Sterling silver tarnishes.

That’s the story. But you can slow it down…

First, it yellows and looks not so great; then, it moves on to the black color we are most familiar with. Depending on your skin chemistry and climate, this can happen frustratingly rapidly.

To slow down the tarnish process as much as possible:

Take off your jewelry anytime you get wet for an extended time (pool, shower, gym, etc.). You don’t have to be perfect; my jewelry stays on when I wash my hands during the day - yours can too.

Really, really don’t go swimming in your jewelry. Really, really, pretty please.

Store your sterling in an enclosed space. This doesn't have to be a fancy jewelry box. You can keep it in the ring box it came in - but take the puffy fill out. It seems to accelerate tarnishing. You can even store the jewelry in a little zip-top bag. (Yep, I sell bags here.)

Store your jewelry with anti-tarnish strips. My shop has these (here), or they are available other places in large quantities. A couple in with the jewelry can make a real difference. You do need to replace these at least twice a year. Every 3 months would be better. And large packages will go bad even if they aren’t in with your jewelry (just in case you were eyeing that 200-pack thinking, “That’s year's worth!”)

Don't wear your jewelry to sleep

Once it is tarnished, there’s no getting around it - time to polish it.

You can rub down the silver with a jewelry polishing cloth periodically, which is what I do & I have an instructional video here (or, like, scroll down…), and I sell the cloth I use here.

Some coatings advertise keeping the tarnish away, but in my experience, they flake off and look really unappealing really rapidly, which is why I don't use them.

Hopefully, this helps you keep your silver the way you like it for a bit longer.