Salary
Average Salary: $49,345
Expected Lifetime Earnings: $2,060,055
You're an artisan. And no, that doesn't mean people will be waiting in lines to throw money at your feet. Just because jewelry is expensive, it doesn't mean you'll be getting rich quickly. If you were making artisanal golden eggs with your magical goose, maybe you could expect a fortune, but not jewelry. The average salary isn't bad, but it's not super high either, coming in at a healthy $49,345 per year (source).
Pay can also vary quite a bit in this field depending on the method you use to build your business. If you're more of a self-employed hobbyist—living in your parents' basement, stringing animal bones together and calling it a necklace—you won't be making such a cozy living. The lower end of the salary bracket is $29,528, and even then you're still working your butt off.
If you're working for a retailer and getting commission, you'll make a little more as a base and get nice bonuses when you sell—anywhere from an extra $150-or-so to a down payment on a nice car. And without commission, you can still make up to $83,700 on your base salary alone. Not too shabby for stringing some beads together (source).
For the one-third of jewelers that are self-employed, benefits won't be a given. Unless you're working for a retailer, you're on your own when the hospital bill comes. Any time you take for vacation is coming straight out of your pocket, too. And another lovely detail is that no matter where you work, your hours will include weekends and holidays—popular gift-giving times will always be your busiest season and if things are going well you'll be super busy at those times (source).