Cleaning old ctystal beads

[Roanra]

I was given an old crytal necklace to restring. It was originally strung on a 2-ply string (cotton-like) material that has yellowed, probably from perfumes, hairspray and just being old! I took all the beads off but inside some of the beads is some "brownish" deposits that doesn't scrape out. I was going to soak them in some kind of solution to see if it would loosen.  Can you suggest what solution to use?  Vinegar and water was my thought but not sure if it is safe.

[Russ Nobbs]

Tobacco smoke may well be the source of the yellowing string and brownish deposits.
soaking in warm water and sudsy ammonia may remove it. Soak the beads for 15 minutes or so, slosh the beads around in the solution for a few minutes and rinse well. If that removes most but not all repeat a time or 2.

It's possible you may need to re-string on soft cotton cord and use the cord in the warm, dilute sudsy ammonia to rub the inside of the beads by running the beads back and forth on the wet cloth cord.

Good luck!  Let us know what worked best.

[Luann Udell]

If you can't get cotton cord thin enough to go through the holes and thick enough to "scrub" the inside, you might try that "fluffy" dental floss.  (I think it's a Johnson & Johnson product called "Reach" gentle gum care floss.)  It's sort of stretchy, but it might be hard to thread through the bead holes because it's also very soft.

Thornton Floss http://www.thorntonfloss.com/ might be a better choice because it has a stiffer section that could act like a needle, and a soft "fluffy" section that could scrub.