October 14, 2005
Show season for the fall starts tomorrow. I love shows because they are a chance to meet new people, talk to other vendors, and make some money. Random thoughts about craft shows…
- After a while, I feel like I should be using the old beauty queen tip of Vaselining my teeth. I like to be a FRIENDLY jeweler, but all that smiling can be wearing!
- I need a better “elevator speech”…when someone stops by and I try to make small talk it usually ends up being about something besides my jewelry. I want to be approachable and not pushy, but keep the attention on my stuff. I’m proud of it and I should be talking incessantly about it!
- Some vendors need to just get over themselves. I am not stopping by to talk to you to steal your business or ideas. Everyone has their own niche and we can all learn from each other. On the other hand, don’t stop by my booth to chat and then monopolize my time when I have customers…step away and chat later when we are having down time!
- My mother always taught us to look with our eyes, not our fingers. I wish more parents would have the same philosophy.
- I pay, I stay. Why pack up and leave early if it’s a slow show? I always bring work with me…more time to create beautiful things. And if I packed up and left early, I’d just have to do laundry or mow the lawn.
- I never, ever start to pack up until the dot of closing time. And I fully appreciate those of you who do, because that’s just less “competition” for a shopper’s business.
- Don’t forget to drink plenty of water during a show or you’ll get cranky and dehydrated.
- Bring a cooler with healthy, non-messy and quick to eat food. Who wants to buy jewelry from someone with nacho cheese sauce all over her fingers?!
It’s going to be a gorgeous day here tomorrow, but I hope there are plenty of folks who are anxious to get out and start shopping local craft fairs….will let you know tomorrow how it went.
October 13, 2005
I stayed up too late last night working on bead embroidery for the Chuppah. I made one “doily” using ivory, light peach and dark peach silk luster Delica beads. The colors on these beauties are fantastic…they shimmer and shine in a way that is hard to describe, and the effect of the colors together is breath-taking.
Didn’t like the way the first one came out, and there was just something wrong with it besides. I went back to my instruction sheet, found my error, and put the ivory/lt peach/dk peach version aside to tear apart at a later date. Took some of the ivory, mint green and dark peach beads out and started in on one with those colors.
Actually following the pattern worked wonders, and I even got hubby to admit that the tiny, delicate, beaded “snowflake” was pretty. I decided if I made them big enough, they could even be coasters (not very absorbent, and they’d slide right off the table, however.)
My original plan to make two and place them side-by-side on the Chuppah square was thwarted, however, when I took out the square and discovered it had magically doubled, no, quadrupled in size. Think that was because I procrastinated? I’m going to have to make a boatload of these beaded doilies, which is okay.
Then I had the brilliant idea of making a beaded portrait of my two friends (I know just the photo of them) and putting that on the square. For once, I came to my senses pretty quickly and decided that it might get done in time for their 50th anniversary, but Feb 2006 was probably not attainable.
Pardon me now while I take a little nap. I’m pretty sure I’ll be beading until the wee hours again tonight.
October 13, 2005
I’m really excited about my next “project”. I have a good friend who is getting married in February, and she is having a Jewish ceremony. Part of the tradition involves the Chuppah…a sort of canopy which will hang above the couple. The Chuppah is comprised of different squares sewn together like a quilt. She and her fiance have asked close friends and family to make personalized squares, using whatever media and design suits them best. It’s sure to be a fabulous momento for the new couple.
Of course, mine had to have beads. I searched my mind and heart for sometime, trying to come up with a design that would be appropriate for the wedding. I thought about stitching Swarovski crystals or semi-precious stones to the Chuppah square, perhaps in a pattern of circles to symbolize my friend’s unending love for each other. Decided that would be too heavy, and I wasn’t moved by it. I was starting to semi-panic…she had asked us all to have the squares back to her by the end of October (uh, did she mean THIS October???) and I was still stuck in the design phase!
Then while poking around online doing some research for beadinghelpweb.com, I found a gorgeous pattern that used Delica seed beads in an open stitch that resembled a beaded doily. PERFECT. I practiced that night with the el-cheapo seed beads I happened to have on hand (I’m not a seed beader….yet….) and decided it was the perfect idea for my square. Ordered some lovely shades of Delicas from Fire Mountain Gems, and then sat around tapping my toes waiting for the UPS man to show up.
Well, the box came to my doorstep today….and as soon as I get done with this entry, I’m off to play. I really haven’t worked my with seed beads before, but I can certainly see how it’s addicting, challenging, and a fantastic outlet for creative genius. 
I can’t wait to see how this turns out, and continue to work in this new beading medium!!
October 11, 2005
This whole blogging thing is new to me. Sure, I sporadically kept a journal in junior high school, but it never amounted to much besides writing my name in swirly letters and “Mrs. ____” (insert which ever 7th grade boy I currently had a crush on).
So, being new to blogging, I of course, had to do some research. I read other blogs, and they address current issues, political agendas, and other weighty matters of the day. Some of them get into some pretty heavy debates and stir up quite a bit of controversy.
Well, unless there’s some serious legislation regarding the import of Bali silver, or a new study that finds the lead in Swarovski crystals gives you cancer, you probably won’t get that here. I’ll write about beads, about my trials and tribulations in creating jewelry, the ups and downs of owning a jewelry business, and sometimes about those other people who inhabit my home (read husband, son, daughter, dog and assorted livestock).
I’ll make my blog as lively and entertaining as my real life can make it (and believe me, sometimes it’s pretty darned lively…entertaining is subjective, however!), and I’ll even toss in an occasional “send me an idea and I’ll send you a bag of beads I have laying around the house” contest. Since I like to write, my intentions are to jot something down daily to share with y’all.
In the meantime, I have a new order from Fire Mountain that’s calling my name.
Good to meet you, and I look forward to chatting again tomorrow.
