Featured Cleaning Jasperware, Before and After

Discussion in 'Pottery, Glass, and Porcelain' started by lauragarnet, Dec 2, 2015.

  1. lauragarnet

    lauragarnet Well-Known Member

    My first piece of Jasper Ware, filthy and bought dirt cheap. Cleaning experiment. Before and after pictures:
    001-JasperWare-Mini-Plate-Plaque-Before-and-After-Clean.jpg
    Dish detergent didn't do anything, so I tried liquid Mr. Clean, full strength, undiluted. It took everything off except a black scuff mark on the ladies bodice. A thick paste of Bar Keeper's Friend rubbed on with a Q-Tip took off the black mark. Then, just to see what would happen, I rubbed the paste all over, front and back with a soft cloth. It did no damage and brightened it up even more.
    Jasperware seems to be tougher than it looks.
    002-JasperWare-Mini-Plate-Plaque-Before-and-After-Clean.jpg
    002A-JasperWare-Mini-Plate-Plaque-Before-and-After-Clean.jpg
     
    Zephyr, kyratango, TallCakes and 5 others like this.
  2. cxgirl

    cxgirl Well-Known Member

    I would never have thought to use Mr Clean, but your piece looks so much better! Guess Jasperware is pretty tough. Thanks for posting this @lauragarnet :)
    I've heard of Bar Keeper's Friend but have never tried it - will have to see if I can find some to keep on hand.
     
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  3. lauragarnet

    lauragarnet Well-Known Member

    Oh yeah, I like it a lot. It works almost instantaneously, saves alot of time and elbow grease, which is fine with me.:D

    It mars aluminum though, so never try it on a piece of Wendell August Forge (which I once did, to my sorrow).
    Otherwise, it's great for everything from cast iron to porcelain. Anything vitrified, not porous.

    I buy it at WalMart. They keep it on the bottom shelf for some reason. Here's what you'll be looking for....
    barkeepersfriend-cleanser-polish-new-12oz.jpg
    https://www.barkeepersfriend.com/

    I need to wear rubber gloves when I use it, or my hands and finger tips will dry out, crack and bleed.
     
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  4. clutteredcloset49

    clutteredcloset49 Well-Known Member

    Bar Keepers friend acts like a pumice. I would be careful what you use it on.

    I don't think I would use it on Jasperware.

    I've cleaned jasperware with a 50/50 mix of ammonia and water followed with Dawn dish washing detergent. I use a soft toothbrush.
     
    Figtree3 likes this.
  5. rhiwfield

    rhiwfield Well-Known Member

    We use a bowl of cold water with dish washing liquid, but leave it to soak for 12-24 hours. Then use a soft toothbrush and rinse. Works very well for removing dirt.
     
    Figtree3 likes this.
  6. lauragarnet

    lauragarnet Well-Known Member

    ClutteredCloset49, It's the oxalic that makes Bar Keepers Friend work so fast. You barely need to scrub at all. I just did experiment using it on Jasperware. It worked great! I'm happy. :)

    I soaked this little dish for about 20 minutes in the Mr. Clean and followed with the BKF to get one little black mark off. All done in about 25 minutes. Spiffy clean! Woo hoo!:D
     
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  7. Ownedbybear

    Ownedbybear Well-Known Member

    Think about how this would have been cleaned back in the day. Strong chemicals - no washing up liquid then! This isn't strictly jasperware, that's a Wedgwood patent. ;) Yours looks to be Schafer und Vater, I think. Pate sur pate. Pretty thing.
     
  8. gregsglass

    gregsglass Well-Known Member

    Hi OBB,
    Years ago I saw a show where British collectors used a dish washer to clean Wedgewood. I was horrified. Then I tried it. It was wonderful. I used to clean all my Wedgewood once a year in the dish washer. It did NO harm and removed a lot of tiny specs of stuff that hand washing never got out. Wedgewood is a tougher than I ever thought.
    greg
     
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  9. Ownedbybear

    Ownedbybear Well-Known Member

    I know a noted expert who does that with Chinese pottery too. I've done it with some really cruddy stuff as a last resort and it works fine. Not glass, of course!
     
    kyratango likes this.
  10. ola402

    ola402 Well-Known Member

    I've always been successful with jasper ware just by using a toothbrush with Crest toothpaste. I've never cleaned a piece as dirty as yours, however. I've just had normal dirt that accumulates over time.
     
    Figtree3 likes this.
  11. Ownedbybear

    Ownedbybear Well-Known Member

    If you go to car boot sales in muddy field in winter, some china is unrecognisable. ;)
     
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  12. lauragarnet

    lauragarnet Well-Known Member

    I didn't know the term jasperware was a Wedgwood patent, thought it was a generic term for this kind of work. Thanks for that info.:joyful:
     
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  13. Figtree3

    Figtree3 What would you do if you weren't afraid?

