Custom Photo Jewelry

Which Photo Piece Should You Choose?

The three lines differ in one thing above all: when the picture is visible. A locket shows it the moment you open the pendant; a projection piece keeps it invisible until light passes through the lens, so from a normal distance it reads as plain jewelry. Everything else, including how you send us the photo, works the same way across the collection.

Projection Piece or Photo Locket?

The choice comes down to when you want to see the picture. A locket opens to a photo that is visible whenever she wants it; the print is fitted in our workshop when the piece is made. A projection piece keeps the image invisible until the lens meets light, which makes it the more private keepsake; nobody knows the photo exists unless the wearer shows them.

If the idea is new to you, projection jewelry works by nano-etching the image onto one face inside the stone, so it stays invisible until light passes through and casts a readable picture; a phone flash held behind the stone is the usual way to read it. Because the etching happens when the piece is made, the picture is permanent — that is the trade for how well it hides.

Necklace or Bracelet — and for Whom

Projection necklaces concentrate attention on a single pendant, with heart styles among the favorites; the dedicated photo projection necklaces collection shows every pendant shape. Bracelets wear the photo more casually: braided rope, friendship-knot, tennis, and adjustable chain styles for her, plus natural volcanic stone and ID-chain designs cut for men, all in bracelets with a picture inside.

For couples, two pieces carrying the same picture become a quiet signal — a bracelet for him and a pendant for her read as ordinary jewelry to everyone else. If you want the name or date on show instead of hidden, that is a different family of gift: personalized bracelets and personalized necklaces carry it engraved on the surface rather than sealed inside.

What Metal Are These Pieces Made Of?

Worth two minutes before you order, because photo jewelry is sold in plenty of places where the metal is never named. Across this collection the range is available in 925 sterling silver as well as stainless steel, and it also includes copper, brass, leather, and alloy designs. They differ in weight, in color warmth, and in how they age: sterling silver darkens slowly and comes back with a polishing cloth, stainless steel holds its color with almost no upkeep, and copper and brass take on a patina.

The exact material for each design is listed on its product page. Read that line rather than judging from the photograph: a silver-tone or silver-plated finish photographs almost identically to solid sterling silver, and the two are not the same thing. "Silver-tone", "silver finish", and "silver-plated" all describe a surface, not what the piece is made of underneath — here or anywhere else.

If you want sterling silver and nothing else, read that line on the designs you like, or start from a range built around the metal — silver necklaces for women and silver bracelets for women.

Getting the Photo Right

The lens and the print both reproduce exactly what you give them, so the photo decision matters more than anything else on the order. Use a sharp, well-lit image with the subject filling the frame; skip heavy filters, busy backgrounds, and screenshots. One or two faces read more clearly than a large group — and send the original file, because a projection lens cannot recover detail the copy has already lost.

You upload your photo on the product page and drag it into place — you see right away how it sits inside the pendant's opening, and you can zoom, rotate, and crop until the face sits where you want it. The crop you set on screen is the one we work from.

Every photo we receive is checked by a person before production. If a file is too small, too dark, or cropped so tightly that the face would be cut off, we email you and ask for a different one instead of making the piece anyway. Designs that also take an engraved name or date have you type it into a field on the product page; that text is cut exactly as typed and is not shown back to you on screen, so read your line once before adding the piece to the cart.

Why These Gifts Land

Photo jewelry carries a specific person, which is why it shows up at anniversaries, in long-distance relationships, as new-mom gifts, and as memorial keepsakes. It says what a bought object cannot: the picture is one only you and the recipient have.

Because every piece is made to order with your photograph, no two are alike — and that is also why photo pieces are final sale: your jewelry is custom-crafted to be as unique as you are, so all sales are final on personalized orders. What that does not cover is our own error. If a piece arrives damaged, is the wrong item, or does not match what you ordered, we replace it or refund it in full, with no postage fees, restocking fees or hidden charges. Ready-made pieces without a photo keep the full 60 days from the date you receive your order (returns and exchanges).

On timing: delivery runs 7–12 business days once the parcel leaves the studio, tracked, with the tracking number emailed to you the day it ships. Standard shipping is CA$9.95, free on orders over CA$139, and several items ordered together are combined into one parcel. Any customs duties, taxes, or import charges that arise in transit are the purchaser's responsibility (delivery and shipping).

Caring for a Piece With a Lens

Treat the lens like a watch crystal: wipe it with a soft, dry cloth, keep abrasives away, and store the piece in a pouch so nothing scratches the surface. A scratched lens scatters light, and that is the one thing polishing cannot bring back.

The metal around it keeps its own habits, but a quick wipe after wear and dry storage suits all of them. Take photo jewelry off for swimming, showers, and workouts; chlorine and perfume are harder on plating and on copper than on the lens itself. Lockets follow the same routine, with the cover closed before the piece goes into the pouch.

Photo Jewelry Questions, Answered

What metal is your photo jewelry made of?
The range is available in 925 sterling silver as well as stainless steel, and it also includes copper, brass, leather, and alloy designs. The exact material for each design is listed on its product page — worth reading, since a silver-tone finish photographs the same as solid sterling silver.

How does photo projection jewelry work?
The image is nano-etched onto one face inside a tiny lens set into the piece. Hold it toward a light source, or shine a phone flash through it, and the photo appears as a sharp miniature image. At normal viewing distance it looks like ordinary jewelry.

Should I choose a locket or a projection piece?
Pick a locket if the photo should be there to open and look at whenever she likes. Pick a projection piece if it should stay private and permanent. Lockets sit in photo locket necklaces; projection designs are in photo projection necklaces.

What photo should I upload?
A sharp, well-lit original with the face filling the frame, one or two people rather than a group. You position the crop yourself when ordering, and a person checks the file before production — if it will not hold up at pendant size, we write to you first.

Do you make photo jewelry for men?
Yes. The bracelet line includes natural volcanic stone and ID-style chain designs, and matching pairs work well for couples. They are in bracelets with a picture inside.

Is photo jewelry returnable?
Pieces made with your photo are final sale, so check your image and any engraved line before ordering. Anything that is our mistake — wrong item, damage, or not what you ordered — is replaced or refunded in full, and ready-made pieces without a photo carry 60 days from the date you receive your order.