Jewelry - Photography - Fashion - Life

on the road again

2007-03-21T11:27:00.000-04:00

Looks like it's time for another big change here on the blog. Jamaila and I are working on a brand new blog, The Anapurna Girls, which will have lots of great new content and will be updated more than my sporadic posts here.

Please go ahead and add this new blog's feed (located here) to your blogroll, or you can add the Anapurna Girls LJ feed to your Livejournal friends list.

The new blog will take the place of this blog and will feature posts from each of us as we explore, create and sell. Look for posts from me on inspiration, creative work, and the real-life exaltations and frustrations of an artist; look for posts from Jamaila as she explores the sales and business side of an art-driven business partnership. Also, there will be fun photos! Definitely photos. First photos up will be of the new studio, and then some new jewelry.

finally, a studio space!

2007-03-21T10:13:00.000-04:00

I've spent the past week or so working on my studio space (our second bedroom). I bullied my husband into helping me, so I've gotten four times the amount done I would have accomplished myself. So far, we've:

- painted
- added a nice bookshelf
- moved everything around
- removed one old bookshelf and put the other old one in a closet

I'll give more details - and some photos! - later on this week. We'll put up shelves this weekend and then it will be done.

the color red

2007-03-09T12:34:00.000-05:00

I've had a serious craving for red lately. Fire truck red, brick red, strong red-in-the-rainbow red.

It's probably a reaction to all the gray and brown and white I'm seeing: winter in the city is grim. In the countryside you see more shades of color in the winter.

Nonetheless, all I want lately is RED RED RED. Check out these hot peppers; this wall; this strawberry; this city; this flower; this sign. (I used the Flickr Photo Selectr to find these photos.)

Do you ever crave color?

Johncon 2007 Show Report

2007-03-05T12:48:00.000-05:00

Our first joint show went rather well. It lasted for three days, from Friday afternoon through Sunday noon.

The downside to this particular show was that it was very small and perhaps 30 people total passed through the dealer's room over the weekend (most came through several times, of course).

We shared the room with a man selling D&D books and board games and a very nice lady selling SCA garb and chain maille whose site I'll link to once I dig up her business card. None of us sold very much; Jamaila and I made a total of $94 over the three days.

There were some upsides to the show, though. J. got some experience with setting up a booth and we both got to see how potential customers reacted to our setup and wares. Lesson learned: make more jewelry for men! I need to get to work on that. We may not have made much money, but we had fun.

And now, pictures!

To see the rest of the photos, along with descriptions for each picture, please visit our photo gallery for this show.

back, once again

2007-02-15T13:21:00.000-05:00

It's been a long couple of months. I couldn't say much about it before, but I just spent a year in a job that was making me miserable, with a magical vanishing boss, nasty co-workers and a job that didn't have anything to do with what I was hired for. The stress was taking up so much of my mental energy that I didn't have anything left to devote to creativity.

I started with a new company this week, and the difference has been like night and day. The people here are nice, I already have meaningful work to do and I'm ecstatic at the improvement in my work environment. I should have more mental energy for creative work now, so watch this space.

Also, we have our first show scheduled! We'll be at Johncon on March 2-4. If you're in the DC or Baltimore area, come check it out! It should be lots of fun.

blah blah blah

2007-01-17T11:00:00.000-05:00

Yeah, I know, I keep making excuses. I haven't written a darn thing lately and I apologize. My job has me under some intense stress right now. I'm looking for a new one and have a couple of good leads but right now I'm pretty tense. Hopefully I'll get some new entries up soon.

I have almost managed to get the studio into usable shape, at least. Many years of being cramped into too-small spaces meant that when I finally got everything onto shelves, things were still so scrambled they weren't organized or easily accessible. I've spent my spare minutes over the last month organizing things so that I can find them.

Oh, hey, I do have that to share. It's something, at least. Studio photos! You can click on any photo to see a larger one.

The window in the studio looks out on the rest of the building, which is a sort of squared-off U shape. I'm thrilled to finally have a good source of natural light in my work area.

The windowsill currently holds my little unglazed porcelain collection. I'm still working on good lighting for this room - right now that lamp is a major source of light.

Disclaimer: Yes, this room is still a disaster area. I'm working on it. :P

This is my main work area. Somewhere underneath all that junk is a couple of things I'm working on.

Two bookshelves hold my non-fic, scholarly books, jewelry books and the overflow from downstairs. Plus a lot of unsorted junk right now. See that suitacase? Been living out of it quite a bit lately. (Yes, I know it's a weird color. No, I never have problems finding it on the carousel!)

The filing cabinet is used for filing, obviously, plus miscellaneous supply storage. The low table in freaky green was a salvage and is holding my photography props and, of course, miscellaneous junk.

The two bookshelves again, the photo-supply table, trash can and back in the corner is my light box. I'm thinking about painting the walls of this room a grayish lavendar.

Fun Stuff from Christmas

2007-01-04T15:32:00.000-05:00

Buddy and Sniffles exploring the couch in my parents' house.

Ack! It's on my lap!

Sugar plays with the twisty star stuff Meredith stuck in her hair.

Christmas was the ferrets' first experience with other animals. The first cat they ever met was Sasha, one of the barn cats over at my parents-in-laws' house. We took them out on the porch to explore and Sasha happened to be out there.

Buddy and Sasha eyed each other for a few minutes, then sniffed around each other a bit. Then Sasha apparently decided that Buddy was some sort of interesting new toy and whapped him on the head with her paw. Needless to say, he was not amused.

A few minutes later Sniffles made her way around to Sasha and the two did the same sort of exploratory sniffing. Then Sasha, thrilled at two of these strange toys in one day, whapped Sniff in the head.

Sniff, usually so agressive, had to then be dug out of the woodpile where she was hiding. :P

At my parents' house, we let the terrible two run around inside the spare bedroom, where Laramie often lets his pet rabbit roam. He brought Sugar, his cat, up and we let the three explore the room together. Sniffles, having obviously learned her lesson, completely ignored Sugar.

Sugar and Buddy were obviously fascinated by each other. Buddy saw a potential playmate and would stroll or climb to wherever Sugar was at to sniff at her. Sugar, fascinated but also a bit freaked out, would run off to the other side of the room, where she'd find a perch and watch the ferrets' every move. It was funny to watch. They never did really play together, but I'm sure that given time together they'd get along just fine.

not quite there yet

2006-12-29T09:22:00.000-05:00

After traveling four weeks out of the last five, I'm very ready to settle down and get some jewelry made. Not happening yet, though. My folks are coming up to visit for New Year's. I might get some things done next weekend.

I did get some progress made over Christmas, though. I packed several wire-chain projects and made two necklaces, one of carnelian and moonstone and one of shell. I should have brought something to work with me today to work on: the only other guy in the office today is in the next department over wearing headphones and reading the newspaper.

I swear I'll have new photos up soon.

Gearing up for some precious days off

2006-12-19T16:41:00.000-05:00

I'm sitting in the airport in Roanoke, VA. I'm finishing up my last business trip for a bit, at least until after the New Year, and I've earned a couple of days off. I have tons of ideas for pretty shiny things to make, so I can't wait to have a bit of time off.

I'm planning a bracelet made with red tiger's eye and sterling and a few other goodies. I'm a little annoyed with myself for not making any Christmas ornaments or anything this year - every year in July I say I'm going to make pretty ornaments and then never do. I didn't exactly have a lot of time this year, though, what with the move and then all this traveling. Maybe I should start in January and then I'll have them done in time for next Christmas!

Busy busy busy

2006-12-12T08:38:00.000-05:00

This is insane. I was on business travel the last week in November. I'm leaving today for more and won't be back until late Thursday evening. I'm leaving again next Monday and am coming home Wednesday evening, then will be heading out for NC on Friday to visit relatives for Christmas. That makes four weeks out of five that I'm out of town. On that schedule I can't possibly get anything done in the studio. I did manage to finish a badge lanyard for a co-worker and if I can I'll take photos of it before I give it to her at the company Christmas party this Friday. We'll see if I remember to do it between staggering off the plane after 9 pm Thursday night and heading into work on Friday morning.

So don't expect much out of me this month. It'll be all I can do to get presents wrapped before Christmas.

How to Create Beautiful Beaded Flowers

2006-12-09T20:05:00.000-05:00

If you've ever wanted to try making French beaded flowers, this is the place to start. The site covers basic techniques, information on materials and even where to buy books with more flower patterns.

January Birthstone: Garnet

2006-12-07T10:07:00.001-05:00

Spessartine on Orthoclase - China
Originally uploaded by adamantine.

I know I seem like I'm getting ahead of myself here, but I'd like to start showcasing gemstones and birthstones are a good way to start. Since we're already in December, it makes sense to move on to January.

Garnet is one of the most recognizable gemstones out there, with its deep red, almost black color (although some varieties, like the one shown in the photo, are orange or even green). It's a very self-contained sort of gem; you often have to look carefully to see the color within it.

From a jewelry perspective, garnet is a foil for many other gemstones. I like to pair it with pearls and peridot; Jamaila pairs hers with labradorite. Its deep color provides a sensual background for other stones.

Since garnet is a reasonably common stone, its history is even more interesting than some of the spectacularly rare gemstones. For example, this page claims that "in India during a rebellion on the Kashmir territory, tribal soldiers fired at the British army with garnet bullets. The effect of this type of ammunition was thought to be more fatal and more efficient for battle."

Garnet has also been used in jewelry for thousands of years, of course. This American Mineralogist article describes a fascinating search for the origins of garnet used in early French royal trappings. Be sure to check out the diagram that shows how Early Middle Ages jewelry consisted of thin layers of gemstone, foil and paste surrounded by precious metals.

From a metaphysical standpoint, garnet is believed to draw earth energy into and move energy throughout the body. It purifies and cleanses, and stimulates life force and fertility.

