Believe it or not, polishing copper is much easier than you think! Most likely, you already have all the ingredients and tools needed to do so in your own home. In this post, I’ll show you how to polish copper at home with solely 3 ingredients: flour, salt, and vinegar. Let’s get to it.

My dad surprised me with a gift one day. Something I’d yearned to have in my kitchen for a long time. Copper. Not just any copper. A copper heirloom bowl that’s been in my family over 100 years. GASP. I’m almost in tears. He even remembers playing with this bowl as a kid. Tears.

If you know me, you know I’m an absolute sucker for filling my home with goods and doo-dads that’ve been passed down through generations. There’s a special place for these items that I’ll always cherish. Like the tattered, woven blanket my great-grandma made by hand or the many quilts my mom has thoughtfully sculpted and sewn so beautifully, they’re still in immaculate shape even to this day.

All of these things aren’t just things. To me, they’re art, memories, and they simply deserve our respect!

So, with a giddy smile, I accepted the copper bowl from my dad (of course!) and made plans to polish it ASAP and hang it in my kitchen where I can stare at it each day with more giddy smiles.

Why does copper tarnish?

Copper tarnishes over time simply from exposure to oxygen. It’s a completely natural process. Even the look of copper turning a muddy brown or even black tarnish is normal too – it’s from the oxidation as well as things like moisture, dust, grime, oils, etc. Milk and wine can turn the copper into a green-blue array of corrosion.

Overtime, if you prefer sparkly copper, you’ll have to get your hands pasty and polish your copper babies!

Tools & Ingredients to Polish Copper

There are so many ways to polish copper, so I’ll tell you what has worked best for me. All you’ll need is:

flour, salt, and vinegar.

1 part flour
1 part salt
just enough vinegar to make a thick paste (I used white vinegar), once the flour and salt have combined
large bowl
whisk

image of salt flour and vinegar for polishing copper

in process shot of combining flour and salt to polish copper

in process shot of mixing flour and salt together to make paste

in process shot of adding vinegar to salt and flour mixture

Other ingredients you can use to polish copper

Baking soda and coarse salt mixed together until a paste is formed. Scrub mixture on copper and rinse with warm water and dry thoroughly.
Equal parts lemon juice and coarse salt mixture until a paste is formed. Scrub mixture on copper and rinse with warm water. Dry thoroughly.
Salt, non-iodized cornstarch and lemon juice (add enough lemon juice to make a paste). Scrub mixture on copper until and rinse with warm water and dry thoroughly.
Surprisingly enough, tomato paste will polish copper. Tomato paste has a low acid and salt level which both work well to dissolve copper oxide. Rub tomato paste on copper and let sit for a few minutes. Rinse with dish soap and warm water. Dry thoroughly.