Legal definition of hand made

Jewelry Discussion
41 
Seems my post was misread. I went through the process to point out
that carving the wax is the handmade controlled part, investing and
burn out are not. That is where the item gets separated from hand
made.

Yes I did misread Richard. Sorry about that.

I don’t think the FTC rules are really the cultural standard. The
FTC does not go around bothering anybody about this, as far as I
know. I doubt if most craftsmen or consumers are even aware that such
standards exist. It does not seem unreasonable to claim that a lost
wax casting made from a hand carved wax is OK to call handmade, but
it is also reasonable, as Richard argues, to claim that these rules
would not allow it. The language of the relevant FTC guide (23.3)
does not directly address this issue. Maybe there is a case that went
to court and produced a judgment that would serve as a precedent and
clear this up. Or, more likely as I suspect, it is a trivial
distinction that is unlikely to be considered worth prosecuting as a
consumer fraud.

I think the real cultural standards of “handmade” are things made on
a small scale with certain expectations of creativity and a lot of
warm and fuzzy ideas about lifestyle, preserving “lost arts” and
honest toiler values. Like a lot of cultural standards, there is
nothing intellectually rigorous or consistent about it and it drifts
along as a kind of mushy and often useless term, except that it is
useful to describe your work as “handmade” if you are trying to make
a distinction from something factory made. Not an especially honest
distinction since the factory might be using exactly the same
methods. But it is a useful distinction if it helps define the nature
of your work and your business in the marketplace.

I agree with Anna that this is moral issue of honesty rather than a
legal issue. It only becomes a legal issue if there are legal
consequences for abusing the term. If there are no art cops and
nobody ever gets busted for calling their cast multiples “handmade,”
it is solely a matter of being honest with your customers. And since
the FTC is apparently doing little, if anything, to actually regulate
the term “handmade,” why should anyone feel a moral obligation to
accept the FTC definition of the term as the final word?

Stephen Walker

42

Dan,

Go back about 75 or more years and every household would of had
personal knowledge of a person making their living through handmade
craft of some type.

Yes, for sure. Persons around that long ago were born during the
Depression. They not only knew someone earning a living making
something by hand. They were learning these skills in schools. The
clothes they wore probably were made right there at home, food they
ate were probably grown in their garden, few things were disposable.
Hand made commanded respect. There was value and respect.

Schools taught vocations so people could support themselves with
their hands, and yes, that did include jewelry making. When my son
got to school, and we are only 20 years apart, “shops” were being
phased out. My first silver teacher told me about the exquisitely
equipped jewelry classroom’s equipment stored in the basement of
Beverly Hills High School, as the classes had been cancelled. Wonder
how many Beverly Hills Jewelers got their initial exposure to jewelry
there in high school.

The taste of subsequent generations changed with mass production,
Tiffany Lamps were tossed for Neon, Mahogany Wood for Formica, and
then along came plastic. What Bride of today has Sterling Silver
flatware on her wish list? Hopefully, we can bring back appreciation
of the skills of the hand, rather than nit picking what percentage
fits the criteria of the law we currently deal with. This recurrent
discussion is far more destructive than realized. It morphs into
“can you top this,” as more seem to want to be right, and more leave
this community.

What are we gaining with this regurgitation?

Terrie

43 
I agree with Anna that this is moral issue of honesty rather than
a legal issue. It only becomes a legal issue if there are legal
consequences for abusing the term. If there are no art cops and
nobody ever gets busted for calling their cast multiples
"handmade," it is solely a matter of being honest with your
customers. And since the FTC is apparently doing little, if
anything, to actually regulate the term "handmade," why should
anyone feel a moral obligation to accept the FTC definition of the
term as the final word?

Boy that is definitely a big rationalization. It is illegal to misuse
the term, it doesn’t matter if you have art police wandering around
or not. Just because there are no cops around doesn’t make it legal
to drive at 100 mph. You must follow the law because it is the law,
just because you don’t agree with it is not an excuse for this law or
any other.

James Binnion
James Binnion Metal Arts

44

I suppose I’m just simple-minded, but there doesn’t seem to be any
shades of grey on this issue to me.

