Handmade custom jewellery: Silver wire wrapped giant flower necklace with fancy wire wrapped clasp

I have a couple of "regulars" on Etsy who come to me every few months with ideas for custom orders. One customer, in particular, really likes pieces with fancy earring hooks or clasps. I'll admit -- I don't pay as much attention to jewelry findings as I probably should. I usually just create simple earring wires or a standard hook clasp for necklaces, so I've enjoyed her suggestions.

One of the latest pieces she had me design was this giant flower silver wire wrapped necklace:

I have many flower pieces in my shop, but they're all pretty small; the flowers are part of a ring, bracelet or anklet. She asked me to take my design and create a flower that's at least three inches across. She also wanted six petals instead of eight.

These probably sound like small requests, but I've made literally thousands of these tiny daisies and have it down to a science! Honestly, if a petal is slightly out of wack, no one will notice when the flower is stuck in the middle of an anklet chain. But with this big, focal daisy, the dimensions and petals had to be as perfect as possible.

I didn't want the petals to be "floppy," so I used extremely thick 14 gauge silver plated wire. You can't even cut this stuff with standard wire clippers; you need the industrial strength pair. I then worked on this daisy for a couple of hours, measuring out every angle. The petals are not 100 percent... but I'd say they are at least 95. Not too bad since I do all of this by hand and don't use a machine.

Next, I worked on the clasp. Even though she wanted something unique, she still wanted it to be practical and easy-to-use, so I made a variant on the hook clasp I usually do.

In the end, she was pleased with my design. Whew! I'm always a little nervous when doing a custom order. I'm confident in my skills, but I still fear that the customer won't like my final product. So I'm always relieved when they're happy! Still, I enjoy collaborations and am impressed with the ideas my customers think up.

Do you have an idea for a custom piece? Give me a shout at Naomi's Designs! Also, check out my kids' jewellery line at MayaGirl Creations.

Making Wire Wrapped Jewelry: Designing Custom Orders

Some possible clients have asked about how I work with requests for custom orders. It really depends from order to order, but for the most part, it's something that I really enjoy.

Though I'm always coming up with new jewelry designs, I obviously can't think of everything! Many times my customers have great ideas for pieces and I'm happy to make them come to "life." Most simply ask me to tweak one of my already-existing designs. For instance, one woman asked me to add specific colored Swarovski crystals to a few of my pairs of earrings (pictured below). Another had me lengthen a couple of my bracelets so I could turn them into anklets. Then there are some clients who request that I make one of my pieces, say a ring, in silver instead of copper or gold instead of silver, etc.

A couple of clients have actually e-mailed me sketches of the pieces they had in mind. This was the case with the ring that's pictured. The woman lost an antique and asked me to replicate it; she then drew me a picture to show what it had looked like.

Then there are customers who give me a lot of freedom. One recently had me make wire wrapped lapis lazuli earrings with a note, "I'm not picky about what they look like, so just do something pretty." Another asked me to make a gold-colored bracelet with black and red beads, but was open to the actual design of it.

There are some instances when I can't honor a person's request -- and I will be very honest with them. One woman asked me to make her a vest from copper wire. I don't know anything about making clothes -- in copper or any other material! Not to mention, I probably would've have had to charge her about $1000 for materials and labor. Perhaps she would've been willing to pay this which would've been great for me, but I didn't think I could do a good job and wasn't about to rip her off. I found a couple of chainmaille artists on Etsy and sent her the links.

In general, I'm very flexible. Plus, it's fun coming up with new ideas and doing a collaboration. I do my best to keep the costs down and let customers know if a certain material won't be worth using. I do list the new design once it's made unless a customer specifically asks me to make a one-of-a-kind piece.

So if you're interested in hitting me up for an idea, simply click on the "custom order" link on my Etsy pages: Naomi's Designs and MayaGirl Creations. Meantime, check out some of the custom-made pieces I've done: