How do I care for my piece/s?

Short answer: Use them.  Often.  Enjoy them.  You only live once!

 

Long answer: Frequent use prevents tarnish and adds to the patina & charm of these vintage items.  Plus, I think it's sad if you don't.  (If you want to know all my thoughts about how I feel when a piece doesn't get used, peruse my MANIFESTO.) 

 

 

How do I clean my Typographie items?

Short answer: AVOID THE DISHWASHER at all costs.  

 

Long answer: By the term 'dishwasher,' I do not mean your overly huggy aunt Edna who volunteers to do the dishes after the meal, I mean that super useful kitchen appliance you can't live without.  If you put real silver in there, they can get black marks from touching other metals in the extreme heat and may even change color completely to a weird blue-ish tone. Neither of those issues is fixable.  Ever.  So don't do it and if you accidentally ran one through and nothing happened, do not try it again.  You just got really lucky.  Instead, go old school and wash them by hand with hot water and regular dish soap.  I do hope you don't let that dissuade you from using your pieces all the time though.  I promise it's easier than you think.  You'll get used to washing things this way and wonder why you ever resisted hand washing.  You may even start doing more dishes that way.  You know those giant pieces that hog up all the space in your dishwasher and force you to run extra loads?  It only takes a minute or two to wash those babies by hand and saves some energy in the process.  Hmmm, I digress to homemaking tips.  Sorry about that.  Back to silver info...

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Will my piece tarnish?

Short answer: Yes. 

 

Long answer: These pieces have real silver plating and unfortunately that does tarnish.  It varies how fast each item will tarnish but humidity is the biggest factor.  There are some things you can do to slow the process, like a good fabric-lined silver storage box, ziplock baggies and/or keeping some chalk in with the items (it helps absorb any moisture), but you can't totally prevent it.  My favorite recommendation is to use your item frequently.  I have a set of coffee spoons that live on my counter and are used all the time.  After I stir my daily coffee, I give them a quick rinse, dry them off and put them right back in their jar for next time.  If I'm feeling particularly ambitious (or have had a lot of coffee) I use a little dish soap too.  But mostly they just get rinsed, dried and put back for the next day.  And they have yet to need to be polished after years of enjoyment.  Granted I like the vintage look but hopefully, you do too as that's the Typographie specialty.