It's a frosty winter morning here in Berlin. I've just locked my bike up in front of the studio, and like the past few days, my phone is full of messages from my friends, each of whom runs their own jewelry labels. Like every morning, we're sharing our disbelief and worry about the drastically rising cost of silver. The three of us are all passionate about working with this material and have established ourselves in a specific price segment over the past few years, slowly but surely building our clientele. A clientele that appreciates craftswomanship and precious metals, and who happily return to our pop-ups and respond to our countless newsletters and social media posts.
We also offer courses in the respective cities where our studios are located, in which participants can design their own piece of jewelry and model or carve it from wax. These wax models are then subsequently cast in silver and crafted into finished, unique, and high-quality pieces of jewelry, which are then returned to the participants.
I fell in love with the material over five years ago, with its soft, warm feel and the simultaneous coolness of its color. My fascination with the ocean, with the harsh customs at sea, and with everything hidden beneath the surface, encouraged me to create my own little world with this label, where I can translate the connection between people and the sea into jewelry.
How did I get into jewelry? During my design studies – which I actually wanted to complete as a fashion designer – I fell in love with the goldsmith's craft. A discipline that requires as much sensitivity as rough craftswomanship, the scale I work with, the meaning that the pieces of jewelry carry, the connection that is established with the body, and the fact that there are no limitations to jewelry in terms of body shape, fleeting trends, or seasons.
When I started my own business about five years ago, I paid 89 cents per gram of silver. While the price has increased over the past five years, it has been a minimal and steady rise, so that until the middle of last year, we were still at €1.47 per gram. However, due to rising demand for technology products (which are not recycled), the multiple crises and wars around the world, and the currently very weak US dollar, there has been a rapid price increase within the last month. Today, December 20th, a gram of silver is now at €3.26 at my trusted foundry.
This morning I took the wax models from last Sunday's workshop to the foundry. Anyone who has recently participated in a workshop knows that I charged €3 per gram of silver, meaning I'm paying a significant portion of the material costs out of my own pocket for this round.
With regard to the prices for the workshop as well as the prices for my regular collection, I have been going back and forth for two weeks, calculating how I can continue without driving my small independent business into the ground.
One option: switch to a different material. Some labels are now switching to brass. Brass has a golden color, good casting properties, is offered by some foundries I've worked with in recent years, is well-tolerated by many skin types, and can be worked, polished, and soldered just like silver.
Brass has a very low material value of just a few cents, which reduces material costs, but the production costs (my labor and the casting fees charged by the foundries) remain the same. So, while a silver ring, even at its now quite high price, at least offers some material value in the form of precious metal, the price of a brass piece of jewelry remains relatively high (especially compared to jewelry from boutiques like Bijou Brigitte), yet it remains costume jewelry without any material value. Furthermore, brass is significantly harder, leading to longer labor times and faster tool wear. It can be soldered, but this requires silver solder – which, of course, will be visible on the gold-colored brass.
As much as I want to keep my prices stable, I have decided against this option.
I love working with silver. My work has never been about quantity, about maximizing sales or followers. It's about creating durable, timeless objects, imbued with memories and meaning. Objects that tell a story. Long story short, starting February 1, 2026, I will have to raise my prices in the online shop. Small, very lightweight jewelry (especially ear cuffs) will remain almost unaffected by these changes, while it will make a significant difference for heavier rings, earrings, bracelets, and necklaces.
Regarding the workshops, I had to find a different solution. Since the price of silver is currently fluctuating so much, I can't set a fixed price weeks or months in advance for the material costs, which are charged in addition to the workshop fee. Therefore, I will inform all participants of the price per gram of silver at the beginning of the workshop.
I am incredibly grateful to my customers, to the people who have followed and supported my work for years. I couldn't imagine a more fulfilling profession, and I hope the new prices won't change that. The price increases of the past few weeks have caused a great deal of uncertainty and frustration, but ultimately, all I can do is trust that the value of silver will continue to be recognized and that my designs will continue to resonate with you.
From the heart,
Carolin