Do you know anyone who has a January birthday? The Aliana Everlasting necklace is a beautiful, understated piece with garnet, freshwater pearls and sterling silver.

How to Delight Customers

2006-11-26T20:04:00.000-05:00

Well, I was delighted, at least. We ate lunch there today and out on the tables sat samples of the storage containers for their gift cards. The containers are little cardboard pizza boxes with slits inside to hold a gift card. They're adorable and it really makes a simple gift card more appealing. I can't find an image of them, unfortunately, but if I do I'll post it.

As I was writing this entry I found another company that goes the extra mile to delight its customers. I'm staying at the Gaylord Opryland hotel for a conference for my day job. The hotel itself is a fantasyland of gardens and trees and glass and, currently, Christmas lights. I didn't pay for one of the really nice rooms with a garden view, so I figured the curtain in my room hid a random outside-the-hotel view. I pulled it back, just in case, and found this:

Which extras delight you most as a customer?

post-Thanksgiving lounging

2006-11-25T07:48:00.000-05:00

Hope everyone in the US had a good Thanksgiving! We spent the time with my parents-in-law lounging around and eating ham and turkey. Good stuff.

I'm going through a pretty stressful period at work right now, so I haven't had a whole lot of energy to make jewelry lately. I should be getting back with it soon; I have a business trip next week but will be home next weekend.

In the meantime, I wanted to talk about this piece:

The centerpiece is a really nice red glass swag-teardrop pendant with gold foil embedded in it. The 'chain' is stiff gold lace ribbon; it holds up the pendant nicely without getting in the way. There's a Swarovski crystal on each end of the lace, as you can see in the bottom left corner of the photo beside the pendant. The neat thing about this piece is that it normally clasps about halfway along the length, leaving the crystal to dangle down your back. If you want a longer necklace in front, you can unhook the clasp and move it further down the lace, then hook it into the lace itself. This is a great warm piece for the upcoming cold weather.

Scam Alert

2006-11-18T18:10:00.000-05:00

Cyndi over at Mazel Tov has the latest on a company called VendorPro who sends flattering emails to artists and tries to sucker them out of a $340 sign-up fee.

Back in Action!

2006-11-15T10:32:00.000-05:00

I finally got the chance to sit down in my new studio and actually make something last night. It's very soothing to have an entire room devoted to art: no one's tripping over you and you're not tripping over your supplies.

I didn't have a whole lot of time, but I started on a set of interchangeable gemstone charms to go with a sterling chain bracelet. I also made myself something for once - another of the chain bracelets with two charms: a sterling lotus charm, to remind me to slow down and appreciate the beauty around me, and a faceted garnet bead, which is my husband's birthstone and makes me think of him.

Photos when I get enough time to do them. I have a big conference and two major meetings coming up at work and they're occupying a lot of my attention these days.

Oh, and I've switched over to the new Blogger, so I'll be adding tags to each new post. That'll make it much easier to find posts.

Free Software to Make Bead Patterns

2006-11-11T16:43:00.000-05:00

Turn your cat, a flower or the Mona Lisa into a piece of beaded art with Easy Bead Patterns. This free software supports all kinds of pattern-making, including round, loom, brick and peyote weaves. Runs on both Windows and Mac computers.

Will One of These Kill Your Fledgling Business?

2006-11-09T14:54:00.000-05:00

Here's a list of 18 mistakes that kill startups. The list is geared more towards those in tech-related businesses, but the concepts are important for any small business.

Resources at the GIA

2006-11-03T14:34:00.000-05:00

Be sure to check out the Gemological Institute of America's website. Their articles, while sporadic, are pretty interesting, and they offer additional information such as jewelry care tips and a free tutorial on how to buy a gemstone.

Bags I'd Like to Carry

2006-11-02T14:27:00.000-05:00

This set of nifty and effective shopping bags is well worth a look -- and a laugh. These retailers are thinking up new and creative packaging to make their products stand out. What do you do that makes your customers smile?

Bling Rings

2006-10-30T17:01:00.000-05:00

From a recent issue of Real Simple, some incredibly easy-to-make cocktail ring ideas. These aren't my style, but if you like serious bling on the cheap, they're perfect.

Happy Halloween!

2006-10-30T16:27:00.000-05:00

Handbags and the Monsters That Inspired Them

Beautiful Beads in Scotland

2006-10-27T08:32:00.000-04:00

Flamingo Beads has some beautiful new wares up, including this set of Shoreline beads with beautiful blue and silver swirls. The Tiger set and this raku focal bead are lovely as well.

2006 Jewelry Arts Awards

2006-10-24T12:56:00.000-04:00

I'm rather late on the draw on this one, but the 2006 Jewelry Arts Awards, a competition sponsored by Lapidary Journal, have been announced. Take a look at the winners - there's some incredible stuff over there. My personal favorites are the Milk Way Cuff, the bracelet by Petra Luz, the Sweet Freedom necklace, the peapod rings, and the amazing tiara.

Plus-size Fashion: How to Find the Perfect Bra

2006-10-19T08:32:00.000-04:00

There's a great thread going on right now over at Feministe on the best place to find bras, whether you're well endowed or not. Since there are no photos unless you click the links to the retail sites, it's more or less work safe.

Someday I'll Actually Get Around to Making Jewelry Again

2006-10-17T09:59:00.000-04:00

Most of the boxes are unpacked, and I'm thrilled to finally have plenty of room to work on jewelry.

That's the new studio. It's also currently the repository for all the boxes that didn't go anywhere else, and it's a lower priority to straighten out than, say, the bedroom and kitchen, so it's still a mess.

It's the most fun room to work on, though, because there's lots of room to spread out and I can arrange things exactly the way I'd like them.

Monday, Monday

2006-10-16T15:05:00.000-04:00

If you're like me, Mondays are a day that can usually use some cheering up. Check out these cute "emoticons" from danwade for some smiles (and frowns, laughs and mwah-style kisses)!

Link Roundup: Resources for Jewelry Designers

2006-10-11T11:02:00.000-04:00

Jewelry as a Business:

5 Things to Know When Starting a Craft Business

Booth Display Examples

How to Sell Your Jewelry Through Art Galleries

Best Face Forward - Exhibiting at Jewelry Shows

About Jewelry and Fashion:

Trade Beads from Mali

Accessories the Show (Fashion Trends)

The Laws of American Style

Intergalactic Bead Shows

Jewelry Care:

Cleaning Jewelry

Beading and Technique:

Swarovski Crystal Color Guide

Beading Threads and Sizing Systems

2006-10-04T14:39:00.000-04:00

Sadly, this is probably the end of my relationship with the coffeehouse I've been displaying jewelry at.

The original agreement was an 80/20 split on any items sold, with the coffeehouse getting 20%. That's a fairly generous arrangement and it's a typical split for the kind of consignments they do, which for lack of any better term are "minimal effort" consignments.

It's a fair split because the consignment store - in this instance, the coffeehouse - only physically hosts the items. They don't keep track of inventory, guard against theft, or advertise. I've done a consignment of the "minimal effort" type in the past and I don't mind the extra work because I get more of the money from the sale. Many consignment shops charge 40-60% of the item cost.

Unfortunately, the new contract has terms that I simply can't afford to accept. The first section of the contract states that the coffeehouse (CP) is not liable for damages or theft. They are also not responsible for tracking inventory. That's fairly standard, although slightly unreasonable considering the later terms of the contract.

The second half is where it gets sticky. CP is going to charge monthly rates for their display cabinets. This also isn't necessarily a problem - many tourist-oriented stores in various cities rent booth spaces to artists. The Torpedo Factory is one example, although I'm not sure if/how they charge for space. There was also one in the town I used to live in in North Carolina.

However, these places not only have security for their wares, but they advertise, guaranteeing an artist more exposure than said artist would likely have independently. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't even see links to the current consignment artists on CP's website, nonetheless a strong advertising presence that would bring people in to see and buy.

Well, it is a coffeehouse, and so artists are still getting exposure. It might still be worth it, except for the prices, which start at $40 a month. For one bottom bookshelf. And run up to $110 per month for a more visible top bookshelf.

The kicker is that CP still wants to take 20% of every sale as a consignment fee.

In the past four months or so I've had jewelry there (on a top shelf, for reference) I've made $90 from sales. $50 of that was from coffeehouse employees. (I've also made some money in collateral sales from people who saw my jewelry and called for custom orders, but I'm not counting that in direct sales.) Assuming that trend continued and I rented a bottom bookshelf for the next four months, I wouldn't even break even. I simply can't afford to do it.

It's too bad, really. I like the CP folks. I just think they might be going a little too far overboard trying to make money on their second room. I don't know too many artists who can afford $40-110 a month plus 20% of their prices when they're also having to worry about theft, damage and maintenance.

Complications

2006-10-02T12:20:00.000-04:00

Life is particularly complicated right now. Just opened up the website, moving in two days, and just got an email from the coffeehouse where I have consignments stating that:

A. I need to move my jewelry by Wednesday, since they're painting that room.
B. They're "instituting a fee for consignment space" and I'll need to sign a new agreement when I go in to move my things. Funny, I thought taking a percentage of sales was a fee.

We Did It!

2006-10-02T08:35:00.000-04:00

Anapurna Fantasy Jewelry and Accessories is now live at http://www.fantasyjewelry.net!

I'm really excited about this - it's the product of two months' hard work, and that's not even counting making the jewelry. Most of the credit goes to our pocket programmer, Branden, who implemented OSCommerce for us, tweaked the site, fixed it every time I managed to break it (!) and has generally been awesome.

The new site has approximately a metric butt-ton (we use very technical terms on this blog) of new features, some of which I'm sure I haven't discovered yet. OSCommerce allows visitors to sign up for accounts, so customers don't have to re-enter their information every time they order. There's also a search function, so if you want to hunt for, say, amethyst jewelry, it's as easy as typing in "amethyst" and hitting Search.

