Writing Product Descriptions for Your Jewelry: Part 5 - "Designer"

by Chelsea Clarey
(TangoPig Jewelry Creations)

What would I accomplish by calling these "designer earrings"?
It's more evocative to call them "sturdily handmade
earrings with quirky patterned beads."
Civilities Earrings by Chelsea Clarey.

When we sell through catalogues or online, we have a unique challenge to face.

How to make up for the absent experience of touching and holding jewelry? How do we persuade people to connect to a piece of jewelry though a computer screen or a glossy page?

One way is to provide text descriptions, or copywriting, that gives the reader an added emotional response through artful presentation.

However, description space is usually limited, and shoppers' attention spans always are! Every word in the space we have becomes important.

In this article we're going to examine the word "designer," and try to figure out exactly what we mean by it.

We're not talking about the person who designs here, but the adjective: "designer jewelry," "designer homes."

It's intended to suggest
one or more of the following:

• This item was made by a fashion studio whose name is recognizable.


• This item was created by someone who is a designer.


• This item's form was planned for maximum aesthetic quality.

So basically, unless you're an Italian design house, you've told me that your jewelry is handmade and pretty. There are much more forceful ways to say this.

"Designer" is mostly useful for describing your profession. Many of us are most comfortable with "jewelry designer" or "jewelry artist" as a description of our trade.

For descriptions of objects, though, it's imprecise and a little problematic.

Generally, we see "designer"
used in these ways:

• "Great deals on designer jeans, designer alternative bags."
  
  In these usages, especially in the latter case, "designer" doesn't indicate a thing about quality, beauty - not even about design! Which designers? Who decides when a label goes from just a brand name to "designer"?


• "We offer tours of inspiring designer homes."
  
  In this case, the impression is that a designer was involved in or in charge of creation. It's still a little ambiguous, though. And does it really imply beauty, quality and uniqueness?


• "Decorate with designer touches."
  
  Which sense is this sentence going for? Probably just that the items have a "designerish" look. Swarovski sometimes uses the word in this way to describe their couture pendant line. It suggests that someone somewhere thought this was an aesthetically smart item, but couldn't that be said much better?

Calling this a "designer brooch" undercuts its individuality
with vague wording. Instead, it's an edgy and feminine
piece hand-wrapped with an eye to careful balance
of the different motifs.
Beloved's Eye Brooch by Chelsea Clarey.

Basically, there's nothing wrong with the word "designer". There's nothing essentially wrong with any of the words we're discussing in this series.

It's just that it fills up spots in your valuable text that could be used for connotative language that makes buyers fall in love with your jewelry.

So instead of the bland "designer,"
try exciting alternatives:

• Instead of "handmade necklace with a designer pendant,"
  
  try "This seed-bead creation is constructed around a pendant made by one of the most respected crystal manufacturers in the world." This makes the distinction between your work and the tastefully chosen objects you incorporate clear, and sounds much more luxurious.


• Instead of "designer bracelets for your wedding,"
  
  try "Adorn your bridal party with these exquisite bracelets. I make each one from a design I developed over years in the trade." It gives the impression of both beauty and professionalism without sounding too corporate.


• Instead of "designer beaded keychains,"
  
  try "Tasteful but sporty, these beaded keychains are a great bit of frosting for a cute purse!" The more specific adjectives clue your reader in as to how they're meant to regard the item, while giving just as much of an air of taste and ingenuity as "designer" would. Note how "frosting," too, gives a younger, peppier sound to the sentence.

Now, with more connotative alternatives to the tired "designer," your descriptions are creating the personal response that helps your beautiful jewelry sell!

Next time:

We'll pick up again soon with a discussion of
the old standby "one of a kind."

See the rest of this series:

Writing Product Descriptions for Your Jewelry

Author Chelsea Clarey of TangoPig Jewelry Creations is a jewelry designer who gravitates toward bead and wire jewelry because the simple techniques have infinite artistic applications. She specializes in reusing vintage components in stylish one-of-a-kind designs. When not creating, she thinks much too much about word choice in jewelry descriptions. Be sure to keep up with Chelsea on her TangoPig Jewelry Creations blog.