If it’s not made by a machine, then it has to be made by hand.

And as I believe ‘made by machine’ is universally accepted to mean
an automated process - think die stamping 10,000 items; the fact
that various tools are actually machines is irrelevant if the
process used is not automated. Nobody thinks a horseshoe made by a
blacksmith is machine made. Go ahead and use either a hand-powered
drill or a flex-shaft, it doesn’t matter. Cast a piece or saw it
into shape, doesn’t matter.

QED. Everything I make is hand made, as none of my processes are
automated nor completed by machine. They’re all done by my hand,
using tools.

Pete

45 
Boy that is definitely a big rationalization. It is illegal to
misuse the term, it doesn't matter if you have art police wandering
around or not.

Several posts back I asked, “who is to judge”? I posed that
question, not because I am trying to be defiant or rationalize a fast
and loose contempt for standards. My observation is that our cultural
standards of what is considered “handmade” are not driven by legal
pressure. I believe that standards like this are worked out through a
combination of consumer expectations, political and legal decisions.
Real laws, good or bad, get clarified when they are argued in court
and a judge makes a ruling. Most of us obey the law, not because we
have read and thought about the law, but because we know what happens
as a result of what we and other people do.

The FTC definition is a “Guide.” What does that mean? I sure don’t
know, so I am asking. Some of the sections, such as the ones relating
to quality stamps and statements of precious metal content reference
actual law, passed by Congress. The National Stamping Act is Federal
law and very clearly so. People do get prosecuted for cheating on
those standards. But what is a “guide?” The word seems to suggest
that it is less than a law. The section about “handmade” does not
reference anything as definitive as the National Stamping Act.

This guide, as it written, could be interpreted, has been on this
forum, to mean that a hand carved wax, even if cast using the most
hand operated method, is no longer a handmade product when the
craftsman is finished with it. The point of the guide is to define
consumer fraud. It does not specifically say that casting is
disqualified as a handmade process anymore than it says a bowl spun
on a lathe and then decorated with a hundred hours of hand chasing
cannot be called handmade because of the lathe work to produce the
blank. You could interpret it that way, or not. Can you really
imagine someone taking a craftsman to court, especially in these days
of CAD and 3-D printers, and claiming that they were defrauded
because a casting from a hand carved wax is not handmade enough for
them?

If the FTC definition of handmade was actually causing someone a
burden or seemed unjust as it was applied, there would be political
pressure to correct it. I think it seems incomplete and some
clarification is in order. But since there seems to be neither
consumer outrage nor actual consequences it is very unlikely that any
legal or political process is going work this out. So it is a matter
of honesty, conscience and community standards.

Stephen Walker

46

Just to mix it up because that’s always fun…

the ancients used lost wax casting but did not have centrifugal or
vacuum casting machines (assumption on my part about no machines).
So there you have an Egyptian artisan from say the third millennium
BCE, pouring his gold into whatever sort of flask he fashioned. Is it
fair to say his work is not handmade? I mean given the period and the
culture and the technology? Does he not have the ability to alter
each and every item he makes since he fashions each and every wax in
each and every flask with no use of a rubber mold? And if he makes a
mistake isn’t it by his own hand? Does that or does that not qualify
as “workmanship of risk”, since ya know he has no pyrometer or
digital furnace or anything, just his eyeballs? “Hey Heptu, more
action on the bellows please”

“the entire shaping and forming of such product from raw materials
and its finishing and decoration were accomplished by hand labor and
manually-controlled methods which permit the maker to control and
vary the construction, shape, design, and finish of each part of
each individual product.”

When I read that I do not see that it says any and all actions by
the craftsman MUST be directly in the solid metal…only that he
retains control and can vary blah blah blah by manually-controlled
methods. Thru a series of steps he created the negative mold to his
satisfaction without machine assistance, he poured it by hand, he’ll
finish by hand. Yet the handmade police might haul his rear to jail
because its a casting. maybe?

But man, what a tough way to make a living.