So, go check it out!

Jewelry Photos for the New Site

2006-09-28T10:36:00.000-04:00

Here are a few more photos that will be on the new site:

Sadly, one of the first areas I packed was the jewelry workspace: it's unessential for life in the next three weeks, so into boxes it went. All the jewelry for the new site is with J. If I want to make anything, I'll just have to sketch the idea and hold it until we get unpacked.

Photography: Burnt and Broken

2006-09-25T20:05:00.000-04:00

I've been neglecting the photography end of this blog, so here are a few photos I took earlier this year on a trip to visit relatives in NC. The first three are of a pair of burnt-down houses in Longview, NC; the last is of a warehouse in the middle stages of demolishment. Click on any of the photos to see larger versions.

Blog Maintenance

2006-09-25T20:03:00.000-04:00

Just a note for my Blogspot readers: I've changed the blog theme so that it's no longer white-on-black text. It should be much easier on the eyes.

Custom Jewelry

2006-09-24T18:55:00.000-04:00

These two pieces are part of a custom order I delivered yesterday. The top necklace is similar to a previous necklace I'd made that the customer saw in a coffee shop; she specified the colors and chose the pendant and I created a similar necklace in those colors.

The second piece was an absolutely gorgeous purple glass artisan vessel that had been originally hung from thin cord that was getting old and nasty. I replaced the cord with thin rollo chain and some matching Swarovski crystals.

Tangles

2006-09-21T11:04:00.000-04:00

I used to keep all my pieces in clear zip-top bags, then for some reason earlier this year decided to put them all together in drawers. Not the smartest decision. My husband spent a couple of hours untangling things for me a couple of weeks ago, and like an idiot I still didn't put the pieces back in bags.

So while I was photographing things the other day I came across this little mess. I picked at it for over an hour and extracted two chain necklaces; the rest will have to wait until after we move.

Needless to say, I'm putting all the pieces in bags in the future. No more untangling! It also helps them keep their shape and prevents tarnishing.

Note: If you're putting jewelry in plastic bags, avoid sandwich bags (too limp) and go for thicker 4-mil bags like Uline's reclosable bags.

How Much Money Should You Keep in a Cash Box at Craft Fairs?

2006-09-19T09:42:00.000-04:00

One of my recent Google hits was from someone searching for how much money they should put in their cash box for craft shows (to make change with). That's an excellent question. Although I won't tell you to take a specific amount (and you shouldn't advertise how much cash you're carrying), $50-$100 should be fine for a small or medium-sized show.

I used to take several rolls of various coins, but ended up changing all my prices to even dollar amounts to avoid having to count out change. It's also a good idea to have a large number of ones, lots of fives and a few tens and twenties.

As always, secure your cash box. Keep it out of sight of customers, but close to you, preferably in your vision. It only takes a second to steal an entire cash box and the thief can later open it at their leisure. Some show veterans recommend a money belt or pouch instead.

Plus-Size Fashion: Why You Should Never Model Yourself After Skinny Girls on TV

2006-09-19T09:19:00.000-04:00

Even Katie Couric's not skinny enough for CBS.

New, Improved Jewelry Photos

2006-09-16T09:15:00.000-04:00

Since I wrote the two-part piece on jewelry photography, I've made a DIY light box which greatly improved my jewelry photography. (I'll be going back and updating both articles to reflect this.)

Since then, I've also gotten another light source which has also helped tremendously. What is this high-tech marvel? A $20 multi-headed lamp from Target.

(Yes, the light box is balanced on a basket on my bed. That's how little room I have, and how glad I am to be moving. Also note that the ambient light in the room was pretty bright at the time, yet the photo is very dark. That's why good lighting is so important.)

Here are a few shots with the new setup. These are all being included on the website going live on Oct. 1. The rest of this batch can be seen here. Click on them to see them larger.

Fashion: Betsey Johnson (Fashion Week Spring 2007)

2006-09-15T15:41:00.000-04:00

In my attempts to educate myself about fashion, I've been reading some reviews from the latest New York Fashion Week. While most of the clothing that goes down the runway is horrifyingly ugly, the Betsey Johnson collection is adorable. Very retro and feminine.

Nanette Lepore also had some great pieces.

Changes, Updates, Cuteness

2006-09-15T11:00:00.000-04:00

I've been sorely neglecting the blog lately - sorry about that. To make up for it, I present cute ferret videos!

That's Sniffles, our female ferret. She's as evil as she is adorable.

Anyhow. We're moving to a bigger apartment early next month, and I get an entire room for my studio! I'm thrilled - no more desk-and-workspace-in-the-bedroom to dodge.

Since the new website will be opening just before we move, I finished taking all the new photos (which I'll get to later) and am giving all the jewelry to my business partner J. until we get settled in the new place. That way orders won't be disrupted by my trying to find jewelry in all the boxes.

Two Don'ts for Jewelry Makers

2006-09-08T16:45:00.000-04:00

I'm feeling a bit ranty today, so here are a couple of things you shouldn't EVER do as a jewelry designer:

1. Use other people's copyrighted work to advertise your creations. Just because it's on the Internet doesn't make it free to use, and that fairy graphic or lovely photo isn't yours. Don't use it. Would you like it if I saved a photo of your jewelry and used it, without asking, to advertise my web design or pyramid marketing scheme?

2. Use poor-quality photos to attempt to sell your work. Ever. You're not doing your work any favors and you'll give potential customers the impression that you don't care enough about your work to make it look its best.

More Jewelry Photography Resources

2006-09-08T15:27:00.000-04:00

Check out this article on jewelry photography. I love their tips on reflections and pearl photography. If you've got the money, they also sell all the equipment they show on the site.

There's also an older discussion on the About.com forums about creating a light box.

Links for the Day-After-Labor-Day

2006-09-05T12:09:00.000-04:00

Alicia's blog over at Handmade Sterling Jewelry is just wonderful. Check out her article on Sterling Silver or Silver-Plated?

That kind of straightforward, analytical information is something I'm very happy to see presented. Add this blog to your RSS reader!

It's also come to my attention that my mother reads this blog. Hi, Mom! :)

I think I may have found a new ooh-shiny type of bead: vintage Lucite. Beadin' Path has a nice variety. I'm really only fond of the moonglow beads, which have a nice muted inner shine. I bought a few small packages of them online a while back and have used them in the pieces below. (As always, click on the photo to see a larger version.) I think I'm in loooooooove! My first love will always be Swarovski crystal, but Lucite is a tempting mistress.

Cranberry Lucite and sterling silver bracelet.

Pink Lucite, crystal and sterling bracelet.

Ask AaJewelry #3: Accepting Payments on a Website

2006-09-04T09:04:00.000-04:00

Q. I'm doing a free webs site (because it's free) from which to advertise and/or sell jewellery. if i sell jewelllery from there, does anyone know how i could accept payments?

- simone_kittie

A. Check/Money Order - These two payment methods are the oldest in the book. To sell with these, you'll need to wait until the check or money order arrives in the mail and has cleared at the bank before you send the jewelry. This can cause a delay of several weeks between ordering and delivery. Most customers will not want to be limited to this option, but it's fine to offer these along with other options.

Cash in the mail - Some jewelry sellers accept payments under $20 in cash through the mail, but this isn't one I recommend. It's too easy for the money to be lost or stolen.

Paypal - This is the easiest solution for most beginner to semi-professional jewelry makers, and the one I recommend. There are no monthly or service fees. It's free for your customers to send you payments through Paypal, and you'll be charged a fee of 2.9% + $0.30 USD if the transaction is under $3,000. Best of all, you can accept any major credit card through the service, which makes the fee well worth it.

Paypal also provides free shopping cart and "buy this" button code for your website - all you have to do is copy and paste the code onto your site. Not bad for 3% of the sale.

Merchant account - This is how major retailers sell online. These services, often called "gateways," process credit card transactions. My memory's a little rusty on these, but if I recall correctly, the fees run around 5-7% depending on the company as well as a monthly charge. You can find these online or through your bank. A gateway service should come with a shopping cart and the relevant code. I use Paypal for credit card transactions, so I'm not knowledgeable about merchant accounts. If you've used one, please feel free to chime in.

How to Build a Better Business

2006-08-30T11:25:00.000-04:00

Interested in taking your small jewelry business beyond the occasional craft show? Check out this CNN Money article about How to Build a Bulletproof Startup. The emphasis is on technology businesses, but the principles are the same.

The Importance of Speaking Clearly at the Post Office

2006-08-29T08:29:00.000-04:00

I accidentally insured a $50 necklace for $700 at the post office yesterday. Whoops. I have no idea how "just a hundred, please" got turned into "seven hundred" but at least I know it's well insured!

Here's the necklace. Isn't it pretty? The customer requested a fairly long extender chain, so this photo shows the necklace turned around: half necklace and half extender.

Website News and Jewelry Partnerships

2006-08-28T14:11:00.000-04:00

The holding page at both sites is up - short and sweet. I hate having the site down for nearly a month, but it will give me that much more time to concentrate on Anapurna.

The new site's coming along well. I've decided to merge my entire website into Anapurna for the time being. If it doesn't work out well that way, I can always split it off again.

Most of you are probably confused about exactly what's going on with these two websites. My friend and, more recently, business partner J. and I are teaming up with our jewelry-making. We'll be selling through one website (both angelsaccessories.com and fantasyjewelry.net point to the same site now) and will be doing fantasy/sci-fi conventions in the greater DC area next year.

So far, it's working out quite well. We have quite a few complementary skills. She knows the DC-area conventions inside and out, and I've run enough jewelry booths to know how it works. I'm working on the website while she writes sales copy for the items. We're both making jewelry.

