Many jewellery companies claim to be bespoke as this is a great selling point considering lots of people want to create something unique and special for something like an engagement ring. there are many terms and slogans businesses use to convince people they aren't just selling off-the-shelf mass-produced jewelry. Here we are going to break down some of these misleading terms.
What is Bespoke?
We regard any handmade piece as bespoke, as the intricate differences that each craftsman will create means there is a human signature on the piece that will always be unique. Bespoke refers to something custom-made or tailored to a specific individual's preferences or requirements. Our background is in Bespoke, back before we developed any collections or products we were hand-making everything from scratch, the same way things were made before CAD. we understand bespoke design, working in many styles and genres over the years. Bespoke can be achieved with CAD but once a ring is created the file can be reproduced however many times the company likes verging on a mass production technique.
What is Handcrafted?
This is a tricky term which a lot of companies use to give an artisanal handmade feel to their products and brands. In truth, any piece of jewellery can be regarded as crafted, even a mass-produced product. At some point in the process human beings must work on the piece, . whether it is assembling component's that have been cast separately or securing stones in a mount. it's not fully automated just yet. So pretty much any piece of jewellery can be regarded as crafted We also use this term as not all our jewellery is handmade anymore.
What is CAD:
These days the vast majority of jewellery is disgned on a computer 3D printed then cast into a precious metal. This is a great way to reduced costs. Clients are able to see renders before confirming which puts alot of people at ease.It also means companies do not need any actual stock or to create any actual products until they have an order!
What is mass produced?
when we hear the term mass produced we immediately get turned off. But the techniques used to create mass produced items are really what you want to be interested in. To make jewellery on mass you will need a mould or a cad file so the product can be cast as many times as necessary. but the process alone isn't a bad thing. It will depend on the company. As a small independent business we dont make anything on mass, this doesn't mean we don't use moulds or cad files.
when creating a collection, we want to maintain a consistent product so we will use a mould to recreate the band . but we never do large runs and most of our components are designed to be customized by our clients. We have devised modular system, to play around with, meaning customers can create something unique using components from our collection. This is not truly bespoke but is close and a lot of fun plus it saves on costs for the client.
What is imported?
Many UK retailers don't have the capabilities to produce their own pieces and will be using pre-made ring mounts. Although usually bought from a wholesalers here in the UK most will be imported on mass from China. the fact the ring mounts can be brought in then Hallmarked by the London Assay office, this is a loophole many take advantage of. Our UK Assay offices are known throughout the world as a mark of quality and authenticity. Many of these imported mounts can pass the hallmarking process but are very low quality can cannot be worked on after creation .
This means resizing is an issue as poor quality metals can crack and settings etc can also break resulting in the loss of stones.
What is ethical?
Speaking about bad metal! Just about every jeweller in the country claims to be ethical. reusing metal can result in bad outcomes if you don't know what you're doing. Sure they may claim to use fair trade gold but do they and is the piece hallmarked as so? The most ethical way to produce a piece of jewellery is by hand making which we already know very few jewellers can still actually do. Handmaking insures that no Carbolt has been used which is a key component of the casting process. most jewellers are using carbolt in every platinum piece they make but they stay rather quiet about this, whilst selling Lab-grown diamonds still and claiming to be ethical.
Lab-grown:
Whilst labss are viewed as ethical and whilst the technology itself is promising, there are certainly many hurdles to cross before they can be claimed to be ethical.
We prefer to be honest and transparent throughout and the finished product is our main concern