Gold and Blue

I made this necklace a few weeks ago. It was inspired by an outfit my cousin wore to Christmas... And the color combination gave me three other designs.

I'm starting to love gold tones. I used to only like silver and copper but gold is really pretty too.

This color combination makes me think of Spring. The cold blue color and the warm gold tone... I know it's silly, but cold and warm for me is Spring. :P

SIDENOTE! If you look up under my blogger banner, you'll see a link to my Etsy shop where I'm selling some of my old magazines. $5 per listing... and they're good magazines too. Beadwork, Bead and Button, Beadstyle... Lovely but I need to clear out space. Check them out if you have a chance. They're listed here.

Farewell, 2011

2011 was an interesting year for me. And at the end, it left me between a rock and a hard place. I'm still trying to recover and get through it but it's one of those "take it one step at a time" things... and more often than not, it's also "one step forward, two steps back."

I lost a job I loved. Working for Borders was such a stressful time but I adored it. I love books and loved the people I worked with. So when it happened in September, I was crushed.

I also was sort of asked to move out of the house I lived in for 5 years. At the time, it was a mixed blessing as the house was crowded and I needed a fresh start. But moving during that tough time was unbelievable. I worked myself to exhaustion.

There is no doubt that I am in a better place emotionally now. I live with my cousin's family who is loving and supportive and who lets me work off some of my rent but I really am growing sick of eating hot dogs and sandwiches everyday. And "should I get gas or food?" is such a depressing debate.

But I am creating things everyday. I am thinking of my business every second of every day. I made sales in December. More sales than I ever have and it was such an encouraging few weeks. I was able to buy Christmas presents because of those sales and I will forever be thankful to those people who found my shop and purchased the pretties. And while the sales stopped the week of Christmas and I was once again broke and stressed out, I was able to celebrate Christmas with my family which is all I really wanted this year.

I want to try and make creating my life. I want to live off of my art and creations. And I want to be happy.

2011 had too many tears. Too many arguments. Too much negativity. My rose colored glasses fell from my eyes and I saw a world I almost was tempted to leave.

2012, I have high hopes for you. I am going to work hard. And I hope that it will pay off.

Thank you for sticking with me, readers. I hope we all have a wonderful new year.

Fingers

My fingers have developed lovely calluses from making these earrings. The tiny seed beads were a bit of a pain to wire wrap but I love how they look all lined up and sparkly.

This bracelet was a little easier on my fingers. Look at the deep purple of that amethyst.

I've been creating and uploading pretty regularly now for about 3 weeks. My shop has gone from around 30 items to almost 100. I'm told that's how you get sales on Etsy... uploading and such. My fingers are crossed.

Pretty Sure I'm Obsessed...

... with making these bracelets O_O

I will be having a giveaway next week!

There's a conference I want to attend in March... MUST RAISE FUNDS >.< Still no job. Things were looking ok with sales last week but no sales yet this week. Must keep thinking positive!

I think I'll go blog hopping tomorrow. I haven't visited blogs in while. YAY!

Pink and Gray

I'm currently loving this color combination. Purple and gray. Pink and gray. The seed beads there? I originally thought they were purple... but now they look pink. But both look great, I think.

Do you type "grey" or "gray?" I always spelled it with an "e." I think it was because I read it somewhere once and on a spelling test, I got it wrong... but to prove the teacher wrong, I brought a dictionary up to her and showed her I was right. But I think most people spell it with an "a." So. My Etsy listings have an "a." But it just looks wrong. Lol.

Both these beauties are up in the shop!

Happy Friday, all!

Open House/Jewelry Party Notes

A few weeks ago, I had my first ever Open House for my jewelry. I was scared. I almost canceled it. But I didn't and it was a BLAST! I had so much fun (once it got going) and am so thankful to everyone who came.

My personal tips down past the pictures.

Me and the table... I'll be doing the cliche New Year's resolution of diet and exercise...
 