I'm really excited about this opportunity. I love working with sterling and semi-precious stones, but I got my start in costume work, and I'm eager to expand back into that area. Shiny pretty stones are fun, but working with fantasy and costume jewelry gives me a lot of freedom to use other materials as well. I'll still be making fine jewelry such as the piece below, though.

This is Tropical Harvest, a piece I did a few weeks back. The general idea came from either Bead & Button or BeadStyle and, since I had an abundance of food-y beads on hand, I bent it in that direction. There are bananas, coffee beans, oranges and grapes in there. I'm currently doing a royal blue, turquoise and purple custom version for a client.

Website News: Why Can't I Cancel?

2006-08-24T09:15:00.000-04:00

I've talked to Incognito's online help; sent two different emails to both their help and admin emails; tried to send a trouble ticket (which didn't work); and sent in a letter through their online feedback form, all asking to have my account cancelled. I'm starting to get rather irritated with them. It seems to just be bad luck - no one else I know has had any issues with this particular hosting service.

Once I finally manage to cancel that account, I'm going to point both angelsaccessories.com and fantasyjewelry.net to the same hosting account and put up a notice that we'll have a grand opening on October 1st. We're combining everything into the same site for now. If it doesn't work out, I'll split the traditional jewelry back out and make angelsaccessories.com a separate site again, but I think it'll be just fine that way. To prevent confusion, I'm going to put both the Anapurna and Aa logos on the new site.

Yes, that means the website will be down for a month. I'm in the middle of some major inventory work, though, and this will give me time to get everything straightened out. Inventory's a pain, but that's another post.

30 Quick and (Mostly) Inexpensive Tips for Jewelry Makers

2006-08-22T16:25:00.000-04:00

1. If you're making gemstone jewelry, invest in sterling findings. You'll find that spending $50 on sterling silver online will get you a lot nicer materials than spending $10 each on base metal findings on five trips to the craft store.

2. Subscribe to newsletters such as those from Migem, Purebeads or Fire Mountain Gems and keep an eye out for sales.

3. If you possibly can, buy in bulk. Yes, you might be spending $100, but if you do it right you'll get $500 worth of stuff. You can also join bulk buying groups on Yahoo! groups so you don't have to buy a gross of crystal to get the best price.

4. Visit Bead-Patterns.com for free patterns, graphs and tutorials.

5. Head over to the About.com Jewelry Making Forums for real-world advice from master jewelry designers.

6. Tammy Powley, who moderates the boards at #5, also has a jewelry-making blog. Reading what other artists write is a wonderful way to pick up tips and experience.

7. If you've got the money, take fine art, metalworking or lampworking courses at your local university/art school/artisan school.

8. If you don't have the money for #7, or even if you do, check out the local craft and bead stores. Many of them (and most chain craft stores) offer basic lessons for reasonable prices.

9. Read trashy fashion mags, especially if you make jewelry that follows fads. See what the celebrities are wearing.

10. Buy cheap materials to practice with. You don't need sterling wire to learn how to wire wrap.

11. Check beading books out from the library. If you like to hold onto books to re-read and refer to, buy from places like Half.com.

12. Better yet, find a local beader to split book and magazine costs with.

13. Play around with other crafty interests. Learn to sew, or knit, or paint, or whatever. Why? See #14.

14. Try listening to classical music and let the music inspire a design. The concepts of space (silence), repetition (rhythm) and color (individual instruments) are universal.

15. Be wary of beading magazines with more advertising than content. Do you really want to pay $6 for a bunch of ads? Also, be wary of special issues on a certain subject. Check whether most of the projects are repeats before you buy it.

16. Be reasonably organized. No crafter is always neat and tidy, but being able to find the green wire, or the small needle, or the amethyst briolette is worth picking up once in a while.

17. Don't be pulled in by high-priced storage gizmos. Find something cheap that works for you and stick with it. I personally favor the flat $1.99 divided boxes from the craft store for seed beads and the multi-drawer small-part boxes for glass and semiprecious beads. Wire coils go into $1 round plastic storage tubs.

18. Don't skimp on tools. I have an absolutely wonderful pair of round-nose pliers I got at Walmart that show no signs of slowing down, but don't count on that happening.

19. Pack up a few projects into small plastic bags and grab one when you know you'll have some dead time at the doctor's office.

20. Buy a basic book like the Beader's Companion that contains most of the basic bead types, stitches, weaves and other information in one place. You can find it all on Google, but it's nice to have it to refer to at the beading table.

21. Wear every piece you make (barring earrings) for a few hours to make sure it's sturdy.

22. Keep your business name short, simple and easy to spell.

23. Buy your own domain name and some cheap hosting from Godaddy. Show your customers that you take your work seriously.

24. Never, ever use a free hosting service that puts ads on your website. It doesn't look professional and it distracts potential customers from your work.

25. Wear the jewelry you make. If you're complimented, tell the person a bit about your jewelry work and the piece you're wearing. Some jewelry makers sell pieces right off their wrist or neck. Have a business card ready to hand politely to anyone who asks about what you're wearing.

26. If you plan to do craft shows, you'll more than likely need a business license. Check your local city/county regulations as well as your state Department of Revenue.

27. If you're running a website to sell your jewelry, don't get over-detailed in the descriptions. Most customers want to know what's in a piece, but it's okay to say "Czech glass" instead of "three-cut charlotte beads with silver center and aurora borealis finish."

28. Swarovski says that they don't want anyone using their brand name in product descriptions unless they're an official Swarovski reseller. For example, by their rules you can't say you use Swarovski crystal in a piece. Most jewelry designers ignore this because it doesn't really seem fair to pay a premium for their crystal and not be able to say you used it, but there it is.

29. Take good photos of your pieces, especially if you're using them on a website. Would you buy from Amazon.com if all their product photos were dark and fuzzy?

30. Make it easy for people to contact you. If you're not comfortable giving out a phone number, post a visible email address on the front page of your site.

Additions to the Family

2006-08-21T09:07:00.000-04:00

I'm proud to announce the adoption of two adorable three-year-old ferrets from FerretFirst. Click on any of the photos to see them larger.

This is Buddy:

And this is Sniffles:

They're a bonded pair. We went to the rescue on Saturday and played in a big pen with them as well as Pounce and Skid and another pair whose names I can't remember. I was really attracted to Pounce and Skid, too, but Skid's a very dominant male and he nipped me a couple of times to get attention.

At any rate, we were most attracted to Buddy and Sniffles (who no longer have a PetFinder page because we have them, yay!) and we confirmed that my allergies are very minimal. After 2.5 hours in a basement with forty (!) ferrets, a cat and a dog, my allergies were about the level they'd be with just the cat and dog around.

So once we decided we wanted Buddy and Sniffles, Robin, the rescue owner, made sure we knew what kind of care is involved, and then we looked at cages and supplies. She gave us a whole bunch of things for free, charged a very minimal amount for the cage and a starter kit of supplies, and since we'd managed to forget our checkbook, sent us home with everything without payment for the moment.

This is the cage:

It's very close to their original cage, which is awesome. They love tunnels so much that the shelter volunteers rigged tunnels in their cage there too.

The purple fabric things inside are their fleece bedding. We chose purple to match the cage, and there's another set in progress (in a different fabric) so we can switch the bedding out weekly and wash it. This set has a hammock (hanging from the top), a sleeping bag (on the bottom floor), and a neat little "pod" on the shelf at left. There's also a dark green bag from their shelter cage so they have something familiar-smelling.

On Sunday we met back up with her at the rescue's normal adoption day at Petsmart, and adopted them officially there. (I think the rescue gets goodwill points with Petsmart if they do it that way.) We also picked up the rest of their supplies and food.

Once we got them home we let them explore the cage while we ate lunch. Then I realized we'd left the bedding at Petsmart and had to run back over and get it (plus a stop at the craft store for a big basket to put their supplies in). After I got back, we took them out for a bit to introduce them to the apartment.

Conventional wisdom says that, to keep them using their litterbox, it's best to introduce them to one small part of the room at a time. Since we have the big L-shaped area with the living room and computer desk area, I figured we'd need a way to block parts of it off. We also didn't want them in the bedroom due to my beading area, but that was easy to block off by shutting the door. We figured the kitchen wouldn't be a safe area either, so we decided to block it off too.

The only reasonably-priced thing we could find to block anything was a roll of aluminum mesh at Home Depot. We cut off a piece to block the kitchen door, and used the rest of the roll to block off a small area of the living room.

We're talking about members of the weasel family here, so that didn't work too well. They just went underneath! We finally gave up and let them run around everywhere except the bedroom.

They're tons of fun. They really do hop sideways, and squeak. They love going underneath the entertainment center, and they love the kitchen for obvious reasons. So. much. fun! They wore us out. Best of all, they'll adapt their awake hours (they sleep 20 hours a day) to when we're home, so they'll be ready to play when we are. We'll have to be very careful to keep the floor clean, because they'll be out all evening and we can't watch them every second.

We've had one 'accident' already, but it was my own fault. :P I had put the litter pan in one corner when we were trying out the aluminum barrier, then moved it to a more central location while they were running around half the apartment. One of them went back at some point and very carefully used the original corner. *lol* So we found out that Nature's Miracle works fairly well, and that's been declared the Litterbox Corner from now on.

We're also learning valuable life skills like How to Scoop a Litterbox, How to Fill a Water Bottle and How to Try to Hold a Ferret Still for a Photo. These guys are almost impossible to take photos of, especially in our dark apartment. Buddy's relatively calm; Sniffles never holds still.

More of Buddy:

More of Sniffles:

Buddy asleep in the pod:

And so the hermit crabs don't feel too left out, here's a current photo of their tank:

Website News

2006-08-20T09:47:00.000-04:00

Angelsaccessories.com is currently down for some unknown reason. I'm fed up with Incognito hosting - I've had the worst luck with them - so I'm switching to Godaddy hosting.

