Deanna Burasco Designs

Five Year Plan

2012-01-29T14:29:00.000-08:00

I started dabbling in jewelry design five years ago. I didn't expect much to happen for the first three years at least. I read that most businesses don't turn a profit the first five years. I told myself I'd give it five years. So here I am...I don't feel like I have come any closer to turning a profit than when I started doing this five years ago. It has been ultra hard during this recession to convince people that, yes, they should buy a new piece of handmade jewelry even though they lost their job and their house is about to go into foreclosure.

I have seen other artists who have had sales...numerous sales, actually. Artists whose work is no better than my own. Why is that? What makes the difference? Well, I'm not entirely sure. I think a lot of it is luck, honestly. I know that there are some things that I need to do better, though:

1. Marketing. I have to get into the habit of doing some marketing every. single. day. I have a short amount of patience and often I will go full force on marketing myself for a week, see no results, then give up. I have to remember that it doesn't work that way. It builds up over time. I read Jack Canfield's The Success Principles, which was a great read. He talks about doing five things every day that help market your business. I think about that every day, but don't follow through. That hurts my business because if I don't hit the market with my name every day, people will forget who I am.

2. Hustling. If I had the courage and confidence to really hustle my product, I could sell it. I'm sure of it. The problem is I don't. The confidence is coming along, but the courage? I get an anxiety attack just thinking about it. I prefer to do shows and tell people "hello" and "let me know if you have any questions." The other day I was browsing at a Swarovski store. The saleslady was trying SO hard to make a sale to me or my mother. It was so annoying, I just wanted to get out of the store asap! It was like she didn't even really "see" us, she just saw a potential sale. I don't want to be that sort of person, always pushing a sale. That said, I miss great opportunities when I'm out and someone says "I love your necklace." and I simply say "Thanks." I know what you're thinking. Believe me, I know. I'm working on it.

3. Patience. I have realized that five years is nothing. It has gone by in a flash. I may not be making a profit, but I have come a long, long way since 2007. This dawned on me when I created a board on pinterest recently. The things I have accomplished in five short years made me proud of myself. It's not all about the money, anyway. It's about the journey.

So what's my five year plan now? I'm not sure. I think I'll just focus on one year at a time.

Bizarre Bazaar 2011

2011-11-27T07:34:00.000-08:00

This was my second year selling at the Bizarre Bazaar in Lawrence, KS. I was told about this event from a fellow artist a couple of years ago. It is not advertised as far as the application goes, yet over 400 people apply for the show every year. It is a first-come, first-serve show. Once you get the application mailing, you have to pop it right back in the mail with your entry fee the same day, as they fill up usually within a couple of days. I am amazed at the quality of artists in this show, especially as it is non-juried, but all items are expected to be hand made by the artist. It is truly a pleasure being surrounded by so many great artists.

Unlike last year, the event was held Friday evening in addition to all day Saturday. Last year I had my two tables set up side by side and only had room for a small stool to sit on - that made for a long day! This year I set them up one in front of the other and added a backdrop. Not only did I have room for two chairs, the backdrop really helped bring attention to my booth.

I also took advantage of the electrical outlets available. The extra lighting makes a world of difference when it comes to jewelry.

Sales were good. Not amazing, "oh-my-gosh I can't believe how much money I made" good, but they were up slightly over last year. I even had a repeat customer from last year search me out to purchase more of my designs. That was the best! I also sold to one of the founding members of the Kansas City Artists Coalition. She purchased almost all of the cuffs I had for sale.

I feel like I am gaining a following. I also feel exhausted. It takes every bit of energy I have to get through these shows because I hate the actual "selling". I don't like standing there talking to people all day. It is simply exhausting. That said, I do love that most people had really good reactions to my collections. That makes the physical and mental exhaustion worth it.

Before doing this show, I had been suffering a severe lack of motivation. A period of "why am I even doing this?"..."do I really like doing this?"..."why isn't it fun any more?"...this show bounced me out of that, somewhat. I am more inspired to create than I was before. It's hard at times to just focus on the creating and not think about the bottom line. However, at the end of the day, if this is going to be a business, it has to make money. I can't survive on simply looking at my pretty creations. I have to SELL them. That can be a tough task in this economy and especially in this field, which is SATURATED with designers, as well as cheap imports.

SO...I am going to spend some time pondering this task...brainstorming...and hopefully coming up with new collections that will blow people's minds.

I don't have any more shows scheduled the remainder of this year, but I do have items listed on etsy, and I will be listing some new creations. I am really looking forward to spending a lot of quality time with family and friends. That is always a great way to re-energize. Happy Holidays!

