Be Careful with Quality and Durability of Jewelry

by Vicki Colvington

I have bought handcrafted jewelry at various cultural and artistic fairs, including the Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts and several Celtic festivals.

I would generally buy the handcrafted jewelry for myself, and have purchased mostly necklaces and bracelets.

I prefer handcrafted jewelry because it is so original - I love wearing something that is one-of-a-kind! I really enjoy the unusual materials and stones that many independent jewelry artists use in their products.

In general, my experience in buying handcrafted jewelry has been very good due to the friendliness of the vendors and the beautiful nature of their work.

My advice to independent jewelry artists would be to continue to offer original, unusual, and creative pieces of jewelry, but to make sure that their pieces are as durable and well-made as those available in large jewelry stores.

Unfortunately, a couple of times the pieces of handcrafted jewelry I purchased fell apart or broke after several months of use.

I would also encourage jewelry artists to participate in artistic and cultural fairs to attract a good customer base.