[Jewelry making - Article 01421] - Re: [Orchid] Profitable Hand Engraving

[Melissa Veres]

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>       If you live in the rarefied world where you get the recognition
>     for your skill: go for it.  You will have very little competition. 

    As an engraver, I would like to add something into this
    conversation.  The fact is that many labor intensive skills are
    dying out, and hand engraving is one of them.  The basic tools do
    require some investment, and then the beginner can start to invest
    time in the learning process. It helps to cut the learning curve by
    taking instruction at any of several fine schools out there, and
    using a Gravermax will also help to make the process easier.  Both 
    will add significantly to the cost of learning how to engrave.  The
    only process that will produce high quality hand engraving is
    consistent practice, and time- many, many hours of it.  The cuts
    must be made over and over again until the muscles and eyes are
    trained to an "automatic muscle response", and the feel of the metal
    under the graver can't be "read" until lots of it has passed
    underneath the tool's cutting edge. 

    I believe that this ties back into other previous threads that have
    dealt with the Marketing of our trade.  Are you, the jeweler,
    interested in making money or in  the making?  Isn't a special piece
    that symbolizes the sentiment of love and family going to be
    enhanced even further by the addition of some beautifully engraved
    inscription ? If that is part of why you love to make beautiful
    jewels, and you use the finest of materials, then using the skills
    of a hand engraver will only add to the precious qualities of your
    work.  If you just need to add a date to the inside of an
    inexpensive ring, then you probably won't want to pay an engraver
    for the time it takes to do it. 

    Some of the most beautiful engraving I have ever seen has been on
    guns- 

    The gun groups are extraordinarily supportive of the engraving
    community, and it has been suggested that if you intend to be
    recognized as an engraver, you will work on guns and knives.  I
    don't believe that it should be mandatory that  you work on weapons
    to have your work valued, but the basis of that statement  comes out
    of the fact that gun owners value their guns, and find the engraving
    enhances their value.  Jewelry and hollowware can be just as
    valuable, but some how they have become more of a commodity than a
    status symbol.  And people who buy jewelry as a status thing
    generally like diamonds and other (preferably large) precious stones
    to encrust their trophies, rather than the quiet flash of the
    engraved line. 

    So it all comes down to trying to justify the time and expense of
    learning a complicated and challenging skill.  If you do it for
    passion, the quality of time invested will eventually be recouped,
    provided you find the right audience for your work.  If you don't
    find the audience, your reward will be in the passion's satisfaction
    (and keep the day job).  If, on the other hand, you want to do it
    only for the money, you may find your efforts very frustrating.  I
    have seen the morning news shows fill up time by comparing 2
    products-the real/designer item vs. the cheap knock-off, and having
    the hosts try to guess which is the expensive item, and which is the
    "bargain"?  As long as that type of thinking prevails, all but the
    biggest and the cheapest are going to be in trouble. 

    I don't intend to discourage anyone who wants to engrave from
    learning. I certainly don't want to see hand engraving disappear,
    and I feel it's important to try to pass along my knowledge to a
    younger generation.  I do want to see the investment that is made in
    time and effort be appreciated, and that means in both esthetic and
    financial ways.  Consider  selling a hand engraved inscription or
    monogram to add personalization and a special unique quality for
    your customer.  Consider working with an engraver to have some
    surface embellishment added to your best creations.  Support and
    encourage all of those labor intensive skills before they die out
    for lack of market-ability! 

Melissa Veres, Engraver
mveres AT fast.net

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