wedding times | – The Times of India

Heirloom jewellery holds timeless memories. Repurposing these pieces breathes new life into sentimental treasures. Designers like Suhali Jain restore heritage jewellery, honouring legacies. Brides and grooms seek to incorporate family heirlooms into their wedding attire. While challenging, repurposing offers versatile options. Costs vary based on the extent of redesign. Polki and gold jewellery are popular choices for repurposing.

Jewellery, especially the heirloom kind, holds timeless memories. Repurposing these pieces can breathe new life into the sentimental treasures. From crafting statement pieces that tell a personal story, to reimagining traditional jewellery in a contemporary way, repurposing heirloom jewellery is a creative way to honour the past while embracing the present. In a world that values sustainability and individuality, giving your family jewellery a fresh spin could be both heartfelt and fashionable.

A bride adorning her heirloom jewellary. Pic Courtesy: Jeweller Suhali Jain

‘Honouring a legacy’Youngsters want jewellery that’s adaptable and effortlessly transitions from traditional to trendy. Suhali Jain, a Delhi-based designer who specialises in jewellery restoration and repurposing, says, “Repurposing heritage jewellery is a deeply emotional and artistic process. It starts with a conversation—not just about the piece, but the story behind it. Repurposing jewellery is about honouring that legacy while giving it a form that fits your lifestyle today.” Nowadays, brides-to-be wish to wear neckpieces belonging to their naani and daadi. Grooms-to-be want chunky accessories repurposed out of their mother’s heirlooms. “For my wedding, I got my mother’s beautiful bangles converted into a stand-out pendant piece,” shares groom Ashvin Chopra.The pros and consGiving heritage jewellery a makeover is not an easy task. It comes with its challenges. “The restoration process is a delicate job. The first thing you need is to keep the product intact and repurpose the beads or stones,” says jeweller Manik Jain. While there is a great demand for repurposing old sets of diamond, polki, kundan, temple jewellery, vintage gold bangles, etc, not every jewellery has the scope to be repurposed. “It all depends on how old the pieces are and how we can restore them without damaging any element,” says Manik. “People often bring in sets that are too light or too heavy, outdated, or simply not wearable. Over time, gold can become brittle. Any kind of stone may have hidden cracks. That’s why we do a thorough assessment. It’s important to take the emotional risk seriously,” adds Suhali.Repurposing jewellery involves different stages of work, and the pricing depends on the scope of redesign. If there are minor changes, like altering a clasp or modernising a setting, it could cost from ₹10,000 – ₹30,000. For complete transformation involving melting the gold, resetting the stones, or creating multiple pieces, the cost can start at ₹40,000 and go up to ₹2-3 lakhs.

Heirloom Jewellery

What’s in demand?

Repurposing jewellery is gaining momentum, and there is an increase in demand to re-create heirlooms. We generally encourage repurposing gold and polki jewellery rather than diamonds— Shivani Kapoor Behal, a jewellery makerBy Sidhi KapoorPic Courtesy: Jeweller Suhali Jain