When you have happy campers like this, preparing a teaching event is a joy.
But I won't lie! It's a bunch of work. Honestly, I think planning a wedding would be easier. In the long run, though, the more you do it, the easier it gets, especially when you work with the staff at The Dutch Village Inn in Columbiana, Ohio.
The preparation for our yearly event begins about a month after the previous event is over! This is so that I can continue to have the same weekend every year, since it falls in the middle of the month and seems to be a good time for the majority of people.
We always get the large meeting room on the third floor:
By now, it seems like home to me! LOL
If I am bringing a special teacher in, that's done far in advance as well. All the particulars are worked out and their schedule is cleared to be at the event. A room is booked for them and a room block is established for the anticipated number of attendees. A special discounted room price is established by the Inn for those coming for the event.
This year we do have a special teacher, Christi Friesen:
She is ALL about the clay play.
Here's an idea of where we are going with her class this year:
ANYWAY.....
I meet with the event director, Kelly Witmer, a number of times during the year. We work out the seating, what sort of tables will be needed, what we will be doing in the room, drink service, food for our party, etc.
All through the fall anticipation is built for the next Workshop.
Last year, Katie Oskin did clay for a day. It was SUCH fun.
Marcia Tuzzolino and Irene Hoffman prepared a half day mini-beading class.
Here they are getting all the little kits ready for last year, back home in California:
They did a great job with their class and this is what we made (photo, Frances Grisafi)
Both are B'sue Boutiques Design Team members.
In February, I write the contract, post it in the special Event room that I create on Facebook, and then it's first come, first serve!
I always post it on a Saturday so that most will be free to call in their payments, or receive a PayPal invoice. I do all the book keeping for this event as well. This year, we filled up fast!
A few weeks after sign ups are complete I make extensive arrangements for liability insurance for the event. Then I pay all the remaining bills and I start packing. First I had to finish planning my class on vintage style assemblage with wire and pack the Discovery Kits. This is most of what is in them, although I did add a few more items before finishing them.
And here I am working with the stuff, getting my head around how to make this fun for everyone:
I also made a video last week, on some basics about this type of jewelry making:
If you are coming to the class, you will FOR SURE want to have a look at this video.
A couple of other links you might find helpful are a blog post by Heather Powers of Humble Beads:
There are a couple of other videos I made on this subject, too. To find them fast, put 'cagework beading' into your Yahoo or Google search, as they will come up.
Besides that, there is more packing to be done: supplies for Christi's class, more for mine...and things for the open house party on Sunday night!
I think ! this is the last of the brass stampings to be bagged up.
All of the kits, packed up and ready!
More Russian gold plated brass to have at the ready....these are sets of builders and backers:
And pretty little bits......
And these are the hampers with all of my giftie bags for the attendees....
Pasta machines and clay oven already packed in the car!
Annette is pumped about coming this year.....she posted this on our event board:
In less than a week, we will all be in our classroom, working hard:
Our dear friend, Kristy Le, can't make it this year, but her photo sums up the entire spirit of the event:
This has been a focused and fruitful month for the members of the Build a Line Challenge Group.
We've discussed so many topics!
First there was the discussion about VOGUE magazine and how to learn to read it for content that well MAY affect what you need to design in the future.
Then, we talked about managing your supply inventory, and how the business of supply works. Donna and I actually made a video about it....here's a link if you haven't seen it:
We talked about the pyramid of sales:
We also talked about pricing your jewelry for profit. There are are about as many ideas and pricing methods as there are ways to make meatloaf.
SO.....I will be honest: I dislike pricing threads. At the same time, this class would hardly be complete without one.
To be sure, we had a great discussion that benefited all! And we all agreed that in the long run, each part of your line and every piece is individual, and sometimes ya just gotta jiggle it!
We also spoke about the virtue of making pieces for our lines that could be reproduced, especially on the lower tiers. We realized that if we could do that, we could make more money and expand our brand.
All throughout the month we had updates on class members' progress. Some practically have their full line done! Those ones are chomping at the bit for the last hop so they can show you! No one is allowed to show their full line until the last hop.
Of course, this year I promised to create a line along with the class. At first I only intended it to be an example or prototype. I didn't really intend to do anything much with it. I was just going to be an exercise.
But then!!!!
I had an epiphany: SUGAR SHOP JEWELRY. I got the idea looking at box of chocolate brass I'd gotten in. I did think I would use it for class. I just thought it would be something different as we don't actively carry chocolate brass anymore. But the more I looked at it...
The more it looked like CHOCOLATE FROSTING.
The structure of the Sugar Shop line came literally in minutes after I got the Chocolate Frosting part. Everyone that has seen and heard about the line has been nearly as excited about it as I have been.
The thing is....how to make it happen with so much going on in my life, already.
My head felt like this tangled mess of chain:
Eventually I realized that my biggest blow to progress at the moment, was that my workshop was set up for shooting video, rather than real work. It looks great and is very visual. BUT:
None of my pieces and parts were in logical places where I could easily find them! Until that could happen, this line could not happen. THIS WORKSHOP HAD TO BE PUT BACK INTO PRODUCTION MODE....just as it was, twenty years ago!
I won't kid you....at first, the idea of reorganizing this space blew my mind. Well...you won't get anywhere feeling like a nervous wreck. I had to move forward and find a place to start. I realized, okay, let's start with the surfaces. I quickly saw that I had a large space blocked by my big map chest. The ventilation pipe was coming right down through there.....the entire area was wasted.