47

Hi Stephen,

The FTC definition is a "Guide." What does that mean? I sure don't
know, so I am asking. Some of the sections, such as the ones
relating to quality stamps and statements of precious metal content
reference actual law, passed by Congress. The National Stamping Act
is Federal law and very clearly so. People do get prosecuted for
cheating on those standards. But what is a "guide?" The word seems
to suggest that it is less than a law. The section about "handmade"
does not reference anything as definitive as the National Stamping
Act.

The FTC is charged with providing guidance to business in how to
comply with the law. If you ever want to drive yourself crazy try to
read the national stamping act. Congressional law is dense stuff
that only a lawyer has half a chance of understanding and as you say
even then the law is defined and clarified by the judicial process.
The Guides are the law phrased so that a typical person can
understand it. It is not an invention by the FTC but an attempt to
make the law understandable.

This guide, as it written, could be interpreted, has been on this
forum, to mean that a hand carved wax, even if cast using the most
hand operated method, is no longer a handmade product when the
craftsman is finished with it. The point of the guide is to define
consumer fraud. It does not specifically say that casting is
disqualified as a handmade process anymore than it says a bowl
spun on a lathe and then decorated with a hundred hours of hand
chasing cannot be called handmade because of the lathe work to
produce the blank.

Oh but it does say that.

“It is unfair or deceptive to represent, directly or by implication,
that any industry product is handmade or hand-wrought unless the
entire shaping and forming of such product from raw materials and its
finishing and decoration were accomplished by hand labor and
manually-controlled methods which permit the maker to control and
vary the construction, shape, design, and finish of each part of each
individual product.”

The part about the “entire shaping and forming of such a product
from raw materials” clearly would make a spun bowl ineligible to
qualify as hand made. This is also why a cast item cannot qualify.
The casting process is not a “manually-controlled method which permit
the maker to control and vary the construction” Casting is a
formulaic process that does not allow one to “vary the construction,
shape, design, and finish” it either produces a useable casting or
not.

You could interpret it that way, or not. Can you really imagine
someone taking a craftsman to court, especially in these days of CAD
and 3-D printers, and claiming that they were defrauded because a
casting from a hand carved wax is not handmade enough for them?

Well since this is a federal law you would need to convince a
federal prosecutor such a case would be worth their time which as you
point out is probably not likely.

If the FTC definition of handmade was actually causing someone a
burden or seemed unjust as it was applied, there would be
political pressure to correct it. I think it seems incomplete and
some clarification is in order. But since there seems to be neither
consumer outrage nor actual consequences it is very unlikely that
any legal or political process is going work this out. So it is a
matter of honesty, conscience and community standards.

Yes, one is either honest enough to follow the law or not whether
that compliance is driven by conscience or community standards.

Jim
James Binnion
James Binnion Metal Arts

48 
the ancients used lost wax casting but did not have centrifugal or
vacuum casting machines (assumption on my part about no machines).
So there you have an Egyptian artisan from say the third
millennium BCE, pouring his gold into whatever sort of flask he
fashioned. Is it fair to say his work is not handmade?

The wax is hand made, the casting is not. It is not that a machine
is used, a casting is a reproduction of a wax original by definition.

Jim

James Binnion
James Binnion Metal Arts

49

I’ve got to agree with Terrie on this,

This nit-picking about whether one can call one’s work hand-made or
not is definitely a discouraging one, and I bet especially to the
newcomers (of which I credit myself as being one of).

When I was living near Gallup, we had very many Dine’ selling
jewelry by roadside that you could very much tell was hand-assembled
rather than hand-made.

When I asked, most of these sellers were of the understanding that
the definition of hand-made only legally applies to the final person
in the supply chain.

If you are ordering premanufactured beads to string together into a
necklace, then the necklace is hand-made regardless of the source of
the beads.

And that is why they can get away with telling the customer that
thier items are hand-made: because they are ones who assemble the
final product by hand.

So there.

Andrew Jonathan Fine

50

Oh Stephen,

Don’t you know not to cross paths with the experts here?

You cannot do anything if you follow all the exact legal details
listed here. Between OSHA, the FTC and most local authorities you
really can’t manufacture much of anything let alone produce jewelry.

