Care Tips for your Handmade Silver Jewelry

The best method to keep your handmade silver jewelry nice and shiny, is to store it in a re-sealable plastic bag or jewelry case with anti-tarnish paper.  The best way to bring back luster to any piece of jewelry is to use a jewelry polishing cloth that can be easily purchased at most jewelry stores, online, and at many drugstores.  A jewelry polishing cloth can last for years.  For those more delicate pieces, have a professional jeweler steam clean or use an ultrasonic cleaner.  Don't attempt to clean the piece yourself, especially if set with a gemstone(s).  Gems are easily damaged by ultrasonic cleaners, so you could end up with a worthless gemstone by trying to save a few bucks by doing things yourself.  When in doubt, take your jewelry to a professional.  At any point in time, you can mail any of my designs back to me for a free cleaning.

What is Fine Silver?

Fine Silver is 99.9% pure silver, and is known to tarnish eight times slower than Sterling Silver due to its lack of copper.  The general rule is that as the purity of silver decreases, the problem of tarnishing increases.

What is Sterling Silver?

Sterling Silver is 92.5% pure silver hardened with another metal alloy of no more than 7.5%, usually copper.

Why not use either Sterling Silver or Fine Silver exclusively?

It really depends on the look and functionality I am seeking to achieve.  Without work-hardening (usually by hammering or tumbling), Fine Silver would be too soft to use in most jewelry.  I use Sterling Silver solely in my anticlastically raised bracelets, cuffs, and earrings for its strength to retain shape and its smooth shiny look.  The textured hammered look of my other featured jewelry lends itself solely to the malleable properties of softer Fine Silver.