Donna came over and we moved it to the other end of the bench. I got some nice storage bins for little parts from Walmart online (they have so many nice bins and if you spend $50.00 or more, they ship it to you free!) When they arrived, I began to set up that space.
I have new mats arriving for the benches, too, so they'll have a fresh start. There is still a lot of tweaking to do, but it's all good. At least I can begin working and I have a place to put bits and parts where I can find them quickly!
I cleared the other side of the L-shaped bench as well. This is where I have always done a lot of painting, resin and Swellegant work:
We shot a lot of our videos the first 2-3 years right here.
I also removed a lot of unnecessary items from the top of the large worktable at the back of the workshop. Every time we did video, Javi always had to take a world of stuff out of the road so she could get a clear, unencumbered shot.
Well, she won't have to do that anymore!
The biggest part of the work is that while the storage units fit nicely under the table and benches, nothing in them makes much sense. This is true especially for the units under the table, and under the bench on the back wall.
To make Sugar Shop Jewelry and have fun while doing it (rather than making it another work nightmare in the B'sue world) I HAD to dump out some of those bins and just ditch stuff. Yes....stuff I would rather have kept, good stuff. BUT! I needed the space for Sugar Shop and there was no point in keeping it. I pulled out what I would use, and the rest went in bags and on the storage shelves on the other side of the basement.
I'll deal with it later, probably make up some Muse packages.
All in all it was about getting done what is necessary for now and worry about perfection later. Just as it was every time before when I began a big project, I'd move stuff around as I began to work in the space. Letting go of perfection, I started to make progress!
Here is my drawer all ready with little pieces and bits I will use in beading and connecting this line:
That's by all means not all, but it's what I have now. I'm expecting shipments in the next week to ten days. I've got space cleared out now for that stuff, when it arrives.
Here are the stones I am most likely to use in this line:
That is all subject to change but it's a place to bounce. Everyone needs a bouncing-off space.
And here is a drawer full of beads I am mostly likely to use....with more on the way, still:
Hmmmmm.....will Pinky find a place in this line?
I don't know yet. ;-)
Here is a drawer full of chocolate brass:
I threw a few bits of brass ox in there for more bouncing....to see if I needed to blend something, could I? My jury is out on that for now. It's just nice to have a drawer to throw things into, for trial ideas.
All in all, I cleared at least six drawers COMPLETELY out. There will be plenty of room for the other things I will use for this line....a drawer dedicated to bead caps.....a section for ceramic roses and spectra beads.....a place for matching blanks. I have a lot of things out at the platers' now and they will be showing up over the course of the next few weeks.
I also re-discovered a lot of things I forgot I had, and *can* use!
There will have lots of room to continue 'building organized drawers' as I develop the other parts of the line....Vanilla Frosting, which will be a shabby whites line, Party Cake which will be very colorful, Wedding Cake which is a small wedding line, Cafe Au Lait which will be less fussy and done in neutrals. Of course Box of Chocolates is where I will have my random stuff and it could be ANYTHING. That's where I will still have room to play as an artist.
Now that I have this much pulled together, I feel like I can think clearly. I do need to get moving now! I know the basic look of the line, but no, I don't have anything completed. For the class I may just bounce a practice line off one easy peasy piece. That will get the ball rolling....
From experience, I know it will come. I can stop breathing hard over this. Looking back, I can't believe I had the brass to jump in the way I did, knowing next to nothing about business and supplying stores with a gift line of jewelry. What I had was tremendous drive and will to make it work. Nothing to do but dig in, and figure it out on the fly.
Cheeze Louise, I was so unaware of the work it would take that I didn't even know how to be brave about it! I just DID it.
I remember this girl.....
That girl had a bunch of creative energy and no knowledge of how to focus it. She didn't know anything at all about jewelry! She didn't have any....the pearl choker in the photo was borrowed....and no idea of what she liked. I guess she figured it out.
It took a long time and a lot of head-banging to reach my goals. Why should my friends and customers struggle as I did, when I can share my experience and knowledge with them?
In the long run, we all have to make it work by DOING the work.....
But a network of colleagues and mentors is essential for success. I had some back then, and I have many more now. In the class, we all have each other.
I hope you will take time to read down through the blog posts from all the students. You are going to enjoy their observations, and you will probably learn things that can help you in your own creative work. If possible, leave them an encouraging comment. You have no idea how much those comments mean to them....and to me. Thanks for taking time for us!
This class is the result of 28 years in the trade, one form or another, and lots of tough experiences.
The good news is: I learned how to build a line back in the 90's, and eventually I sold it to about 500 store accounts. At one time, the line had 300 pieces. We could never fit them all in a catalog....but this is the cover of the last one we produced in the late 90's.
B'sue Boutiques was originally a little heart's-ease, cute line of gift jewelry that was designed by me and made by myself and 7 artisan helpers....in my basement. It was not a lovely work area, as it is now:
It was really quite rough and I think the way we endured it was that we really loved what we did, and we loved each other. All of us were friends, and a number of the girls who worked with me were Latinas, and it was from them that I really developed my love of their language. I taught them how to make jewelry, and they taught me to speak Spanish....well. I just wish I had some photos of that old workshop to show you. We all fit in there with plenty of space. It was well planned....but so busy, we never thought to take any pictures.
I loved that line of jewelry. One of my favorite things to make was this little pin on one of the pages of that catalog.
