Cleaning pearls??

Ok they are fake but they are my 'something old'. We found them going trough my grandmothers things, she strung them herself!! I love them so much and I am afraid that I might ruin them.
The string looks like it might be cotton. What can I use to clean them?
Oh did I mention my grandma was a heavy smoker, the pearls are yellow now. I need them to be ivory or off-white. Please help!
It means so much to me that I wear these, she was the one that wanted My fiance to marry me. She told him every time she saw him before she passed.
What can I use on them??

you say they are delicate / old plastic pearls?

(do all of this carefully, since the cotton thread is probably very delicate)

ya know what I would do..... I'd take a about a 1/4 cup of oxyclean, and stir it into about 2 cups of HOT tap water in a bowl. Stir and dissolve, and dip them in and swish them around.

Then rinse them in cold water and gently dab a terry towel on them and let them dry for a couple days.

Oxy is good for organic stains like food or cigarette smoke. It also doesn't react with plastic. Avoid bleach since it's highly reactive and could potentially affect the plastic (although usually plastic is ok in bleach.... but since it's vintage, I wouldn't risk it)

Don't do anything if you even remotely suspect the necklace is real.... then take it to a jeweler....

good luck!

Thanks so much!!! I will try that.

one more thing...

the pearls MAY have oxidized on their own over the years, and could be permanently yellow-ish. Older plastics had a tendency to discolor like that over time.

Even if only the string whitens, frankly, yellowy pearls are fine in my book. It's the sentiment that counts, and she is very close to your heart.... so wear them either way with pride!

Thanks, I will.

available at walmart, eckerd, target, etc.