he history of jewelry is fluid in a lot of ways. How it was worn, when, and by whom has been, for much of man's history, an ever-changing thing. By and large, jewelry as fashion came into its own in 3000 BC Egypt. The Greeks added colored stones to the A-list in 1400 BC. 600 years later, in 800 BC, the Romans got in on the creative scene and introduced brooches and ornate pendants and amphorae. By the 13th century, jewelry was so popular in medieval Europe, the nobility instituted laws governing the wearing of jewelry in order to set themselves apart from the peasantry; one had to be of noble birth to wear pearl, gems, or precious metal. Though recipes for faux pearls were in circulation by the beginning of the 14th century, a Paris jeweller patented a new way of making them out of fish scales in the 17th. Almost overnight, pearls were all the rage, and you could never have too many, preferably worn all at once. France was on a roll. With the advent of the tailored gown in 1720, French jewellers set a new fashion in the form of jewel-encrusted bows set in a column down a woman's stomach in graduated sizes from the largest to the smallest, sewn into society gowns everywhere.

By the 18th century, no woman worth her salt went anywhere without her earrings, and that included the bath and bed. Not to be outdone by the French, England took the notion of paste jewellery and outrageous ornamentation and ratcheted it up a notch, introducing marcasite, cameos, elaborate paste-jewelled buttons, and ornate steel and tin shoe buckles glittering with paste. It was also during the 18th century that today's fashion of wearing uncut gems came into vogue as a part of everyday dress.

The 19th century was a busy one for jewelry. Napoleon began the fashion of wearing one's jewelry in sets, matching everything from earrings to rings, and promoted a huge rise in the popularity of elaborately detailed cameos. By the mid-century, the Victorian era brought a romantic change to jewelry. Designers began crafting ornate pieces of flowers, twisting vines, and jewelled drops. Handcrafted jewelry became the thing to wear, and many woman turned their backs on machine-tooled pieces. By the late 19th century, "arts and crafts" jewelry was entirely the rage and led to the Art Nouveau movement in France in the early 20th century. And though handcrafted jewelry saw a fall in popularity later, now in the beginning of the 21st century, it once again sees its popularity building, as more designers increasingly use wire-wrapped beads of precious stone in their gold designs.

The following are independent artisans who sell the jewelry they craft. Some are known to Handcrafted Jewelry by person, others are not. As always, please familiarize yourself with the policies of the seller before you buy, and exercise responsibility in the handling of passwords and credit information. Shop safe!

 

Dragonfly Design
Wire-wrapped crystal and semi-precious jewelry of sterling silver and gold-fill
Features unique pendulums made to order.

Silver Parrot
Wirewrap jewelry of sterling silver and semi-precious stone.
Featuring peyote tubes and furnace glass.

Patricia Miller
Art Jewelry and Lampwork Beads

Glassotica
Jewelry designs utilizing lampwork beads and vessels

GLS Jewelry
Artistic, wirewrapped stones and minerals by Gay Lynn Saunders

The Handcrafted Jewelry of Elizabeth R. Agte
Unusual pieces of sterling, copper and PMC

Ebb Designs
Sheila Hobson's unique, one-of-a-kind art to wear in various mixed media designs

Sarit Wolfus
Handworked precious metal and gemstone jewelry
by Israeli designer Sarit Wolfus

Lizayn Design
Nature-inspired jewelry and chainwork from artist Elizabeth Ayn

Elixir Baubles
Elegant and delightful handmade jewelry

Heart's Desire Jewelry
Sophisticated pieces worked from precious metal, gems, and artisan-crafted glass

Polished & Put-Together
One-of-a-kind handcrafted jewelry of vintage beads, semiprecious stone and art glass