Making the Jewellery
Being incredibly light in weight, Whitby Jet is washed up with the tide on the beaches around Whitby. As the cliffs of this area are for the most part unstable, I prefer to collect sea washed jet rather than to chip away at the cliffs adding to the erosion. This has two major benefits, in that the sea has started the polishing process for me due to the tumbling action of the waves and the abrasion of the sand, which also allows any flaws within the jet to be more easily identified.
Back in the workshop the jet is graded for size and quality, I prefer only
to use the hard jet which has a light brown streak when drawn on sandpaper.
The next stage is to design the setting for the jet to go into. These are made by hand from Sterling Silver and 9ct Gold sheet and wire. Inspiration for the setting comes from many sources and I draw heavily on the Victorian traditions, but also look to the 20Cth as a whole and try to come up with designs that reflect the major trends, for example I have an extensive range of art deco inspired pieces as jet combined with Baltic Amber works perfectly in these designs and this was a major fashion trend that the early 20Cth jet workers failed exploit. Another of my favourite influences is the 70's and many of my one-off pieces have fluid lines and swirls of jet and amber intertwined. More recently, demand for minimal style has given rise to probably my most popular range, which have clean, simple lines. About 50% of my designs I now have cast to allow me to keep the pieces affordable, but one-off pieces are always available at shows and exhibitions. If necessary, the pieces are then hallmarked with my own sponsor marks which are held at the Sheffield Assay Office.
When the setting is complete, the jet is then cut using a piercing saw which
has a very fine blade and allows for precision cutting, I waste very little
jet as even the smallest pieces are useful. The jet is then worked by hand
on coarse wet and dry sandpaper until it fits tightly into the setting.
As jet is relatively soft it cannot be "rubbed over" in the way that harder
gemstones are traditionally set and is therefore secured in the setting with
an epoxy resin. When the glue is hardened, the jet is shaped further on a
grinding wheel, returning to the sandpaper again and moving down through the
grades to a 1200 grit which must be well worn in to remove the final
scratches. It is then given a final polish and is ready to be assembled as
earrings or pendants.
The processes are labour intensive and unforgiving on the manicure and the fingers! There is a well documented condition called "jet workers thumb" which afflicted our Victorian counterparts, a condition with which I can well sympathise, especially after the busy Christmas period. The historical treatment was to dip the skinless finger or thumb into boiling fish-bone glue but I tend to resort to a bandage.