Yasemin Erdin Tavukçu and Özgür Karavit translate children’s drawings into jewelry, keeping the original imagination visible in a different material. Their small studio in Istanbul, Tasarım Takarım, takes a child's drawing and hand-cuts it from silver to make a necklace, bracelet, brooch, earrings or cufflinks. The wobbly lines, odd proportions and big smiles stay exactly as the child drew them.
The idea went viral in 2016, when publications from Marie Claire to HuffPost featured the studio. It is still running: its Etsy shop has been open since 2015 and was active in 2026. Below we explain how the process works, what it costs, which drawings work best, and show 21 examples of drawings and finished pieces.
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Who makes the jewelry?
Tasarım Takarım is a Turkish jewelry studio. In 2016 interviews, Yasemin Erdin Tavukçu was named as a co-founder, and Özgür Karavit was described as a painter, sculptor and goldsmith who works on the designs. The business was then about two years old, which puts its start around 2014.
The studio's Etsy listing gives Istanbul as its location. By late 2026 it showed close to 900 sales, more than 200 reviews and an average rating of five stars, with reviewers often mentioning custom orders and good communication.
How a drawing becomes a necklace
The process is simple from the customer's side. Parents send a photo or scan of the drawing they want, and the makers decide how best to recreate it in metal. As the co-founder put it in 2016, "Every drawing is unique," so each piece is customised.
The pieces are usually hand-cut from a sheet of 925 sterling silver, sometimes gold-plated, and laser engraving can be added for finer details such as feathers or eyelashes. In 2016 a piece took about a week to make and usually cost between 125 and 195 US dollars. The current Etsy shop lists prices of roughly 200 to 370 euros with free shipping, and says items are prepared within about two weeks for its classic style and three weeks for a three-dimensional style. Prices and timings change, so check the shop before ordering.
From drawing to jewelry: the examples
A long-haired figure drawn in black pen sits beside the finished silver pendant on a chain. The maker kept the open outline instead of filling it in, so the necklace still reads as a line drawing.
The same long-haired figure shown three ways: the original sketch, the pendant on a grey background and the necklace being worn. Side-by-side views like this are how the makers usually present each commission.
A stick figure in purple crayon, arms raised and grinning, next to its version in gold-coloured metal. The wobbly legs and lopsided head survive the translation almost exactly.
The gold stick-figure pendant worn on a fine chain. At this scale the piece is small and light, closer to a charm than to a statement necklace.
A pink pig drawn in coloured pencil becomes a round silver pendant with a cut-out snout and eyes. Solid, simple shapes like this pig are among the easiest drawings to turn into metal.
The silver long-haired figure from the first example, now worn as a necklace. Openwork pieces like this are cut by hand from a flat sheet, which is why the lines vary slightly in thickness.
An owl drawn on lined school paper, with patterned feathers and stick legs, beside a silver owl that keeps the feather marks as engraved lines. Fine interior details like these are sometimes added by laser engraving.
A small silver cat, shown as if flying with its paws spread, hangs sideways on a delicate chain. Turning a drawing on its side can make it sit better as a pendant.
A bright felt-tip self-portrait with long eyelashes and a big smile, next to a silver face pendant that copies the lashes and smile as cut-outs. The colours are lost, so the makers keep the features that give the face its character.
A stick figure in red crayon with long flowing hair and a scribbled skirt becomes a silver pendant with the same scribble at its base. Even an apparently messy drawing can work if its outline is connected.
A tiny silver figure with spiky hair and a square body worn close to the neck. The original drawing is not shown here, but the proportions are clearly a child's.
A family of three stick figures holding hands, drawn in pencil, and its silver version. Family portraits are a popular choice because they work as a keepsake for parents and grandparents alike.
A plump owl with round glasses-like eyes and a wavy chest pattern, cut in gold-coloured metal. Pieces are offered in sterling silver, and some in gold-plated silver.
A cheerful face with its tongue out and a hand waving, drawn in blue biro, beside a silver pendant that keeps the waving hand and the smile.
A small silver creature with a curled face and stubby arms hangs on a chain. Strange, half-invented animals are among the most charming results because no adult designer would draw them that way.
A pencil bird or dolphin diving through grass becomes a sleek silver shape with a single cut-out eye. The background lines of the drawing are simply left out.
A large silver face on legs with spiral eyes and a wide grin, shown on black. Bigger pendants like this keep more of the original line detail.
Inside the workshop
A child bends over a sheet of paper to draw with a pencil. Every piece begins like this: the family sends a photo or scan of a drawing, and the makers work out how to cut it from metal.
A finished figure with outstretched arms rests on a jeweller's bench pin, surrounded by pliers, files and a saw. Hand finishing smooths the edges so the pendant is comfortable to wear.
A jeweller cuts a silver sheet with a fine piercing saw at a wooden bench pin. Following the line of a drawing by hand is slow work, which is why each piece takes days rather than minutes.
The workshop, with rows of pliers in a wooden stand and a maker working at the bench in the background. Production is small-scale and done to order.
Which drawings work best?
Not every drawing translates equally well. Because the design is cut from a single sheet of metal, the parts of the picture need to connect: a figure whose arms float away from the body will either be joined up or simplified. A clear outline drawn with a pen or dark crayon is easier to follow than a faint pencil sketch or a picture built mainly from colour.
Simple subjects such as faces, animals, stick figures and family portraits tend to give the most recognisable results. Colour is lost in silver, so it helps to choose a drawing whose character lives in its shape: a funny pose, a big grin or a pair of oversized ears. If you are unsure, send two or three options and ask the makers which they recommend.
A keepsake that lasts
Most children's drawings end up in a drawer, on the fridge for a week or in the recycling. Turning one into jewelry keeps a specific moment of a child's development, from a first face with stick arms to a carefully drawn owl, in a form that can be worn every day.
A few practical points: keep the original drawing safe, since it is part of the story; note that gold plating can wear over time with daily use; and store silver away from moisture to slow tarnishing. Then let the young designer see the finished piece. For many families, that reaction is the best part.
Sources: Tasarım Takarım on Etsy; HuffPost, 2016; Scary Mommy, July 2016; Marie Claire UK, May 2016.
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