Buyer Beware: Is it REALLY Handmade?
If you're striving to find handmade jewelry, be wary of everyone claiming to handcraft rings. There are a lot of phonies and this blog will help you discern the resellers from the real jewelry artisans.
When it comes to finding the perfect wedding bands, it’s easy to hop online and find A LOT of options. It can be quite overwhelming scrolling through the spectrum of styles at every price point to find YOUR perfect ring. But wait, Before we get too deep into this topic, this article (rant) is for the consumers who strive to support small, US-based businesses who employ a family of artisans who truly make a high-quality item from start to finish! If that sounds like you, please read on and we’ll help you discern them from those that falsely claim to “handcraft” jewelry when, in fact, they are resellers of mass-produced, usually far lower-quality wedding bands.
Being a small business with mostly made-to-order items created in our own design and manufacturing center, it has become increasingly frustrating…infuriating really…with the dramatic increase in wedding band sellers that claim their rings are handmade. In reality, the bulk of them are resellers of low-quality, mass-produced rings made by overseas, sometimes domestic, suppliers. They keep a large stock of rings on hand or have a drop-ship arrangement with the supplier, which is why many can ship quickly. A key indicator of a reseller, but there are many more.
Where can you find REAL handmade rings?
Obviously, from jewelrybyjohan.com, but we totally respect your need to shop around and encourage you to do so! Many who seek out handmade rings turn to Etsy and Amazon Handmade. Or, hop online and search “handmade wedding bands” and are bombarded with options. Have no fear, once you know what to look for, it’s easy to spot the fake makers vs. real craftsmen (and craftswomen) who take pride in every item they hand create.
Buyers beware of Etsy and Amazon Handmade.
Despite touting themselves as places to find only handmade goods, which they do have a good selection of, both are highly saturated with resellers of mass-produced, low-quality jewelry, particularly wedding bands. On Etsy, this is a current topic of contention. Earlier this month, there was a week-long Etsy strike by 100s of shops who went on vacation mode in an attempt to protest their frustrations with Etsy, including beliefs that Etsy doesn’t make a concerted effort to crack down on resellers of mass-produced items across a lot of categories and not just jewelry.
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