MY GO-TO SHOP FOR SILVER JEWELRY IN UBUD, BALI

Studio Perak in Jalan Hanoman, Ubud, has always been my go-to place for finding beautiful silver jewelry with reasonable price. Compared to fancier stores around Ubud, so far, Studio Perak is still the champion for the combination of quality, design, and price. Lately, they have also been making a set of rings with chakra symbols and mantras that I truly adore!


Plus, while in Bali, I’m happy to plant a good karma by being a responsible buyer. Studio Perak shops operate under the principles of fair trade. Silver artisans can set the price of each piece of jewelry themselves. There is no value or payment gap between women and men silversmiths. No children are being employed. Silver artisans in Studio Perak can even work from their own home, according to their own schedule!

MAKING MY OWN SILVER JEWELRY

A few years back, I participated in Studio Perak’s silversmithing class. It was my first time to make silver jewelry from scratch. I enjoyed it so much and made 2 pieces of silver jewelry. Both were gifted to a friend on the same day. Thus, technically, I didn’t really have my own DIY silver jewelry! And I want one (or maybe two)!

So, this morning, I went back to Studio Perak for another chance: to make silver jewelry as a gift for myself.


I brought along some of my old stone collections; including this yellow citrine. I wanted to turn this one into a ring.

As I started, I just found out that it was more time consuming to make a piece of silver jewelry with a stone. This is because you need to create a frame for the stone first. Cutting the silver plate and wrap it to match the shape of my stone was taking most of my time today.

Once the frame for the stone was done, I started to measure the size of my finger and created my silver ring.


“Would you like to put an engraving inside the ring?” asked Bli Ketut, the teacher from Studio Perak and our master silversmith of the day.

I said yes.

He then gave me a set of alphabets to be hammered into the insides of my silver ring. I decided to choose the mantra Ram, chanting for the solar plexus chakra. Citrine is also a stone that corresponds to this chakra.


And this is how we attached the ring to its stone frame: with a flame. While Bli Ketut molded the ring and the frame together, I pumped the torch with my feet under the table–making sure the air was flowing to keep the flame burning.


Since there was still some time left after this process, I decided to make another piece of jewelry. I wanted to recycle an amethyst ring I found in a random street stall in Pontianak into a bracelet.

The stone was taken out from the frame, and I created a new frame following its shape, to be attached to a silver bracelet.


The most meditative part of the silversmithing process was polishing the silver jewelry. It was amazing to see the dull ring and bracelet that had been hammered and torched suddenly sparkled after the polishing session.


And here they are, shining under the sun!

BOOK YOUR SILVERSMITHING CLASS IN UBUD

If you’re interested to make your own silver jewelry, just drop by at Studio Perak and book your class schedule at least 1 or 2 day(s) before. They have 2 classes every day, from 9 am – 12 pm and another one from 2 pm – 5 pm.

For IDR400K, you can get up to 5 grams of silver to work with. This is mostly enough to make 3 rings, or a ring and a set of earrings, or a ring and a simple bracelet.

Browse for design inspirations for your jewelry before the class, so you can consult with Bli Ketut on the design and start right away. Looking for inspiration right there and then could be overwhelming!


If you’re working with stones, you’ll need more silver plates to work with. This is because you’ll have to create the stone frame (and it takes quite a lot of silver plates). For my ring and bracelet, I use up 8.88 grams of silver. For the extra 3.88 grams, I paid about IDR53K.

I brought my own stones with me to the class. However, if you’d like to work with stones (but didn’t have one), Studio Perak has a lovely collection of stones and crystals in different shapes you can choose from. The price is also very reasonable, from IDR10K for a small piece (suitable for rings or earrings) up to around IDR25K (slightly bigger ones, suitable for pendants or bracelets).

Are you interested in making your own silver jewelry in Ubud? What are you going to make?

PS: If you’re not into jewelry and more interested in making your own batik, check out this post from my batik workshop in Ubud!
STUDIO PERAK
Ketut Darmawan
+62 81 236 51809 or Studio +62 361 974244
JI. Hanoman, Ubud 80571, Gianyar, Bali, Indonesia
[email protected]

hanny

One Response

  1. I want to good theereee!

    Aku baru ikut workshop Silversmithing beberapa minggu yg lalu. Buat gelang gitu. Lom sempat kutulis puun.

    Aku pengen masukin batu niatnyaaa..

    Duh, jadi pengen ke Bali, duh. :)))

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I am an Indonesian writer/artist/illustrator and stationery web shop owner (Cafe Analog) based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. I love facilitating writing/creative workshops and retreats, especially when they are tied to self-exploration and self-expression. In Indonesian, 'beradadisini' means being here. So, here I am, documenting life—one word at a time.

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