Anatomy of an Arts and Crafts Fair Booth

2011-09-14T12:19:00.000-07:00

Since I began seriously designing and selling jewelry, I have struggled with the idea of doing outdoor shows. I have heard all of the horror stories of booths getting flooded or blowing away, along with half of the merchandise. However, I have also come to realize these fairs can be an excellent way to get your product in front of the public, and great practice in selling yourself and representing your product.

A few months ago, I decided to take the plunge and began planning my booth design. Of course, being the perfectionist that I am, I looked for hours and hours online, searching for good booth designs that not only looked professional, but caught my eye in particular. If I am going to spend hours upon hours in a 10 x 10 space, it has to be warm and inviting, and it has to all fit in my '98 Nissan Pathfinder.

During my search, I found a really helpful site that covers many aspects of jewelry display, and, lo and behold, I found a compact booth design that blew me away.

This booth is from Patty Lakinsmith, a lampworker who creates amazing glass beads. I absolutely love her use of space in this booth, so I chose to use some of the same elements in my own.

This is my booth design, following some of the lines and features of Lakinsmith's booth. I picked up the same reed fencing at Home Depot and framed the outer edges with some simple black fabric from Hobby Lobby. I splurged on some enlargements of some of my model shots (I used mpix.com and highly recommend them). The model photos (by Vicki Smith) really capture the feeling of my designs and I think they add an indispensable element of elegance to the booth. The tables I used are 4-foot folding tables from Target. I raised them by sliding longer sections of pvc pipe over the legs.

The corner "table" covered with black fabric is created using two moving boxes from Home Depot, one of them cut down and stacked onto the other to create the height I wanted. The top box has a five pound weight inside to keep it steady.

Of course, the most important items (and perhaps the most boring), are the weights for the four corners of the tent to keep it steady in the wind. The EZ Up tent I purchased on Ebay came with a weight plate for each leg to set weights on, which is very convenient. I researched all sorts of weight options and what worked best for me was 8x8x8 cement cinder blocks, which I filled with cement, anchoring in an upside down u-bolt, which functions as a handle. The finished weights are roughly 35 pounds each. The size is perfect for setting on the weight plates and is not so bulky that it gets in the way.

Thankfully, my husband was sweet enough to help me set up. I admire all of the artists out there that set up their tents without assistance - I don't know how you do it!

Overall, my first official experience at an outdoor fair was a good one. The weather was beautiful with no storms that day or wind. Although sales were slow, I had an almost constant flow of people through my booth that day, received mostly positive feedback, and gave out almost all of my business cards.

Although this event, the Lawrence (KS) Fall Arts and Crafts Festival, was not juried, I think now I am ready to dive in further and apply for the juried shows!

Inspiration from Rodarte

2011-06-24T20:23:00.000-07:00

Now that the flurry of activity from the West 18th Street Fashion Show has ended, and I have gotten a small, but necessary hernia surgery out of the way, I have had some time to brainstorm ideas for upcoming collections, and research current trends in the jewelry market. I absolutely love perusing my fashion magazines and surfing the internet, reading about jewelry designers, their perspectives on design, and their paths to success.

Recently, while browsing past issues of fashion magazines, I came upon some jewelry pieces that to me were simply amazing. After further research, I found the designers responsible for these incredible creations: Mark Walsh and Leslie Chin. The pieces I discovered were created for Rodarte. Some of my favorites are pictured here.

Oh, how I wish I could see the pieces in person and hold them, as the workmanship and materials look exquisite! And HOW, I wonder, did they get a screw to appear to go through a crystal when it doesn't? It definitely inspires me to push the envelope in my own work.

I love the pieces shown here because they mirror my own obsession with combining raw and industrial with clean and chic. In my own designs I am constantly experimenting with the clean look of clear resin paired with various metals. I think the combination is breathtaking.

I couldn't find a lot of information about Mark Walsh and Leslie Chin, except that they have been in the fashion field for a long while and have designed with Rodarte for at least four seasons. There is an interesting interview with the design duo here.

I will definitely keep my eyes open for upcoming pieces by this amazing team!

West Eighteenth Street Fashion Show

2011-04-05T10:03:00.000-07:00

Deanna Burasco Designs is honored to be a part of this year's West 18th Street Fashion Show in Kansas City! I will be collaborating with designers Steven Chau and Dominique Karwoski.

Steven and Dominique have some amazing ideas that will take this year's "Summer in Spain" theme to a new level not seen before at this annual event! I cannot wait to incorporate my jewelry designs into their vision!

See more about this event and its history here!

