Bespoke Jewellery–What An Experience at Adeline’s Loft

I love necklaces… especially when there are really nice ones going for less than $20 at various large chains. And for something a little more special, you can get trendy ones from shopbop .

Then I hear of creative ones who can make their own jewellery! (Now, this is really a wow for me. I’ve zero craft skills in me) I thought it would be great to get a bespoke piece for a dear friend’s birthday. I get to tell the artist what exactly I wanted, how I want it and viola! Something that I want (without hunting it down!) And with the zero skills I have, I knew this would mean jewellery more than $20 for sure!

Here’s my experience with one such jeweller. To be fair, I will start from the very beginning… …

Adeline is a fellow mummy blogger and I met at her a few blog events. When I heard that she makes jewellery and sells them, I was quite intrigued. (like I said, I had zero craft talent in me!) I had zero idea how this customised your own jewellery thing worked, so I messaged her. See how geek I was!

So that was August 2013. Fast forward to Feb. It’s time for that friend’s birthday! So I told Adeline, “I want to give a dear friend a chunky necklace for her birthday”. And from then on, a very professional Adeline came on.

She asked for a picture of my friend! (I felt it was a little like match making!) but that was important, cos she needed to know her style, how she carries herself, her body shape, etc etc. And she asked questions like:

• Is it for work wear or formal? Or casual weekend out?
• What type of collar does she usually wear? V-neck/round/shirt/halter?
• What colour clothes does she usually wear?

So after I showed her the photos, and told her I needed it end Mar, she said, no problem. Well, I got so excited telling her about this friend’s necklace, I decided, why not ask her make one for me too! (haha… shopaholic strikes!) So I told her, make one for me, something when I wear v-necks and shirts. My wardrobe is largely black.

And then she said, “ok. Wait for my mock-ups.”

Now, I have no idea what is a mock-up. Is it a drawing of how the item would look like? (Like fashion designers in Project Runway) or Is it a mini version of the actual product (like architects and their models). Honestly, at this point, I was a little nervous. What if I don’t like her mock-up? I know I would get to suggest and tell her to modify. But what if after all that, she doesn’t get what I’m trying to say? I thought, oh man.. that means a.w.k.w.a.r.d.

So I decided to be a mini jeweller. I went to take screenshots of necklaces I liked and sent it to Adeline. Looking back now, I think I was just out of my element, since I was unable to control what’s going to happen next, I try to ‘mould’ this creative artist to what I want!

Her comments to my interference? “wah u challenge me. hehehe ok i see what i can come up with!”

The next day, she showed me this:

She asked me what I thought and if this was ok? If I could visualise what she was doing. Look at my super geek uncreative response!

So she did it up a bit more.. showed me another mock up (ah! Now I know what’s a mock-up!) and I told her to add more blings and she showed me one more mock up… answered another 100 questions from me about sewing the suede together, what chain and what bead… (you see, I’m no the creative type, so it was very hard for me to i.m.a.g.i.n.e!) And I was happy after about two mock ups.

Then for my own necklace, she suddenly went, ohhh I have itchy fingers and I came up with this. Do you like it?

Isn’t it so pretty? Of course I like it! It’s just a mock-up but so pretty! So I confirmed this necklace really fast. It costs $37. The final piece looked like this:

Psst: I wore it as a chunky bracelet last week!

Ohh what happened to the chunky piece for my friend? The birthday gift? Here’s the final product. Nice ya? And it costs $47, and I can list the price out publicly cos I decided to keep it for myself. hahahaah!!

So there you have it. My journey getting customised jewellery… It was tremendous fun cos Adeline was very patient with my questions (which effectively didn’t affect the final product) and she was accommodating to try my requests and suggestions.

And of course she doesn’t know that I would be doing a review on her craftsmanship, customer service and beautiful jewellery. So you can be sure all opinions here are 100% my own.

Do check out Adeline’s Loft here and you really don’t need jewellery know-hows to get what you want. Give her a chance to get to know you, your likes and quirks. You will like her stuff!

But wait, there’s an on-going Giveaway to win her customised products! You can find it at at Mummy Moo’s site. All the best and happy shopping!