Of course, like an idiot I hadn't backed up the site in a while, so I'm hoping I can talk Incognito into letting me back into the ftp for five minutes to pull things down. If not, I've got an old backup that will more or less do the trick. Hopefully the site will be back up by Monday evening.

Jewelry Supplies: The Latest

2006-08-19T10:05:00.000-04:00

From front to back and more or less left to right:

- Some pretty little Swarovski crystal posies and butterflies
- Topaz and royal purple Swarovski crystal beads
- A Blue Moon Beads swirled purple and white focal
- A green glass leaf focal which was used in a custom order
- Copper wire
- Silver-plated chain
- E-6000, one of my two standard jeweler's glues (the other is G-S Hypo Cement)

Goldilocks and the Three Apartments

2006-08-17T10:37:00.000-04:00

Our lease is coming up for renewal, so lately we've been looking around town for reasonably-priced exciting rentals to replace our comfortable, but plain and boxy, current apartment in Alexandria.

Well, we found exciting. We looked at a castle:

And a gorgeous townhouse:

And looked through a number of Craigslist ads. Sadly, the castle was falling apart inside, and the townhouse was way too expensive. We've decided that the apartment complex we live in, though, is just right, so Goldilocks might be upgrading to a two-bedroom apartment in October. We'll see how prices run after Labor Day. Like airlines, our complex changes its prices daily.

The Camera Saga Continues

2006-08-17T10:32:00.000-04:00

After giving the camera a couple of days to dry out, it seems to be cooperating again. Yay! I give it a provisional bill of good health until I run it through another jewelry photo shoot.

The Great Venue Review, Part 1: Online Auctions through eBay

2006-08-15T09:51:00.000-04:00

One of the questions I hear most from newbie jewelry designers is, "what's the best way/place to sell my jewelry?" From traditional craft fairs to online auctions, designers are presented with more sales options than ever before. Even with today's technology, however, there's no easy answer to that question.

In the next few weeks I'll be talking in detail about some of the more common methods people use to sell their jewelry. Much of this information will be United States-centric, since that's where I live. Feel free to comment with your international (or US!) experiences and I'll add them in.

A quick word about the rating system:

Every venue is going to return what you put into it, and every person will have different experiences. Some people just love doing home shows; some people have more success with consignments. Your mileage may vary, and I'd love to hear about your experiences with these, good or bad. The ratings after each venue are a general guide.

Today's edition is all about online auctions.

The auction giant eBay.com is by far the most popular online sales method for many niche artists, including jewelry designers. eBay’s popularity makes selling jewelry there a risky proposition, though. The market there is saturated, and unless your product is particularly unique it won’t even be noticed in the crush.

Some designers use eBay as a “loss leader” by selling one or two pieces cheaply to draw attention to the rest of their work. If you’re prepared to take a loss on those pieces, this can be a good method of advertising your work. Don’t expect to make money here, though. Most visitors to eBay are looking for bargains. eBay also prohibits sellers from advertising their websites on their selling pages, so if you want to use the loss leader technique you’ll need to set up an eBay store (a separate process) and advertise your website there.

An auction account is fairly easy to set up and use. eBay charges fees to list items, as well as another fee when the item sells. You can see the specific fees at http://pages.eBay.com/help/sell/fees.htm.

Someone who seems to do very well on eBay is the artist behind L’Arc En Ciel Jewelry Designs, who sells gorgeous gemstone earrings and the occasional bracelet. Since her jewelry has a distinctive look and is top quality, she is able to set herself apart and not get lost in the eBay jungle.

If you'd like to try eBay auctions, be prepared to put some time and/or money into creating a snazzy layout for your selling pages and/or eBay store. You'll need to present a well-designed format to draw potential buyers in.

Venue Review Ratings:

Ability to reach target audience: Low [market saturation]
Possibility of theft or damage: Low [no third parties handling the jewelry except in shipping]
Ease of Use: Medium to High
Publicity: Low [market saturation]
Money earned: Varies
Money/time to operate: Low to Medium

When Jewelry Designers Do Dumb Things

2006-08-15T08:21:00.000-04:00

Crap.

Yesterday I took the bus home from work. I was in a hurry and stuck my water bottle in my bag. I had the camera in there too because I wanted to pull the photos off, then discovered that editing in Photoshop is such a pain that I might as well wait till I get home and can use PSP.

You can see where this is going. The water bottle somehow came open and soaked the whole bottom of the bag. I thought all the electronics were more or less dry, so I stuck them in my lunch bag for safekeeping and dealt with everything else being soggy till I got home.

Turns out water got in the camera. I didn't even notice until I was halfway done transferring pics off of it. Then it got stuck processing and wouldn't shut off until I yanked the batteries out. I'm letting it dry out.

I hope to God I didn't just ruin my camera.

That was from yesterday. In the minimal amount of mucking with it I was able to do before leaving for work, it stopped working completely. I'm going to leave it alone for a few days to let it dry out thoroughly, but it looks like it's dead.

This is really upsetting. Not only am I now short one expensive digital camera, which may delay the Anapurna opening and will certainly be a major irritation, but I loved that camera. It's gotten heavy use in the three or so years I've owned it and it's always given spectacular performance.

It may be worth repairing; I won't know until I find a good local camera shop and take it in. Looking at the Olympus website, it seems they don't even make the Camedia line any more. (Mine was a C-750.) Sure, even the cheapo cameras now have more megapixels than my 4.0, and the cheaper SLRs are not too much more expensive than my standard one was when I bought it, but I love my camera anyhow.

Birthday Earrings

2006-08-09T14:17:00.000-04:00

I made these for my sister for her birthday. While we were drooling over the beautiful sculptures at the Swarovski store, she mentioned wanting a pair of earrings similar to a simple, beautiful set of crystal cube earrings they had for sale there. These are pretty similar. She loved them.

Badge Lanyard

2006-08-09T13:41:00.000-04:00

I made this lanyard for my day-job badges eight or nine months ago. It's held up rather well considering it gets worn every weekday and gets yanked around every time my clumsy self gets the badge bit hung up under a desk or something.

I used a neat color fade stringing pattern I found in a beading magazine; this particular color scheme fades from blue to gold and back. After wearing it for a couple of weeks I added a clear rubber band, the kind people use for kids' hair, in between the standard clasp and the ring it would normally clasp onto. That way if I get seriously caught it will break and not injure my neck, and it gives the whole thing a bit of stretch for those minor standing-up-and-catching-the-badges-under-the-desk moments.

Behind the Scenes: Bead Sorting

2006-08-09T10:19:00.000-04:00

I keep the red vase on the right of this photo on my jewelry worktop. Whenever I have a few extra beads I don't feel like sorting back into containers, I dump them in there. Eventually it fills up, or I need something that's buried, so it all gets sorted back out.

Generally I sort the beads into piles of semiprecious and glass beads, putting aside anything that needs to be repaired or salvaged. There are usually a lot less semiprecious beads, so those get sorted back into their appropriate
containers.

The glass beads are then sorted by color, and in some cases by shade. (For instance, I have a drawer each for light green, dark green, and olive green glass beads.) Then they all go back into their little drawers.

Finally, I tackle any metals that got tossed in, such as clasps or chain, and other beads like wood, bone or shell.

The Website Progresses

2006-08-09T10:06:00.000-04:00

Anapurna (Fantasyjewelry.net) is coming along rather well. J., my business partner, and I spent a great deal of time trying to decide on colors and this is what we ended up with. We've got 30-odd items up already. I'm doing the photography and some of the backend website stuff, and she's writing great descriptions for the pieces.

Sea Nymph's Treasures

2006-08-07T10:50:00.000-04:00

Sea Nymph's Treasures
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

The original comment I made to my personal journal about this piece was something like, "I just designed a necklace based on a demented sea nymph. I'm not sure whether to be proud of my creativity or worried about my sanity."

I had a mental image of a sea spirit on some desolate rock, beautiful and a little demented, tying together found fragmented treasures from the ocean and shipwrecks.

The necklace clasps in back with a shell-and-loop arrangement and features two dangling strands (at left in the photo) that can be worn hanging down in back or front.

This was one of the photos taken with the new light box featured in the previous post.

DIY Light Box: Better Jewelry Photography in Half an Hour

2006-08-07T10:38:00.000-04:00

Light Box
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

Because that's how long it took me to make this light box. No, really.

Although there's a funny story lurking here. As a devotee of the Container Store, I was there on Saturday drooling over all the fun little gadgets and storage stuff. I decided to get a box to make this light tent while we were there and spent ten minutes puzzling over exactly the right box in the shipping materials aisle, unable to find anything that exactly suited my needs.

Eventually my long-suffering husband pointed out that the big cardboard box full of small plastic boxes, already in the cart, was exactly the shape I was looking for. Oops.

Anyhow, the whole thing took exactly half an hour to make. Slice out the sides with an Exacto knife, tape on some tissue paper (which I had on hand, being the Queen Pack Rat) and stick a $5 bendy lamp on each side. Voila! Doesn't look like much, but works really well.

I still need to get another bendy lamp high enough to bend over the top, and a piece of posterboard for the inside to replace the white fur that's currently there. It would also help to have the box in a place where I can poke the camera down through the top, but the only place to put it right now is on the filing cabinet where it's pictured, which puts it at eye level. A good start, though. I'll post a few of the photos I took this morning.

Fantasyjewelry.net Color Scheme

2006-07-29T19:29:00.000-04:00

websitescheme_purple2 copy
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

This is what J. and I have come up with for a color scheme. It's relatively "fantasy-y" without being corny, and light enough to read easily.

Work in Progress: Crystal and Coral Necklace

2006-07-28T16:33:00.000-04:00

Work in Progress: Crystal and Coral Necklace
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

This is what the Crystal and Coral Necklace looked like while I was designing it.

