GOLD! Always believe in your soul...

ANOTHER MONTH, ANOTHER IDEA - yes, my dandelion mind has been whirring away again after another successful Yard Market craft fair in Dundee (29 March 2025). A huge thank you to everyone that came, chatted, complimented my products and bought from me. I sell a lot of my products cheaper than I should, but I am happy with this. Spreading my wee bits of art into the world is more important to me than profit when I am in the position of also having a full-time job. If that ever changes, then I will need to get more 'serious'. Saying that, I know buying solid silver jewellery is a pricey outlay for people at a time of economic stress, so I cannot stress enough how much I appreciate you all!

So, that idea. I love the number of people that come to my stall that clearly adore silver jewellery - be prepared for me to admire and ask questions about your jewellery, like some sort of rabid magpie - but I do get a lot of people looking for gold pieces too. Working with gold is not something I have ventured into yet, purely because the cost of raw materials is more eye-watering than silver currently is however, I have looked at providing Vermeil and gold filled jewellery via the site from other producers. Vermeil is Sterling Silver that is plated with gold to a minimum of 0.05% gold by weight, while gold filled jewellery is usually brass mechanically bonded to gold. The latter process needs to have a minimum gold content of 5% per weight and is less prone to flaking than gold-plated jewellery thought the base metal is, well, more base than with Vermeil. I'm still weighing up the pros and cons, as well as looking at solid gold pieces to stock, but the price point difference is obviously large. Let me know your preference.

While this new idea is bubbling away, it won't distract me from my main passion - making silver jewellery! I was thrilled to see my 'Manila' ring find its new home last week with the person who had been admiring it since last year. It was amazing to see 'Earn' float off to pastures new on the other side of the world with an Australian tourist. It blows my mind to think of my hallmarks travelling so far away, but also living in Scotland. I'm busily preparing my next batch of creations to send to the Edinburgh Assay office. A lot of jewellers don't get their creations hallmarked for different reasons - some see it as elitist, others purely from a cost perspective, and I understand both points of view completely. I choose to hallmark work that legally doesn't need it (weighing under 7 ounces) as a way for me to leave a little mark on history whilst guaranteeing quality for my customers, but I know other passionate and talented silver-smiths who are not as fortunate as to be able to write off the costs involved when raw material costs are, frankly, bonkers right now.

Another favourite last week was one of the retail pieces that I sell, the "Witche's Knot". I only had a small batch of them to sell (three!) and I think I could have sold them twice over - three new witches were created/enhanced that day, though I do not offer any guarantees on the effectiveness of the jewellery in augmenting curses and spells - hahah! Though I am thoroughly scientifically grounded, I think the world would be a much better place for having more witches in it, being mindful of our place in nature and how we affect the world around us. I will be ordering more of these sterling silver rings to help any potential witches and warlocks out there look fabulous.

Hubble-bubble

As well as looking at stocking gold, I am also looking into wax carving to create pieces. I have really enjoyed working with metal clay to open up a new way to create, and I was hugely impressed with the work of Diem Jewellery who uses this method. I don't think I will be jumping into stone setting like they do, but if my adventure in silver-smithing has taught me anything, it is to be brave and try new things when creating art. The only expectations you should endeavour to meet are those that you create for yourself.

Lastly, I was supposed to be at The Yard Market on 5 April, but I think there has been an administrative faux-pas as I am not on the list of stallholders. I'll update the list on this site for markets I am attending and also post on Instagram when I know when my next Yard Market is. Be awesome to each other and keep on looking fabulous.

Best regards,

Chris.