Holy COW! I just cleaned a whole set of silver in about 5 minutes. And it was NON-TOXIC! Ok – this clearly shows my dorky side but I thought this was so cool.

Here’s the story. My family uses my grandmother’s 70+ year old “everyday” silver for our every day utensils (she’s 103, by the way!). I love using it because it reminds me of her. But the only problem with using silver every day is that it tarnishes and you have to clean it. Not as tarnished as when you don’t use it, but things like egg make the tines on forks black, etc.

I was going to bring out my icky terrible smelling silver polish, but recalled seeing something at some point (that’s how helpful my brain is) about cleaning silver without polish. I remembered that it used aluminum foil. Because I’m always looking for ways to use chemical-free alternatives, I decided to search online. And there it was – the instructions on how to clean silver using baking soda, aluminum foil, water and a pan.

It was so easy that I was amazed. Literally I just soaked the pieces for a minute or so, took them out, rinsed and dried them and they looked incredible. So here’s how to do it – and I’m telling you, you’ll never buy silver polish again! (BTW – I subsequently read that the EPA considers it a “hazardous household waste” and discourages throwing it out with the regular trash. I didn’t confirm that though.)

What you’ll need: Baking soda, water, aluminum foil, a pan (I think aluminum or glass is probably best).

What you do: Line the pan with the foil. Add a layer of baking soda. Add enough water to cover the silver. Put it on the stove and heat until the water is about to boil. Add the silver and let it soak. You can see it getting shiny and losing the tarnish. You can move it around gently with tongs – but be careful not to scratch it. When it looks clean, take it out, rinse or wash it, and dry it with a soft clean towel.

That’s IT. No joke. Amazing! Apparently the chemical reaction between the silver and the aluminum and the baking soda magically does the trick. The tarnish (which is the reaction between silver and sulfur) is loosened by the warm water and baking soda, and then the sulfur is attracted to the aluminum. Pretty cool! You can tell it’s working because you can actually smell the sulfur (think hard boiled egg smell….)

So what are you waiting for? Wow and amaze your family. And just say “no” to the icky silver polish!