Home made cleaners: how to clean silver jewelry at home

Tracie — Wed, 07 Oct 2026 12:37:00 +0000

I have been going through some things lately and came upon some jewelry that needed cleaning. My mom recently gave me her silver charm bracelet. I remember this bracelet so vividly from my childhood. It was her date night bracelet. She would be all prettied up and this bracelet was fascinating to me. I love it! She was gifted charms at different points in her life…swimming awards, wedding, graduations, babies….they all hold a special meaning. I wanted to clean it up a bit and make it shine again.

The formula I used is natural and homemade…and easy! All you need is baking soda, foil and a container of some sort…and boiling water. This is my go-to way to clean silver jewelry at home with just two pantry ingredients. (I have only tested this on sterling silver…)

Crumple up some foil and lay the jewelry on top. Generously sprinkle baking soda. Pour on some boiling water.

Let the bubbles do there stuff! I let it sit for about 2 minutes and poked it with a wooden spoon. You will smell a faint sulfur smell (the aluminum and soda reacting…) Take the jewelry out and rinse off…pat dry. Good as new!!

A quick note: skip this method on jewelry set with pearls, opals or glued-on stones, since the reaction can loosen glue or dull a soft gem. A soft polishing cloth is the safer choice for those pieces.

Cleaning silver flatware or a tea set instead of jewelry? I use a similar trick in my how to polish silver the easy way post.

The post Home made cleaners: how to clean silver jewelry at home appeared first on Cleverly Inspired.

Painted brick ranch house: before and after paint colors

Tracie — Wed, 07 Oct 2026 12:30:00 +0000

Not too long ago I told you about a project that I am working on with our builder/friend. I wanted to show how amazing her home looks now that it is painted. It will never cease to amaze me what the power of paint can accomplish. This home is now the show house on the street. The greenery pops against the creamy yellow and the gray door makes it look updated.

I know you love a good before and after as much as I do….so here are a few pics to see for yourself…

Sherman Williams was generous enough to supply all the paint for Dawn’s house. I had no trouble selecting the colors from their color chart.

The paint colors people ask me about most:

Trim: Pure White SW 7005
Brick: Crème SW 7556
Door and window frames: Software SW 7074

The house just looks so happy now! We were lucky enough to also get Dawn some new gutters. We chose gray to match up with the new shutters and window color.

The awnings were already this charcoal color….so by picking a color like Software….we were making them kind of flow all together. The white trim really cleaned this house up!

If you are weighing the same project, see my friend’s brick ranch homes for more painted-brick inspiration before you pick a color.

I will bring you more news about the playhouse we are building in the back….it really is going to be incredible!

The post Painted brick ranch house: before and after paint colors appeared first on Cleverly Inspired.