The Best Silverware
Silverware comes in two forms: all sterling silver or silver plated. The latter are more affordable and more durable. The former are easier to clean and have a high resale value.
The Silver-Plate Set Favored by Marie Antoinette Christofle Rubans Silver-Plate Flatware Five-Piece Set, $600 at bloomingdales.com
If you’re looking to splurge on a traditional silver-plate set, real-estate agent Robert Khederian says there are few better brands than Christofle, which was founded in 1907. “It mixes Louis XVI style, like the little bow at the top of each piece, with neoclassical detailing.”
An Affordable Vintage Silver-Plate Set Anthropologie Rediscovered Flatware Five-Piece Set, $36 at anthropologie.com
And if you want silver plate for less, Goerzen tipped us off to Hester & Cook’s flatware sets. Each is made up of vintage and antique pieces from 1800 to 1940 that the brand sources from antique shops and then bundles, she says. “Each mismatched set has an heirloom quality.”
Silverware Designed for Aaron Burr’s Wife Madam Jumel by Whiting Sterling-Silver Flatware Set, 35-Piece Service for Eight, $2,100 at etsy.com
Artist Maconda Goodspeed collects the Madam Jumel pattern by Whiting Manufacturing Company, an American maker that has been around since the 1800s. She kept acquiring after finding out the pattern was designed specifically for Eliza Jumel, Aaron Burr’s wife.
Some HeirloomQuality Silverware 1942 Towle Silver Old Master Sterling Four-Piece Place-Size Setting, $210 at replacements.com
These utensils, designer Christina Manzo’s favorites, are sold in a set of four, making it easier to buy them in bulk and build out a larger collection. Note that while the forks and spoon are all sterling silver, the knife has a sterling body with a stainless-steel head.
An 85-Piece Sterling-Silver Set Pott 86 by Josef Hoffmann Sterling-Silver Flatware Set, 85-Piece Service, Rare Modern, $20,000 at etsy.com
While Hoffmann’s utensils have not been in production for as long as Whiting’s, they’re no less collectible. Recommended by Archer-Coité (who says she “yearns” to own this silverware), the spherical finials on the handles make each piece look like an exclamation point.