Sarah McMullen

2010-10-19T07:26:00.000-07:00

I recently had the pleasure of meeting Sarah McMullen, a beautiful and talented singer who has graciously worn my designs for various photo shoots and events. Sarah has just won Pop Artist of the Year at the 2010 L.A. Music Awards. If you listen to Sarah's music, you will understand why!

I have really enjoyed working with Sarah and her mother Bonnie, on coordinating jewelry shots. They are some of the most down-to-earth people you could hope to meet. Sarah was featured as a Young Achiever on Kansas City's Fox4 News: (to hear this segment, pause the music player at the bottom right of this page)

Sarah also has incredible management:

Jonathan George runs JJPZ Talent Development and Jonathan George Entertainment. Jonathan was Grand Champion on Ed McMahon's Next Big Star in the early 2000s and has made big waves in the entertainment industry.

Sarah's album will be coming out soon, and I am so excited to hear it! She is wearing some of my pieces in the cd photos, which is also exciting for me! Thanks Sarah!!

Hello ArtFire

2010-10-03T17:20:00.000-07:00

I recently opened up a shop on ArtFire, which is most likely going to become the permanent home of my shop, which for the past three years has been on etsy.

It was the amazing deal they recently offered that prompted me to look into ArtFire further. Just under $6 per month, list all you want, no fees on the selling end. I can easily spend that on etsy in a week, just listing items or relisting in an attempt to get a few seconds on the front page.

Up until a year ago, etsy was good for me. I averaged a sale per week...not horrible, not amazing, but it was consistent, as were views. As etsy has gotten super saturated with sellers, the views and the sales have continued to slow, no matter how many items I list or how much I promote my shop. I notice that often when I list an item, it never shows up on the front page, thanks to the batch uploading etsy implemented.

Needless to say I have been frustrated, and, although I love etsy, there are a few features about ArtFire that I love even more, as will my customers.

You do not have to open an account with ArtFire to buy! I think this is awesome! I really think I have lost some buyers because they don't want another account with another username and another password. They just want to buy something and get on with their life!

Also, sellers can run coupons and sales very easily! In fact, I am running a 20% off coupon the entire month of October for everything in my ArtFire shop! If I wanted to do this on etsy, I would have to "refund" buyers the difference in Paypal, or go through and mark down each item manually.

Finally, the search engine on ArtFire is so much better. Example: I did a search for "resin bangle". On etsy, there were over 47,000 results, many of them having nothing to do with "resin bangle". On ArtFire, the same search yielded a mere 7,000 results, most of them relevant. Granted, I know the traffic is higher on etsy, but still, their search engine leaves much to be desired.

SO, long story short, I have set up shop on ArtFire. And, like I said, I am running a sale for the month of October. 20% off any purchase! Just type in "october20" at checkout!

Ice Inspired

2010-09-15T12:08:00.000-07:00

I have always wanted to create clear pieces of jewelry, but have not been able to produce a top-quality product until now! I recently upgraded to a jewelry-quality resin (created by Resin Obsession). Although it is more than twice the cost of the resin I used previously, it is undeniably worth the extra expense! It's ultra clear, non-yellowing and cures much harder, which opens the door for me to make many of my new design ideas a reality!

I love to look to the top designers for inspiration, and I recently watched (over and over again, might I add), the Chanel 2010 Fall/Winter Ready To Wear runway show. After drooling over the elegant, ice-like jewelry that came down the runway, I have been experimenting with my own ice-inspired pieces. As much as I hate (hate doesn't even seem strong enough of a word) winter, it is inevitably approaching my part of the country and the artist in me is attempting to embrace it. Here are some upcoming pieces, fresh from my studio:My ice rings are completely made by hand, beginning with a prototype, which is then molded out of silicone, and finally cast in resin. After curing, the final details are hand carved by me, meaning no two rings are ever alike. The tops are accented with sparkling Swarovski crystals!

This icicle inspired pendant is cast in a commercial mold, then manipulated before it finishes curing, creating the icy effect. After curing the final details are hand carved. It is simply stunning!

White Oak branches are used to create this pendant and earrings set. I make a custom mold of each individual branch, then cast in resin. The finished pieces are as beautiful as real branches after a Kansas ice storm, but won't ever melt!

I am completely in love with each and every one of my new creations! They will be available soon in my shop! I cannot wait to do the photo shoot for this collection! It's going to be amazing!

On The Fringe Of Fall

2010-08-10T11:30:00.000-07:00

This is the time of year I begin longing for the first days of fall. Days with crisp, cool breezes that allow for layers. I love the season. It's the best weather season in Kansas City!

