Inlay jewelry is believed to have originated from the Native Americans, hence their close association with the Southwestern styles. A lot of expertise is required for making the inlay jewelry. This is because specific equipment and tools have to be used to enhance the cutting and polishing of the gemstones used to make the jewelry.

Moreover, different metals had to be use during the manufacture of inlay jewelry and these included the used of precious metals such as gold and silver as well as the semi-precious stones that include coral, turquoise, sugalite and coral. However, other materials would also be used apart from the very precious stones such as diamonds.

Creating Inlay Jewelry

During the creation of the inlay jewelry, the silversmith would first create different metal channels that would be used to hold the stones. Such jewelry would include earrings, bracelets, rings and even pendants among others.
Next, they would cut the gemstones and carefully fit them within the channels made. These channels would usually be in form of holes, voids or recesses. To endure that the gemstones were held securely and permanently into the inlay jewelry, epoxy would be used.

Perfecting the Inlay Jewelry

The silversmiths would grind the exposed parts of the gemstones to ensure that the inlay jewelry revealed the beneath micro layers, which were believed to showcase the secrets of the stones. This would usually be done by thorough sanding and polishing. The inlay jewelry would then be represented as being highly seamless and smooth.

The ideal inlay jewelry therefore does not show any differences with the texture at the interfaces. Actually, when one touches the inlay jewelry, they would feel both the metal surface and the gemstones to be practically the same.

Development of Inlay Jewelry

Although inlay jewelry was only made by the Native American artisans for different purposes, today, they have been adopted by different people as a form of fashion. For instance, in the past, inlay jewelry was perceived to be a Southwestern style that was used to distinguish a community from the other neighboring communities.

Today, inlay jewelry has been adopted widely in the fashion industry and hence gradually became a highly-coveted method of adoration by people from all around the globe.

Moreover, there have been additional pieces added under this category and they include bolos, pendants and belt buckles. Above all, they have continued to remain one of the most magnificent pieces of jewelry.