Jasmine Hardisty 24/10/24
I began making jewellery as a hobby in 2020, during the Covid-19 pandemic. I found it to be a creative outlet and a distraction from what was happening in the world.
I saw a post on Depop, where someone was selling their handmade earrings and I thought I could do this too.
I already had the materials to make jewellery to sell, so I began to make funky earrings in styles that were trending back then:
(Jasmines Jewellery 2020)
I sold this style of earrings for 2 years on Depop. I tried to follow current fashion and jewellery trends to keep customers returning. I also held various sales and offers to encourage sales. The earrings were all stainless steel, to ensure they wouldn’t tarnish quickly. I would sell these earrings for very affordable prices (from £1.50-£4 a pair), which made it very hard to make a profit. I still have and wear a few of my original designs. My favourite design from 2020 was my safety pin earrings, because the idea was so innovative and different to anything I had seen in style back then. I would love to re-create these in a modern way.
In 2022, I ventured into selling crystals and crystal jewellery, as this was a massive trend on social media:
(Jasmine’s Jewellery 2022)
Buying and sourcing unique crystals was so exciting to me, as they had become a passion of mine before I decided to sell them. To this day, I still find pleasure in collecting unique crystals (even though the prices have gone up since the trend). My brand was always very affordable, so I made sure to keep the prices of my crystals low, as I knew this is what my customers would want. I also decided to start selling earring bundles instead of separately, as this would ensure I would make more money per sale, rather than £1.50 for a pair of earrings. This technique benefitted my small business, as it meant I was selling higher quantities. The bundles would cost around £3.50-£8, so I still wasn’t making a significant amount of profit, but it was still worth it to me, because I love making jewellery.
In 2024, I decided I wanted to make more out of my small business, so I decided to re-brand:
(Jasmine’s Jewellery Logo 2024)
Towards the end of 2023, I started to loose hope in my small business, as I hadn’t made any sales in a while. This was because the jewellery I was selling went out of style.
So, I decided to create a website with a custom domain, re-brand and invest in better quality materials and more sophisticated designs. I also decided to focus on necklaces and bracelets for a change. I still use stainless steel, as it keeps my jewellery affordable, but I have tried a variety of chains to ensure they are all very high quality. The chain I use can be washed or in water and it will not tarnish; this has always been a requirement of mine, as my biggest pet peeve is jewellery that tarnishes. This summer, on holiday, I wore 3 of my necklaces everyday and didn’t take them off to swim, put on suntan lotion or shower and they stayed the same quality. This is how I know the quality of my materials are excellent; because I personally test them. On instructions for the jewellery I do state to keep away from water and lotion, but this is to ensure best kept quality; the jewellery can be worn for pretty much anything. (Not the upcycled bead jewellery, as this is delicate).
My first collection was called ‘Upcycled Beads’ and featured a selection of necklaces and bracelets I had handmade using upcycled beads. I would source and buy old jewellery and upcycle them into something new to give the beads a new life:
(Jasmine’s Jewellery Up-cycled Bead Collection 2024)
I was so proud of my first collection and surprised at how beautiful beads can be when you change them into a something new. When making up-cycled jewellery, I never use any used/old fastenings, or charms as I use brand new ones to keep the quality of the jewellery high. I thoroughly enjoyed mixing and matching beads to make beautiful designs.
I love having a sustainable side to my small business, as I give a new life to old pieces and keep them from being thrown away, as well as creating a unique selling point for my brand. I source them from Vinted or charity shops.
Moving forward to using brand new and improved quality materials, I wanted to create simplistic every-day wear jewellery pieces to add to customers collections. I order the materials online from a manufacturer and then create unique designs by putting the pieces together. I like to freestyle my designs and I only make a vague plan of what I can do with each charm or chain before I order them. I like to put the materials in front of me and design as I go. This allows me to be fully creative with my designs and I love doing it as a hobby.
I wear my jewellery everyday, because I’m so proud of what I create:
(Jasmine’s Jewellery 2024)
Because I use better quality materials, this means I can charge more, but I still ensure they are affordable. For jewellery, my prices range between £10-£32 depending on the materials used.
Over the past 8 months of re-branding my small business, I have released 3 collections in total: Upcycled Beads, Spring’ 24 and Summer’ 24. On my website I now have over 100 products available, as I’ve tried to grow my website to have a wide selection.
At the moment, it’s hard to promote my website. I barely get visitors or sales, but I’m hoping studying fashion business will help me learn how to grow my small business.
I have a lot of plans for the future of Jasmine’s Jewellery and I hope I can achieve them.
Thank you so much for reading about Jasmine’s Jewellery so far, I will be posting more blogs about it soon.
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