Stainless Flatware – Replacing the Family Silver?

For hundreds of years, families have treasured the silver flatware passed down from Mom or Grandma. There is a relative newcomer catching up and on its way to becoming one of America’s favorite family heirlooms.

This new family heirloom is the stainless steel flatware set your mother or grandmother passed down to you. Just as the family silver of yesteryear brought back cherished childhood memories of an ancestor, many families are finding that the stainless set they remember as children brings back the same type of memories.

Sterling silver and silverplate flatware sets are still being passed down from mother to daughter. However, we have seen a significant increase in the number of people requesting replacements for an ancestor’s stainless set. In fact, 50% of our customers at SilverCollect.com are completing stainless sets received either from a family member; or for a set they received as a wedding gift and wish to pass down.

There are also collectors of stainless patterns from a particular era or from a particular flatware designer such as Jens Quistgaard, for example. A collector may be attracted to the high quality of craftsmanship found in the vintage flatware, or to the design – or both.

Unfortunately for those trying to complete these flatware sets, the patterns have been discontinued more often than not. It can be difficult to locate vintage and discontinued patterns in excellent condition. Patience is required as it can often take years to complete a set. And for the more popular patterns demand is high, supply is low, so you may find yourself paying more for stainless than for sterling silver.

Here are a couple of tips to ensure that you maintain a complete stainless set; and to create a family heirloom to pass on to your children:

• If your pattern is still in production, buy extra pieces before it is discontinued. After discontinuation, supply can quickly become depleted; and prices can quickly go up.
• When you find pieces in great condition for your discontinued pattern, buy as many extra pieces as you can afford. It may be the last time you see replacements in your pattern.

It is a good idea to have extra pieces of flatware on hand because some pieces will inevitably become “lost” or damaged. Forks are used the most so tend to get “lost” or damaged before the other pieces. They are generally harder to find and often more costly to replace. Teaspoons have a tendency to mysteriously disappear too.

Above all, just take care of your set. Use it but do not abuse it. It is relatively easy to do, particularly in comparison to sterling silver or silverplate. Silver can be relatively carefree if used regularly, but most people just do not use it daily. Click here for more about Stainless Steel Flatware

This entry was posted on Monday, September 4th, 2006 at 12:07 am and is filed under Reference Articles, Stainless Steel Flatware. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.