PN-38 was our best seller, because you could have it your way, engraved your way, and embellished your way. If you bought 12, we would give you 13....lagniappe. I always have given a little something extra.
The prep was quick and I did all the engraving. Then we would take the orders and make a master for the week, and then check stock because we always tried to have the best sellers made ahead to some extent.
From the master we would see what we didn't have, or what was custom, and get cracking. Each knew what little bits should be put on which theme. All the tiny charms and accents were kept in individual bins for quick finding! And those pearl buttons....we had serious poundage of them. We had them in big boxes all over the place, and we used A LOT of them. They were plentiful; I would advertise in the antiques papers Wanted To Buy and I got all I could ever want, for 6.00 a pound!
That would never happen now!
The challenge was to make those brooches in 15 minutes. Not long ago, I challenged myself to see if I could still do it neatly:
YES! I still can. AND, in under fifteen minutes.
When I planned the 2016 master challenge class, I decided that I would build a line along with the class based on my old line, maybe a reprise of it.
BUT THEN....I thought, no. Not quite. While I may make a few similar pieces, I eventually realized it would be better to do one one just a bit inspired by what I had done over 20 years ago.....and bring it up to speed with some of the tricks I've learned since then.
So: I am still in the planning stages! I do have a theme, though....and a plan of attack. It's been so much fun mapping out this little journey! Here you see my little black worktable that I keep back in my office. (NOTE TO SELF: get a white one! If I want to take pictures on it, they just really don't come out very well!)
You can see my notes there at the top left. Yes, I'm calling my line Sugar Shop (Jewelry).
And I am working on the "Chocolate Frosting" section:
As you can see, I am using Chocolate Brass, which at this time we do not regularly carry at B'sue Boutiques When we did, the sales of it were lukewarm even though I felt I had a better version of it than the other popular chocolate brass lines out on the marketplace, and our prices were certainly more reasonable.
I always loved it though.
Doesn't it just look yummy like a can of frosting? This piece isn't finished yet, though....
You can see I am playing with names....we used to nickname that dark brown finish, Choxie. But I don't think I can really use that on a website, as I think Target used to have a line of chocolates you could buy with that name. But as you can see, it is REALLY chocolate, like deep milk chocolate. Or a can of frosting!
So I am toying with the idea....do I change the chocolate brass up? Do I distress it? Do I add a tiny bit of color? What color?
At this time I am leaning toward Patina color Gilder's Paste....and other little colored bits on the work. Maybe give it the feeling of chocolate frosting with sprinkles!
I tried photographing it on several backgrounds to see what might make it pop.....or make ME pop!
Here again are the parts I am fiddling with now:
Things could change. Until we meet again on this subject at our second hop, which is February 26th....I may have new parts or change this all up.
Sugar Shop Jewelry, however, will remain my theme.
Sugar Shop Jewelry will be a name under the B'sue Boutiques umbrella. And under it, will come various categories:
Chocolate Frosting
Vanilla Frosting
Party Cake
Wedding Cake
Box of Chocolates
Coffee with Cream
....or something like that.
I won't get all of those sub-lines done by the end of this class, but in each line I'd like to have 5-10 key pieces that could be reproduced easily. Vanilla Frosting will be shabby whites. Party Cake will be jewelry to wear to a party! Wedding Cake will be wedding jewelry, Coffee with Cream might be some less fussy casual looks or maybe something literal---coffee and tea charms and motifs on the pieces!
Box of Chocolates will be just like Forest Gump's....you never know what you're gonna get. That is where I will put statement pieces and one-off's that will not be reproduced.
I am still thinking about ideas for a line using our silver.....It will come.
As we go along in the hop, I will let you know more about my plans for my new line, going forward.
It's been a great month! We've built collages of past work and stood back to take a hard look and determine if our styles spoke one voice, and if not, what we could do to tighten up and become more cohesive. We have also talked about our style and identifying----or better still, DISCOVERING our customer! Who is she? WHERE is she?
We've talked about whether our lines are gift lines or fashion lines, or do they straddle both, go either way?
And we've discussed design styles of the past....for inspiration and knowledge! We have talked about famous designers like Chanel, Haskell and Schiaparelli....and the differences between them. We have spoken of Renaissance and Gothic Revival jewelry, Victorian, Edwardian, Civil War style (mid-Victorian), Edwardian, Arts and Crafts Period Jewelry, Jugenstil, Bauhaus, Victorian Revival, Art Nouveau and Art Deco periods. We've learned a lot, and many have commented that this part of the class was fun!
The next few weeks will be just as challenging, but for now, why not bring your coffee and come hop with me through the class members' blogs? Here are the participants:
One of my pals sent me this photo a few days ago----or maybe I saw it on HER page....but!
As I was preparing to write to you about the upcoming blog hop, I just really couldn't help myself. No image I had on file seemed to embody the idea of the hop like this one does.....CHANGING IT UP! Turn it this way and that, turn it inside out. Challenge yourself to go "Star Trek" on your design....in other words:
Boldly go where no one has gone before!
First, let's talk about the premise of the hop.
As you know, every month the B'sue Boutiques Creative Group has a group challenge with a theme. This group is sponsored by B'sue Boutiques Vintage Jewelry Supplies. We do a lot of assemblage and mixed media jewelry making there. The members really are great to hang out with and we see a lot of really unique handmade jewelry.
The challenge themes have been worked out ahead of time by what I'm starting to think of as the "California Crew"....Marcia Tuzzolino, Irene Hoffman and Jann Tague. All are members of the B'sue Boutiques Design Team.
