How do Commissions Work?

Ever wanted to commission your own special piece of jewellery? Maybe you would like to have something made for someone important, but you don’t know how it works or what to do?

Here’s a little information about the process to help you decide whether it’s something you’d like to investigate more.

What’s the first step?

What sort of piece are you looking for? Do you have a design in mind? Is it a ring, a bracelet, a pair of earrings? Does it include stones, would you like it to be made from silver, gold or another metal?

If you aren’t sure, hunt around for ideas of what you like.  Of course, I won’t copy other people’s designs, but we can use them to be inspired by, when considering style, weight or colour.

What’s next?

Get in touch.  Let’s chat through your thoughts, ideas… I can do this in person, over the phone, by email, Facebook, Instagram or by WhatsApp.  Often it’s easier to chat in person, but this doesn’t always suit everyone, I have designed & made plenty of commissions via WhatsApp only! ….

We’ll have a general chat about what you think you might be looking for, you may have a very clear image of a particular design, you may have absolutely no idea at all! Both are fine!

Every commission process is different, but usually, after our initial chat, I will come up with a bunch of ideas, all very rough, very little detail, but concepts of an idea, there may be 5, there may be 50….

Once you’ve looked at these ideas we refine them, maybe we refine one, maybe we look at three.  Maybe we start again if none of the concepts work for you. That’s ok, it all goes at your pace.

We will continue to work together until we have the perfect design, if you have an idea already, maybe there’s very little design time, if you are unsure and open to options, I might spend lots of time working on your jewellery.  The less design time, of course, the more affordable the piece in the end, the more we change, go back, restyle ideas, the more the cost increases.

Sometimes I will send you samples of silver or a choice of stones, sometimes we meet to check certain design aspects, sometimes, none of that is needed; no commission is ever the same!

How long does it take?

This depends. It depends on the complexity of the design, the metals or stones it uses, how easy they are to source, whether there are tools I need to purchase, skills I need to refine or how busy the current order book is.

If you are looking for a Christmas present, please get in touch through the summer or September, after this, commissions are absolutely possible, but the workshop gets really busy with Christmas orders & fairs. 

The rest of the year is a little more flexible & I will always do my best to work to a deadline where possible (I once made a commission overnight for a very dear friend!).

Who owns the design?

This is tricky.  If you come to me with a design, that I make, this belongs to you. If I come up with the concept & work alongside your influence to create the final product, generally the design belongs to the silversmith – however, we will always have a conversation about whether you are hoping for this to be a standalone design or not.  This is often why commissions are much more expensive than general pieces bought in a shop/online.  The higher cost is in the exclusivity of the piece.

Always note – some designs are so generic, they cannot be owned so always ask as we can go through it together.

How much will it cost?

The big question – I have no answer! I have done commissions ranging from £35 to over £500, it all depends on materials used, complexity of design & most importantly, time & skill level included.

Yes please... I’d love to commission a piece of jewellery…

If you are interested in having a commission designed & made, but are unsure on where to start or whether it is affordable for you, just get in touch, we can have a chat & go from there. 

There is always an option to stop or pause a project at any point.  Please note, I usually charge for design time, should you choose to stop an agreed project before completion.

Contact me by email on info@fredandemily.co.uk or via Facebook, Instagram or the contact page on the website. I’d love to chat through your commission ideas!

https://fredandemily.co.uk/pages/contact