Yet another example: How many artist jewelers have a Registered
Trade Mark to sell jewelry in the USA? The FTC mandates this as rule
one. Problem here is the expense and legal expertise necessary to do
it. I have had five registered trade marks and to be truthful spent a
lot on money to be code compliant with never a challenge. I’m not
sure if I would do this again. My initials on the piece would
indicate my intent to comply with the requirement. If challenged my
response would be that I am in the process of doing it.

Getting back to definitions I have also for many years used the term
Handcrafted to describe my work. It is at the customer level cast,
both from carved wax as well as wax injected patterns I do myself.
The source here is a Canadian / UK definition, rather than any USA
source.

Any way here’s my two cents worth, sure to have more critical
comments generated.

Best Regards,

Todd Hawkinson
Southeast Technical College

51 
the entire shaping and forming of such product from raw materials
and its finishing and decoration were accomplished by hand labor
and manually-controlled methods which permit the maker to control
and vary the construction, shape, design, and finish of each part
of each individual product.

This means that if I make one at a time, by manually controlled CAD-
CAM, the computer being controlled by my hands, and I can vary each
because I make only one at a time, I pour the plaster by hand, pour
the metal by hand. Then I hand polish with my manually controlled
foredom, polisher, set the stones with my manually controlled
gravermach, then it’s handmade, right?

Or are we down to pounding out sheet from nuggets, saws, hand
gravers, sandpaper sticks and powdered rouge on a felt stick?

Heh Heh.

Michael

52 
This nit-picking about whether one can call one's work hand-made
or not is definitely a discouraging one,

That is because “hand made” is thought by some as the only true and
valid standard of craftsmanship. Don’t let it mess with your head. I
hope that nobody in this discussion is saying, “if it cannot be
called 'hand made, don’t make it or you are a bad person”. They are
just saying don’t call it hand made unless it is. And then we
nit-pick about the definition, the consequences and so on. Then in
the next thread we advise each other how to make better castings and
what CAD programs are best.

Stephen Walker

53 
The wax is hand made, the casting is not. It is not that a machine
is used, a casting is a reproduction of a wax original by
definition.

Without arguing the merits or flaws of this definition Jim, and with
all due respect, I believe this is your definition, not that of the
FTC. If I’m wrong, where exactly in the FTC guidelines does it refer
to castings as reproductions and specifically or even by inference
rule them out as being “Handmade” because they are reproductions? Or
even mention castings or reproductions at all in any context? I
cannot find anywhere where it says or even hints that a piece must
be unique to be called handmade, nor did I see any mention of
reproductions (by any definition) or their exclusion. Only that the
tools used must be manually controlled (no mention of machines,
powered or not), and that only raw materials can be used. Materials
don’t get much more raw than grain. The FTC guidelines are pretty
broad, and we start down a slippery slope when we start seeing and
defining things that aren’t there. And castings or reproductions
aren’t there at all in any context whatsoever.

We can agree or disagree about what OUR definitions are or ought to
be, and what ethical standards WE consider to be appropriate for the
use of the term “handmade” within the jewelry industry, but the FTC
guidelines don’t mention either pro or con, casting, reproductions,
or many of the things people use to exclude or include whatever they
think it should. Heck, even the FTC doesn’t have the courage of their
convictions and only calls them “guidelines”. How broad can you get?

So basically, as I read the FTC definition of handmade, as long as
you don’t use findings or an automated manufacturing process like a
cnc mill (Computer and Controlled being the operative words), you can
call pretty much anything you want to “handmade” and stay within the
law. Even if you’re cranking out thousands of identical pieces. And
if someone believes that CAD CAM fits the definition of handmade, a
good argument can be made in their defense and the only place they’re
likely to get any real flak is right here on Orchid.

Personally I think this whole issue is a tempest in a teapot, as so
many others have more or less said, and as such arguing about it is
counterproductive. I also think that the term “handmade” has been so
over-used and is so broadly defined that more than anything, it now
carries with it a message or feeling of apology (or a desperate plea
of self-assurance) for over-priced, poorly made junk. At least that’s
what I see when vendors are trying to sell me “handmade” jewelry. I
avoid using the term like it’s rotten cabbage.

