Cheaper silver-plated pieces are often lacquered to inhibit tarnishing. But when they do tarnish--and they inevitably will--the lacquer makes it much more difficult to polish them. And repeated polishing will eventually rub off the plating. None of our pieces are plated. They're either solid German Silver or Sterling Silver or have a thick silver overlay veneer. None are lacquered. Polish them as needed (likely only two to four times per year). Most silversmiths like 3M Tarni-Shield. And if you really want to apply a protective coating, silversmiths seem to prefer a micro-crystalline was such as Renaissance Wax; developed for museum curators and used at the Smithsonian Institute, Windsor Castle and the British Museum.