It surprises me how many people have difficulty finding the right jewellery. I’m not talking here about the difficulties of choosing between that lovely pair of red drop earrings or the spectacular emerald green ones (buy both!)
I firmly believe that jewellery should be available to all, and yet, so many of us struggle to achieve this simple goal, and for many different reasons.
Sizing
Not being a standard size myself, I do understand the frustration of not being able to find something to suit your personality. This is actually one of the reasons I started to make my own jewellery in the first place. I think its better now than it used to be, but the situation is still far from perfect. For this reason, I now use extension chains on a lot of my jewellery to make them adjustable, I might make them multi-size or sometimes do a selection of sizes but not only can this can get very expensive, but isn’t really practical as quite a few of my designs are one-off unique creations.
Some of my pieces are in ‘an average’ size, simply because I have to choose a size to make the item in, and since I am running a business, this needs to be what most of my customers require. However, I am aware that there is no such thing as ‘one size fits all’ and not everyone fits neatly into one category. Nor would I want them to. Wouldn’t that be boring if we all had the same shape?
Materials
Lots of you have allergic reactions to standard jewellery components. The most common is with ear wires, and because of this most of my wires are sterling silver. Unfortunately, a surprising amount of you can’t wear sterling silver, and this is where it gets interesting because in spite of what the manufactures tell you, there is no such thing as ‘safe for everybody’ wires. Most of my wires are fairly safe. I use lots of sterling silver, hypo-allergenic niobium, goldfill (these are 14k gold-plated) stainless steel, and occasionally, titanium as well. If you have sensitive ears it might be best to steer clear of copper ear wires. I stock them because so many people like them, and copper earrings are beautiful, but they are not hypo-allergenic and the copper has a tendency to go green, so these might best be avoided if you have problems with jewellery components.
Ability
Jewellery can be fiddly for the best of us, and if you have, for instance, arthritis or mobility issues, putting on jewellery can, quite literally, be a pain in the neck. Even something as simple as being left-handed can be a nuisance in dressing day to day. I know you get used to it. Yes, I’m sure you can cope perfectly well, but if it bothers you, why suffer when you might not need to? There are often ways around these problems. But I can’t help if I don’t know what the problem is.
What to do
Come and talk to me. I will not share anything you tell me with anyone else unless you want me to. Nor will I judge you. I just want to help you find the fun and pleasure that everyone deserves. Nobody should be excluded from expressing themselves in this way simply because of their size, age, gender, or physical ability. I like to think that between us, we can find a style that will work for you. I don’t generally make custom pieces, but usually that’s not necessary. I would be happy to advise on which of my products could be suitable for your needs, and a lot of items can be adjusted to work for you – like changing a fastening, ear wires, or adding an extension, for instance. In special circumstances I would consider making something just for you, but unless you ask, that’s not going to happen, is it?