After reading my post of 12/19 about the wonders of handmade gifts and the growing etsy.com phenomenon, a reader sent me a link to another great site where independent jewelry makers (and, indeed, makers of all kinds of things) sell their work. Just as jewelry artisans might sell their work at trunk shows, now they can sell it at trunkt.org. The site has much in common with etsy.com (including some of the same artists), but I find the trunkt.org layout more user-friendly in minor ways — I personally find it easier to navigate, and so far I've been quite impressed with the consistency of quality of artists.

I have to admit, I was a bit behind the curve when it came to online jewelry sales. I'm continually being reminded that when it comes to the Internet era, I'm part of the Old Guard. I still remember Usenet, and the primitive message boards that we used at my college. And when personal Web sites started appearing, I was firmly of the opinion that jewelry was one of those things that wouldn't do all that well online, because buying jewelry is such a personal — and often very tactile — experience. In order to buy a piece of jewelry, I felt, a buyer had to be able to pick it up, fondle it, try it on, feel its weight. Pixels on a screen couldn't ever hope to replace that, surely!

Well, things have obviously changed. I now happily buy all sorts of things online that I never thought I would. I'm a dedicated online catalog shopper, and boy, did I miss that particular boat! How could I possibly buy clothes if I couldn't try them on first, I thought. Now, avoiding the crowded dressing rooms is one of the things I most appreciate about online shopping! And jewelry is no different. I vastly underestimated how personal personal Web pages could get, how much of a sense of the designer's style and personality could come across on a computer screen. I don't think online jewelry shopping will ever completely replace the bricks-and-mortar experience (although I should learn not to make such absolute predictions!), but there's no doubt that online adornment buying is alive and well. 

Web sites aren't the only ones who are getting it — one of my favorite recent discoveries is a catalog (along with a Web site) called The Artful Home. They're proof that catalog shopping can exist side by side with limited-edition and one-of-a-kind work by highly individual artists. Browsing through the jewelry listings is like looking like a recap of my old favorites, names I've known and respected for years, with a healthy dose of new recommendations thrown in. Did I ever think the day would come when I could buy jewelry by Eleanor Moty in a catalog?

(If you're planning on selling your work online, either through sites like those I'm mentioned or through your own personal Web site, here's one very small piece of advice from a dedicated online buyer. Let me know how big the piece is. Give measurements, or include a commonly recognized household item for scale, so that I can judge how it'll look on me. If it's a ring, it's less vital, because I can estimate the real size by the shank, but when it comes to a brooch or a pendant, size does matter!)