 Earrings on chargers and a raffle. I had made a display using canvas but didn't finish it in time. I was kicking myself the whole day because the earrings kept sliding around. 

I love love love the idea of using cups for displays. Especially pretty plastic ones.
  

 Close-up of the necklaces. That's PVC piping, folks! Probably cost me less than $6! I'm going to paint it for next time.

A magazine I was published in with the piece that was printed!

My older nephew picking something out for his mama.
  

Nephew paying...
  

 Nephew and mama!

My family.

I think that this was an excellent "first show." I had control of everything, pretty much. The turn out was ok... mostly family but it was still so much fun. The few friends that did show up hold a special place in my heart for coming by to support me.

And now! For tips!

• Try and give yourself at least a month to let people know about your event. And try not to schedule it during a holiday weekend. Mine was on Thanksgiving weekend and I'm guessing everyone was pretty shopped out. Also, I really just decided at the last second I NEEDED to do this and put it together in about 2 weeks. The more time you give yourself, the better.
• Don't just use Facebook to get the word out. Try and hand out paper invites or, if you're brave enough to have strangers come by, post flyers in cafes or the library. 
• Build a good cash box! Unless you have a way of taking credit cards at your house, most people will be paying with cash. Depending on what your lowest item costs, you will want anywhere from 25 to 40 $1 bills. Don't forget some $5s... maybe even a few $10s. And don't forget rolls of change!
• Snacks: Keep it simple! Don't worry about it too much. A veggie platter, some cheese, and one or 2 bottles of wine will probably be enough. If you decide to serve snacks, don't forget to have plates, napkins, and cups.
• Speaking of wine, don't drink while you're selling your pieces. I know it sounds a bit harsh but you want to make sure you're focused. Besides, do you drink at work usually?
• Build your table up and then out. I don't think people like crouching over tables.
• Put business cards all over your table. I used plastic wine glasses and had them at 3 different spots on the table.
• Mirrors! Don't forget mirrors!
• If you've been published, show it off! I had my magazines opened on the table with the pieces laying right on the magazine pages.
• Think about having some simple music playing.
• I didn't have a table cloth on my table and I think it was a great idea. I think that it would have gotten pulled on by one of the kids. If your table isn't a pretty wooden one like the one I was fortunate enough to get to use, buy some pretty paper (wrapping paper or long sheets of art paper) and cover the table with that.
• Do have a raffle. You could have a sign-up sheet for your newsletter as the raffle sheet but I think in general, it's a good idea. And advertise it on your invites!!!
• Have a few different size merchandise bags available. I used craft paper bags hand stamped with pretty designs.
• Give them the option of buying gift bags or boxes. Or maybe give them away with the purchase.
• When making pieces for your show, have a nice range in prices. I had studs for $4 and some earrings for $25. 
• Remember to thank everyone who came by... even if they didn't buy anything. Make sure they leave with business cards!
• Don't forget a camera... with a charged battery! I almost forgot this tip! Lol. I forgot my camera and my sister-in-law took pictures for me. Maybe even have a notebook to make notes for future shows!

That's all I can think of for now. Hoping to do my first craft show next May. This was such a blast!

Do you have a tip for jewelry parties?

BTW: Ugh...

I know, I've been gone a while. Had my open house last week. And decided to take a little break after that. I will blog more about it later. For now... the aftermath:

My desk is a mess. A huge mess. And because I wanted to just take pictures and fill up the shop with all the jewelry I've amassed, I just shoved it all aside for that tile I use as my background in pictures. That's what's on my bead table today. Lol. Maybe next week I'll have something more worthwhile to show.

At least the shop is filling up nicely.

There's a coupon code for all you lovely people out there. 20% off with coupon code DEC2011. I will continue to add lovelies to the shop. Now's the time to grab what you want for that special someone!

Half way to the weekend, everyone. Aren't you excited???