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Care for Sterling Silver Jewelry Sterling Silver is a precious metal composed of 92.5% silver and usually 7.5% copper. Copper provides hardness to the silver, which makes it more suitable and durable for everyday wear than pure silver. Silver tarnish build-up is a dulling that naturally occurs when silver reacts with sulfur or hydrogen sulfide in the air. There are several ways to care for your sterling silver jewelry as well as steps that can be taken to prevent and clean tarnish. Wearing your silver jewelry is the best way to prevent tarnish build-up. Storing your silver jewelry in an airtight zip bag or container when not wearing it can also help prevent tarnishing. Your sterling silver jewelry should be cleaned regularly with a soft 100% cotton polishing cloth to keep it bright and to prevent tarnish. To minimize scratches and other damage store your silver jewelry in a cloth pouch or in a separate compartment in your jewelry box. You should avoid exposing your sterling silver jewelry to household chemicals when cleaning with bleach or ammonia, swimming in chlorinated water such as pools or hot tubes. Avoid using toothpaste or other abrasives to clean your silver jewelry as this will scratch the silver. Tarnish can be removed by using polishes and soft jewelry cloths formulated specifically to remove tarnish on sterling silver. Although effective, these chemicals can also remove tiny pieces of the silver or copper. Over a long period of time, the surface of your jewelry can appear pitted or dented when the copper is removed. A chemical free way of removing tarnish is to use 1 cup of baking soda, hot water and a disposable aluminum pan, or pan lined with foil. Just put the jewelry directly on the aluminum (this is important), heat the water to boiling and pour over the jewelry, then add the baking soda a little at a time. It is possible the mixture may bubble and spill over, so add slowly or place the pan in the sink. Depending on the amount of tarnish, you may have to let it sit a while or repeat this procedure. This method basically reverses the tarnishing process through a chemical reaction with the baking soda. A soft cloth or cotton swab (for those tiny hard to reach areas) should be used to clean any silver jewelry to prevent scratching. Using these few simple tips can help keep your sterling silver jewelry bright, tarnish free and beautiful for many years.
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