Restoring Silver or Gold Plated Costume Jewelry

[thekozz7]

Sorry if this has been discussed before -- I searched for a thread but didn't find one. I'm looking for the best way to restore a piece of silver plated jewelry. It's a charm with a tiny discolored edge where it's now copper colored. If it was a larger area like a ring shank I'd just chuck it in a junk lot, but since it's just a tiny spot, I'd like to fix it if possible.

Here are some options I found and am wondering about:

• Silver or gold leafing pens: These are not metallic enough as they have a matte finish. And don't bother with Krylon brand 18K Gold Leafing Pen ($8) as it also dries dull. Years ago I saw a pricey 22K or 24K leafing pen for $30 and I'm kicking myself for not buying it. I wonder how well it would have worked?
• Rub-n-Buff Metallic Finishes: Online reviews look very promising. I saw the results of someone who successfully used the gold one to fix a charm. But the charm was porous, not smooth. So I'm not sure how it would turn out on a smooth piece. Has anyone tried this stuff?
• Search results also showed a method that promises to magically turn copper areas back to silver plate. It involves mixing salt, baking soda and water and then microwaving until hot. Then the solution is poured into a bowl lined with aluminum foil. The writer said that soaking your jewelry will remove tarnish, and get this: The silver from the aluminum will re-plate the worn spots. Really? Now that sounds just too good to be true. Has anyone tried this method?

BTW, if anyone is interested, these suggestions can be found on a DuckDuckGo search for "how to fix repair worn jewelry plating" -- all these methods were found in the first 10 links.

One thing I did read and try is using a sterling silver polishing cloth, and it sort of worked. The tip of this silver plated charm had an ugly bright copper spot where the plating wore down so I rubbed it gently and it DID fade. A lot. So much that the spot blends in with the silver plated part. But it's still not perfect so I'm looking for other possible options. Any ideas?

[thekozz7]

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@rixstuff wrote:

Here is brush plating:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VoOULQYb58E

Here is the overall science https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxhCU_jBiOA

I'll see if I can find a bath plating video.  I know I watched a few before trying it myself.  What did we do before youtube?

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The video has a link to a website called caswellplating.com that has many restoring/plating options. And some are quite affordable.

As for YouTube, it's amazing the wealth of information it provides. I watched two videos that reviewed those tacky pens that pick up rhinestones (e.g. The Crystal Ninja) that sell for $20-$30, and then I watched a third video that showed how you could make your own with a manicure stick and a drop of candle wax. Great money saving idea!

[bluedaemon23]

About that soda-and-aluminum thing: the writer was WAY off base. It's for removing TARNISH, not for replating silver. What I learned in school is, the sodium in the baking soda and salt acts as a catalyst and makes sulfur (chemically, tarnish is silver sulfide -- that's why your silver tarnishes so quickly if you have gas heat) unbond from the silver and form a stronger bond with the aluminum. There's no reason why it would redeposit silver onto copper. How does this kind of nonsense get started anyway?

Takeaways: don't believe everything you read on the net, and tell your kids to pay attention in chemistry class -- it might come in handy next time you have a silver water pitcher that's been neglected for 25 years and would take you all day to polish by hand!

[thekozz7]

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@thekozz7 wrote:

Thanks for your input, guys. I think on Thursday I'm going to a few craft stores to see what's what. If I purchase anything and experiment with it I will post results...good or bad.

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I wrote this back in February but just now finally got around to purchasing a product that will hopefully work. It's called Molotow Liquid Chrome. It looks very promising. Any one ever use this?

I would also love to buy this in a gold version but it doesn't look like they make it. They did however have a five pack of colors that included gold but they are called "chalk markers" and seem different from the chrome stuff. Any one know what exactly a chalk marker is?

[rixstuff]

I just replated about a dozen rings and a bangle last weekend.  I'm going to experiment goldwashing sterling chains so I have some to offer with many of the goldwash pendants that I have for sale.

[thekozz7]

Just wondering: Do you happen to know if a gold washed piece can have verdigris? I may have seen a dot or two on a piece I have, but won't be able to closer examine it until the sun is up tomorrow. And I can't remember which thread it was, but I read here recently where someone said that real gold CAN have verdigris. Prior to this I had always thought that real gold and silver never has any.

[rixstuff]

I haven't run into it but it is possible the solution could have been contaminated with copper that turned green.  We are talking at the molecular level.  Items need to be INSANELY clean before you start plating.  A microscopic level of dirt is enough to form a tiny barrier between the plating and the metal and it can keep it from sticking/bonding to the silver.  Also helps to do a good buffing and cleaning after.

[thekozz7]

Thanks...and I can't agree more about cleaning. This goes for everything that's going to be re-coated, re-painted, etc.

[thekozz7]

OK...so I tried out this new product called "Liquid Chrome" and here are the results: It actually DOES dry super shiny, not at all matte. In the pics you can see a charm where the original finish rubbed off and the bright coppery metal was exposed. I dabbed two tiny dots on the wing tips and you can see in the photos below how well it worked.

But it's not perfect, there are some issues: It takes a long time to dry. The next experiment was on a chevron pendant necklace that is going into a junk lot regardless. The bottom chevron is the one I applied the Liquid Chrome to. On the right side, you can see where it smudged last night when I touched it just a few hours later. And towards the right-of-center you can see where I scratched it with a pin this morning after it dried all night. But to the left, you can see how it looks nearly 24 hours later. It didn't smudge, but I imagine it probably would scratch.

So...I'd probably only use this to touch up a teeny tiny area, like a prong. It doesn't seem that it would be a good idea to touch up a larger piece like a charm or pendant, cuz the dried Liquid Chrome would eventually scratch away. But then I wondered about using "Modge Podge Dimensional Magic" (shown below) to seal in the Liquid Chrome. I wouldn't use this method on a nice piece, but rather something less consequential and cheap. But will it work? Stay tuned...

Mirror shine!Closer viewBottom left chevron untouched; right side scratched and smudgedPerhaps this combo for tiny touchups?