FAQs (Jewellery Collection)

Illumine Collections

FAQs (Jewellery Collection)

What makes you special?

"If it's cheap, it's not going to be good, if it's good, it's not going to be cheap".

As a start up business, we can't afford to use pure gold chains; but we also didn't want to cheap out and use the cheapest alternative. So, we figured out a way to address that issue and came up with a solution - Our jewellery pieces are made to last and it's affordable. We were able to achieve this by dip-coating our metals in a protective layer before crafting the piece. This ensures that you will get to enjoy them for longer without having to worry about tarnish!


What makes your jewelleries different?

Flowers used in our pendants are sourced right here in Aotearoa New Zealand (when we could have easily sourced other dried flowers from overseas instead). We are lucky enough to be able to travel around the country during this time so we thought we'd use this opportunity to make something positive out of what's happening in the world at the moment. 

... Or maybe it could be that you've always wanted to travel to a certain place but can't afford to do so ... Maybe you don't believe that New Zealand exists (Hi foreigner!). Well, here's a proof that yes, this country is real!


Why does it take so long to create custom length chains (for silver/gold plated chains)? 

The downside of having to dip-coat metals is time. We have to follow a strict process to achieve the desired outcome and this takes about 3 days from start to finish due to curing times. Yes, we could pre-cut our chains and dip-coat all of them but this will result to a lot of materials being wasted and nobody wants that.


What types of metal do you use?

We try to support other local business as much as possible and this means sourcing materials that are already available here. We use mixed metals to put our pieces together but the main metals used/available for the chains are stainless steel, silver plated and gold plated chains. 

We are looking at sourcing silver-filled and gold-filled materials and chains for those that prefer a deluxe option but this will depend on consumer demand.


Why are your jewelleries expensive?

Our top priority is to ensure that you/our customer will be happy with the jewellery purchased from us.  We pride ourselves by learning the skills needed to create each and every piece; to reiterate, EVERY piece is made by hand hence why we can only create in small batches. We don't use any machines to do the work. A lot of love, hard work, and skills are put into making what we do. 

We also want to make sure that opening your package will be an exciting moment for you, like opening a Christmas present - so we make extra effort to pack your order before sending it your way.

By buying a product from us, you are supporting a small business, helping us grow, and continue doing what we love. You are very much appreciated, thank you!