May 24, 2012

Acute How-To: DIY Jewelry Stand

If you’re anything like me, you probably have jewelry everywhere in an unorganized mess. Or, maybe you’re nothing like me and have everything organized…. If that’s the case, just indulge me.

I have been thinking about making a simple jewelry organizer forever and finally got around to it last week. I was in need of an extra stand to display my earrings at my latest show, so I decided it was the perfect time to get my DIY jewelry organizer made.

There are various DIY jewelry displays all over the blogosphere, some easier than others. This one I created falls squarely in the “easy” category. All you need is a wooden board {I bought mine at Home Depot}, nails, and paint and/or stencils to decorate the board. So simple and inexpensive. This whole project cost me about $12.

Step One:

Paint your wooden board any color you want. You can also use stencils to create a design on the bare wood. I taped a wide piece of lace trim to the bottom of the board and then spray painted over it in gray.

On the top part of the board, I decided to do a whitewash paint. I did this by mixing together two parts white paint with one part water. Then I painted a small section of the board and wiped away the paint with a damp cloth. I continued to go over the area, painting and wiping, until I got my desired whiteness.

Step Two:

Determine where you want your nails to go and mark with a pencil. I used a ruler and made a small mark every two inches on the top two rows. On the bottom rows, I staggered the nails so that various pieces of jewelry would easily fit.

Step Three:

Hammer the nails half way in at each pencil marking and you’re done! You can either hang this on a wall or prop it up on a bookshelf or table {like I did in my booth at the art fair} using small stands {like these}.

Filed Under: Acute How-To, The Setting Tagged With: , , , , , 1 Comment
March 14, 2012

where craftiness comes from: leah jones

Leah Jones is a wife, mother, and hand stamped jeweler who lives in Vermont. Recently, we caught up to talk about where her craftiness comes from.

family ring necklace by alloy jewelry - click image for more info

Leah is the amazing artist and jeweler behind the delightful Alloy Jewelry.

Leah grew up in a creative and fun environment in Vermont, spending much of her childhood outdoors with other children in her neighborhood. There was a lot of room for her imagination to grow and for her to explore the world through her eyes. She feels that creativity was a natural part of her upbringing.

I think if you are given the space to imagine when you are younger, it manifests itself in other ways as you grow older.
- Leah Jones

In college, Leah majored in English and minored in Studio Art, which allowed her to become resourceful and inventive, both things she has carried with her into her business. She worked as an editor after college, but after a while she was drawn to create her own business. Once she tried hand stamped jewelry, she knew she was hooked.

Leah’s family and friends supported her in building her business when her son was first born, and her husband encouraged her to set up a working space in their basement. During busy times, you can find many of her friends and family helping out in the basement after her children are asleep for the night.

While Leah works alone in her studio creating, she is also part of the Vermont Hand Crafters, who are, in her own words, “a community of amazing crafters, all Vermonters.” It is that sense of community from other artisans that is also special to her.

Leah has reminded me of how imagination and that creativity that is within each of us can lead us to a job that we love, no matter what that job may be.

Don’t you think so, too?

Thanks, Leah! Visit her here: website – twitter – facebook

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November 17, 2011

sponsor feature: lulu bug jewelry

We love our sponsors! Today, get to know more about Sue of Lulu Bug Jewelry!

Sue Urquhart Lulu Bug Jewelry

Lulu Bug features whimsical jewelry created by Sue Urquhart from Santa Rosa, CA. She sculpts each piece, inlays it with tinted concrete, and uses her own illustrations to create original, meaningful pieces in .999 fine silver. Along with pendants, Sue also creates earrings and cuff links.

A former motorcycle racer, Sue is also a huge animal lover – which carries over to her jewelry designs. Many of her necklaces feature dogs, hedgehogs, birds, rabbits, cats, and foxes. (In case you were wondering, Lulu Bug is Sue’s Shar Pei, who is featured in her shop banner.) Sue’s love of nature comes through in her fruit and vegetable jewelry designs, her bats and bees, and her anatomical hearts. She also uses her skills to turn her sister’s letterpress work into tiny silver pendants with beautiful sayings.

Thanks, Sue, for sponsoring Scoutie Girl!

Filed Under: sponsor feature Tagged With: , , , , , , , 1 Comment
November 15, 2011

Creative Biz Success ~ Jenny Present

Can you take us on the journey of your creative career path so far? Were you always planning on working for yourself?