My favorite part of fall is pulling out clothes I haven't worn in months. I love how things seem almost new when you haven't worn them for a while. And I love dreaming up new jewelry to reflect the cooler season! A couple of years ago I made a fringe-styled necklace that was a perfect accessory to wear on chilly evenings out. This year, I have redesigned it, and am going to just love wearing it!

The beads are all handcrafted from black polymer clay and styled to look like lava beads, finished with a metallic sheen. The largest beads are a little over one inch in diameter. The fringe is created by hand-knotting individual sections of yarn between each bead. It is so cozy! On a cool fall evening it not only adds a touch of warmth, but also tons of style!

I might be offering a couple of these for sale later in the season, so keep your eyes out as the weather cools down!

Hot Nights and L.A.!

2010-08-09T07:15:00.000-07:00

I participated in First Fridays last week and it was HOT! I didn't realize that many of the galleries that open up for the evening do not have air conditioning! The temperature was in the mid-nineties, which made for a long evening and lots of bottled water! Despite the heat, the turnout was incredible. Here is a somewhat posed shot of me at my table with local photographer Gene Starr.

While I was in downtown Kansas City, some of my inventory was in Los Angeles, enjoying some West Coast publicity! I recently had the pleasure of meeting local singer Sarah McMullen, who has graciously allowed me to accessorize her for a few events in Los Angeles. I will be designing accessories for Sarah to wear to the L.A. Music Awards in November, which is going to be so exciting! Sarah has been nominated for best pop artist of the year!

Here is Sarah wearing a few pieces from various collections at the NextAid Red Carpet Event held in Los Angeles last weekend. Isn't she cute? Check out Sarah's music here!

Hot Hardware!

2010-08-02T19:41:00.000-07:00

I am so in love with my new Aisle 15 Collection, I almost forgot how horrible the heat and humidity are in Kansas City right now!

I chose basic black today (as I often do) and accented the outfit with two items from my Aisle 15 Collection; the Washer Cross Necklace and matching cuff bracelet.

I discovered a new layered look, pairing a frilly fitted black top with a basic dark grey tank as an overlay. I simply pulled the collar over the top of the tank and voila! A new look! Exciting indeed! : )

Don't forget to check out the Aisle 15 Collection! If you live in the Kansas City area, check out select pieces exclusively at NGBoutique in Westport, 4149 Pennsylvania, Kansas City.

My Customers Are Rock Stars!

2010-07-29T10:22:00.000-07:00

I just looooove it when customers tell me how much they love a piece they purchased! I love it even more to get a photo! Here is Sara, who recently rocked her Rock Star Necklace at a concert in Chicago. This is a great photo, not only of Sara, but it shows off the sparkly awesomeness of this necklace so well!

Sara is a fellow blogger. Check out her blog here!

Who Doesn't LOVE A Huge Sale?

2010-07-25T18:48:00.000-07:00

I just heard about an A-MA-ZING sale happening this Thursday only in Kansas City's Westport!

Nikki Grant Boutique, as well as some other Westport boutiques, including Seduzion Leggs, Screen Tee Gallery and Imagery are having a massive sale this Thursday evening from 5pm - 8pm!

Stop in Nikki Grant for cupcakes and a glass of wine and enjoy 50% off everything except jewelry! You will find some really cute and unique clothing at amazing prices!

Also enjoy a first look at pieces from my new collection, Aisle 15, which doesn't officially debut until August 1st. Hit up NGB and see it first!

Visit the NGB facebook page to preview her gorgeous inventory!

Aisle 15

2010-07-20T09:05:00.000-07:00

Before I officially started my jewelry business, I had been involved in graphic design, as well as rehabbing homes for resale. Odd combination, I know. For the five years I spent painting, tiling, tearing things out and putting better things back in, I practically lived at places like Lowe's, Home Depot and Ace Hardware. Everything I saw at these stores my mind contorted into a piece of art. Aisle 15 at Home Depot was my favorite aisle. Washers, retaining rings, nuts, bolts...wow. It was like a gold mine for my artist mind!

When I first started designing and selling jewelry in 2007, I constantly thought about creating a line that revolved around that simple hardware I had passed by almost every day when rehabbing homes. So, when exploring concepts for my fall collection, I re-visited this idea and started experimenting. I created a necklace for myself using a steel retaining ring and a jet black Swarovski pendant and knew I was on to something by the sheer number of compliments I received.Local singer/songwriter Jillian Riscoe models what was the original necklace design that inspired this line.

Utilizing the elements of that necklace design, I created a collection that is edgy and elegant at the same time.Stunning local model Courtney Lace, wearing numerous pieces from the collection. All pieces feature brass or steel hardware paired with genuine Swarovski crystals.
Jolie Carrillo-Allen, make-up artist, styles Courtney for the shoot.

