Hi all, I am looking for information on how to clean the copper and brass wire jewelry that I have been making.  Do any of you spray a coating on the finished piece?  If so does that work or does it irritate the skin?  I use 0000 steel wool for mine, but do I tell customers to do that too?  Thanks for any feedback you may have.  Wanda

Lemon juice with salt works wonders on copper. Some just dip it in and save the cup of it for when you want to use it again, I use a bit on a cloth and give it a rub.

I have used ren wax to hold a shine on wire. It needs to be reapplied periodically but it does work great and it is safe.

I have heard that fingernail polish will peel off in places and the piece will look horrible. I have no experience with that though.

I personally prefer copper to tarnish naturally. It shines up in places and gets an interesting patina. I like natural.

You can also patina your copper yourself. Gun blueing looks amazing. Sherry "Dancing Feather" uses that technique a lot. It gives the copper a beautiful patina and then the piece does not really change much in color.

All my brass pieces have stayed somewhat shiny, natural. I have never needed to clean them. I am not sure if lemon would work on brass or not.

Ketchup also cleans copper beautifully, so I hear :D (no really).

Szarka

I used to use lemon juice all the time, but I have found that a mixture of vinegar & salt works better . . . I know people that use ketchup . . . even some that have said to use Worcestershire sauce . . . I clean my copper bracelets & rings & such probably every couple of weeks - or whenever I decide to wear them or show them . . . the 2 bracelets I wear every day, I clean about every 2 weeks . . . it only takes a couple of swishes in the "pickle" mix (maybe only 10 seconds or so) . . . I also make a point to leave a few pieces not cleaned when I do a show - to show people how easy it is to clean this way . . .

Sherry just submitted and article on copper and cleaning if anyone wants a peek.

 http://askszarka.blogspot.com/2008/06/how-to-take-care-of-your-copper-jewelry.html

Szarka

I use ketchup for my copperwire, it works great! I bought my husband an ultrasonic cleaner in which he´s supposed to clean his  rifle cartridges in, but I´m the one who uses it most (perfect gift)