What is the Best Wood for Making Jewellery?

What is the best wood for making jewellery? Well, My subtle answer to this question is – Balsa Wood. Reason being, they are softwood, easy to cut, and carved easily.

If you are someone who is detail-oriented and eager to learn about the best woods. This guide is surely going to make your jewellery crafts fun.

There are two kinds of wood – softwood and hardwood. Softwood originated from coniferous trees and hardwood from deciduous trees.

What is the Best Wood for Making Jewellery?

What is the best wood for making jewellery? is the first question crossing the minds of an individual who has just started jewellery making and eager to learn from scratch and want to make authentic handmade creations.

Balsa wood is incredibly the best wood type to craft jewellery that makes your crafting experience easy at home. Also, you can save your cost by using manual tools for making beautiful shapes.

Being fragile in nature, balsa wood breaks easily. Make sure to cut with patience with a hacksaw. Take a pause for few seconds while cutting wood then resume again. 

What are the Best Woods for Making Jewellery Without Complex Tools?

For beginners, it is recommended to use wood that is soft and light-weight in nature such as Balsa wood, Birchwood, Cedarwood, Pinewood, Palmwood, Red Pine Wood, Bamboo wood, Rosewood and Cherrywood which are mostly preferred worldwide.

If you are the person who loves problem-solving and excited to make your own designer jewellery pieces, you’ll love this blog as I am going to give you a well-researched list of best woods. Hope you like them.

BalsaWood – Balsa wood is my top priority list for making jewellery. Reason being, they are least-dense, inexpensive, light-weighted, easy-to-cut and carved at home with manual woodworking techniques,

Birchwood – Birchwood has an amazing property of healing headaches that makes this wood unique from others. That is why they are specially used for making hair accessories.

Cedarwood – Cedarwood is a softwood that has an amazing aromatic property. It is smooth and used for making wooden beads. If it’s available with you, you can cut, sand, and polish to make beautiful shapes for yourself and even for gifting purposes.

Pinewood – Pinewood appears with visible knots on it. It is a softwood that is cheaper to buy. It is stronger than Balsa wood therefore when you use manual wood cutting tools please stay super alert so as to not harm yourself.

Palmwood – The specialty of palmwood is that it is used for making ethnic jewellery pieces. Palmwood is neither a softwood nor hardwood, it’s a coconut timber. To perform wood carving on palm wood, use a chainsaw.

Red Pine Wood- Red pine is an economical softwood that has an oily texture and gives a beautiful appearance of making jewellery piece. The best part about this wood is, it can withstand unfavorable weather conditions.

Bamboo wood – Bamboo wood is used in making precious jewellery but they are quite challenging to handcraft. You can make African style accessories like necklace, bracelet, earrings by using dremel machine.

Rosewood –  Rosewood is the hardwood used for making beads. It is brown in color and looks attractive. If you want to make wooden beaded bracelet or necklace, go straight for rosewood jewellery.

Cherrywood – Cherrywood is dark reddish in color is the best wood for making beautiful jewellery and decorative items. It has a smooth texture, easy-to-cut, and carved at home but there is one downside of this kind of wood – they get deteriorate soon, hence it is recommended to use a sealer that lasts longer.

Why Balsa Wood is the Best Wood for Making Jewellery?

What is the best wood for making jewellery for beginners who are looking forward to making their own authentic handmade creations with no costly tools?

For those, who have just begun and want to take the plunge, I recommend Balsa wood due to the following reasons which will help you understand in-depth. Read very carefully before you begin.

1. Easy-to-Cut

Balsa wood is least dense amongst other wood types which makes it easy for woodworkers to cut wood easily with manual tools and thereby get those fancy wood shapes for making stunning wooden jewellery at home.

2. Easy Wood Carving

Wood carving is a very popular art that can be done manually using carving knife, chisel or machines like dremel. Balsa wood being softwood in nature makes it easy to carve beautiful personalised jewellery such as pendants, bracelets, rings, etc.

3. Economical Wood

The best part about Balsa wood for designers who have just begun making jewellery at home is they are cost-effective wood doesn’t require high-tech machines for woodworking. You can simply use manual tools.

4. Light-weighted

Balsa wood being light-weighted softwood makes it easy for wooden jewellery artists to make artistic designer jewellery and thereby earn decent margins by selling handmade jewellery online due to it’s light-weight.

5. Make Trending Geometric Jewellery

For beginner jewellery artists, if you ask me what kind of jewellery can be made from balsa wood? I would say- You can make incredible geometric style handmade jewellery by cutting wood at home using manual woodworking tools.

As per the detailed research report by Sig Manufacturing Co, a leading industry since 1951, There are some very interesting facts about Balsa wood. Read the amazing piece of content to know more. 

Balsa or Pine Wood – Which one is Better?

Well, if you want to know better – What is the best wood for making jewellery – Balsa or Pinewood? Let me tell you guys, you can use any of them for making jewellery at home.

If we compare both of these woods in terms of making crafting experience easy for first-timers, Balsa wood is the lightest wood but make sure you cut this wood carefully as it breaks easily. 

Pinewood is stronger wood than Balsa, but you can consider it for making jewellery. To conclude this answer, both are easy to craft. By the way, I would highly insights please use wood leftovers just like I did as shown the above image and save trees. 

What is the Best Wood for Making Ethnic Jewellery?

If you are wondering – What is the best wood making ethnic jewellery? I would say- Palmwood but you need professional tools like dremel or laser cutter machines to get fancy wood shapes for making stunning jewellery pieces at home.

For beginners, I would not recommend using manual woodworking tools. Go for Dremel that is handy and easy to cut, carve, sands and polish wood.

If you have don’t have a dremel, look for the places where laser cutting machines are used and get access to it. Once you get those shapes, you can make artistic handmade jewellery creations.

What is the Best wood for Making Personalised Jewellery Gifts?

What is the best wood for making jewellery that is perfect for making personalised gifts? Well, I recommend balsa wood, pinewood and Palmwood which are low-budget and easy to make jewellery with manual tools.

If you are using pine wood, go straight for Western White Pine that is quite friendly to carve and hence recommended for beginner jewellery artists.

By personalised jewellery gifts I mean, hand-carved wooden jewellery pieces such as necklace, wristbands, wooden beaded bracelet and so many ideas to craft.

Is Oak Wood The Best Wood for Making Jewellery?

Oakwood is a hardwood that can be used for making jewellery but they are difficult to cut hence you will require tech machines for woodcutting like dremel or laser cutting technology to get fancy shapes for making beautiful jewellery.

Oakwood has the advantage that it lasts longer, polished, and doesn’t deteriorate as compared to softwood but they are expensive wood types used in furniture items.

Is Cottonwood The Best Wood for Jewellery Designers?

Cottonwood is good for practicing carving but it is difficult to cut and carve. Also, It decays easily as compared to other types of wood.

Therefore, my suggestion to all jewellery crafters who have just begun making jewellery and wondering about the best wood for making jewellery, begin with a softwood that is easier to cut and carve. 

I hope this blog has given you the clarity on the best wood for making jewellery that requires no complex tools and hence easy for newbie jewellery designers who are looking simplest ways of jewellery crafts.

Take the plunge and try making your own fancy shapes at home and inspire the world. Don’t forget to share your handmade jewellery collections with me. I would love to see them.