Just about every week, they get together to try a new craft technique. Most of the time they work with products from B'sue Boutiques and they come up with lots of great new ideas. One week they carefully planned a whole years' worth of challenges for us. THIS WAS GREAT! I keep it pinned to my bulletin board so I can have a look and make sure we're stocked with great stuff that will work for the challenges.
SEPTEMBER'S CHALLENGE is Vintage Flair. You will create a statement piece with a vintage feeling, but driven by fashion trends. That means, get out those fashion magazines and have a look at what's being done, what colors are being used, the flow of garments for the season. (CLUE: Right now you will see A LOT of Boho, Retro, Hippie Chic and 60's style looks reminiscent of that time period)
If you want you can join that challenge and stick with that, pin your design to the Pinterest Board:
But I CHALLENGE YOU to take it a step further and JOIN THE BLOG HOP.
Using the Vintage Flair idea along with ONE or more of these following findings:
You will do the Vintage Flair challenge but you will CHANGE IT UP.
These elements are used A LOT by members of our group as well as many in the design world who love working with brass stampings. They tend to be used in a certain way....
The crescent is always a necklace. It STILL COULD BE. But how could you make yours very different?
The tie is generally a pendant. IT STILL COULD BE....but how could you reflect the spirit of the Vintage Flair Challenge and make yours VERY UNIQUE?
A heart is a heart is a heart, right? Doesn't HAVE to be. You could deconstruct this, mount it to a unique cuff, colorize it a very different way, drill it and wire it. MAKE IT YOUR OWN.
Lastly, we have that lovely Victorian-type cuff flat. Usually people bend them and make them into cuffs, I do, too! But what could you do with it that outside of the box? How many times could you cut it and file it and how many pieces of jewelry could you get from this one piece?
Look at it like a puzzle! But DON'T be puzzled by it! Put on that thinking cap and see what you can come up with. Excersizes like this are invaluable to artisans, because normally somewhere along the path, they encounter a whole new doorway. It could lead to a new line for you, or even, a new skill.
To participate in the hop, you need to be a member of the Creative Group
If you aren't already, here's your cue to come and join us!
Then: between August 11 and August 16 we will have sign ups.
TO SIGN UP: you will send me, Brenda Sue Lansdowne, BY PRIVATE MESSAGE at FACEBOOK your name and the URL for your blog. This means your blog needs to be up, ready and in working order by this weekend, and you need to have written in it and posted to make sure it's working right.
So again.....PRIVATE MESSAGE ME AT FACEBOOK and send
1. Your name
2. the name of your blog
3. the COMPLETE URL including the http:// part I need that to get the list to click for the hop and I'd like to be able to copy and paste so please do not fail to do this.
This is a complete URL http://www.bsueboutiques.com
This is NOT: www.bsueboutiques.com or bsueboutiques.com
4. Get your parts, we have plenty at the site and my guess is you already have one of these in your stash, so many of us do! Gather your materials and START YOUR CREATIVE ENGINES!
NO! not like THAT!
You know what I mean.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25 is the CHANGE IT UP blog hop day. NONE of your designs for this hop should be revealed to ANYONE before that day!
Be sure that you are ready with your blog post. I usually tell folks, post late the night before or early-early the morning of. People want to start reading with morning coffee so don't be late!
I will get someone to make us a blog badge and will post it soon as I would appreciate all the shout outs we can get for this effort. You can put the badge on your pages and your blogs. Tell your creative pals. I am not limiting participation in this, it's just one hop, not a series and not a class.
THERE WILL BE TWO PRIZES.....one 25.00 gift shopping pass to B'sue Boutiques drawn randomly from among the participants....
And one JUDGED prize for a 75.00 gift shopping pass to B'sue Boutiques. The Design Team and myself will pick the winner of that one and announce it by the following weekend. I will also add the winners' pictures to the Gallery of Inspiration
There may be some other surprises along the way....so by all means, come join the Creative Group and STAY TUNED!
SO! Let's go for it! And leave me a comment will ya? I'd love a little dialogue. Sometimes I wonder if anyone is reading.....LOL
Yes it's true! Your Inka-Gold colorization product by Viva Decor could actually end up looking like this! OH NO!
I'm nuts about Inka-Gold as a base from which to create custom paints. Imagine how dismayed I was when I got an email from a customer this morning to tell me that this could happen.
Thanks, however, to Cindy Lietz, Polymer Clay Tutor (she has many many clay and product tuts and short lectures on YouTube) the reason is explained and a solution is given.
I'd like to recommend that you check out her video here....or visit her at You Tube where she has many more presentations:
One of the reasons I love this product is because it's a water base, non-toxic product that is the BOMB on metal. It can also be used on polymer clay.
Because of its composition, if you stick your grubby little jewelry-making fingers directly into the jar to use it on a fingertip (and you can, since it's not toxic) you could very well contaminate the whole jar.
One day it's quite possible that you will come back to your tightly-closed Inka-Gold and find the mess you see above.
Personally, this is the only mess I'd want to make with Inka-Gold:
To remedy the situation, Cindy explains you merely have to scrape the moldy stuff off the top with a clay tool and dispose of it.
Should be okay after that, but as for me---after that, I'd probably go ahead and use the stuff up. Since you seal your work when you use it on metal, I don't think you have to worry about transferring any mold spores to the lovely new color on your brass stampings.
