My silver pattern and me. Carbon Steel versus Stainless Steel

This particular pattern though not this particular silver and I have been fellow travelers back and forth across the globe since a hot August Parisian afternoon in the 7th arrondisement 1994. We first met on the Boulevard de la Tour Maubourg at a lovely shop that no longer exists.  I was broke, but my credit card still had a little life in it.  It took me three days and three trips on the RER train to lug my treasure home.  I loved my silver and whenever I found a matching piece I purchased it.  I began with Christofle but after several years I discovered an Austrian company called Krupp & Berndorf.  Their knives had the most beautiful handles and to me, the knives make the silver collection.  The photos I have posted are of my knives. I have three varieties.  The handle on the far right is by Christofle. It is my least favourite, I prefer the center one with the small bump at the end of the handle.  The 'bump' is hard to find. To change the blade the bump is quite often cut off as it helps secure the blade.  Old carbon steel blades seems to have gone out of fashion.  I love them. Nothing is more chic than their  substantial shape and nothing cuts better than their sharp blades.  Thomas Harris mentioned them more than once in Hannibal as the one dining implement Hannibal Lector could not live without.   They do require high maintenance and as with silver and people not wanting to polish it anymore, the blades require extreme effort. They cannot be left wet for long otherwise they discolour and rust.  The best method I have heard of to clean them was one I learned from an 85 year old french woman who learned the concoction's recipe from her mother.  Mind you, this method as well as keeping the silver perfectly polished require both time and preferably staff which unfortunately most of us don't have.  She told me to gather the cigarette ash from the ash trays. I don't really know where one would find cigarette ash nowadays but I think wood ash from the stove would work fine or one could approach a smoking friend or someone on the street for their ash.  One you have the ash, you place it in a bowl and mix it with gin, taking a little nip for yourself is fine but in all things moderation is key remembering that these blades are very sharp and if you are too tipsy a sliced hand could result.  The mixture is combined to form a paste that is then applied to the blade with a cork.  The result is a lovely polished carbon steel blade.