{Sterling Silver Jewelry - Caring Methods for Your 925 Sterling Silver Ware

Silver has long been utilized for making more jewelry and decorative items than any other metal in history. Nonetheless it was soon found to be too soft to be made use of and hence was mixed with other metals to improve its durability and strength; more specifically copper. This alloy of copper and silver has greater longevity than regular silver however it also has a tendency to tarnish or turn black after a while. Besides this, Sterling Silver also needs to be handled with extra care as it can easily get scratched and bend out of shape.

Always consider caring for silver in a preventive way instead of a curative manner to ensure its longevity. The first thing that you should do is avoid exposing the silver you have to chlorine, cosmetics, hair spray and perfume; this will guarantee that the silver doesn't tarnish. Also keep the silver ware that you have away from sinks; this will stop the silver from being lost altogether.

When cleaning silver, try using a phosphate free, low abrasion detergent to clean so that you can remove the tarnish without fear of damaging the silver. An interesting truth is that body oils can in fact prevent the tarnishing of silver, hence silver that is worn often has a lower potential for getting tarnished. You can also use baking powder and toothpaste for cleaning your sterling silver jewelry however some jewelry experts tend not to advocate this saying it can result in abrasion if not used properly; however many people actually clean their sterling silver jewelry with such methods with little damage so you might as well give it a try.

An excellent preventive strategy would be to clean the sterling silver which you have weekly or bi-weekly with a mild dish wash or baking soda. This makes certain that it never gets tarnished to begin with. To do this, adopt these measures:

a. Put 2 table spoon of baking soda and 2 cups of warm water into an aluminum container.

b. Put your silver ware in this container and leave it there for about 10 minutes.

c. Take the silver our and dry it with a soft towel.

This method is sufficient to ensure that your silver never tarnishes/blackens.

It's also wise to store your sterling silver jewelry in tarnish preventing cloth and bags so that you can stave off the unavoidable as long as possible. These bags are made of cloth that is lined with special tarnish preventing properties which in turn delays the discoloration process. Also never make the mistake of keeping two silver pieces together inside a bag as that can easily lead them to scratch the other.

The majority of the sterling silver jewelry that you wear on a continuous basis will develop an excellent patina which gives it an antique look and that is much sought-after. If you prefer this look on your silver then you'll wish to be careful that you don't lose this look when cleaning the silver. If some of your jewelry already has developed a patina either wash it gently or take it to an experienced jeweler for cleaning.