Recommended is that you never dip into the jar with your fingers....use a plastic spoon and then transfer it to a plate where you can mix and blend and dip with your fingers to your heart's desire.
Thanks to Brenda Dolberry, who brought this to my attention.
And thanks to Cindy Lietz, the Polymer Clay Tutor, for making a very good video to help us all out! Be sure to take time for it!
I suppose it goes without saying....if you haven't tried the stuff yet, you should!
Here is my video about my discovery of the product and how I use it to mix with intense pigments and mica powders to make my own custom colors....an idea that actually also came from a customer!
And we sell the stuff here, in the Mica Powders category at B'sue Boutiques:
The other day as I was reading my e-mail I came across a pair of filigree earrings by Dolce and Gabanna. Cute earrings, but at $800 they’re just a little rich for my wallet.
I really liked the long lines of the earrings though and B’Sue Boutiques has all the brass filigree necessary to create a similar pair for myself at a fraction of the cost.
To make a similar pair you could use these vintage jewelry findings from B'Sues.
Brass Tea Rose 13 mm BROX02086
Brass Filigree 35 mm FIL01040 OR Retro Style Flower FIG06243
Brass X Filigree 42 mm FIL06236 OR Brass Hibiscus FIG0160
Brass Tea Rose 28 mm BROX05192
But, why stop there, when you can use the earrings as inspiration to make a design that is uniquely yours?
The first step in designing an inspired by pair of earrings is to take a look at the basic design aspects. These are composed of three basic parts. The clips (this pair happens to be clip on), the main body, and a dangle. All three are round with scalloped edges resembling flowers.
Next let’s look at patterns and themes. The clip is small, the body large and the dangle medium in size. All three pieces resemble petalled flowers. The largest piece has layered filigree and the drop and clip are both solid in appearance - creating a pattern of solid, lacey solid.
The color is uniform throughout, a champagne gold or brass ox. Warm but not bright.
One more tiny detail that if paid attention to will really allow you to personalize your design. While all three are round and floral in shape, only one actually is a flower, the other two are only impressions. Combine the filigree with a solid center and it definitely gives the impression of a daisy, and the layered filigree easily gives the impression of a chrysanthemum. This can give you quite a bit of leeway in your design and allows you to play with the idea of something rather than the reality of it.
Using this information we can create earrings that will have the same ooh la la pizazz of the Dolce & Gabanna earrings, but in our own style, and at a fraction of the cost. We just need shapes that are similar to each other, in small, medium, and large and of the same color. We can use filigrees and flowers the way Dolce & Gabanna did or we can use hearts, leaves, bows or birds. Just so long as the theme runs consistent and we have small medium and large in the same color. They don’t have to be identical in theme just similar enough to give the impression they are meant to go together.
This style of earring also lends itself very well to an asymmetrical design. If you have a hard time creating asymmetrical or just really like the style this is the earring for you! The key to asymmetry is balance. The arrangement of pieces may be different so long as the visual weight of the two sides remains the same. You can flip the order of one of the earrings and it will still look good! Just play with the order of the components until you find an arrangement you like. These earrings I found on Pinterest by Mia Montgomery are a beautiful example of asymmetry, as are Coral’s beautiful earrings from the Build a Line Challenge/Master Class.
Once it was all said and done I chose these components for my earrings. They have the same flower in all three pieces in small medium and large, are a warm brass ox and have similar shapes, though the bottom piece is more of an impression. I have to say, I’m pretty happy with them, I love the long lines and the cost fits my wallet just fine too!
Floral Connector 14mm BROX09318
Bird in the Bush 27mm BROX02487
Spiral Drops 30 mm FIL01313
Single Stem Flower 21mm LF04730
I'd like to thank Brenda Sue Lansdowne for inviting me to be her guest blogger today and I hope I've inspired you. Don't forget all the vintage jewelry findings I've shared here can be found at B'Sues Boutique in all the styles I mentioned, now go create some wonderful filigree jewelry!
What inspires you? Which components would you use? Do you prefer soft curves or hard angles? Tell me in the comments below and please show me in B'Sues Creative Group on Facebook.
Here’s to Finding Inspiration all Around You! Dana Hickey Wind Dancer Studios
Dana is a London, AR based artisan who turns metals and gemstones into wearable works of art. She created her first beaded daisy chain around age 5, bought her first pair of pliers at 16 and for several years taught 4th grade art through the local Arts Center. She is inspired by just about everything and her style leans towards vintage romantic.
The Build a Line Master Class Challenge has been about possibilities from the beginning.
Although our participants were only required to do five cohesive pieces in theme, meet the blog hop dates and participate as much as possible on our Classroom Page, many have indeed begun to see far beyond the original premise and into the future.
That's why there's so much truth to this quote by President Theodore Roosevelt:
At the same time, while ideas were in abundance, toward the end some were beginning to flag a bit. One gal said to me when I put this quote on a Facebook page, yeah, but the second half is the killer!
I know this was a tough one to meet. Just like Evie the cat, sometimes I just wanted to go and lie down and pass out!
The fact is for the greater part of a decade, I'd lived this life. I had a large collection and many store accounts. I had taken my little crafts show ideas to the limit and made the B'sue Boutiques brand. Thus, I knew the things that I told the participants would work. They truly are basic business principles for getting ahead in selling ANY sort of product.
At the same time, for me, writing good class notes and making them plain for everyone was daunting. Many of the ideas presented were completely new to so many in the group!
