Tips From Tim: Make Your Mama Proud - How To Polish Silver

As we move into prepping for the many feasts and parties we'll be enjoying this holiday season, I thought I would put together a primer on how to polish silver. Hand polishing silver is a bit time consuming and tedious, yes - this is why we offer it as a service for you! But, it's also very doable at home if you have the time and patience for it.First, I'll explain the difference between hand polish and machine polish as tactics of shining sterling silver. When you hand polish an item like what we'll show here, you use silver polishing creme, a soft cloth, and a lot of elbow grease. It's recommended if you like a shiny, yet not blazing-white look and we think it especially looks nicer with heavily detailed, textured pieces. Leaving just a bit of oxidization in the crevices (as hand polishing will allow) brings out the contrasting elements in the design and can really help a pattern pop.That said, some people prefer their sterling to be super shiny and perfect and for this we recommend having us polish it professionally on our polishing wheels. The end result of this process is a completely tarnish-free piece with a brilliant sheen. Also, machine-polishing tends to last longer in terms of warding off future tarnish so you will get a better return on your time and money than you will with hand polishing.All that being said, if you want to try your hand at polishing your own silver, here are step-by-step directions on how to get the best result. Happy polishing!