    Thanks for starting this thread, lauragarnet! I've got a few pieces that could use some cleaning, and I haven't wanted to try anything.

    Question for those who know about jewelry: What about brooches, pins, or pendants where there is a jasperware lozenge or disk set in a metal setting? Either gold or silver? I would not use the Bar Keeper's friend, but what about all of the other things. Oh, I also wouldn't put it in a dishwasher. ;)

    Fig
     
  14. Ownedbybear

    Ownedbybear Well-Known Member

    I'd use a bit of masking tape over the jasper insert and then a Sunshine cloth on the metal. As far as the insert goes, mask off the metal then toothbrush and washing up liquid. MAgic Eraser scrap would work too.
     
  15. dgbjwc

    dgbjwc Well-Known Member

    I never intended to collect pate sur pate but Schafer & Vater and Limoges Tharaud eventually won me over. I use my old favorite Krud Kutter. Melts the dirt off. No need to soak although you may need to repeat on really dirty pieces. It doesn't work on the black marks so well, though, so thanks for the heads-up on Bar Keepers Friend. Lovely plaque - I would definitely have scooped it up! :)
    Don
     
  16. Ownedbybear

    Ownedbybear Well-Known Member

    Don, Magic Eraser also works - gently, obviously. ;)
     
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  17. Mill Cove Treasures

    Mill Cove Treasures Well-Known Member

    I second ownedbybear on the Magic Eraser. It works great.
     
  18. Darkwing Manor

    Darkwing Manor Well-Known Member

    As a professional museum curator I must cry cease and desist! Your piece may look better now, but what changes to the molecular structure have been caused by the addition of harsh and abrasive chemicals?

    For general guidelines for proper artifact care, the Canadian Conservation Institute offers a complete on-line reference library of briefs.

    Eg: Excerpt from Care of Ceramics and Glass:

    http://canada.pch.gc.ca/eng/1439925170205
    Cleaning and Repair

    Ceramic and glass objects in good condition can be safely cleaned to remove surface dirt. Remove loose dirt with a soft bristle brush; a cloth may snag on fragile surfaces. Washing with tap water is acceptable, but distilled or deionized water is preferable. Water temperature should be lukewarm or cooler. Do not use detergents. Glass and ceramics should be air-dried very slowly. Never use heat to reduce drying time.

    Washing glazed pottery is usually a straightforward procedure. Before washing a piece, however, make sure that the glaze is not flaking off and that any painted, gilded, or printed designs are not coming off and are not soluble in water. Unglazed, or soft, crumbly, unevenly fired ceramics can be destroyed by washing. Low-fired ceramics should not be washed because the soft clay will turn to mud when exposed to water.

    Undecorated glass, if not deteriorated (i.e. not weeping, crizzled, or flaking), can also be washed with clean, lukewarm water. A small amount of ethanol (about 5 % by volume) can be added to act as a wetting agent. It will not damage glass or ceramics in good condition.

    If an object is badly stained or has concretions on it that cannot be removed by washing, do not try to clean it with the bleach or acid formulations often recommended in many "how-to" manuals. If cleaning an object is important, consult a conservator. A stain on a piece of pottery may be disfiguring, but not harmful. Trying to dissolve the stain may dissolve parts of the artifact. Professional ceramics conservators will not try to remove stains at the risk of damaging the pottery, and can give advice on whether a piece should be cleaned for cosmetic reasons.

    Repairing ceramics is a specialized skill, combining practical experience and knowledge of the chemistry and working properties of the adhesives and fillers that are safe to use. Amateur repairs done with unstable adhesives, such as five-minute epoxies, and the use of repair kits can irreparably damage ceramics. More pottery is damaged by careless handling and inexpert repair than by any other single cause.

    If you don't believe them, see what the National Park Services's Conserv O Grams have to say. Another excellent resource!
    http://www.nps.gov/museum/publications/conserveogram/cons_toc.html
     
  19. Ownedbybear

    Ownedbybear Well-Known Member

    Meh, all I can say is I have two hundred year old bits of baked earth that got used, washed up with detergent and hot water and still look good as ever. I can see this for museum quality Nantgarw, say, but not for the kind of stuff we're talking here.

    As to changes to "molecular structure", that's both bad chemistry and bad physics. Especially as we're discussing stuff fired at hundreds of degrees F or C, and also made in the days when harsh chemicals were de rigeur for cleaning.
     
  20. Bev aka thelmasstuff

    Bev aka thelmasstuff Colored pencil artist extraordinaire ;)

    My mother-in-law gave me a large, Jasperware pitcher that was a family piece. I really don't like the green so I traded it with my sister-in-law for a lovely copper lustre pitcher. ;) Now, we're both happy and Mum is none the wiser.
     
    lauragarnet and dgbjwc like this.
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