The Advantages of Handmade Jewellery
Hello and welcome to Artisan Jewellerys’ blog!
My name’s Naomi & I started working at Artisan back in November 2020, taking a few photographs of stock pieces for the website. I quickly felt at home working here and it wasn’t long before I started managing the social media and using my love of photography to show off Artisans beautiful designs!
For those of you who don’t know us, Artisan Handmade Jewellery is a contemporary jewellers founded by Justine Holliday, that prides itself on providing its customers with bespoke pieces.
With over 25 years of experience in the industry, Justine designs, hand makes, up -cycles and remodels jewellery, with the help of a few other bespoke jewellery makers who are also a part of the Artisan Team.
Although I come from a creative background, I had no knowledge of jewellery prior to working at Artisan, and so I’ve had the privilege of being able to learn from Justine about the jewellery industry and all that it entails. It’s now been 2 years since I started working alongside the Artisan Team and Justine has asked me to start this blog, written from the perspective of someone who used to know nothing but now has a new found appreciation (and slight obsession!) for jewellery.
When I first started working here, I had only been into high street jewellers before and I remember being totally amazed at the differences between mass manufactured jewellery and the work that was being produced here at Artisan. With that being said, I wanted to share with you some of the reasons why handmade jewellery is ALWAYS a better choice than just picking something up off the shelf, discussing some of the differences between handmade jewellery and machine made jewellery, and why I couldn’t ever go back into a high street jewellers again…
1. You get YOUR perfect jewellery piece
When you purchase a piece that is designed and made specifically for you, you can trust that you will get exactly what you’re looking for. This is because from start to finish, you are involved in the design process (as much as you want to be!) and will learn first hand about gemstones, metals, and other jewellery components from the experts. It’s amazing watching customers being able to get so involved in the design process, and that they get to watch their piece come to life. From choosing the metal, to designing the shank, (the band of metal that forms the ring) to selecting the perfect stones, buying handmade jewellery allows you to get really creative and have something that is uniquely yours.
2. Handmade pieces are the best quality
The design process for a unique handmade jewellery piece is a totally different process to pieces sold on the high street that are mass produced. Bespoke handmade jewellery will ALWAYS be to a significantly higher standard than machine made jewellery. All pieces made at Artisan have a jeweller focusing solely on your commission, ensuring that each component sourced is of the highest quality and that all stones are from reputable sources. Having an item of jewellery commissioned entirely for you is definitely a luxury experience which leaves you with the finest quality jewellery. Being able to work so closely alongside a bespoke jewellery maker gives you a new found appreciation for the hard work, time, talent and skill that goes into each and every piece!
3. Each piece is entirely unique!
Probably the coolest thing about handmade jewellery is that you will never find another piece that is exactly the same. No two stones are identical, no two textures created can be the same and each jeweller will have their own style. Each piece comes with its own individuality and quirks, a small piece of wearable art! Artisan is known for its slightly more unusual handmade jewellery pieces, and customers are continuously inspired by the different designs and pieces that can be found in the workshop. What’s a bigger flex than knowing your jewellery is completely and totally one of a kind!?
In my two years working at Artisan, I am continually impressed by the knowledge and expertise required to create each commission and I have witnessed first hand that purchasing from a bespoke jewellers provides you with not only a high quality piece of unique jewellery, but also the experience of being able to get fully involved in the design process alongside the experts and to watch your piece come to life.
The best way to gauge why handmade jewellery is always the better choice is to come down to the workshop and see it for yourself! Book a FREE consultation or get in touch with us online – promise it’s not as scary as it sounds! We’ll happily walk you through the process and have a chat about all things jewellery over a cup of coffee.
Please feel free to leave any questions or suggestions for future posts in the comments – have you visited the Artisan workshop and noticed the same differences as me? Did it surprise you? What did you take away from your experience? I would love to hear from you!
