These are hardy metals, which should be able to withstand most of the rigours of normal daily use. However, they are impressionable and with excessive or hard wear and tear will misshape.

Matt finishes are acheived by uniformly scratching or pitting the surface of a metal. This is only a temporary finish and most items finished in this manner end up having the same appearance as an item that started life highly polished. The only exceptions to this are when the matt areas are protected from wear. Most items made by us can be re-finished - we will generally do this for free the first time and then for a small charge thereafter. Hammered finishes should be less affected by normal daily wear.

You may find that some items occasionally turn black (oxidise) where they come into contact with your skin. This is due to natural acids in one's skin reacting to the additional metals in Sterling silver. Silver in it's pure form is too soft to be of much use for jewellery. sterling silver is the combination of 92.5% pure silver and 7.5% other alloys. You may find that your jewellery is unaffected and then for no apparent reason begins to oxidise. These acids vary depending on the time of year, the month, one's diet or stress levels. How do you stop it ? Normally, it will stop of it's own accord after a short while, and by continued wearing, the oxidisation will wear-off. In the meantime, you can polish or use a "silver dip" solution.