Most consumers of the style industry are now moving towards the use of handcrafted artisan jewelry. The reason being its uniqueness, beauty, and that personal touch that doesn’t come with manufactured jewelry. But what exactly is handcrafted artisan jewelry? Why has it been attaining such popularity in recent years? With this blog, we will explore what goes into the making of handcrafted artisan jewelry and its different types.
What is Handcrafted Artisan Jewelry?
Handcrafted artisan jewelry is created by an artist with no use of the mass-manufacturing machinery. The jewelry hence made doesn’t have a standard look but comes with its sense of uniqueness. Artisan jewelry can range anywhere from bracelets to simplistic hand-assembled pendants. These pieces of jewelry might take several hours to days in order to be completed. One thing all the artisan pieces of jewelry have in common is that each piece is created using simple tools and hands.
Types and Techniques of Handcrafted Artisan Jewelry
1-Assembled Jewelry Making:
The simplest form of handcrafted artisan jewelry is defined as hand-assembled jewelry. This particular jewelry variant serves as an amazing accessory that offers a unique & personalized experience at affordable prices. These jewelry pieces are usually inclusive of bracelets, earrings, rings, and necklaces created from chain, charms, and certain jewelry findings. The assembly technique is easy to learn, and one can perfect the art within a few days or weeks of practice.
2-Wire-Wrapped Jewelry:
Jewelry created by the use of wire-wrapped technique is fairly easy to spot. Most artisans use this wire wrapping technique to create charms or pendants using beads or stones. The simplest form of wire wrapped jewelry acts as the decorative frame which is embellished with ornaments that add a sense of vividness to the entire makeup of the jewelry. However, with time, many artisans develop intricate techniques for weaving the wires to create amazing patterns. These handcrafted artisan jewelry pieces tend to be labor-intensive and takes time and effort to master the art.
Depending upon the design to be created, artisans can use various types of wire gauges. For the simple-frame designs, they might choose thicker gauge. However, the intricate designs require thinner-variant of such gauges. Moreover, the makers need to keep in mind that a soft wire is easier to wrap, but the full-hard wire provides durability for the piece being designed.
3-Fabricated Jewelry:
Handcrafted artisan jewelry of the fabricated style tends to cover a line of jewelry styles that vary from traditional gemstone-based rings to the wildly creative pieces. This variant of jewelry technique makes use of jewelry bench and metalsmithing techniques. Artisan jewelers tend to use the metal saw for cutting out basic shapes that help develop intricate jewelry details. Most jewelers use the soldering technique for attaching one component to others. This task can be a simple connection of two pieces of complex craft of multiple solder joins. The fabrication technique requires dedication and time to be excelled at.
4-Beaded Jewelry:
Handcrafted beaded jewelry is a simple yet intricate art depending on how and which beads are being used. Artisan jewelry makers can use multiple beads on single stringing material strand for creating necklaces or bracelets. Some bead variants include numbers and letters used for personalization. Beads shaped in various forms or characters attract the attention of ones that love bead-art. Artisans also make use of bigger statement beads that are packed with smaller ones to create a unique look.
5-Engraved/Hand Stamped Jewelry:
Hand stamping is a technique that allows the artisans to create a personalized custom piece of art that is easy and doesn’t take much time. All it requires are simple tools with unique techniques and the art of creation begins. The designs are initially created by the action of hammering the metal stamps with impression onto the metal blank using heavy hammer. Most of the tools can be obtained easily for professionals as well as hobbyists.
Since most metals can be stamped onto, it’s upon you to decide the price for each handcrafted artisan jewelry made by you. Copper and Aluminium blanks serve as the best and least expensive crafting metals. Once the artist has attained perfection in stamping the metal pieces, they can go ahead with creating the same effect on expensive metals such as gold blanks or sterling silver. Stamps are created, keeping in mind several designs that include animals, alphabets, people, holiday themes, shapes, and many more.
6-Enameled Jewelry:
The enamelled jewelry technique for handcrafted artisan jewelry is an amazing way to include some color pop into metallic jewelry pieces. In simple terms, enamelling is the basic process of fusing the glass powder onto the metal surfaces for creation of a rather permanent bond. Enamel can be added to the jewelry in various ways. The most preferred technique is the torch-firing method. It is considered affordable and simpler as compared to any other method.
Bottom Line
Now that you know everything that goes into handcrafted artisan jewelry making, its time you took it up as a hobby or better yet, Passion. However, the busy lifestyle that we have today might not allow leniency in time to practice this art. This doesn’t mean you cannot purchase them at affordable prices. Artisans have ventured into the online market with their unique talent that allows them to reach art lovers all around the world. So, why wait, when you can purchase your very own custom handcrafted artisan jewelry.
Looking for some unique styling options with custom handcrafted artisan jewelry? At ZVU Artisan Jewelry, we house the best collection of perfect handmade pieces that reflect your unique style statement. So, don’t wait! Shop right away and get amazing discounts on our classic products. You can also get in touch with us on our contact page. We will immediately get back to you for any queries about your order or the products.