The Unique Art of Thewa Jewellery

The origin of the Thewa form of jewellery is said to be from Partabgarh (or Pratapgarh), a small province in Rajasthan. Unique to this small town, the Thewa art is a secretly guarded technique. It has been handed down from generation to generation of certain craftsmen who call themselves Raj Sonis. 

Thewa locally means setting. It originated in the eighteenth century. This form of jewellery gained popularity among the British residing or visiting India at the time. The Victorian and Edwardian women of the time incorporated finely crafted Thewa pieces into their jewellery. It was often picked up as souvenirs and several magnificent pieces of this art form are found among estate jewellery.

Historians of the time often described this technique as “quasi” enameling or “imitation” enameling as the jewellery often resembles the enamel technique with its coloured glass background. However the actual craft is very different from enameling which uses ground coloured glass melted onto the metal.

The technique starts with fine gold sheets of the highest purity (24 Karat) patterned with the design. Traditional Indian subjects are often used as designs. The gold is worked on lac to enable the delicate openwork creation of the design. This is then heat fused on to a clean piece of glass with extreme care and skill. A bezel unit which is similar to the closed setting used in Kundan style of setting is created. This probably is the origin of the name of this craft form. A highly polished piece of foil which is made of silver or tin is placed inside the bezel unit to form a backing for the gold and glass unit. This increases the light passing through the glass and intensifies the colour and brilliance of the piece. Sometimes the backing foil is also coloured to improve the hue of the glass.

Today Thewa Jewellery is produced in several popular forms like necklaces, pendants, earrings etc. The art form is however unique and specialized. This makes every piece of Thewa Jewellery a treasure to possess.

Blushing beauty - Rose Gold

Shimmering yellow and sparkling white have always been the preferred colours when it comes to jewellery. But 2011 has heralded the emergence of the blushing hues of Rose gold.

From clothes to footwear and watches to bags, the exotic rose gold metallic sheen has been at the forefront of trendy design this year. Jewellery designers have also caught on to this trend and we see designers like Cartier, Chopard, Boucheron, Michael Kors etc adopting this metal in their collections.

Rose gold also known as pink gold is an alloy of gold and copper. Gold is always alloyed with some other metals to make it durable for use. The ratio of gold to copper gives us the various hues of rose gold, ranging from subtle pinks to brighter reds.

Although rose gold has been around for a long time it has been relegated as a less popular colour of gold. Consumers have always swayed towards the traditional yellow and white colours. But jewellery is becoming more than just a security asset today. People are wearing jewellery to enhance their personality. 

So even though classics never go out of style, consumers are ready to experiment with new looks and materials. With rose gold as a hot trend this year, fashionistas are ready to snap up the latest rose gold jewellery. Even the more conservative are at least willing to experiment with a rose hued watch.

Rose gold is a lovely combination of the hot and the cold. It suits almost every skin colour and offsets diamonds beautifully. But several gemstones are also enhanced by this gold colour.

Where trends are in discussion can Hollywood be far behind? Celebrities like Cameron Diaz, Claire Danes, Nicole Richie, Halle Berry and Rihanna have been sporting trendy or classic jewellery pieces in rose gold at major events.

So if you don’t own rose gold jewellery, now is the perfect excuse to head out and snap up one of these exotic beauties. Blush on and be ready for admiring glances.

Branded Jewellery

A brand serves as a distinction of a product from others of its kind. Brand names create distinguishing images or identity for a consumer to recognize and desire. Brands exist in almost all industries and the Jewellery industry is no different.

In older times, jewellery was seen as the indulgence of the affluent society with court jewellers producing exquisite handmade one of a kind pieces. But with industrialization and better prosperity across the populace, jewellery is sought after by all classes. 

For better catering to this wide and divergent market, jewellery producers have started adopting a brand identity. Jewellery is typically worn for occasions or to commemorate certain events in one’s life. Identifying these segments, specific brands cater to specific requirements.

Wedding jewellery is a huge segment and several brands specialize in exclusive wedding bands, engagement rings, promise rings etc. The platinum industry and the diamond industry have also built brands for this specific segment. So you have platinum guild endorsing the platinum “love band” for celebrating your day of love. DeBeers also has engagement and wedding rings for this niche with the option of designing your own engagement ring.

Vogue Institute of fashion technology

The working class is another large market. With women more independent and financially more secure, there is a requirement for work-wear jewellery. Special ranges are created to cater to this market with smaller but more elegant style jewellery like pendants, earrings and bracelets available. Also trends like the right hand ring are popular as women want to assert their identity.

Men’s jewellery and children’s jewellery are other growing markets. Several brands introduce specially designed ranges or lines to provide a variety of jewellery for these segments.

The greatest advantage of a brand is the assurance of quality. The purity of gold, the quality of the stones and the workmanship used in the jewellery are important. Brand names try to build up on these criteria so when a consumer buys a product from a specific brand, he is assured of the value of his purchase. Often certificates accompany the products as a mark of quality.

The process of building a brand is entirely based on trust. When a customer is satisfied with the product after investing a considerable sum of money, he will always prefer to return back to the same brand when he has a requirement the next time. This is known as brand loyalty.

With prominent jewellery houses and corporate names introducing jewellery brands, consumers now have a large variety of specially designed jewellery to fulfil their every wish and desire.