Craft-Inspired Jewellery Design Combining Tiv Weaving Motifs with Contemporary Metalwork Techniques

This project explores the integration of traditional Tiv weaving motifs from Benue State, North Central Nigeria, into contemporary jewellery design using metal fabrication techniques. The Tiv people are renowned for their distinctive geometric weaving patterns, which carry cultural, social, and spiritual meanings but are rarely translated into three-dimensional product design. Through visual ethnographic research conducted in Makurdi and Gboko local government areas, this study documents twelve recurring geometric motifs from Tiv handwoven cloth and analyses their structural and symbolic properties. Selected motifs are then reinterpreted as design elements for a jewellery collection comprising necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and rings. Fabrication techniques employed include lost-wax casting, sheet metal cutting, and wire forming, using sterling silver, brass, and copper. A prototype collection of twenty-four pieces is developed and evaluated by a panel of jewellery consumers, craft specialists, and Tiv cultural practitioners. Evaluations assess aesthetic quality, cultural authenticity, wearability, and market potential. Consumer surveys conducted at the Abuja Craft Village confirm strong purchasing interest, particularly among professionals aged twenty-five to forty-five seeking culturally expressive accessories. The project recommends that design schools in Nigeria formalise partnerships with cultural institutions to document and preserve indigenous motif libraries for applied design use. This work demonstrates the viability of heritage-to-market pathways in Nigerian craft-based design. Keywords: Tiv weaving, jewellery design, cultural motifs, metalwork, heritage design.