Final Design – Jet Jewellery

Final Design – Jet Jewellery

              

All photographs taken by Sam Ellis 31/07/2016

Initially I designed and made x2 simple pendants which to a great extent followed the shape of the piece of jet, the follow on designs focused more on a difficult shape to be made and tested different chain connections. The final main design, as shown above, brought all the positive ideas together to make the successful fully functional, modern piece of jewellery, which could be sold via the MMU Originals site.

The making process followed the same routine as previously, with the greatest issue being drilling the holes in the jet for the sliver wire. As there was x5 holes to drill in total the risk in the jet breaking was quite high. The holes were drilled with a hand drill at a very slow turning speed.

6mm thick wire was used to create the butterfly wings on each side of the design and glued into place. I think these give the pendant a different dimension to the previous pieces made. I believe these look very effective and give the design an exciting chic mood, showing style and flare. The curves within this design are taken from my previous research through the Manchester Metropolitan Design shows and help emphasize the cool elegance of the design.

I used the handmade hook connection used with the initial designs as I thought artistically this complimented the jet design.

The same sterling silver 925 finish chain was used, deciding to use the 8 inch length which gave the most optimum level for the jet to be worn. The overall dimensions were slightly larger than the originals at 35mm x25mm x8mm, but are still an ideal size and proportion.

The surface finish was slightly less than super gloss level, giving a matt feel to the jewellery, which I do believe suits the 25+ younger female audiences I am targeting.

The costing are very similar to the early designs at around £17.94, but as the design is slightly more complicated and larger, I would set the retail price at £30.00. It also gives the family of pendants a varied retail price, to help attract and give choice to the audience.  By aiming at a competitive priced low to middle end market, away from the high end super gloss jet market, it would help sell this product.

The jewellery is aimed at the 25+ female audiences, younger than the normal jet customer. The retail research I carried out and discussed earlier confirmed the jewellery was suited to sell on line or via craft/gallery shops. The orthodox jet jewellers and normal high street jewellers were not interested in this product. Jet Jewellery is a niche market, but made to a high modern standard can attract interest in this market.

The reclaimed/ reused element of the jet is a positive marketing feature and in keeping the designs simple and using curves within the designs, do give an excellent finished product. The jewellery is hand crafted and to some extent bespoke as although designs can be repeated, each piece of jet is different, which again can be used as an advantage in marketing the product.

Future issues would be to speed up the make process by using powered sanders and buffers if access is available and prices for the silver chains and packaging can be resourced and reduced, helping to reduce material costs and improve the retail margins.

In conclusion, I believe I have been successful in designing and making a product fit for sale via the MMU Originals site.