I have a bead board, but I usually favor the soft foam-y beading mats for designing because the beads won't roll around. Rather than try to squish everything into a single line, I tend to put smaller elements in ranks below the pieces itself (as you can see from the tiny 2mm coral beads in the photo). It doesn't really make a difference in the design, but it's a quirk that helps me lay things out without the design getting too crowded.

Gold Niobium Earrings

2006-07-28T16:23:00.000-04:00

Gold Niobium Earrings
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

These were part of a custom order for a friend. It was my first time working with niobium; she requested that particular metal because she has allergies to most others, including sterling silver. Niobium is rarer in handmade jewelry than silver or gold, and is mostly found in body jewelry (piercings), but is a great material for those who have metal allergies. I hope she finds that she's not allergic to it.

Swarovski and Coral Necklace

2006-07-28T06:57:00.000-04:00

072606_103b
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

This is the newest for Fall 2006: a necklace of brilliant red coral (non-endangered) and topaz Swarovski crystal. It'll be up on the website for sale soon.

There's a little bead store in Boone, NC that I used to hang out at all the time in college. Too expensive to buy things often, but great for unusual focal pieces, vintage beads and the odd nifty find. I found the Swarovski pendant there on a trip down to NC to see relatives over the 4th of July this year and, even though it was overpriced, couldn't resist the sparkle.

A trip to a local craft store in Falls Church this week yielded the unusually cut crystal just above the pendant, and I already had the topaz crystal bicones yuo can see in the background. I think the coral came from a DC-area Intergem bead show earlier this year.

The findings and handmade clasp are sterling silver.

Plus-Size Fashion: Lane Bryant Catalog and Roaman's

2006-07-26T12:48:00.000-04:00

I got my clothing from the LB Catalog website a few weeks ago. The quality is about what you'd expect from a discount store like Walmart; the clothes are functional, but not particularly flattering or well-made. I need functional over flattering in my bike shorts and yoga pants, though, so they work, and are exactly as pictured in the catalog/website.

Ratings:

Price: 9/10
Shipping Speed: 7/10
Correct Order: 10/10
Clothing Quality: 6/10
Overall: 8/10
Notes: Not Lane Bryant, only uses their brand name. Remember that price reflects quality.

I got a catalog from a plus-size clothing company called Roaman's in the mail recently, presumably because they're owned by the same company as LBC (the website setup is identical). They seem to focus more on dress clothing than some other companies, which is nice, and the dress clothes in particular seem to be reasonably flattering. They don't stray too far into the "large women all want gaudy, tacky, flashy clothing" territory. I'm seeing a lot of comfy-looking tunic-length shirts.

There's also a beautiful ribbony tunic here that I love. I haven't ordered from them, so no recommendations yet, but they're worth a look.

Swarovski Goblets

2006-07-26T12:42:00.000-04:00

Speaking of crystal, these crystal-stemmed and -filled goblets are incredible. A friend and I saw them in the Swarovski store in Pentagon City Mall yesterday and drooled. Her comment was that they'd make great toasting glasses for a wedding. At $335 for a pair, they'd certainly be a memorable gift.

Brilliant Crystal Jewelry

2006-07-24T09:07:00.000-04:00

I'm eagerly awaiting the copy of Brilliant Crystal Jewelry that I ordered a month ago from Kalmbach Publishing. It won't ship until August 5.

I've finally gotten together enough Swarovski crystal that I can make some fairly sparkling stuff. Last week I made a cha-cha bracelet completely from crystals. I'll hopefully have pics up soon.

The Benefits of Consignment

2006-07-24T09:03:00.000-04:00

I was gone last week on business travel for my day job and haven't had a change to go down to the coffeehouse to see if anything's sold, but there are already some unexpected side benefits to having my jewelry there on consignment.

I'm meeting a very nice lady down there later this week to discuss some custom orders, and creating a custom necklace similar to one that's already down there for someone else. I'm glad for the exposure this is creating.

Vintage Earrings - Masterful Purchase or Mistake?

2006-07-14T16:46:00.000-04:00

Vintage Earring Find
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

I bought this pair of vintage earrings from a flea market in Virginia a few weeks ago. I don't know the first thing about vintage jewelry, but the unusual cut of the 'crystal' caught my eye. I don't want to admit how much I paid for them - I probably got ripped off - but they're awfully pretty. The earrings themselves are base metal, and the pearls are fake, so I'll probably just use the pretty vintage plastic in something else.

See that rainbow look the 'crystal' has? That's a coating, usually sprayed on. It's called an "aurora borealis" or AB effect, after the Northern lights. The durability of the AB coating depends on the quality of the beads.

Fairy Cha-Cha Bracelet

2006-07-13T14:58:00.000-04:00

Fairy Cha-Cha Bracelet
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

This is one of the new pieces that will eventually go up on Fantasyjewelry.net. I'm really proud of it. Swarovski crystal, Czech glass, sterling silver bracelet and pewter fairy charm.

Jewelry Photography: Part 2

2006-07-10T16:07:00.000-04:00

Green Niobium Earrings
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

Now, on to retouching your digital jewelry photography. If you missed the first post on jewelry photography, it's here. As always, click on any picture for a bigger version.

There's nothing unethical or dishonest about basic digital retouching. Covering up scratches or making something look nicer than it is isn't a good idea, but simple editing is the best way to give others the closest possible idea of how the item really looks. It also works well for anything you're trying to sell, whether on a website or on Ebay.

This will give you a rough idea of how I create jewelry photos for the website and blog. If you need a basic digital photography lesson, this isn't it, but one can be found here. I'm assuming for the purposes of this walkthrough that you're familiar with the basic functions of your digital camera and image software (Photoshop, Paint Shop Pro, etc.).

I use Corel's (previously Jasc's) Paint Shop Pro X to edit photographs. Photoshop or any number of other programs will work as well, but I'm used to PSP and at $79 for the newest version it's reasonably priced.

When you first open up the photo, it looks something like this:

Too dark, sideways and a bit blurry. Also, the earrings are dwarfed by the surrounding white space.

After using PSP's Rotation function, I cropped the image down (PSP's Selection tool, then Shift+R) to a useable portion.

I like crisp photos, so I used the Sharpen function to tighten it up. It's still too dark, though, and almost everyone I know who takes jewelry photographs has this problem. Part of the solution, of course, is to light your jewelry as well as possible: the other is to digitally lighten it to give a true representation of the colors.

I used to use PSP's brightness and contrast features, but I could never quite get the photos as bright as I wanted, so they looked muddy and unappealing. The main reason I'm crazy about PSP X is that they replicated Photoshop's Curves function, which lets you drag a simple red line around to control the brightness of the picture. Be careful not to lighten it so far you wash out the photo.

Here's the same photo after using Curves. Looks much better!

Jewelry Photography: Part 1

2006-07-09T20:04:00.000-04:00

Photography
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

I've been getting lots of Google hits from people searching for tips on jewelry photography, so it's time I pulled together a post about how I do it. You can click on any of the photos to see a larger version.

Every artist you talk to will have a different method of taking pictures of their work. Other people use scanners, light boxes, and other methods. This is what works for me, so keep in mind that one way won't work for everyone. My way also happens to be very inexpensive.

I use a digital camera to take my photos. Mine is a several-year-old Olympus Camedia. It's a mid-range point-and-shoot digital, but cheaper cameras will work too.

I sometimes use a tripod as well - a cheap one from Wal-mart that stands about two feet high. My current setup doesn't have room for it, so it's tucked into a corner until I need it again. Tripods are handy for jewelry photography because they keep the vibration of your hands from making the shot blurry.

As far as physical setup, I use two bendy-neck lamps (also cheap and from Wal-mart) and a piece of white fur or fabric. Other than that I use what I have on hand. The whole thing stays on the top of a filing cabinet.

I generally use white necklace and earring stands to support the jewelry, but they all currently happen to be over at the coffeehouse with my consignments. So on this particular shoot, I just laid the necklaces out flat. I still had a bracelet cone around (you can see it at left above) and I used a flat piece of glass (from a picture frame) to hang the earrings on (also above).

I use my camera's "Auto" setting and flood the area with as much light as possible. Keeping the camera still and steady is extremely important: unlike artistic shooting, you want every detail to show up clearly. I tend to let pieces build up and do them all at once rather than do a shoot every day.

So there's my setup. It's pretty simple, but it works well, and I can use anything I like as a prop. I've used everything from glass to pottery to sand to seashells to feathers to support the jewelry and help create an atmosphere.

I'll be covering how I work with the digital images I've produced in the next post. Stay tuned!

Fashion: Flip-Flops at Work?

2006-06-30T06:45:00.000-04:00

This Reuters article talks about a new trend in women's businesswear: flip-flops at work.

An online survey conducted for retailers Old Navy and Gap found flip-flops topped the list of wardrobe items that college and high school students planned to wear to work this summer.

More than 31 percent of women said flip-flops were the single "must have" item for work this summer.

Companies aren't so pleased, of course. In my particular workplace, flip-flops wouldn't be acceptable, due to the noise if nothing else. Doctors say they can also cause heel problems.

I wonder if they took into account the mass numbers of women who don't wear them at the office, but use them for commuting in cities like DC. Interesting article.

Ellen Campuzano, president of the Committee of Color and Trends, a New York-based forecasting service specializing in footwear and accessories, thinks flip-flops' popularity will wane.

"Usually these trends come and go in about five years," she said. "I think we've reached the peak, they can't be any more widespread, so maybe next summer something will replace them."

Plus-Size Fashion

2006-06-29T17:00:00.000-04:00

Old-school Lane Bryant
Originally uploaded by coma_high.

As a large-scale woman, I'm particularly interested in fashion for those of us who are average or larger. Most modern fashion is based on women who could blow away in a slight breeze. I think I'm going to devote some blogtime in the near future to ferreting out some plus-size fashion trends and news.

