23/05/2026
This piece sums up my jewellery making journey right now, such is life.
I was playing with some of my silver fossils and realised by placing two differing ammonite sizes together in a particular way, you make a teardrop design. I immediately wanted to create a lovely pendant highlighting it, with the very two pieces that inspired me.
Once I had made the initial piece I realised it would be over hallmarking weight, adding a chunk of cost to an already costly piece, holding a lot of silver.
Then I felt my heart sink a little. The cost of this was prohibitive and people wouldn’t buy it. It would be at least £160, and I don’t think people yet correlate silver with its current worth. As I build up stock for the fossil festival in Lyme, I’m already concerned about low sales and worrying I’ll look a fool with costly stock.
I’ve always followed my heart with making, and it feels like I can’t do that anymore. Mistakes are too costly and silver isn’t gold and so doesn’t carry that same worth, no matter how much it costs me.
I have sat down and had frank discussions with my husband, that this job is costing me more than it makes, that I can’t buy more silver now without the sales, and that I may need to revert to this becoming a hobby rather than a full time job, and go out and find work that can actually pay the bills. I’ve never come closer to pausing the business and taking stock. Creating content every day in the hope people see it (the algorithm can be unkind), making jewellery, and then taking in £180 in sales for the month can be soul destroying.
I would love to venture into wax and gold, but I’m not sure I have enough self belief right now, nor faith in the market.
Perhaps it’s sharing these thoughts that holds me back, if I don’t believe in my business, how can my customers. But I stand by my initial decision to take a warts and all approach, and I think a problem shared is often a problem halved. I know many of us are in the same boat.
For now, I’ll consider keeping this necklace myself to wear to the fossil festival. I’ll stand proudly behind my display, and hope people understand the heart and soul that went into each and every piece of jewellery.
