Each piece is uniquely handmade with patience and love.
Robyn received her MFA in Communication Design from Harrington College of Design in Chicago, IL, and her BFA in Graphic Design with Minors in Illustration and Animation from The Art Institute of Boston at Lesley in Cambridge, MA. Between her BFA and MFA, Robyn studied for a BFA in Product Design at Kendall College of Art and Design in Grand Rapids, MI. While a student at Kendall, Robyn took advantage of an opportunity to study jewelry design at SACI, Studio Art Institute of Florence, Italy. The photos above are of SACI Florence. During her time in Italy, Robyn realized her passion for jewelry design, especially wire jewelry and metal smithing.
Currently Robyn is the owner and operator of designflock.com, a collaborative web platform for non-profits who need pro bono design services. Robyn also owns Robyn Nickole Designs, a company that provides branding, websites, illustrations and related services to clients throughout the United States. Now, Robyn has opened The Handmade Chain, which allows her to display the jewelry she so passionately and lovingly crafts by hand.. The Handmade Chain is derived from a term of art in jewelry design - the act of making a chain by hand - twisting and turning wire. Anyone who has ever made wire jewelry understands how difficult it is to do. It's not about learning the skill so much as it is taking the time to patiently craft a single necklace. Most modern jewelry is machine made. Handmade jewelry is generally quite simple to identify from its ever-so-slight imperfections in the materials. This special quality of imperfection on each piece of jewelry is a testament - a stamp if you will - of the hard work and dedication the craftsman puts into making each piece. Unfortunately for the artist making jewelry by hand is a difficult living. The pieces displayed for sale in The Handmade Chain are priced to sell. They do not reflect all the hours Robyn spends making them. If that were the case, most pieces would be rather unaffordable. A single necklace typically takes a minimum of five hours to make, which includes beading and twisting the wire. This does not include the time Robyn spends to find the beads or stones used for each piece, or the time spent pricing, photographing and listing each completed piece of jewelry. Calculating all her time and materials would result in prices several times what is actually being charged. Robyn's philosophy is simple - The Handmade Chain wants everyone, especially those who may not be able to afford handcrafted jewelry, and opportunity to own a beautiful handmade design. Robyn loves what she does and she wants you to fall in love with her creations. Thank you for visiting The Handmade Chain.
All pieces are made with a stronger gauge of wire than found in most modern jewelry pieces.
The handmade chain repairs all pieces if broken. Contact the shop for details and pricing.