To sell handmade jewellery online you need three things done well: pricing that pays you for your time and materials, photography that makes tiny shiny objects look irresistible, and — if you work in gold, silver, platinum or palladium above the legal weight thresholds — proper UK hallmarking. Get those right and jewellery becomes one of the best products to sell online: it's light, high-margin, endlessly personalisable, and buyers happily pay for a story and a maker's name.
This guide walks the whole journey, from your bench to a customer's doorstep, with the UK-specific rules you actually need to know.
What makes selling jewellery different
Jewellery has a few characteristics that shape everything else. It's small and low-weight, so shipping is cheap and international sales are realistic from day one. Margins can be strong because a large part of the value is design and craft, not raw material. And it's deeply personal — engagement rings, birthstones, initials, memorial pieces — which means made-to-order and personalisation aren't a nice extra; they're often the whole business.
The flip side: it's a crowded, trust-sensitive category. Buyers can't touch the piece, they worry about metal quality and whether "silver" really means silver, and photos of small reflective objects are genuinely hard to get right. Most of the work below is about removing those doubts.
Sourcing materials and deciding what you make
Before you list anything, get clear on what you actually sell, because it changes your legal obligations and your pricing:
Fine jewellery — solid gold, sterling silver, platinum or palladium. Highest perceived value, but subject to hallmarking law (more below) and higher material costs and cash-flow demands.
Costume and fashion jewellery — plated metals, brass, stainless steel, resin, beads, polymer clay. No hallmarking needed, lower material cost, but you compete more on design and brand.
Mixed / semi-precious — silver settings with gemstones, gold-filled findings, freshwater pearls. Popular, giftable, and a common starting point.
Source findings, chains, stones and packaging from reputable UK or EU suppliers so you can vouch for what things are made of — you'll be asked. Keep records of what a "gold-filled" or "925 silver" component actually is, because misdescribing metal is both a trust-killer and, for precious metals, potentially an offence.
The UK hallmarking rules (the bit people get wrong)
This is the part that trips up new jewellery sellers, so here's the accurate version. Under the UK Hallmarking Act 1973, it is an offence to describe or sell an item as gold, silver, platinum or palladium unless it carries a UK hallmark from an official Assay Office — once the item is over the exemption weight for that metal.
The current exemption weights, below which a hallmark isn't legally required, are broadly:
Gold: under 1 gram
Silver: under 7.78 grams
Platinum: under 0.5 grams
Palladium: under 1 gram
So a pair of tiny silver studs may fall under the threshold, but a chunky sterling silver cuff almost certainly won't. If your precious-metal piece is over the weight, it must be sent to one of the four UK Assay Offices (London, Birmingham, Sheffield or Edinburgh) to be tested and marked before you can legally sell it as that metal. You'll also need to register a sponsor's (maker's) mark with an Assay Office, and — because you're selling to the public — display the official Dealer's Notice explaining what the hallmark symbols mean, including on your website.
Costume jewellery and plated pieces don't need hallmarking, but you still must describe them honestly — call plated metal "gold-plated", never just "gold". This is general information, not legal advice: check the current rules and weight thresholds on GOV.UK and with your chosen Assay Office (the British Hallmarking Council and the individual offices publish clear guidance) before you sell precious metals.
Pricing so you actually get paid
The most common mistake is pricing only the materials and forgetting the maker. A workable formula for handmade jewellery is:
(Materials + Your time at a real hourly rate + Overheads) × a wholesale multiplier, then set retail from there.
Materials: metal, stones, findings, and a share of consumables (solder, polishing, packaging).
Labour: pick an hourly rate you'd be happy to earn and time your work honestly. Undercharging here is why so many makers burn out.
Overheads: tools, studio, hallmarking fees, insurance, marketing, platform costs, transaction and payment fees.
On fees specifically: check what your selling platform skims off the top, because on considered purchases it adds up. Dirora charges no transaction fees on any plan; the only cut is a small platform fee that falls as you grow — 1.5% on the free Starter plan, 0.75% on Pro, 0.25% on Business and 0% on Enterprise — so more of each sale stays with you. If you're weighing where to build, our post on what percentage e-commerce platforms take breaks down the hidden costs, and selling on Etsy vs your own website compares marketplace fees against running your own store.
Photography: the single biggest lever
For jewellery, photos are the product page. Small, reflective, detailed objects punish bad lighting, so a little effort here outperforms almost anything else you can do.
Use soft, diffused light — a window with a sheer curtain or a cheap lightbox tames harsh reflections in polished metal.
Shoot macro for detail — buyers want to see the hallmark, the setting, the texture. A phone with a macro mode plus a small tripod is enough to start.
