The term "hand made jewelry" can mean different things. In all jewelry manufacturing, some steps are done by hand. For instance, a mass produced gold casting is polished by hand and may even have a few diamonds that are set by hand. But such a piece clearly does not qualify as hand made jewelry. Jewelry that is designed on computer with a wax milled by a machine driven by a computer program (CAD/CAM) may result in a completely original custom jewelry design, but it is still not litterally a piece of hand made jewelry.

In the most technical sense, only a fabricated piece that is constructed entirely of parts crafted and assembled by hand can qualify as hand made jewelry. However, in general the terms custom jewelry and hand made jewelry are used interchangeably. That is, most any original jewelry creation that requires extensive attention by the craftsman is referred to as hand made jewelry. Hand made jewelry does not necessarily have to be one-of-a-kind as long as it is manufactured in a way in which automation is not extensively used.

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