I did feel a bit vindicated when via research, participants discovered websites on business that corroborated my process does work and is rather basic. BUT.... WHO KNEW? Personally, I just sort of fell into it and figured it out as I went along.
I'm so glad these excellent artists jumped in with me and as a class team, they learned new things about the business of craft...and about themselves. They also helped me discover better ways to present information and to answer their questions.
Due to life circumstances not everyone was able to make it all the way to the finish line with all of their projects, but no one has dropped out for the final post. That means a whole lot to me. It says they still are imagining....and that the dream is still there.
The fact remains:
YET: sometimes there is a time in life that is best to pursue a goal, other times, we simply have to settle for guarding the flame and keeping our dream alive. Keep moving forward, hone your skills and challenge yourself in small ways, taking small steps. Each one must design what is best for them, their lifestyle, and their aspirations.
Some dream big, some dream small. It does NOT matter....so long as you continue to dream!
But you might be asking: Why was this class so draining for both students AND instructor?
In the end, we covered FAR MORE than the basic requirements. We talked about:
1. how to bring your line together
2. how the fashion industry, like it or not, DOES figure into your success....and how you don't have to follow it as much as be AWARE of it:
(a little humor from Marica Zammit, a member of the class)
3. Color theory as it applies to people----not Pantone (a la COLOR ME BEAUTIFUL style theory of what colors play best on most skin colors)
4. Listening to customer requests and taking a long hard look at what we are doing....are we designing for ourselves, or are we designing for our customer? (There should be a balance of both---and it's elusive at times)
5. The price pyramid....impulse line, statement line, couture/runway/one of a kind, bridal
A pyramid graph found by class member, Elizabeth Hildreth. This one actually has an extra step beyond the ones discussed.
6. The difference between an artisan hobbyist, a jewelry maker and a jewelry designer
7. Actually putting the right prices for profit on our work
8. The difference between cheapening or 'dumbing down' designs for the impulse pricepoints....and streamlining them while maintaining quality
I once took a class wherein it was stressed that the difference between high end pieces and lesser priced lines is the FINISH work. This may hold true especially for handmade goods as well as finely tailored designer couture and high end jewelry worked in precious metal. Yet lower priced lines still should have competent finish work and quality components that will last....if you want customers to return.
9. The subject of quality and why quality components and quality workmanship go hand in hand
10. We talked about how lines become collections. Briefly we discussed WHAT IF you sold a collection to a store, what next? We also mentioned making lines with a core for customization, as well as being reproduceable.
Below is an illustration made by Tammy Adams, another class member, as she tried to think how she might group lines into a collection:
These are really only the first ten things I can think of, off the top of my head. Believe me....THERE WERE A LOT MORE!
In this last and final round, the participants will reveal their final lines, talk about their plans and where all the information they took in fits into their lives.
Some intend to go for the brass ring, others have enjoyed learning about new ideas but are unsure.
Still others have found the greatest thing they've learned is that they are content where they are, doing things as they were.
All appreciated that they need to spend a bit more time on their online shops and show displays. Honestly, I can tell you: that's a CONSTANT process, you never get done making improvements!
They also realized they could better their keyword and photo presentation skills for greater success. There was also talk regarding the need to be more disciplined in getting the work done, and pieces listed.
I hope you will take time to read all the posts, even if you find you must do it incrementally. Where possible, please leave an encouraging comment for the participants who have worked so hard.
Our class will go on for a few more weeks before we are officially finished. A winner will be chosen based on finale posts by our panel of judges, and announced March 31. There will also be a random winner chosen among all those who finished the work.
I've for some time noticed that we have member-artists who have richly enjoyed tackling every new technique and idea that came down the mixed media pike for jewelry making!
Many were very good at each new concept and the work was GREAT!
BUT:
As we went along, I noticed that only SOME settled in on a design field. Those who did, built on a look that was singular, a style that was solid, identifiable, and in a number of price ranges. Their work was also SELLING.
One example I can show you, would be my pal Beanzie of The Vintage Heart:
Beanz' style is identifiable as she mixes old with new vintage, loves guilloche enamels....and when she can't get enough of THEM, she paints her own look in tole strokes:
Her branding is the watermark that appears on all her photos when the items are for sale (The Vintage Heart), a lovely script logo.....and the gorgeous, muted staging of the photos she takes of the items for sale.
Her look has a twist of Shabby Chic and she gravitates to sweet, pleasant pastel color palettes.
We two are good friends and go back quite some time. I kept trying to get Beanzie to try some new concepts, but she's always been a bit resistant. Finally, I stopped cajoling her. It wasn't necessary!! She HAD her look. It was cohesive, identifiable, and it looked like the same person made all the pieces. She could take the skills she already had and kick them up a notch when necessary (as when she began to paint on B'sue Boutiques spoon findings, or vintage skeleton keys she had collected)......or work in theme, when asked to do so.
This bracelet has a poodle theme. She's done cats, horses, pretty ladies, cameos and others.
Even though her pieces tend to be one of a kind, you always know they are The Vintage Heart. The theme aspect of hearts and flowers is one that will never go out of style. Charm bracelets are her specialty.
Charm bracelets are TIMELESS. The bracelets go for a pretty penny, but Beanz also has pieces for 12-25.00 in her offerings, as well. She's got it covered.
Another artist who shares with us at the B'sue Boutiques Creative Group at Facebook is Janet Wilson of ChickieGirl Designs at Etsy. She has a style that is uniquely her own.
This is a line of earrings that Janet made in limited edition. They are all different colors, yet all the same, using the same paint technique.