I got a catalog in the mail from Lane Bryant the other day and rushed off to the local store to see if I could get a pair of pants in time for the 4th of July weekend.

Alas, no pants for me. It seems that Lane Bryant is not actually affiliated with the catalog they send out, which can be found at Lane Bryant Catalog. The only thing they share is the brand name. I think it's more than a little misleading.

Also, Lane Bryant Catalog doesn't use plus-size models for their clothing, unlike Lane Bryant. This actually backfires a little, as some of the clothes designed for large bodies look very silly on the skinny models. Also, a lot of the models look miserable in the photos.

LBCatalog's prices are pretty good, though, so I ordered a few things. We'll see how they look when they come in in around 10 business days.

As for the LB store, after confusing the poor salesladies with my requests for clothing "I saw in the catalog," I discovered they had a rather nice clearance sale going on and spent a good bit of time trying on clothes in my search for one decent pair of casual pants before the weekend. Nothing fit, so I came away with T-shirts. Ah well.

Thanks to coma_high for the great vintage LB photo. Click on it to explore more of their photos.

Jewelry Care Tip #2: Storage

2006-06-29T15:01:00.000-04:00

Another of Real Simple's jewelry recommendations involves using a tie rack to hang necklaces. I have to disagree with this one because beaded necklaces, when hung, will eventually stretch out of shape. The tie rack idea would work for chains, but that's about it.

The best way I've found to store jewelry is to keep the pieces flat in a closed container. A good way to prevent tangling is to store each piece in a sturdy plastic storage bag like these reclosable bags from Uline. You don't even have to seal the bags.

I'm working on a pattern for a really nice, silvercloth-lined jewelry storage "book" but haven't finished it yet.

Jewelry Care Tip #1

2006-06-29T14:53:00.000-04:00

Real Simple magazine's July 2006 issues has a couple of interesting jewelry tips:

1. Use baby oil to untangle a necklace chain by dabbing a bit of oil onto the tangle, then using a straight pin to gently pull the knot apart.

2. This one's particularly useful now that it's hot. To ease off a ring that's stuck on your finger, put a bit of baby oil (lotion would probably work too) on your finger and then rotate the ring until it comes off.

3. If a necklace breaks, use dental floss to temporarily string the beads until you can get it fixed. Obviously any type of string would work with this one.

They also recommend using (plain unwaxed) floss to slice cakes, which is odd but sounds effective.

Archives Station

2006-06-27T12:52:00.000-04:00

Archives Station
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

Last weekend my family and Raymond's parents were all in town at once, so we did a good bit of wandering around downtown. Click here to see the rest of the photos.

Work in Progress

2006-06-27T12:29:00.000-04:00

Work in Progress
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

My work desk yesterday, with a pair of earrings finished and a couple of bracelets in progress.

Cameron Perks Consignment

2006-06-27T12:17:00.000-04:00

I set up displays over at Cameron Perks the other day. At that point the organza bags hadn't come in, so I only set up necklaces and bracelets. The coffeehouse is giving me an excellent financial arrangement, so I'm really excited about this. I'll be taking earrings, keychains and other small items over there either this week or next. You can click on any of these images to see a larger version.

Beadwork Tip #1

2006-06-17T18:26:00.000-04:00

When you're preparing to do off-loom weaving, break the very tip off of a fine needle. Put the tip on a piece of tape and fold it over, then throw it away.

A tip-less needle will be much less likely to pierce the thread and tangle.

Random Household Tip #1 - Simmering Smelly-Goods

2006-06-17T18:07:00.000-04:00

Take small pot and fill 1/2 - 3/4 of the way with water. Throw in whatever herbs and citrus you have lying around. (I used fresh spearmint, catnip, and thyme from my balcony garden, along with a couple of small cinnamon sticks and lemon and lime slices I keep frozen to keep icewater from being deadly dull. I don't recommend using powdered anything.)

Add the whole thing to the stovetop and set it to simmer. Leave it for a couple of hours.

Effort: About 2 minutes, depending on how long it takes to dig out the pot.
Reward: The house (or a few rooms, if you have a larger place than I do) smells great. You don't even have to call it potpourri.
Expense: Around $.50 - 1.00, depending on what you throw in.

John's Store Experience

2006-06-15T17:08:00.000-04:00

A link I've been meaning to post for a while is John's account of his experience opening a jewelry and crafted item store. He talks about targeted demographics, advertising, and atmosphere. Interesting if you've ever thought about owning a business or wondered what goes into those beautiful little shops downtown in your area.

hmph - part 2

2006-06-14T15:45:00.000-04:00

I found the bags I need at Fetpack and I suppose I'll use the old Fire Mountain Gems standby for the displays. Fetpack has a $25 minimum order, so I ordered some polishing cloths as well.

Fetpack has free shipping, and FMG (not exactly known for low shipping prices) is only charging $9 for shipping on the same order amount as the original Nile order, so I'm still coming out ahead.

So there.

hmph

2006-06-14T14:04:00.000-04:00

I just had to cancel the display order I'd placed with Nile Corp.

I ordered the displays from them last Friday. They called me today, saying it was finally ready to ship. That's not good in itself.

They also want to charge me $25 for shipping, instead of the $11 originally quoted. On a $50 order.

Screw that. I cancelled the order.

Now where the heck am I going to get displays from? Argh! I guess I'm going to have to tell the coffeehouse it'll be another week at the earliest.

I'm really disappointed. Nile has a good reputation in the community, and this was the first order I'd placed with them. And now that I'm looking around for the organza bags I need, they had by far the best price. As in a third of the price of the other sites I'm looking at. Now I'm really ticked off.

Also: They sell displays for a living. They shouldn't be mis-estimating shipping costs that badly.

Consignment!

2006-06-14T09:45:00.000-04:00

Well, all the vendor spaces for Capclave are filled. J.'s going back to the drawing board and looking at other events.

I did get my first consigment here in DC the other day, though. Yay! I'm going to be setting up some displays at Cameron Perks. I'll be putting the jewelry in this Saturday, assuming the displays I ordered from Nile Corp. last week come in.

It's a nice little coffeehouse tucked away inside Cameron Station on Duke St. in Alexandria. (To get there, turn off Duke St. into the Cameron Station development. When you get to the traffic circle, go all the way around and take the road just before the one you came in on, so it's essentially a left hand turn. The coffeehouse is on the left.) If you're local, be sure to stop by! It's a hidden gem; the atmosphere seems to be quite relaxing, and the drink prices are very reasonable.

They host a variety of artists' consignments, including some paintings and gorgeous fused glasswork, so I'm eager to have the exposure that showing there will give. And hey, sales don't hurt either.

The Skinny on Right Hand Rings

2006-06-13T20:29:00.000-04:00

A friend of mine recently expressed some concern over Kay Jewelers' current ad campaign for women's right hand diamond rings.

The basic ad concept runs something like this:

Your left hand likes evenings at home. Your right hand loves a night out. Your left hand reads stories before bed. Your right hand lives a story worth reading. Women of the world, raise your right hand.

I don't have permission to post what she said here, so I won't, but the general gist of her concerns about the campaign (note: this is an industry-wide campaign, not just Kay) was that it stereotypes and denigrates the traditional values of the left-hand ring and its cultural associations.

I used to get a monthly jewelry industry mag that dealt with the retail diamond jewelry industry. I have no idea how I got signed up for it, but it was pretty interesting, and this was right around the time the right hand ring thing got big.

I haven't seen the commercials, so I don't know how easy they are to misinterpret, but I might be able to give a little insight into what's going on here.

From what I read in the mags, the concept isn't meant to denigrate marriage at all. Buying an expensive ring for the right hand is a major cultural tradition, and 99% of the time it's been a male buying for a female. Women don't traditionally buy jewelry for themselves like this. (Of course there are exceptions - we're talking general trends.)

But in the past decade, more and more women - for whatever reasons - have been buying nice jewelry for themselves. The industry sees this as a major emerging market. There are bracelets and necklaces and earrings, of course, but many of these stores focus on the ring, and if they can make it culturally acceptable for women to buy rings for themselves, then they can capitalize on it.

(For those who don't think the jewelry industry changes culture, look up "diamond history" and "De Beers" sometime.)

Now, women who might buy their own jewelry aren't generally buying rings for the left hand, since that area is still culturally reserved for engagement and wedding rings. That leaves the right hand, hence the "right hand ring" campaign.

Now, back to the commercials. They're not saying "traditional life sucks, and this is so much better." They're saying "look, here are these traditions, and they're good. But it's okay to buy jewelry for yourself, too, because you're strong and beautiful and so on and you should buy from us." It's their way to trying to transition from a culture where only men buy women jewelry, to one where men buy women jewelry and women buy themselves jewelry.

Although it's interesting that Kay's website says nothing on its front page about the right hand ring, and you have to hunt around to get to them. If I were running a multi-million dollar ad campaign I wouldn't be hiding the light of easy profit under a bushel. Oh well, it's their dollar.

I was flipping through the May 2006 issue of Vanity Fair this evening and there's a full-page Right Hand Ring ad in there. It's not branded to a specific chain, though, just a general industry ad (think "Got Milk?").

Generous Gems has a party line explanation at the link as well.

(Accompanied by Triumphal Music)

2006-06-13T09:43:00.000-04:00

The blue loveseat came in last week, and it pulled the room together instantly. It actually looks like a living room!

We've also hung pictures, curtains in the bedroom ($4 at Salvation Army - win!), and changed a lot of other things. My long-suffering husband, who really doesn't much care what his surroundings look like, has still been a major help with things like pounding in nails in places too high for me to reach.

I'd post photos, but so far they've all turned out crappy. More lighting is becoming a definite priority. So are bookshelves - we've got stacks of books all over the place and our two current bookcases (one small, one tall and narrow) have been overflowing for years.

