Re: Solid sterling silver flatware and selling it

justmyopinion · ‎11-23-2015

Many people confuse sterling silver with silver plated.

Big difference.

blackhole99 · ‎08-22-2013

My husband and I inherited SS flatware from his Mother and although it's missing some serving pieces it's a very old patten(King Edward) and is solid. I thought about selling it until I read somewhere that if you store it in a plastic bag after you polish it, it will not tarnish. It was quite a job polishing up all that silver, but I did store it in plastic bags and 2 years later it's tarnish free.

Lilysmom · ‎03-09-2010

@blackhole99, I hate polishing it too. I am worried about you storing it in plastic though. See link below ... I am not sure if this applies to real sterling but I know it is an issue for silver plate. Storing in plastic damages it.

http://www.home-storage-solutions-101.com/storing-silver.html

Maybe one of our experts here can guide you. I keep mine in my china cabinet drawer which is lined and has a flannel like cloth to lay over it. I only use it once or twice a year. LM

Mominohio · ‎08-08-2010

@bonnielu wrote:
Thanks for posting this. I have four daughters and they want NOTHING. They say they have no use for my crystal, or my china or my sterling silver flatware. I will look into some of the suggestions. Being in a rural area I might have to pass over the local auction houses. We have many but they never seem to bring the big bucks per item in.

I don't know the age of your daughters, but I can tell you that what they think of your finer things may change as they age.

My mom has a beautiful custom made grandfather clock, and she has had it since I was a child. I never really thought it my style, and really didn't care to inherit it someday. While I know the value, and how unique it is, it just didn't interest me. Until I was about 50. Then, over time, I came to really love the look of it.

Styles in entertaining and home decor change over time, and sometimes things we think aren't us, or we have no interest in, we love a few decades later.

If your daughters aren't married and settled yet, or if they haven't hit their 40's, they may change their minds in the years to come.

blackhole99 · ‎08-22-2013

@Lilysmom wrote:
@blackhole99, I hate polishing it too. I am worried about you storing it in plastic though. See link below ... I am not sure if this applies to real sterling but I know it is an issue for silver plate. Storing in plastic damages it.

http://www.home-storage-solutions-101.com/storing-silver.html

Maybe one of our experts here can guide you. I keep mine in my china cabinet drawer which is lined and has a flannel like cloth to lay over it. I only use it once or twice a year. LM
@Lilysmom
I checked out the site you suggested and it sounds logical that moisture may get trapped in a plactic bag and cause trouble, but as I said this method has worked for me for 2 years. I checked my silver flatware today in order to respond to the thread and the flatware remains untarnished and no moisture. I wish I could remember the site online that recommended the method I use.

proudlyfromNJ · ‎05-01-2010

I have had my sterling silver for almost 50 years. Probably used it maybe 10 times at the most. I received it in a flatware chest and have always kept it there. It never tarnished much at all. Probably because it was hardly ever exposed to air. It still looks beautiful.

shoekitty · ‎03-10-2010

Sterling flatware is so expensive today.OMG, I had to price some I inherited, and wow! One piece can run 70 dollars and up! Also sterling has lost favor, not just for cost and upkeep, but strength. Over time sterling can bend, scratch big time . Over or constant polishing reduces the weight over the years. I love the look and feel of it. My Mom has a huge set of it, she inherited it from her sister who died in 1940. Her sister had it from 1922. My mom keeps it in the original cedar box, velvet lined. She had wrapped the silver in cling wrap. My MIL had silver bowls and small pieces in the top cabinet of her small kitchen (it was like a 9X9 size. That kitchen got humid and steamy, as they had a gas stove, and she canned a lot. She only had a door going into garage for ventilation too! She had ther silver pieces wrapped in cling wrap, as well as her crystal glasses, and they were like new. But ya never know. It is a huge thing to take a chance on. Some of her pieces were up there for 60 years.

“sometimes you have to bite your upper lip and put sunglasses on”….Bob Dylan

Sooner · ‎03-10-2010

@shoekitty wrote:
Sterling flatware is so expensive today.OMG, I had to price some I inherited, and wow! One piece can run 70 dollars and up! Also sterling has lost favor, not just for cost and upkeep, but strength. Over time sterling can bend, scratch big time . Over or constant polishing reduces the weight over the years. I love the look and feel of it. My Mom has a huge set of it, she inherited it from her sister who died in 1940. Her sister had it from 1922. My mom keeps it in the original cedar box, velvet lined. She had wrapped the silver in cling wrap. My MIL had silver bowls and small pieces in the top cabinet of her small kitchen (it was like a 9X9 size. That kitchen got humid and steamy, as they had a gas stove, and she canned a lot. She only had a door going into garage for ventilation too! She had ther silver pieces wrapped in cling wrap, as well as her crystal glasses, and they were like new. But ya never know. It is a huge thing to take a chance on. Some of her pieces were up there for 60 years.

Good weight sterling flatware is VERY sturdy. Unless it is abused, you shouldn't have bending issues. I also don't think polishing would reduce the weight substantially. I have some really old pieces that you can tell have been used and I don't see any loss of detail in the pattern.

Small scratches do develop on sterling flatware and this is called "patina" and is not a problem, and something desirable in many cases. It shows it was used and loved.

Scratching is a fact of life on some extent to things like trays and holloware that is used, and also tea pots and bowls often need to be protected from dents.

But nothing is as pretty on a table as sterling flatware and serving pieces. I believe in 10 or 20 years it may be a very valuable thing Fads come and go, and when this comes back in and someday it will, prices will be sky high. And good pieces will be rare. And I think hand engraved monos will shoot up the value a lot someday. ANY well-done and crisp mono. . .

Sooner · ‎03-10-2010

@blackhole99 wrote:
My husband and I inherited SS flatware from his Mother and although it's missing some serving pieces it's a very old patten(King Edward) and is solid. I thought about selling it until I read somewhere that if you store it in a plastic bag after you polish it, it will not tarnish. It was quite a job polishing up all that silver, but I did store it in plastic bags and 2 years later it's tarnish free.

I think the cloth is called Pacific Cloth that keeps silver from tarnishing. You can get bags of many sizes and even yardage of it online. It helps a LOT.

USING SILVER, and washing it by hand afterward and drying really does keep it from becoming tarnished as much. Use your silver. I keep salad forks in a small vase in the kitchen. We can grab them for desserts, and it's no trouble to wash them off, dry them and put them back in--ready for a snack or to eat cinner off a tray in front of the tv. We do spoons in a vase in the summer for ice cream treats--the silver spoons get very cold!

Even if you have really tarnished pieces Hagerty silver polish does miracle on many things. Fun to see it come back to life!

Sooner · ‎03-10-2010

@Lilysmom

Check with Replacements about your mom's bowl. They do repairs. I don't know how expensive, but you can send them pictures and they will give you estimates I think. It is a good place to start!