Those funky brass swirls, by the way, are from B'sue Boutiques
and sometimes filigree from B'sue Boutiques which she manipulates around a bit of decoupaged polymer clay or wood that she has painted in her signature style. Sometimes, she will layer the brass pieces, and each layer will have a different color that all co-ordinates.
When I see Janet's pieces.....I don't even need to see the logo. I know they are ChickieGirl by Janet Wilson!
Once upon a time, I, too, had a very cohesive line of many pieces of jewelry. Myself and seven artisan helpers produced a gift line of eventually 300 pieces!---which was sold back in the 90's to about 500 store accounts. As a gift line, our clientele consisted mostly of small boutiques, florists, hospital gift shoppes, small theme catalogues (Burpee Seed Catalogue, Parker Button Company) military PX's, and tourist gift shops. We also sold to a few small department stores that were local to their respective areas. Our work was also photographed and featured in magazines like COUNTRY LIVING.
Most of the pieces were simple charm styles that didn't take a lot of effort to put together....but our best-seller was a crowd-pleaser that could be custom engraved many different ways. We had Grandma, Mom, Sister, Secret Pal, Friends Forever, Teacher, Nurse....I could go on and on.
I haven't made a piece of that line since about the time this last catalog (shown) was published, and the last show I did with it was in 2001. I grew tired of it, I guess. The gift industry had changed. It still sold like hotcakes at retail shows, but I was ready to move on into the world of one of a kind's!
Like this piece....which has a certain look reminiscent of the old line...but is over the top:
Yes, those pieces in the center are EARRINGS, not brooches! Rather large, LOL
I recall that this was a custom-built mother of the bride set. I got a nice piece of change for it.....but stuff like this NEVER paid the bills like that little old line of so many diverse pieces done in theme. I actually went back to selling vintage jewelry again, along with my one of a kind pieces, to keep going!
THEN....I decided, hey. I taught those girls to make my line, why couldn't I sell parts and teach people to make jewelry?
In 1997, even before I stopped making this line.....I began to do that very thing on the internet, with the introduction of my very first website.
TODAY, my line looks like this:
BEAUTIFUL components and findings made from historic dies and jewelry tooling here in the United States, with lovely nickel free designer finishes on them! This is Old Rose Ox, which is a departure from the standard dark antique copper finishes and is more of a dark rose gold with a subtle antique and slight shine.
We also have a unique brass ox finish with a black antique to make the design pop!, rusty black patina brass which is a one of a kind interactive finish with a chocolate-black top and fused copper inner layer that can be distressed to a turn...
(There are over 140 free instructional videos at the B'sue Boutiques Channel at You Tube)
We also have Silverware Silverplate, which is a lovely FINE SILVER finish, 99.9% pure silver three mils thick over the brass, nickel free. We have Satin Matte Gold, which is 18 karat gold plating in matte, muted, soft. We have aqua copper patina brass which is teal patina over dark antique copper, and we have matte black. YEP, THAT'S MY LINE these days!
So....like many of my fellow artists at the group, I find myself floundering with lots of techniques when I go back to making jewelry....instead of being true to myself, finding my own look, and making pieces that, while true to who I AM, appeal to a broader base of people. I'd like to go back to selling more jewelry along with my brass!
AND THAT is what this challenge is all about....making jewelry is true to the artist and yet! can sell, at least in part, in impulse price ranges. It's about crafting a line of handmade artisan jewelry that goes together, and looks like it was all made by the same hand, reigning in the design techniques and staying specific.
WILL THESE GIFTED LADIES follow their hearts and do what they always have done, and find that it needed no adaptation......or will they combine the styles and techniques that work best for them and give them a slight twist to to include a broader base of possible buyers?
Can they BUILD A LINE of cohesive pieces that go together that speak their own creative voice, yet are affordable and wearable?
Being honest, I really am not entirely sure how I fell upon all the concepts for my 90's line. I DO know it was a process, and not something that happened overnight.
And I do know I still know how to do it:
I made this piece a few weeks ago using many of the same elements I used in the line from the 90's! I was happy to say, I could still make the piece in about fifteen minutes and not be messy about it:
Here are the pieces I began with.....some are still sold at B'sue Boutiques, some I have always kept for myself:
During this series of three blog hops (this being the FIRST) I will be guiding the challenge class and learning how to *teach* the idea of building a line, considering your audience and growing your sales. I know how to do this, I understand all the concepts, pro and con. But I have never TAUGHT others to do develop, or build a line.
That's why this challenge class, although a master class guided by someone who mastered the idea and actually made a living selling her own design line of jewelry for the better part of a decade!....was FREE OF CHARGE.
We are all learning together! I will not be creating a new line with the others. I'll be concentrating on helping them find new potential among their treasure boxes of artistic gifts.
Just as it is so amazing to see what people do with the findings they purchase from us at B'sue Boutiques ....it will be fantastic to see what these 57 artists do with the guidance provided in the class.
Our next hop will be February 20th. Come back for more!
In between, I'll be posting updates on the challenge class, too.
Be sure to to visit each participant's blog and if possible, leave an encouraging comment! All of them have worked so hard! And if you would...
There are many reasons why people buy jewelry. Some of it goes to your hard work in producing a quality piece.
Sometimes it goes to style or kitsch. I've found my beerings always make people smile:
Sometimes it goes to a theme that suggests a gift that the buyer needs to purchase. This necklace has a tea theme.