I never knew what I wanted to be when I grew up. But I always took great pride in accomplishing something (large or small). My parents demonstrated strong work ethic, creativity, individualism and incredible morals and values. This set me up for success – no matter what I chose to do.

I graduated from the University of Kansas with a BS in Journalism – not because I necessarily had a thirst for journalism, but because it was a practical degree to have. I worked in an uninspiring corporate environment writing technical proposals for a while after college. While I knew this was the next step I was supposed to take after college, I was unhappy – so I quit. I worked in retail for a short while, still unhappy in my “career”. It wasn’t fulfilling.

A little after my son was born my life took an unexpected turn. Everything as I knew it was flipped upside down and I was going to have to figure out a way to balance everything. I desperately wanted to be able to stay at home to raise my son, but I also needed a way to support us long term.

I have always been creative and loved working with my hands. As a little girl, I grew up surrounded by paint brushes, colored pencils and craft supplies – my mom is an incredible artist and I like to think that some of her creativity has rubbed off on me. I was also obsessed with jewelry as a young girl, especially my grandmother’s highly coveted, extensive jewelry collection. And I know deep down I have always had an entrepreneurial spirit. I dabbled in making jewelry (among other things like photography and painting) for fun as a creative outlet while working full time. So after life got messy, I decided I would try selling my artwork.

Do you ever have doubts as to your future creative direction? Are there things you yearn to achieve, but haven’t yet found the time for?

I don’t have doubts about my future creative direction, but I do sometimes wonder where this path will lead. Companies and brands evolve over time and while I wish I had a crystal ball to gaze into, I deeply trust in my creative instincts.

Phew! That is a big question. I have so many things I yean to achieve (personally and professionally). And my number one biggest complaint (in general) is that there aren’t enough hours in the day. I feel like my mind is always racing with ideas and thoughts and to-do’s and more.

custom jewelry by Jenny Present

What has been your most successful marketing strategy – the best way that you have found to get you and your work noticed? And have you ever tried something that just did not work at all?

I truly believe that my loyal customers are my secret weapon. Repeat business has been a large part of my business. I think (I am going to give myself a pat on the back here) that I provide excellent customer service. I always try to put myself in my customer’s shoes.

Zappos.com is a big hero in my book and I would one day love to emulate them.

I have tried so many avenues that simply have not worked, but I’ve never given up. Each and every one has been a learning experience and a building block to the next venture. For example, I have spent thousands of dollars on PR companies (with little success) and I am at the tail end of running some pay per click campaigns that have simply not worked.

I haven’t given up on using a PR company again one day or running PPC campaigns, but for now, they aren’t a good fit for my business. You don’t know if something will work or be successful until you try it – so you’ve got to go for it. I am taking risks (some big, some small) and facing challenges every day and I will continue to do so. It’s the only way you can grow.

What key personality traits and life circumstances coalesced to lead to your success, in your opinion?

My life has not gone exactly as planned – but I guess that is how life goes. I am a single mom and don’t have much to fall back on. I believe that I wouldn’t be where I am today if certain events hadn’t transpired the way they did when I was in my 20s. Over the last decade I have developed a tough skin, I don’t take no for an answer and I have become a strong, independent woman. I know that this has helped me in my business. If I am rejected in any way, it lights a fire in me and I am driven to work harder.

I work (even though it doesn’t really feel like work) to build a beautiful life for my son and myself.

Everyday I feel so fortunate to do what I love and to be able to have the flexibility to be at home with my son in his early years.

What is one piece of advice you’d like to give fellow makers about running a successful handmade business?

Patience! Things don’t just happen overnight – even though you may want or even need them to, they won’t. So keep at it and know that things will happen the way they are supposed to happen…as long as you have dedication, discipline and passion. Nothing comes easy. And success is made sweeter by the bumpy journey it takes to get there.

Connect with Jenny

Twitter:  @JennyPresent
Filed Under: Creative Biz Success Interviews Tagged With: , , , , , , 5 Comments
August 19, 2011

How to Dream Big: 5 Tips for Selling Wholesale

The following is a guest post from Julia Marden of UncommonGoods.

birth month flower necklaces by Shari Dixon - click for info

At UncommonGoods we love seeing new and creative designs. Our buyers are constantly looking for the next big thing, and each week, we get to bring new items to bring into our assortment. We see a lot of amazing ideas, clever designs and beautifully made products, and it’s really exciting to be able to help bring a new artist or designer’s work to market.

