Initial Designs – Jet Jewellery

Initial Designs – Jet Jewellery

Photographs taken by Sam Ellis 31/07/2016

Photographs show Initial designs made by Sam Ellis.

Through the process of the research I decided to design and make Whitby Jet Jewellery.

The research emphasized that the designs would be simple, made to a high standard and be saleable.  Using the reclaimed/ reused jet was of interest to me having previously made jewellery from reclaimed broken clay pipes and I was excited to work with a new material. The Jet followed the theme of heritage as it is millions of years old and as its own story to tell.

I love the idea of being able to take something that is old and unused and create something modern and functional. This project is a challenge as I am unsure at this stage how the jet will manipulate and if I can form a finished piece of jewellery.

Initially the designs I made were very simple and the designs to a great extent followed the shape of the piece of jet chosen to work with, as you can see from the photographs.

Choosing the ideal piece of jet to work with was important as the finished piece had to be a functional size.

The target audience age group is female, 25+, pitching the sales price £15.00 - £30.00 dependent on size and design of the jet, attempting to sell the jewellery to a younger market.

The finished product floats between being handmade bespoke and low batch production, as similar shapes can be reproduced but the jet will have slightly different characteristics from piece to piece.