Jewellery Care

What is Sterling Silver?

Sterling silver is a metal containing at least 92.5% silver. This is the legal standard of purity set by the assay offices in Britain and used for most silver jewellery throughout the world. It means that the metal used is of a specific quality. Pure silver is never used, as it is too soft to be practical.

Caring for your Silver Jewellery

Sterling silver will tarnish with time and wear. To take care of your sterling silver jewellery, polish it frequently with a soft dry cloth to avoid tarnish (do not use silver dip). Ideally, use the specially impregnated silver polishing cloth available from the checkout here at Silver by Mail to ensure that your jewellery continues to retain its original lustre and shine.

We recommend you protect your silver jewellery by wrapping it in the Silver by Mail fabric pouch you received with your jewellery and storing it in a cool, dry place, keeping individual pieces separate to avoid scratching.

To bring back sparkle from faceted gemstones use warm water, washing up liquid and a soft toothbrush. Soak and brush inside the back of the setting and rinse.

Avoid contact with chemicals, perfume, hairspray and deodorant.

Our products are guaranteed against manufacturing faults, but not misuse. To maintain the condition of your jewellery remove when showering, swimming or when undertaking manual or domestic work. 

Has your Sterling Silver ring become tarnished? Is the tarnished ring leaving a black or green mark on your finger? What causes discoloration?

With time, any sterling silver jewellery piece that is exposed to air will tarnish. Sterling silver is a mixture of metals with at least 92.5% silver and 7.5% other metals.

And it is the other metals, usually copper, that oxidised in the air resulting in the build-up of a tarnished layer on sterling silver jewellery.

Silver tarnishes faster in areas with high humidity and air pollution. Additionally, contact with materials like cosmetics, hairspray, perfume, deodorant, body lotion, bleach, etc, can speed up the tarnishing process. The silver in your ring may also become oxidized by reacting with acids in your skin, the moisture in perspiration, or by reacting with some other lotion or chemical on your skin.

Make-up present on the skin or clothing is the most common cause of blackening or smudging. Cosmetics often contain chemical compounds which are harder than the jewellery itself. These compounds can rub off very tiny particles of metal which appear as jet black dust.

A solution is to use a silver cloth to polish your jewellery. Remember to remove rings and jewellery while applying make-up. Using soap and water, clean the areas of your skin that will come into contact with the jewellery making sure all soap is rinsed off and your hands are dry.

Plated jewellery

Plated jewellery will eventually fade or lose its colour due to natural wear. Unfortunately we are unable to replace worn plated jewellery as this is not a manufacturing fault. The length of time the plating will last depends on various factors such as how often the product is worn. An item worn regularly will wear off much faster as it comes into contact with skin and objects throughout the day. 

  • Your jewellery will age and tarnish naturally so if you want to keep your pieces in good condition, clean your jewellery regularly using a professional cleaning product.

  • It is also possible to assist with keeping the product in pristine condition by storing your jewellery in separate soft lined boxes or a pouch to keep pieces apart so they don’t rub together.

  • Avoid cleaning, gardening and swimming in your jewellery as chlorine in swimming pools can cause damage and erode jewellery. Chemicals such as household cleaning fluids can also cause damage to the jewellery and remove plating.

  • Thoroughly dry your jewellery after exposure to water.

  • Do not let your jewellery come into contract with nail polish remover, creams, perfumes and hairspray.