As an antique dealer I am always cleaning items that I have purchased, consequently I am also willing to try any tried and true cleaning method as well as new commercial cleansers on the market.

Recently I purchased the nastiest, greasiest vintage electric waffle iron I have ever come across. I tried my usual methods of cleaning it and nothing was working so I reached for this new "stuff" I had purchased Easy Off Bam Universal Degreaser, it was amazing. The gunk was rolling off. On the tough spots I got out my trusty Borax and a toothbrush and the waffle iron now looks brand new.

New cleaner #2 - Magic Eraser. My oldest daughter talked about this thing non-stop. Of course she is the mother of a 6 year-old so she ends up with strange things on the walls and floors and the Magic Eraser took them right off.

I had a coupon and bought a box of them a couple of weeks ago, here is what I have removed or cleaned;

• Hair dye from my forehead, ears and neck
• Tarnish (light tarnish) from an antique spoon
• Those weird blue marks that you see on vintage vinyl dolls
• Permanent marker from my bathroom wallpaper that has been there for over 10 years
• Smutz and general dinginess from the covers of vintage Little Golden Books

I am not sure what makes these things work but Magic it is and I am very impressed. I have not yet read the instructions on the box (bad me) but I do dampen the Magic Eraser just a little before use.

Also, test it on a small area before you go crazy wiping things with it because it does seem to have a little abrasive factor to it. I don't know that I would use it on heavily tarnished silver or silver-plate but it worked well on the spoon I cleaned and it did not scratch it either.

For cleaning big batches of silver and silver plate flatware I have used sour milk, let it soak overnight. You can make milk sour by adding vinegar to it. You might still have to rub the heavily tarnished pieces but this will remove light tarnish.

My favorite silver polish is Never Dull wadding. It will actually clean any metal without the big mess of liquid polishes.

I hope that this helps you to clean some of your antiques, collectibles and memorabilia items.