Dave Phelps

54 
They are just saying don't call it hand made unless it is. And then
we nit-pick about the definition, the consequences and so on. Then
in the next thread we advise each other how to make better castings
and what CAD programs are best.

Yup :slight_smile:

James Binnion
James Binnion Metal Arts

55 
It is not that a machine is used, a casting is a reproduction of a
wax original by definition.

The way I see it the craftsman still does the cast by manually
controlled methods. This is Heptu, the bellows pumper and his master,
not a modern production shop (an important distinction). There’s a
legal principle in insurance that ‘if its not excluded its included’.
If we can borrow that… I don’t see in the guidelines that
‘reproductions of hand carved waxes’ solely by their very nature are
excluded, only that the method be manually controlled and can be
varied by the craftsman using hand labor.

If I cut and dap a disc to make a dome, is that not a reproduction
of the hole in the block? Yet wouldn’t that dome pass the legal test
of handmade(used nothing but hand tools and methods and I can vary
it)? I don’t see an essential difference between forcing a solid
piece of metal into a form (dapping block) and forcing a button of
molten metal into a form(flask). That void in the investment was put
there strictly by manually controlled methods which cannot be said of
most dapping blocks.

That void can be varied by varying the wax. I don’t think the guide
addresses WHERE the variance occurs, whether by direct action on the
item or by the tooling used to produce the item, only that variance
is at the control of the craftsperson with hand labor. Perhaps early
castings were among the first attempts at outside the box thinking in
jewelry, in that rather than act directly and mechanically on the
solid metal to form a shape, we first change its state to make it
more compliant. (this is not excluded specifically in the guide)
Waxing, investing, melting, pouring, all were accomplished by hand on
A SINGLE ITEM. While the casting would be a reproduction of the
invested wax it is not a reproduction of a jewelry item or part
thereof. He can make only one unit from the wax which rules out
production of exact copies. He can vary and control the next similar
product by varying the next wax which is a certainty that it would
vary. The second we make an injectable mold its all out the window
though. I feel the need to stress again that this is in regards to
Heptu and Company, in a primitive setting. How that applies to Joe
The Modern Jeweler is a matter for Joe to consider.

I’m basing my opinion on the wording of the guidelines as I read
them. Clearly the guide is ambiguous ( oxymoronic? ) to some extent
or else we all wouldn’t be discussing it. I don’t believe ongoing
discussion to be regurgitation at all. People are interested and
apparently undecided…that’s enough reason to discuss.

It is my belief that cast goods do not qualify

And I respect that even without necessarily agreeing with it. Modern
commercially cast goods? absolutely agree. Heptu’s primitive one off
casting? I think it fits the guidelines.

56

Hi Guys,

I’ve noticed the list is full of passionate people, and imo that’s a
great thing, although the discussions can get a little heated at
times.

More than one way to skin a cat, and there are many opinions that
support that their skinning method is the best. We may disagree with
the other methods, but we still listen.

We learn a lot, and for that I’m grateful.
Regards Charles A.

57 
We can agree or disagree about what OUR definitions are or ought
to be, and what ethical standards WE consider to be appropriate for
the use of the term "handmade" within the jewelry industry, but the
FTC guidelines don't mention either pro or con, casting,
reproductions, or many of the things people use to exclude or
include whatever they think it should. Heck, even the FTC doesn't
have the courage of their convictions and only calls them
"guidelines". How broad can you get?

Just came back from vacation and I can see that proverbial pot is
still boiling. It is interesting to note that goldsmith, who do
practice strictly handmade process, do not have a problem with FTC
definition, but others do. Quite fascinating.

Let’s put FTC language aside for a moment. There has been quite a lot
of work done in academic community, towards determination of whether
or not piece is handmade. Anybody, who is involved with antique
jewellery of some value, knows how many fakes exist of historically
significant pieces. To ascertain their true origin, the exact
determination of method of manufacturing is of paramount importance.
It is from these academic works, the difference between handmade and
cast becomes strikingly obvious.

