For thousands of years both men and women have been adorning themselves with jewellery made from a host of different materials from bone and wood to precious metals and gems and for a myriad of differing reasons, for showing their position within society, for demonstrating their wealth, to increase their attractiveness, to show whether or not they are available and mainly in the case of men to show off their bravery and prowess as a hunter or warrior.
There is one major attribute that all this jewellery has in common and that is its uniqueness, it would have to have been made by a craftsman so consequently would be high quality and of course handmade. We still view and enjoy jewellery in the same way, think of royalty and crown jewels, how about successful entrepreneurs and expensive watches, facial piercings, wedding or engagement rings and members of the armed services and their medals.
Out of all those category's there is one that has not been mentioned, one that in recent times has outstripped all the others and that is the jewellery used to "fashionise" ourselves to show that we fit in that we are part of what is popular at any given time. The downside of this is that in the main this particular type of jewellery is mass produced not allowing for individuality, is produced from poor quality material and with little if any input from craftsmen of quality.
There seems to be something we have lost, something we have forgotten concerning jewellery. It has become disposable a throw away item because of this poor quality mass production. Where as prior to probably the industrial revolution when mass production became possible not only jewellery but much of what was used in everyday life had to be made by artisans, even during and following the industrial revolution much was hand painted, hand turned or thrown, present day fashion jewellery is a far cry from early mass production.
Yes its cheap, yes its readily available, yes you can have it now and yes all these things are facts which cannot be argued with, but where is the originality, where is the passion, the love of something beautiful where is the excitement of knowing that you are wearing something totally unique that no other person has isn't that what sets people apart, isn't that what wearing jewellery is all about.
We all love beautiful things and yes beauty is a very subjective issue, but the fact that someone has sat down and designed with thought, created with passion and finished with love gives a piece of jewellery beauty, even if it isn't quite to your taste you must surely appreciate the skill and zeal that goes into a creation. For these reasons an increasing number people feel the need to shape their own unique style and prefer to buy quality handmade jewellery - long may it continue.