The bases were probably the worst part, and I think those turned out really well. The part where the actual candle will sit didn't come out quite as nice.
Since I didn't have any silver cleaner product at home, I decided to look online for ways to clean silver. Some of them were just gross (cover it with ketchup & wipe off - yuck! I don't really want the scent of ketchup every time I light a candle!) and some were just too much work. I finally tried a combination of two different ideas.
First I combined a liter of water with 2 tablespoons baking soda in a pan, and threw in a piece of aluminum foil. After the water was boiling, I dipped in each piece of silver for 10 seconds. It helped, but not as much as I hoped. I tried dipping them for a bit longer, but still not much difference.
The second thing I tried was a paste of baking soda & water. I rubbed this on the silver pieces and it did take a lot of the tarnish away. I was pretty satisfied with the results, so I stopped making any more mess after that & called it good!
I am also making some progress on the Retro Tree (although my family has informed me that the tree can't be officially "decorated" until after Thanksgiving.) So far I have lights and just got some more new ornaments that I'm very excited about.
These are some Christopher Radko "Shiny Brite" ornaments I found at Menard's, which claim to be a "Vintage American 1940's design"...since I wasn't around in the 1940's, I'll have to take their word for it! But I think they are very cool, and will look nice with my lights & other ornaments on the Retro Tree! I'll hopefully be sharing the end result soon (but after Thanksgiving!!)
