How to start a jewelry business

How do I describe gold, silver and plated jewelry correctly?

The FTC's Guides for the Jewelry, Precious Metals, and Pewter Industries set out which metal descriptions mislead buyers. They apply to listings and ads as well as to stamps on the piece. The core rules:

Two disclosures catch makers who buy findings or blanks. If a gold-plated layer has been covered with a base metal such as nickel and then a thin gold wash, you must say so. And a hollow gold piece described as gold should disclose the hollow center, and should not be called "solid". Under the National Stamping Act, quoted in the Guides, silver-plated articles must never be stamped "sterling" or "coin".

When can I call my jewelry handmade?

The FTC defines it narrowly. A piece is "handmade" or "hand-wrought" only if its entire shaping and forming from raw materials, and its finishing and decoration, were done by hand labor and manually controlled methods that let the maker control and vary each part of each piece. Raw materials here means bulk sheet, strip, wire, precious metal clays, ingots, casting grain and similar items not yet cut or formed into parts, semi-finished parts or blanks.

So a necklace assembled by hand from purchased chain and cast pendants is unlikely to meet the Guides' definition of "handmade". Describe what you actually did instead, such as "hand-assembled" or "designed and assembled by" you. The same logic applies to "hand-forged", "hand-engraved", "hand-finished" and "hand-polished": use each only for the operation actually done by hand.

What rules apply to stones, pearls and lab-grown diamonds?

• Lab-grown diamonds may be called diamonds, but only with a clear disclosure such as "laboratory-grown", "laboratory-created" or "[manufacturer]-created" that tells buyers the stone is not mined.
• "Real", "genuine", "natural", "precious" and "semi-precious" may not describe anything manufactured or produced artificially.
• Treated gemstones must be disclosed when the treatment is not permanent, creates special care requirements, or significantly affects value. When people buy without seeing the piece, as online, the disclosure belongs in the product description.
• "Flawless" and "perfect" have specific meanings under the Guides and may never describe an imitation stone.

Write your product descriptions from your supplier's documentation, and keep it: what the metal is, how it was plated and to what thickness, and what each stone is and how it was treated.

What safety rules apply to children's jewelry?

The CPSC says there are no mandatory federal requirements specifically for jewelry. It points to two voluntary industry standards: ASTM F2999 for adult jewelry and ASTM F2923 for children's jewelry. But jewelry designed or intended primarily for children 12 or younger is a children's product, so the children's product rules apply:

• Total lead content: a children's product with more than 100 ppm lead in an accessible component is a banned hazardous substance, according to the CPSC's total lead content guidance. The exemption for used children's products does not cover children's metal jewelry.
• Lead in paint and coatings: paint and similar surface coatings on children's articles may not exceed 0.009% lead (90 ppm) of the dried film, under 16 CFR part 1303.
• Certification: a Children's Product Certificate, issued by the US maker or importer and based on tests by a CPSC-accepted third-party laboratory.

ASTM F2923, the voluntary children's jewelry standard the CPSC names, covers more hazards than lead, so read its current edition before you choose metals and components for a children's line. If your jewelry is for adults, avoid styling or marketing that makes it look intended for young children.

How should I price jewelry?

Precious metal prices move, so price from a cost sheet you update, not a fixed list. For each piece, add metal by weight at today's price plus any casting or plating charge, findings and stones, packaging, your labor time, and the selling channel's fees. Channel fees on jewelry can be high: Amazon's referral fee on jewelry is 20% of the portion of the price up to $250 (how to sell on Amazon). Then check the result against how to price a product or service, and decide whether you will also sell wholesale, which needs room for a retailer's margin.