Last week, I had a great talk with Erin Fergusson, our Jewelry and Accessories Buyer. I asked her what she looks for when she’s ordering new jewelry for our website and catalog. What she said really surprised me.

I expected her to talk about innovative design and craftsmanship. And she definitely is looking for the most creative and new ideas on the market. But when Erin goes on the hunt for creative new jewelry designs, what she’s really looking for is a long term creative partnership with an artist or designer like you.

So you’ve got talent and you’ve made something great. What’s next? If you want to take your creative work from craft fair to wholesale, here are five tips to help you succeed.

1. The Customer Is Always First

You might be pitching your collection to a buyer for a retail company, but don’t forget about your ultimate customer. Make sure you know who they are.

At UncommonGoods, for example, our customers are gift givers. And that means we’re looking not just at your skill and creativity, but how your product might make a great birthday or holiday gift.

When Shari Dixon approached us with her idea of birth month flower necklaces, we knew it was a perfect fit. Beautifully crafted jewelry that’s perfect to give as a gift.

2. Be the buyer

Buyers have pretty busy jobs. At UncommonGoods, our buyers come in early, stay late, and often travel on the weekends to craft fairs and gift shows. Erin and our other buyers look carefully at every single sample that comes to us, and read every single entry that comes from our website. Don’t get me wrong — they love to see your work! But they can sometimes be pressed for time.

Before you send off a sample, think about what’s going to help your product rise to the top. Make sure you’ve answered every question a buyer might ask—details like an item’s dimensions, materials and backstory will all help a busy buyer make an informed decision about your body of work.

Remember, our buyers are thinking about our customers and what will make the product stand out to them. In fact, we often share products with our customers via our Community Voting App to get their feedback on cool new designs as we’re making our decisions. Telling the story of the product effectively is essential in getting our customer community to connect with and approve of an item.

3. Do your homework

We want to make it easy for artists and designers like you to share your work with us. We just added a webform to our homepage to help you share your designs. But with many retailers, you might need to push to get your foot in the door.

Do some research about your target company’s business model. Identifying the customer is a great first step, but look a little deeper.

Think about why your designs are a great fit for that retailer’s business, or why a retailer is the right choice to promote your work. You want to find a good home for your work, so look for companies that match your aesthetic and your business ethics. If you’ve found a great match, be sure to tell the buyer why when you’re sharing your work with them.

You’ll be sure to impress when you can demonstrate that you understand what a company’s looking for, how they operate, and how you can help. It’s not too different from applying for a job, when you think about it.

4. Think Big

When you’re starting to switch from small production to supplying enough inventory for a retail catalog, your perspective often changes.

Last year, our favorite crocheted headphones got picked up by Real Simple’s holiday gift guide. All of a sudden, artist Traci Madeiros-Bagan found her headphones flying off the shelves. If she hadn’t been prepared, she might not have been able to make enough. As an amateur crochet enthusiast myself, I can’t imagine how much her fingers must have ached when January 1 finally rolled around!

So when you’re getting ready to pitch your collection to a buyer, think about how consistently and for how long you can produce your work. Can you make enough to satisfy customers? Do you have enough materials? Do you need to hire some help? Make sure your work is scalable. Because if we like it, we’re going to want to make you a star!

5. Think Ahead

We want you to think about your future. Like Erin said, buyers are looking for long term business partners and we want to support you in what you do.

If you show us one great product, and our customers love it, we’re probably going to want to work with you to create a successor and maybe a whole collection. For example, when we first saw Lori Burley’s fire hose belts, we knew that we’d want to develop a line of wallets with her as well.

If you’ve got buyers interested in your work, don’t hesitate to let them know if you’ve got a lot of development ideas in the works. We like to look to the future—and we want to help you dream up new creative projects too.

Good luck getting your work out there!

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Before I sign off, let me just add that if you’re a jewelry designer looking for a chance to launch your collection, we’re hosting an Uncommon Jewelry Design Challenge. Enter by August 31, and you could win $500 and a vendor contract!

 

Julia Marden is the Community Organizer at UncommonGoods, the place for unique gifts and creative design. She loves knitting, trying new things, and Google Reader, and is glad that her job allows her to pursue all these interests. Keep tabs on her on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.

Filed Under: guest posts Tagged With: , , , , , , 8 Comments