I've found these at Staples that I like. It's important in such a small space to keep things as open as possible. Since we got the loveseat, though, we need to wait a little while to buy more furniture, so for now the stacks of books will stay scattered around. Maybe it actually just makes us look intellectual. Considering half of them are manga or D&D gaming books, though, probably not.

Fantasy Jewelry Ahoy!

2006-06-13T08:52:00.000-04:00

The Wood-cutter's Wife
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

I haven't gotten a single second to work on the Fantasyjewelry.net site, but I have had a chance to confer with a good friend, and there are great things in the works.

Jamaila, of Ancestral Pile, not only makes jewelry, but knows the DC-Baltimore fantasy and sci-fi circuit inside and out. With her expertise and my accessories we're going to try our hand at doing some fantasy shows in the area this year and next. It looks like our first one will be Capclave, in October.

She's having fun planning the booth and what events to do, and I'm (eventually) going to have fun making things and setting up the website. Life is good.

Märchen

2006-06-05T16:18:00.000-04:00

Märchen
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

So what was I doing the other night with masses of feathers and glue?

Besides making a giant mess (and enjoying it greatly), I was putting into motion some changes I've been planning for my business.

I've liked making fantasy jewelry and accessories for years - that's how I got into jewelry in the first place - but most of what I've created doesn't really fit in with the rest of my lines.

I'd like to focus more on fantasy jewelry, but since it doesn't fit in with the rest of the site, I purchased http://www.fantasyjewelry.net the other night. I was so excited when I looked it up and found it wasn't taken - it's easy to remember and obvious enough to get a bit of hit traffic straight from people typing it in.

I'm working with my pocket programmer - my friend Branden, who helped me set up Angel's Accessories - to get the new site set up.

In addition to the feathery bits, I'll be putting up some combs and handflowers first, since they're already made. I've got some regular jewelry coming up, too, as soon as I get time to make it. I've got lots of ideas. Angel's Accessories itself isn't going anywhere: this is a new addition to what I can offer.

Mini Stackable Craft Shelves

2006-06-05T13:24:00.000-04:00

Mini Stackable Craft Shelves
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

If you're crafty and have lots of extra money to burn, these craft shelves look really nifty. They're completely customizeable. Too bad a fully kitted out set (a large cabinet with paper shelves and drawers) costs over $500. Worth a look, though, if just for the drool factor.

Feather Earrings

2006-06-03T23:35:00.000-04:00

Feather Earrings
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

I spent a good portion of my evening playing with feathers and glue. I'm working on a new line - well, almost a completely different concept - and I'm having a lot of fun. I'm tired and glue-loopy, so I'll explain more later. The feather earrings in the photo were actually done a few months ago, but I'm not up to taking photos tonight, and the glue's not dry yet anyhow.

I love my shower curtain.

2006-06-03T19:57:00.000-04:00

No, really. It's this gorgeous fabric in a shade of muted gold, and designs gently ripple across it like liquid. Cost me $20 at Linens & Things just before we moved here: definitely a lucky accident.

I spend more time thinking about our apartment than I probably should, but I'm the daughter of an interior designer, so it's probably genetic. I don't have her natural talent for interior design, though, so I'm currently poring over a stack of books on it from the library.

When we moved to the house my parents live in now, I watched my mother, entirely untrained, create the most amazing interiors I've ever seen outside a magazine. She has this incredible instinct for color and placement and scale. Later, when two of her three children had grown up and moved out, she was able to go back to school and get a degree in interior design, formalizing her great talent.

Now that we've moved up in the world - to a 950 sq. foot apartment from our old 600 sq. foot one - and have enough income that we're not worrying quite so much about keeping the electricity on, I've been plotting and planning and driving my husband crazy with questions like, "I'd really like to use a bookcase next to that entryway to visually direct the eye towards the bedroom and not my jewelry work area. Do you think birch finish would be okay, or is it too light?" He has no opinion, so he smiles and nods enough to keep me happy, and it's hard to bicker about decorating with someone who always agrees, so it all works out!

What does this have to do with jewelry? Not much, except that the concepts of design are the same no matter what area you're dealing with, and it's taking up a lot of my attention lately. Also, the more content I am with my surroundings, the more likely I am to be able to concentrate and be inspired to make anything.

I'm finding that the skills I've picked up along the way with jewelry are actually helping out quite a bit with decorating as well, particularly at times where I need to visualize how an item might fit into a room or whether the recliner I'd like to get matches the loveseat we ordered. (Our first major furniture purchase!) Since we don't have that much money to throw around, visualizing is important: I may not be able to get that recliner or bookcase for another six months, and it's hard to plan a room around things you don't have if you can't imagine how they'll look.

Another thing interior design has in common with jewelry is that, like any creative process, as soon as you think you have everything all planned out and perfect, something comes along and derails the entire thing. We don't have room in our small apartment for a full-sized couch, so we've been looking at loveseats and hadn't found anything we desperately wanted in our price range (dirt cheap).

Loveseat or no, I already knew that I wanted to do a very naturally-themed living room to showcase my photography and gem/mineral collection. I had gathered a whole set of variously sized natural wooden picture frames to do a huge nature photo collage on the wall, picked out a stain color for our unfinished entertainment center, and mentally planned out the entire room. Everything was brown and green, and both the loveseats we'd seen and sort of liked were green or tan.

Something about counting chickens before they hatch should come to mind here.

We were out in Alexandria a week ago on yet another futile loveseat-hunting expedition when I happened to see a sign for Marlo Furniture beside the highway. We headed in and didn't see anything at all we liked until we were nearly done. Then I found it. I loved it. I had to have it, and it was more or less in our price range.

And it's blue.

I love blue. I use it a lot in my jewelry, and I can only think of one shade (dull navy) that I don't like. A blue loveseat completely wrecked my entire nice little mental plan for the living room, though, and I still haven't gotten it entirely figured out. I can use blue accessories for the room, but do I still want the entertainment center (an immense hulking thing that was a present and I love, but barely made it into the apartment and isn't moving another inch without professional help) stained in the color I'd chosen, assuming we ever get around to doing it? What about that beautiful soft brown throw pillow I bought ages ago? Will that recliner match at all? Now the botanical prints (also a gift) don't match! What will I do with the photo collage that completely doesn't match anything now? Aaaaack!

And yet the blue loveseat is perfect. I knew it was the right thing the second I saw it. So everything else is being mentally reshuffled. It'll work itself out eventually, but I'm obviously in the middle of a mental morass about it.

As I mentioned above, this occasionally happens with jewelry too. Put a piece together and start stringing, but the yellow pearls sitting five feet away catch your eye and you just have to put them with the green pendant, never mind the fact that the purple you really wanted to use now looks awful with the rest...

Hi, Mom!

2006-06-03T12:17:00.000-04:00

A warm welcome to all the new blog visitors. I'm excited to see so many people dropping by! My nifty little SiteMeter gizmo says that a lot of you are coming from other blogs that are completely related that haven't linked to me. What's up with that? Are you all clicking through random blogs? Either way, it's cool, but I'm curious. :) Hope you enjoy your visit here.

Bother.

2006-06-03T11:38:00.000-04:00

Fedex won't be delivering the new hard drive until Tuesday, due partly to the address somehow being incorrect and partly to the fact that they didn't bother to call about it until after the driver had already left this morning.

The hard drive we're using as a substitute until the new one gets here has made the whole system unstable and more than a little hard to use, so I'm mainly using my work laptop for now. This has slowed or stopped more than a few jewelry-related plans for now, but at least I can still finish pricing all the jewelry that's sitting in heaps on my desk. I'm not far from being done.

I also finished retouching all the jewelry photos from 2005-2006 and making them much, much lighter. They look so good now I keep pulling them up to look at them. PSP X made it a very simple and quick process.

After that, I yanked ALL the photos off the website server and uploaded the new improved ones last night. Inevitably there were a few broken links, which I'd planned to fix today, but now the site is mysteriously down. I'm trying not to get grumpy over it: I'll probably be switching webhosts soon due to this sort of thing happening a lot. Anyhow, as soon as it comes back up I'll be fixing those broken images.

Fashion Blogs: 360 Fashion

2006-06-02T21:50:00.000-04:00

An interesting set of fashion-related blogs. There are blogs from a model, digital operator, designer, hair stylist, scout, television presenter, and more. If you're at all interested in fashion, there's a representative of just about every area here. Note that at least one of them isn't in English, but the non-English one I looked at still had some interesting images.

New Tags

2006-06-02T10:37:00.000-04:00

New Tags
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

It was time for a change, so I created some square tags instead of the rectangular ones I'd been using.

How I Spend My Evenings

2006-06-02T10:34:00.000-04:00

How I Spend My Evenings
Originally uploaded by Angel's Lens.

When you're a jewelry designer, you spend a lot of evenings like this. Some of my jewelry had old tags, and quite a few were missing tags completely, so it was time to redo the tags.

1. I came up with a new tag design in InDesign, printed them on card stock, and cut them out.

2. Punch holes in the corner of the card (or two for earrings) using the sophisticated technology of a thumbtack. Cut lots of short pieces of thread.

3. String thread through tags. Tie one to each piece of jewelry. That's what I had just finished when I took the photo.

4. Polish each piece with cleaning cloth, check off materials on the list on the back of each tag, and stick a blank price sticker on each tag. I'm currently halfway done with this.

5. Look up price for each piece in Jewelry Designer Manager software and write on back of tag. This takes approximately forever.

6. Put pieces back in airtight containers on silvercloth to help keep them from tarnishing.

Exciting, huh? It's not my favorite thing to do, but it's part of the necessary tasks involved in selling jewelry. Most of the time this sort of thing isn't such a large task, especially if I keep up with it as I create pieces. The whole inventory just needed an overhaul.