Show scale and context — one clean product shot on white, plus lifestyle shots worn on a hand, ear or neck so people grasp the real size. "It's smaller than I thought" is a top reason for returns.
Stay consistent — same background, angle and colour treatment across the range so your shop looks like a brand, not a jumble.
Our product photography tips go deeper on lighting and setup, and once you've shot everything, Dirora's Media Manager keeps your images organised and optimised so pages stay fast.
Writing listings and offering personalisation
Describe the metal, dimensions in millimetres, stone type, chain length options and care instructions — precision builds trust. Our guide to writing product descriptions covers the structure that converts.
Personalisation is where handmade jewellery really wins. Initials, engraving, birthstones, ring sizes and chain lengths turn a nice piece into a gift someone has to buy. Dirora's Product Personalisation lets you add custom text and option fields (engraving message, name, date) directly to a product, while the Intelligent Variant Matrix handles structured choices like ring size, metal and chain length without creating a mess of duplicate listings. For genuinely bespoke commissions — a custom engagement ring, say — you can use the Interactive Quotation System to send a price quote and convert it straight into an order once the customer approves. Because most of your pieces are physical and often made-to-order, set realistic lead times on personalised items so buyers know a hand-engraved piece takes a few days.
Packaging and shipping small, valuable things
Packaging does double duty for jewellery: it protects a fragile item and it's part of the unboxing that earns you reviews and repeat orders. A branded box, a soft pouch, a care card and a thank-you note cost little and photograph beautifully for social media.
For posting, small size is your friend — many pieces fit a padded, letterbox-friendly package that ships cheaply. For anything valuable, use a tracked and, ideally, signed-for or insured service so a "lost in the post" claim doesn't wipe out your margin. Our shipping strategy guide and the comparison of Royal Mail vs Evri vs DPD help you pick carriers, and Dirora's Shipping Management lets you set rates by weight or order value. Selling abroad is very doable with light jewellery — Multi-Currency shows prices in the buyer's currency — but check customs and duties when selling internationally first.
Marketing your jewellery brand
Jewellery is visual and emotional, which plays perfectly to search and social. Optimise your product pages with Dirora's SEO Tools so people searching "personalised silver birthstone necklace" can find you — start with our SEO for online stores guide. Collect Product Reviews & Ratings from every buyer, because social proof does more to sell precious-metal pieces than any amount of copy. Add a Digital Gift Card option for shoppers who love the brand but want the recipient to choose, and use Smart Email Campaigns to bring past buyers back for the next birthday or Christmas — jewellery is a repeat-gift category if you stay in touch.
Getting set up
When you're ready to build the shop itself, our getting started with Dirora guide walks through creating products, adding variants and personalisation, connecting a payment provider (Stripe and PayPal, including Apple Pay, Google Pay and BNPL) and launching on your own custom domain with automatic SSL. You can start on the free plan, list a first collection, and only upgrade when sales justify it.
Sell honest metal, photograph it beautifully, personalise generously, hallmark what the law requires, and pack it like a gift — that's the whole craft of selling handmade jewellery online.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to hallmark my handmade jewellery in the UK?
Only for precious metals above the exemption weights: gold over 1g, silver over 7.78g, platinum over 0.5g and palladium over 1g must carry a UK Assay Office hallmark before you can sell them as that metal. Lighter precious-metal items and all costume or plated jewellery are exempt, though you must still describe them honestly. This is general guidance — confirm current rules on GOV.UK and with a UK Assay Office.
How do I price handmade jewellery?
Add up materials, your labour at a real hourly rate, and overheads (tools, hallmarking, insurance, fees), then apply a multiplier for wholesale and set retail from there. The biggest mistake is pricing only materials and giving away your time. Also factor in platform and payment fees — Dirora charges no transaction fees, only a small platform fee that decreases as you grow.
What's the best way to photograph jewellery for an online shop?
Use soft, diffused light (a curtained window or lightbox), shoot macro to show detail and hallmarks, include worn lifestyle shots so buyers understand the true size, and keep backgrounds and angles consistent across your range so the shop looks like a coherent brand.
Can I sell made-to-order and personalised jewellery online?
Yes. Dirora's Product Personalisation adds engraving and custom-text fields to a product, the Intelligent Variant Matrix handles options like ring size and metal, and the Interactive Quotation System covers fully bespoke commissions. Set clear lead times so customers know a handmade or engraved piece takes a few days to make.
How should I package and ship handmade jewellery?
Use a branded box or pouch with a care card for a strong unboxing experience, and post small items in padded, letterbox-friendly packaging. For valuable pieces, choose a tracked and signed-for or insured service so lost-in-post claims don't wipe out your margin.