Ceramic Bracelets

A LUMI ceramic bracelet is a porcelain bracelet: every bead is Jingdezhen porcelain, shaped, glazed and painted by hand, then fired at about 1,300°C. The colour is in the glaze, not painted on afterwards, so it does not fade, chip off or react with skin. No two beads come out of the kiln the same.

How porcelain differs from glass and stone

Glass beads are moulded, cool to the touch and perfectly uniform. Stone beads are cut and polished, heavy on the wrist and usually dyed. Porcelain sits between them: lighter than stone, warmer than glass, and the only one of the three where the pattern — a brushstroke, a crackle — is made by hand and by fire rather than by a mould or a dye. If you want to check a bead you already own, this one-minute test tells them apart.

Which glaze to choose

Qing Hua blue-and-white for someone drawn to heritage and pattern — cobalt brushwork under a clear glaze, the oldest Jingdezhen craft. Cobalt Blue for someone who wears one strong colour. Ice Crackle in six colours for someone who likes a surface that rewards a second look. The 發 character for a wish you want her to carry. Forest Green 10mm for him.

Which bead size

6mm is light and delicate, 8mm is the everyday size most people choose, 10mm is a statement and the size that suits a man's wrist. All three are strung on elastic cord and fit 14–18cm wrists; the size guide takes a minute. 6mm vs 8mm vs 10mm goes into weights and pairings.

Every bracelet arrives in the embossed LUMI gift box with a care card, ready to give. Free shipping to Hong Kong and Singapore; Taiwan, Australia, the UK and the US with a flat fee, free on larger orders. Porcelain needs almost no care — water and perfume affect the cord, not the beads.