Hello!
I can't remember a time that I didn't want to make jewellery. I played around endlessly with beads and wire as a child, and became interested in silversmithing and metalworking in my late teens and early 20's. I did a few workshops, asked lots of questions, learned some skills and practiced, practiced, practiced. A mere couple of decades later, I got myself properly organised and managed to complete a silversmithing course 2 weeks before the first COVID lockdown.
I used the next two years to hone my skills and finally set up my tiny silversmith workshop in the Steel City!
I Heart Metal
My first love is still metalworking. It's elemental, alchemistic, challenging and a little bit magical.
Within that love, silver is my favourite metal. I never get tired of watching silver transform under heat. The shimmer and glow of molten metals is the thing I'm always striving to keep in the finished piece.
One of my favourite things is creating polished spheres of silver and soldering them onto ring settings and so on. These 'stones' are tactile, shiny and never catch on clothing!
Most pieces are mirror-polished as standard, but I can give any item a matt finish: just let me know if that's what you prefer.
Please bear in mind that each piece of handmade jewellery will be unique and may have very minor differences to the one you see in the photograph.
Want Something Making?
All the items in my shop are my regular stock. I carry small stocks of certain pieces, but make many pieces to order. I can make any piece in an alternative metal, so if you want star earrings in copper or fine silver, or little hammered moons in brass, just ask. The price is the same, and I always have a store of metals to meet any requests. My turnaround time is usually around 7 days, but let me know if it's urgent - I'll always do my best!
The exception is gold - I don't work with it on a daily basis, but I'm happy to make any of my regular pieces in gold (or gold filled), by arrangement. Tip: polished brass looks pretty much exactly the same, so buy that and tell your friends it's gold :)
Singles?
I'm happy to sell single earrings or mismatched pairs. Just let me know which one you want - it will be (unsurprisingly) half the price of the pair.
Ethics, Commissions & Other Stuff
I try to work ethically, and source my metals and gemstones with care. All the silver I work with is recycled. I've recently started using Argentium Silver alongside sterling silver, which is beautiful - super-bright and dazzlingly shiny! I think I'm a convert.
I do set gemstones, but I don't have pieces in my regular shop as a rule. I occasionally add a stone-set piece, but do ask if there's something in particular you'd like me to make. I absolutely love buying stones, so have a magpie's dream of a gemstone drawer! Let me know if you want to chat about a gemstone setting.
I occasionally accept commissions - it depends on what's happening, what you need, and how busy life is! Email me with any requests, and I'll let you know if I can help.
I'm not really a Facebook user, but I try to keep Instagram up to date. I'll usually put anything important up there - any craft fairs I'm selling at, new designs/sales and so on.
Any questions, drop me an email - I'll get back to you within 24 hours!
Rhona x
Copyright © 2023 Matterandghost - All Rights Reserved.
Powered by GoDaddy Website Builder