to tarnish silver since they contain sulfur and in contact with the silver, it will darken it and give it a patina. Start by hard boiling the eggs for about 15 minutes. Cut the eggs in half and remove the yolk from them. The yolk should then be placed in a zip-locked plastic bag. Break the yolk in the bag. Wash the silver gently and wrap them into paper towels. The silver wrapped in this way should then be placed within the plastic bag.

Silver will react with the Sulphur and it will oxidize, and turn dark in the process. Before you start applying the sulfur, make sure that the jewelry is cleaned, brushed, and polished.

Mix a teaspoon of bicarbonate in a few drops of water and use this to clean it with a toothbrush. And when we want to do something like that with sterling silver or copper, we can oxidize with a boiled egg.

Caution: Patinas made with ordinary household products may be harmful if ingested, inhaled, or worn against the skin. Use in well ventilated area, preferably outdoors. Before starting this project, see Homemade Patina Precautions for safety guidelines. Then start squishing them — shells and all — and crush them into little pieces. You want to release as much sulfur as you can:. If your metal has any large surfaces, you may not want to let it come in contact with the eggs.

Sometimes that can result in spotting or uneven oxidizing. If you have peeled your egg, you can probably just use your hands.

Next, open your bag and place the item s to be oxidized. Reseal the bag and watch as the process begins. The longer you leave the silver within the bag, more discoloration will be produced. I left my silver bails in the bag about 15 minutes.

I also repositioned and turned the bag over several times during that 15 minutes to make sure all surfaces were exposed to the sulfur. When desired level of oxidation is achieved, remove the items and rinse off to remove any pieces of egg. Next dry the items and examine them. Next, polish with a soft jewelry cloth - this removes the "excess" tarnish and restores the shine.

Note : The more you rub with the cloth, the more tarnish you will remove. I have not made this yet so I cannot rate it. We are adding your Comments. When I first saw this I thought, yeah right, that's going to work! No way. Then after reading thru the directions and doing a little googling I found it it truly can work.

Who would have ever thought a simple item like an egg could do this. Thank you for sharing this idea. This is the coolest project I have seen today! Literally the most affordable too. I love how simple he process is and that it involves no chemicals. Thank you so much for sharing. Are you sure you would like to report this comment? It will be flagged for our moderators to take action. Forgot Password? Log In Register Now!