When buying handmade jewellery, you may not realize it, but there are additional benefits that you get. The personal attention the artisan puts into making the masterpiece is just one thing. If you own handmade jewellery, you must know that you have invested, not purchased one of the zillion mass produced pieces. When I go jewellery hunting, I personally choose handmade because it allows me to customize, something that mass-produced jewellery simply cannot do. I had read it somewhere that when you buy handmade, you are helping an artist to do what he/she is most passionate about. With that in mind, I will be highlighting things that you may not have been aware of when purchasing handmade jewellery. So, let’s dive in!
There is no mass production involved
Imagine this; you have to attend your best friend’s birthday party. You put on your favourite dress, boots, and earnings. You enter the party and guess what, the birthday girl is wearing the same pair of earnings, but so is a friend of hers, a friend of yours, and a common friend. Head spinning, yet? Handmade jewellery comes to your rescue here and helps you stand out of the crowd.
Jewellery pieces that are handcrafted are made by the “hands” of the artisan, not shaped by a mass-produced manufacturing machinery. So, the design, shape, and colour of each jewellery piece are unique.
Amount of time involved
I have great respect for the time, thought, and effort put by an artisan into creating a beautiful handmade piece. Each piece is soldered, sawed, carved, and shaped by the jewellery maker, so an incredible amount of time is invested in producing just a single piece. It is said that a single piece can take weeks to complete.
Types of materials used
In most cases, the materials involved in the making are of stellar quality. They are ethically sourced with minimal carbon footprint. Also, many materials like old hooks, backings, and wires are recycled for mitigating costs.
The making process
One may not realise this, but the maker has a very intimate relationship with the jewellery meticulously designed and created from scratch. The frustrations and joys, the sense of victory, all go into the making. So, the handmade jewellery you wear has its own beautiful journey of lessons learned and tears of joy the maker shed when the design blueprint was made into a reality.
The quality aspect
The smaller the scale of production, the quality of the product is always higher. Why? Let me give you an example – Remember the first cake you baked? Did you use low-grade flour or a cheap butter stick for it? No, correct? You took great pride in making it and would never allow the taste of the cake to be compromised because of a bad quality ingredient. Similarly, no artisan will let something of inferior quality pass with his/her name on it.
Helping you go sustainable
Leading an eco-conscious lifestyle is the need of the hour, and handmade jewellery is one way to embrace it. Jewellery makers are dedicated to sustainability and choose materials that are sourced responsibly. Maya Bazaar is one such company that sells sustainable, handmade jewellery.
Indian crafts that promote sustainability are respected and appreciated by MiradorLife. Hence, the design studio has organized a special event, Weavers Nest, for all. The event will showcase a range of handmade jewellery from Maya Bazaar and hand-woven sarees and textiles by traditional Assamese weavers, so don’t miss out on this one.
Click here to register yourself for the event!
