The Most Unique Gift: Design Your Own Jewelry

December 5, 2017
Garth Sleater

Welcome to the end of 2017! It’s been a wild ride of a year but here we are, deep into the winter holidays. Along with the snows (ok, the chill) come the holidays and with the holidays come gift giving! If you are tired of handing out the same old same old then maybe it is time to take your jewelry up to the next level. How do you do that? Design your own jewelry!

design your own jewelry

How To Design Your Own Jewelry

Whether you mean to give the piece to your sweetheart or simply want to have the most unique, personalized piece for yourself, designing your own jewelry makes for truly singular art. All pieces will go through the same process.

  1. Ideas
  • The first thing to do is to develops ideas. Look for inspiration wherever you can. Look at the pieces in your own collection. The styles you already favor. Perhaps (maybe even subconsciously) you favor a specific type of bead, clasp, or color. Maybe there is a piece you are missing.
  • Browse stores, look at famous pieces of old. After all, style is cyclical. What was once popular may yet be on the horizon for style. Wherever you can find a spark for your imagination, be open to the influence!
  1. Materials
  • After you have an inkling of ideas, it is time to begin making material choices. You have the style in mind now you need to determine what it is going to be made out of.
  • Metals – Different metals work for different style choices. If you are hoping to incorporate a design choice like loops you will want a softer metal, like gold.
  • Stones – If the jewelry is going to incorporate some sort of jewel, or gem think back to your inspirations. Stones are mostly personal taste, but keep in mind the cost as some are more expensive. A hint: if you are not particularly leaning one way or the other, choose a stone that reflects your natural eye color. This will cause it to pop!
  • Metals aren’t the only material out there. If they seem a bit too traditional, look elsewhere to alternative materials. Wood, plastic, twine, resin, and others are less common but all useable.
  1. Get Sketching
  • You have ideas and materials in mind, get sketching! Using graph paper can help you have a sense of better design elements. Don’t constrain yourself to one idea. Sketch out every idea that tickles your fancy. It is easier to make these tweaks and changes now before you begin working with the precious materials.

All of these steps make the process of creating unique, perfect for you (or whoever) pieces of jewelry that you can not just pick up in the shop. Absolutely anyone can make the steps in creating their own pieces of jewelry.

Once you have some sketches in hand, materials in mind contact a jeweler (Lonnie’s is happy to help) and begin working with a professional to turn your dream into a reality!

Work with our experts to design your custom jewelry and create the perfect piece for you or whoever is to receive the gift. It may be a smidge bit late to begin preparing for a holiday surprise, but if you get an early start, 2018 is right around the corner! From all of us here at Lonnie’s, we hope your holidays are happy, that you have a Happy New Year! We will see you next year!