The Silver Desk
Send me a photo of your silver.
I’ll tell you what I’m looking at.
Free. Any piece, any maker — it doesn’t have to be ours.
I’ve been designing and making sterling silver since 1987. Every week I take 25 pieces and give each one an honest look: what the mark says, what the surface is doing, and whether it’s worth bringing back.
No valuations. I will never tell you what something is worth.
— Joryel Vera
Please read before you upload. This is a free, informal, photo-based opinion from a working jeweler — it is not an appraisal, not a valuation, not a certification, and not an authentication, and we will never tell you what an item is worth. Opinions are based only on the photographs you send; photographs cannot show metal content, plating thickness, solder, or internal condition, and we may be wrong. Nothing we send you should be relied on for any purchase, sale, insurance, tax, legal, or other decision — for that, please have the piece examined in person and tested by a qualified professional. We provide this service "as is," with no warranties of any kind, express or implied, and we accept no liability for any loss or damage arising from your use of it or from any action you take based on it. By uploading, you confirm you have read and accept these terms.
What comes back
Within two business days, an email like this one. This is a real answer, with the name changed.
Hi Dana,
Thanks for sending these over. Here’s what I can see.
The mark
What I can make out on the inside of the band is “925” and, next to it, what looks like a maker’s mark — two letters in an oval, though I can’t read them clearly at this resolution. Under US rules a “925” or “Sterling” mark means the maker is representing the piece as at least 92.5% pure silver, and the law expects a registered maker’s mark alongside it. Yours has one, which is what you want to see. I have no way to confirm from a photograph whether the metal actually meets that standard — that takes testing.
What I’m seeing on the surface
The dark areas in the recesses read to me like ordinary tarnish rather than anything structural. Tarnish sits on top of the metal; it darkens the low points first because that’s where air sits still. From these photos it looks like it would polish off. I can’t confirm that without the piece in hand.
The thinner spot near the clasp is a different thing. That’s wear, and wear doesn’t polish out — but on a solid piece it also doesn’t get worse quickly.
What I’d do
A soft cloth and ten minutes, not a dip. Silver dips strip tarnish out of the recesses too, and the recesses are where the design lives — take it out of there and the piece goes flat. If the clasp starts catching, that’s a five-minute job for any bench jeweler.
If you’d like a bench to look at it in person, Harker & Sons in Boulder, CO carries our work.
Joryel Vera
Joryel Vera Enterprise, Inc. — designing sterling silver since 1987
Can’t find the mark?
It’s usually in one of four places: inside a ring band · on an earring post or the back of the setting · at a chain’s clasp or the last link · on a pendant’s bail.
If there’s nothing anywhere, that’s information too — send it and say so.
Getting a readable photo: put the piece on a plain surface near a window, not under a lamp. Move the camera back and zoom in rather than pushing the lens close — phones can’t focus at two inches. A cheap magnifier held in front of the lens works better than anything.
Who’s answering
Joryel Vera has designed every piece this company has sold since 1987 — close to 880 in the current line, each one drawn by hand before it became sterling silver and stone. AGTA member, RJC-audited.
He is not a certified or accredited appraiser, and this service does not involve gemological testing, assay, or laboratory analysis. What he has is thirty-nine years of looking at silver across a bench, and that’s what you’re getting.
Rather see silver in person?
Independent jewelers across the US have carried this line since 1987. If there’s one near you, they’ll have pieces in the case and a bench in the back.
The Silver Desk is a free service. It is not an appraisal or valuation service.