Oil rubbed bronze will wear to bronzer as time to time as the patina will wear. I'm not sure that wet hands or lotion will make any difference, it's mostly friction. However, back in college my material science professor pointed out if you examine the bronze handles in heavy use on the building doors at the university, during the summer, the acids in sweaty hands etch the handles a bit (you can see the exposed grain) but in the winter the gloved hands polish it shiny. On a more practical side, my neighbor's front door has ORB hardware and after 5 years the one you use (there's a dummy handle on the other door) is noticably lighter. I still put ORB on our exterior.

They have changed their formula to remove phosphates. Good for the environment, but bad for your silverware. Suggest you switch brands. There are still some brands e.g. Sunlight Advanced that say they work with silverware. I have also heard on this string that Method Pods work without tarnishing it. A homemade version of Washing Soda and Borax also work for silverware, but it's getting hard to find Borax anywhere also. Apparently it's not so good for people/planet either. I think with the Pewter it's going to be trial and error as well. If you find something that works, let us know.

I am also considering a soapstone countertop for my new home. I've been to my countertop shop and have acquired a 5x5 piece. For the past few weeks, I've been conducting "experiments" on it-butter, red wine, bacon fat, olive oil, water marks, knife work, etc. I've oiled it and will now try the wax product mentioned above. I have growing confidence that I am "a soapstone person" because I've had a chance to live with it. If you are considering a soapstone counter, get a chunk and play with it before you invest in an entire kitchen. Also-re water marks. It may be that water in different locations have different mineral contents. If water marks are truly driving you crazy, play with different waters (distilled, botted, etc) and then consider a water treatment system for your home. I have high calcium in my current home. It leaves marks on everything. I've played with bottled water on my soapstone chunk, and there's a difference.

I have been a metalsmith since 1988. It's not a "job", I don't work for someone else. I have an MFA in Jewelry and Metals, earned in 2006. As part of my training we studied forging, welding, casting and fabrication from sheet metal: in copper, brass, bronze, nickel, and silver. Including blacksmithing in iron. NO PIECE was considered complete until a proper PATINA was created. It is an important part of the finishing process, whether through application of chemicals from a bottle, liver of sulphur, fuming with ammonia, etc. Though it it IS an important part of the work, it is still an APPLIED patina. Here is the definitive book on the subject, which I and every other metals student studied : https://www.amazon.com/Colouring-Bronzing-Patination-Metals/dp/0823007626 Oxidation is nothing more than a chemical reaction between the molecules in the metal and compounds in the air (as in your outdoor bronze example) or compounds applied, such as the sulphur released by a liver of sulphur solution. A microscopic layer forms which is technically an alloy of the metal and the chemical, such as silver sulphide. You APPLY a patina chemical. OXIDATION is the result. Calling it "artificial" ...well: it's ALL artificial. I don't know of a single sculptor or jeweler today who lets their pieces color naturally in the air. It is because you cannot control the result that way. Go to an art fair like the Des Moines Art Festival (not a craft fair with "yard art") and talk to some modern day bronze sculptors. Ask them if they let their pieces color naturally. From ancient times through the Renaissance to the present day: sculptors have colored their metals. I have seen old recipes calling for burying the piece in sawdust with urine added; akin to the ammonia fuming of today. A raw bronze is not a pretty thing. There is no contrast, no richness of the surface. No Renaissance sculptor would have thought of exhibiting one. Unless coated with lacquer, all patinas are "living" surfaces. They will continue to react and the color change with time: sometimes looking better with age, sometimes not; with the original metal gradually being eroded/penetrated by the alloy. Hence many outdoor bronzes in Italy (where acid rain and air pollition in general is a problem), have been removed indoors to controlled conditions, and copies placed outdoors. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horses_of_Saint_Mark