Jewelry Making

So it’s a week before Xmas and you’re STILL looking for holiday gifts for all your friends? Well, maybe this year you should consider getting all your buddies some DIY or homemade jewelry for the holidays.

There’s a ton of different jewelry makers on the web who want to sell you their wares. Many of them offer specials, discounts, or free shipping when this time of the year rolls around in order to entice you to buy from them.

Necklaces and bracelets are big sellers during the holidays… there aren’t too many gals who don’t enjoy getting these as a gift. Because they are usually smaller items, DIY earrings and rings can also make great “stocking stuffers” or gifts for your office workmates. Don’t overlook handmade buttons, pins and other non-traditional jewelry items as well; these can be great for that friend who likes unusual gifts.

I was going to run down a whole bunch of different distributor sites that serve as hubs for distributing handmade or homemade jewelry, but time is running pretty short so I’ll just name a few. On that note… you want to try and order EARLY from your favorite indie jewelry store because they tend to close shop about a week before, in order to allow for shipping time. This is especially true with the smaller jewelry makers who don’t have the resources to keep the shop open up until the last day.

So, first I guess I get to plug our OWN shop which is Bellaceti. The items pictured above are all things that we’ve made. But we’re already closing up the shop for the holidays (next year I’ll remember to plug it earlier!) so you probably have to wait till next year if you’re interested in them.

A cool boutique that carries a lot of independent DIY arts and crafts including a good dose of jewelry is Fred Flare. They have a fun online store where there is tons of stuff to look through, like stationery, home decor and other crafty art things. For those who can’t make up their minds what to get their friends, there is always gift certificates.

On that note, gift certs at indie shops make a good option in general for picky gift recipients and you can feel good helpling out the smaller folks.

Here’s an example of one cool necklace from a company that we’ve already mentioned: Pancake Meow. Leslie makes “scented miniature dessert jewelry”… if you’ve seen her work then you know how detailed and delicious each cake slice, cupcake, doughnut or bon-bon looks! This particular bon-bon necklace features a polymer clay charm that is actually chocolate scented on an 18 inch pink cord with glass beads. Her methods for baking the desserts and adding the chocolate scents are a trade secret actually, hehe… so don’t go asking how they’re made!

Another cool shop that consigns a lot of top-notch DIY jewelry is Cut + Paste. The online store is actually run by Jenny all by herself in Brooklyn, but you wouldn’t know it from how nicely the website is designed and how many vendors run items through her! She sells a whole lot of vintage clothing, bags, and shoes as well as DIY crafts, paper goods, jewelry and other accessories.

Many of the items are actually OOAK (one of a kind) things in the store, so be prepared to see a lot of “SOLD OUT” signs. You’ve gotta move quickly in order to reserve things you like. An example is this interesting brass Bee Necklace by Erica Weiner which is suspended on a vintage chain that’s made out of brass as well. I thought it was kinda cool to use something non-traditional like insects in a necklace. I think she also makes Cicada and Fly earrings as well. Not for those who don’t like the creepycrawlies, but pretty cool in any case!

OK, I need to stop writing about stores now because you need to get online and finish up your holiday shopping. Just remember to keep jewelry in mind for your next purchase!