Frequently Asked Questions

How do I care for my jewellery?

All metals naturally tarnish with wear over time. To extend the life of your piece, store in a soft pouch away from other items to avoid scratching. Remove jewellery while swimming, showering and avoid contact with perfumes, soaps and moisturisers.

Will my piece be hallmarked?

The UK’s hallmarking regulations means that any piece made from silver weighing 7.78g or gold weighing 1g requires hallmarking. I am registered with the London Assay Office for hallmarking.

Hallmarking under the minimum weights can be done on request. Please drop me a message if this is something that you would like.

Can you work with platinum or white gold?

Unfortunately not! Platinum requires a completely separate set of tools and specialist protective precautions. Most white gold is actually plated, often with rhodium, to make it shiny white. With normal wear this has a rather short shelf life before it needs replating. Part of my ethos is to create pieces that last a lifetime so I tend to not use white gold in my work.

Why do you no longer use gold plated, gold filled or gold vermeil metal?

I have gone back and forth with this over the years. However, at present, I don’t believe using these metals aligns with my ethos around sustainability. I cannot melt down the unused pieces in the same was as silver and gold. These materials also have a shorter shelf life as the coating will eventually wear off over time.

However, I can make designs using recycled gold on request. Please drop me a message.

What is recycled silver?

At ANIMA Designs, I use recycled silver. Using recycled silver, doesn’t impact the quality of the metal. Instead, recycled silver is simply about not mining the world for new resources.

Where do you source your fabrics, metals and gemstones?

I use AE Wards https://wardgemstones.com/ for the majority of my gemstones and some beads, Ocean Diamonds https://oceandiamonds.com/ for diamonds, Spoilt Rotten Beads https://www.spoiltrottenbeads.co.uk/ as the UK distributor of Jablonex Recycled Beads and Cookson Gold https://www.cooksongold.com/ for metals, some gemstones and beads.

What are Jablonex recycled beads?

Jablonex Recycled Beads is the sustainable answer to the world of glass beads made from approximately 50% recycled glass bottles and jars and 50% recycled glass rods and beads, designed and made in Europe and without chemicals. Jablonex Recycled have achieved GRS (Global Recycling Certification). Find out more here https://recycled-jablonex.com/

What postage services do you offer?

As standard I use Royal Mail Signed For and Special Delivery for posting bespoke commissions. If you would prefer a different service, please let me know during our commission discussions. Ready-made items purchased through Etsy have various postage options which can be selected at the check out.

Do you take custom or personalised orders?

Yes! I love working together on bespoke commissions. If this is something you are interested in check out the Bespoke page to find out more about the process or the Gallery page to see previous examples of my work.