Perhaps the giftee is a big fan of tea, so there you go, the deal is made, they'll LOVE this necklace!
Some of us sell at shows and find that our customers come back to find us year after year, because they love what we do. If we're smart, we've built an online presence to go with that, because those same people may wish to come back to us through the year and buy more gifts and things they'd like to have.
I'd suggest, however, that you need more customers than that. There are tons of social media methods you can employ to find them. One, however, that's so oft overlooked! is crafting a nifty blog and then, participating in blog hops.
Participating in hops is a great way to get your name out there and build your brand, meet new people, network and FIND NEW CUSTOMERS who want to get to know you.
A blog hop has a theme. All those who sign up for the hop will be making jewelry in that theme. One of the most popular blog hops of all is Lori Anderson's Bead Soup! It's so popular that a book has even been written about it!
There is a date for the hop, just like any event. Be sure to post your entry EARLY IN THE DAY, as early as possible. Lots of people follow hops (potential new customers!) and they may like to do it with their morning coffee. So don't be late and miss the opportunity to introduce yourself to them.
Begin your post with a photo to capture and keep their attention!
Stick to the subject and share at least three photos, more if possible. One of you in your workshop is always a great idea!
BE CERTAIN that you do not forget to post the list of participants and their blog links provided to you by the hop organizer. You'll do that at the very end of the post.
If you forget to do that, the hop stops with you as no one knows where to go next unless they go back to the person before you. This is annoying, and sometimes people have a short attention span and just move on to something else.
You wouldn't want that to happen!
For the Build A Line Challenge at the B'sue Boutiques Creative Group, we will have three hops, all Fridays:
Jan 23
Feb 20
Final reveal March 20
Mark your calendars, whether you are participating or not! You're gonna want to follow this challenge closely.
There is more to be said and I think my creative pal, Tammy Adams of Paisley Lizard said it extremely well in *her* recent blog post.....
Last week when I stopped to get my mail at the box downtown, I noticed some lovely red leaves had fallen in the walkway.
My first reaction was....."So soon?" But I realized, as has happened far too many summers, that summer is so filled with work and things to do to reorganize our business, or in the past, traveling, doing shows.....that it pretty much came and went without notice.
I must say, it's important to me to take time for Autumn. To me it is one of the most glorious things God has made, part of the cycle of natural life. Just like everything He has done, he does Autumn up to a turn, even its little imperfections are perfect. I make myself stop and ruminate.
I brought the leaf home and pinned it to a cork board, where as you can see, the colors migrated a bit, it curled, dried, some of the colors more intense than others and in some ways, less so.
At the Bohemian Vibe Facebook group, where we mix media, brass stampings et al with polymer clay, the challenge for September was to make a parure.
A parure is a set of jewelry with three pieces or more, that go together.
The last two months have been my own personal business challenge as we opened the NEW B'sue Boutiques at Volusion. I've told quite a few people that moving our large unwieldy supplies website was a lot like childbirth....and it was. We have been refinining and moving things around on it ever since we redirected the domain. The process has been daunting, but we're getting it right this time.
Evidently those who follow us and shop with us think so too, as we passed the 500 orders mark---a first milestone---a day ago.
THEN: We discovered we needed to re-network and move all the business computers. We found a woman-run company to work with us, and I feel quite content that FINALLY all the tech stuff in this place will at long last, be as it should be.
GIFTS: I just can't seem to get to that parure for Bohemian Vibe. I LOVE POLYMER CLAY, and was so thrilled when Christi Friesen suggested we start this group together and see what would happen combining her techniques and approaches to clay work with things we sell at B'sue Boutiques and she sells at christifriesen.com
The more I learn about clay the more I love it, but the more I doubt I 'quite' have the gift. Or at least......if I do, the gift is quite far away just yet.
Katie Oskin of Kater's Acres and I have become good friends. She lifts me up and I have enjoyed having her here to shoot video for her to show on my YouTube channel three times since I met her in May.
Here is the video we did yesterday:
And she brought me some gifts:
Beautiful Skinner-blend leaves she had made with Lisa Pavelka cutters. Even a little acorn she'd made with one of our caps!
THEN she MADE me some gifts:
All from the video, and now mine.....Katie is so generous.
So, methinks....PERHAPS I can whip out some sort of a LEAF parure for the Bohemian vibe challenge. Maybe. I'm inspired, anyway. Leaves? Yeah, I think I can do this.
Some blended clay....might not be the way someone really deep into the art of working with clay would do it, but I will tell you something I do know about myself.
I really don't care about that.
It's about what *I* will discover. Not about what they think. ;-)
I particularly like this cutter, it comes from a large set of flower and leaf cutters by Makins Clay. We will have them at B'sue Boutiques soon.
I have another cutter from another set that I often use, I am not sure who makes it, but if you play with clay, you probably have it, I see it used alot.
So I made a bunch of clay headpins....leaves:
I am making some smaller leaves as well.....and I'll also need to figure out what sort of beads I want to make:
Katie demonstrates in the video how to make that spiral bead a bit differently than I do, she winds it around her finger. My way was always to form around a wooden skewer, I got very nice uniform ones that way....but they had a tendency to stick and sometimes you would impale your fingers trying to get them off the skewers.
OUCH!
ANYWAY, though my parure is far from finished I am starting to believe again that the gift for clay IS there, that meeting this challenge was a good idea even though pressed for time....
And that somehow I'll get this down. I sort of have a vision about it, now.
