Sourcing materials for jewellery making

No doubt this is a question that is sometimes asked of jewellery makers and designers. Where do you source and choose your materials for making your jewellery? I will let you into a secret. Most of the time jewellery makers will not let you know where they obtain their materials. This is for a couple of reasons.

One – they do not want you to start copying their design ideas. Two – most of them feel that you should be doing your own homework and research in finding the best sources or materials and components. I also think there is the ‘bloody cheek’ aspect which is a combination of the previous two comments.

Personally most sources of raw materials and components for making jewellery is obvious. Most of my sources include ebay, Amazon, Etsy and of course independent online retailers.

Using the internet

After much internet searching you will get to find a handful retailers who you can rely on for specialist components but for the most part I am inclined to use the above mentioned outlets. You tend to have more recourse with the likes of ebay if something goes wrong, especially as you can leave bad reviews if you are not happy with the product or delivery of something you have ordered.

One thing I have noted being located in the UK, that google in its frustrating wisdom, will only return search results for the UK. So if you are looking for websites outside of the UK you need to add the country name in your search. For example, I may search for ‘vintage jewelry making components US’. Also note that I use the US version of spelling jewelry as I think this helps with relevant search results.

When looking for specialist or handmade beads I have found both ebay and Etsy to be helpful. But I do find that Etsy can be more expensive but the choice is often pretty good.

Of course, making handmade jewellery is more than just the beads and bits. You need packaging, sellotape, packing boxes, bubble wrap, business cards, padded envelopes, tools, lighting, printer ink, the list goes on. Even special software may be needed to help improve photography, which is something I am still getting to grips with.

But getting back to sourcing materials, make the best use of the websites mentioned above and then you need to be shrewd in you use of google to get the results you are looking for. And always bookmark the sites you have found that offer great items. I also cut and paste the URL of these sites into a document just in case my laptop goes belly up and backup onto a memory stick.

Collection of drop beads ready for charm bracelets

Happy hunting

Carolyn