When piece is handmade, it gets exposure to a lot of tool contact
like hammering. What happens when gold ingot is stricken with hammer?
Goldsmith by swinging a hammer imparts certain energy to hammerhead.
When contact is made that energy is partially used to deform the
ingot, but a lot of it is getting stored inside metal structure. That
type of energy is called “potential energy” and it is directly
responsible for work hardening phenomenon. When such metal is
annealed, the re-crystallization is taking place earlier because some
of the energy is already present, and the structure is quite
different from cast pieces. It is this difference which gives
handmade pieces the ability to resist wear and tear much better than
cast jewellery.

This is not trivial by any stretch of an imagination. Consider
sterling silver. I wonder how many realize that by annealing to book
recommended temperatures actually destroys the alloy. I do not have
room for explanation why it is so, but silver rich phase are actually
starting to melt below theoretical low margin. To avoid this, the
alloy must actually be 95% of silver, or higher. One may be wondering
if this is true, why then “sterling” is considered to be a standard
of craftsmanship? By hardworking alloy intelligently, goldsmith can
lower annealing temperature required and avoid the damage.

There is another important distinction. The pattern of working and
annealing is quite legible during scans with modern diagnostically
equipment, and this pattern is unique to every goldsmith. It can be
said that every handmade piece carries a goldsmith signature inside
it’s crystalline structure. I do not want to bring spirituality into
discussion, but if one believes in power of crystals, such power will
likely to manifest itself in handmade piece rather than cast.

It is unethical and illegal to sell diamond substitute by calling it
a real diamond. But what is the actual difference between diamond and
let’s say CZ ? The difference is in crystal structure. Economically,
buying diamond may not be the wisest decision, but people believe in
special properties of diamond and that motivates them to seek out and
purchase “their diamond”. Handmade jewellery is the same. Yes, there
are a lot of subpar quality, but the fact that a piece contains an
imprint of goldsmith life energy is a very important factor for
some, and it should be respected.

Leonid Surpin

58

if rod and sheet are formed and soldered together it is handmade??
correct??? if you take a few different castings, hammer and re-form,
and solder them together it is the same???.. alll handmade,
dave

59 
"were accomplished by hand labor and manually-controlled methods"

This means that if I make one at a time, by manually controlled
CAD- CAM, the computer being controlled by my hands, and I can vary
each because I make only one at a time, I pour the plaster by hand,
pour the metal by hand. Then I hand polish with my manually
controlled foredom, polisher, set the stones with my manually
controlled gravermach, then it's handmade, right?

I think you’re forgetting the hand labor part. Your machines are
producing the wax at your instruction, not with your hands. The
phrase is "hand labor AND manually-controlled methods. Not OR. I
don’t believe pushing buttons qualifies as hand labor or manual
control.

Perhaps we could remember there are differences between ‘hand made’
and ‘made by me’.

60

Does the carving or building of the wax make the wax part handmade?
I believe that a one-off casting is essentially done by hand and
that added to the fact that the wax is Hand-made, (you don’t have to
formulate the wax itself) the item does come under the rules.
However, I have also decided who cares–and it isn’t worth obsessing
about it. As I mentioned before, I use “designed and created by” and
am satisfied with that.

However. there is another issue I would like to comment on; At some
point in this thread, someone (I don’t remember who it was or exactly
when) said that he felt that casting was simply a tool that anyone
could learn to use especially with a little help and/or supervision.
Maybe, but so can soldering, Over the years, I have used several
different Casting companies. I also took a week long course in
casting at Penland, mainly to see what it was like and to know what
I needed to do with my waxes to make them ‘castable’, and whether it
was something I could do for myself. I came away with enough
knowledge to make better waxes, and also with the strong sense that
this was something I could not do for myself–I didn’t have the time
to learn it properly, nor the space for the equipment needed. Of the
several Casters I have used, some were OK and some were really
terrific.

I believe that casting is an art, and that there are technicians who
do casting and then there are Casters who are artists. I’ll send my
stuff to them anytime!

Sandra
Elegant Insects jewelry
http://www.bonanza.com/Elegantinsects