Polished Snake-Shaped Sterling Silver Button Earrings - Snake Prodigy

Artisan Organization: Arta Pradana

Country: Bali and Java

"My name is I Ketut Arta Pradana Putra, and I was born in Celuk, Bali. Celuk is well known for its silver jewelry. My father was a silversmith. I am proud to be his apprentice; to carry on what he has been doing for years, decades even. My father used to go abroad to attend exhibitions in many countries to promote his silver. I saw that effort and that dedication when I was a child, so I love this silver business. I am the youngest child of four children. And I spent my childhood watching my father and being taught by my mother how to be a good silversmith.

"My mother taught me well, and one thing I still remember today are her words saying ‘do not break peoples’ trust’. When we get trust from people, do not break it, or even lose it, because trust is something expensive that we must earn. Both my parents are amazing; I love them. They always said that we should love our hometown, Celuk, because we have been living here for a long time. My childhood in Celuk was really amazing. I always played in a paddy field and a river. The running water was clear and fresh; my friends and I used to swim and play there.

"After I finished senior high school I continued to college, and I studied while I worked on silver jewelry. Until I was in the third semester, when I realized that I was not gonna excel if I was doing two things at the same time. So, I decided to expand the silver jewelry business. Back then I used to go to many places to attend silver exhibitions, to promote my works. I learned that in this modern era, I can not do what my father used to do--I need to improve by myself. And then I discovered that social media and online shops are new, effective tools to market my jewelry.

"There was a time when I went to Europe to attend an exhibition, and the sales were not so good. I decided to go to jewelry stores near the exhibition place to offer my jewelry door-to-door. I carried a medium briefcase to go from store to store. After the fifth store rejected me, there was finally a store who bought some of my jewelry. I was so happy that my effort was not in vain.

"I found Novica a year before, but at that time I did not try to contact them because I thought I wasn’t ready for something as big as this. And when I thought I was ready, I started to contact them. Surprisingly, they were so polite, and welcomed me as a new artisan. They helped me to improve the quality of my products. I hope that you love my jewelry. "