How Do You Design Custom Sterling Silver Jewelry?
For silver crafters and smiths, the practice of creating custom jewelry items is both a lucrative business and a great means of making special gifts for family and friends. Whatever your reasons for creating something custom, the process of designing such an individualized piece must involve careful effort and attention to the requests of the intended recipient in order to avoid working hard on a piece that turns out not to fit the recipient’s wishes. Discuss the project with the recipient. Ask detailed questions about the desired piece to determine size, finish, use of any gems, what’s being depicted, and how the jewelry item will fit. Write down the answers to these questions to avoid forgetting any important details. Ask the recipient what kind of silver is desired and whether any other types will be mixed with the sterling. Explain the differences between pure silver, sterling silver (which has copper added), and nickel silver (which is a nickel-copper alloy that only looks like si