In addition to Jillian, Courtney and Jolie, Jen Thomas, owner of The Last Tangle Salon was on hand for hair, and all photography was taken by the incredible Vicki Smith. It was such a pleasure to collaborate with this group of talented and professional women!

Aisle 15 will be available in my etsy shop on August 1, 2010. Select pieces will also be available at Nikki Grant Boutique in Westport.

Things Are Happening!

2010-07-14T08:19:00.000-07:00

Things are super busy here at the "studio"!
I just finished shooting the new collection, I completed my first tutorial project, and I am super excited about a recent collaboration with local singer-songwriter Jillian Riscoe!

Recently, I met Jillian down at Kansas City's Plaza. I just love going down there and hanging out, and it gives me motivation to dress up my look a little. For this outing I wore this super-cute Forever21 dress paired with long denim shorts and my favorite black wedges. Speaking of Forever21, I cannot WAIT until their new Plaza location opens next month.

For jewelry, I wore my own crystal studded resin bangles and a multiple-cross necklace as a bracelet. With all the ruffles on the dress, a necklace was just a little too much.

It was a gorgeous day to be at the Plaza, with a nice break from the typical midwest summer heat and humidity. Jillian and I discussed our most recent collaboration for her merchandise, featuring a play on her heart and bullseye logo.

Here she is, modeling her uber-cute collection! She will be debuting it and performing live tomorrow night at Haute Market, Kansas City's premiere shopping party!
(photo by Vicki Smith, make-up by Jolie Carrillo-Allen)

I am also researching a First Friday opportunity, so stay tuned for more news on that as well!

Stars and Stripes

2010-07-04T15:55:00.000-07:00

Today I am wearing one of my all-time favorite shirts. I bought it in the juniors department at The Jones Store (now Macy's) about ten years ago. I think I dried it once and it shrunk a couple of inches. I almost got rid of it, until I decided it looked all right with a tank underneath. Now I wear it every Fourth of July!

I paired the top with simple white cropped denim and blue strappy wedges. To accessorize, I wore my extra sparkly Swarovski star ring (my own, but contact me if you want one custom-made. It really has an amazing sparkle!).

I also wore some drop star earrings, accented on both sides with Swarovski crystals. These were worn just for this photo shoot, and the wires are changed out for new whenever they sell. The earrings are available online here. Like the ring, they have an amazing sparkle, which the photos can't completely show.Finally, I have to include a photo of myself and my daughter, who begrudgingly let me take this photo. She hates getting her picture taken, so I was very fortunate to get this shot. :)

Beautiful Eighty

2010-07-01T09:35:00.000-07:00

As a woman who has officially entered "middle age" (I turned 40 a few months ago), I spend a little more time thinking about the future of my appearance. I have been blessed with good genes, which do help out, but eventually even those genes will give way to old age. In a world that is so obsessed with maintaining a youthful appearance, it is nice to see someone of older age out there in full force...modeling, no less. And modeling for top designers. And walking the runways.Meet Daphne Self, who, now in her eighties, didn't land in the pages of Vogue until age 70!
You can read more about this amazing woman's life here.

She Was A Skater Girl

2010-06-28T12:50:00.000-07:00

About 23 years ago, I could be found most days on some local parking lot or in some drainage ditch "shredding" it with my Lance Mountain skateboard. I was really pretty good, skated for about eight years, and somehow managed to escape serious injury. When I turned 25, I got a really awesome Tony Hawk board, from my now ex-husband no less (I was hoping for roses. He bought me a skateboard. The next day I filed divorce papers. Just kidding. There was much more to it than that.) I still ride this gorgeous Tony Hawk board on occasion. Sometimes my daughter, husband, or I even use it to roll across our ranch home from the bedrooms to the kitchen - yeah, we're cool like that - or extremely strange, take your pick :).

Anyhow, this casual style of dress with a little of what I like to call "skater chic", is hands down my favorite. Although I appreciate a nice dress and heels, I've never really been a girly-girl. Truth be told, on most days I have to struggle with myself to either not wear black or grey, or at least add some sort of color! Also, if it's not cotton or if it's not as comfy as cotton, forget it. I cannot stand anything that is itchy, scratchy, or constantly reminds me of its presence.
The outfit I am wearing here is a perfect example of what I naturally grab out of my closet. Comfortable, usually dark grey or black, which are great neutrals for accenting with jewelry. To accent this ensemble and dress it up just a bit, I added a suede dogtag necklace accented with Swarovski crystals (this one isn't for sale, but I can make a duplicate, a fancy schmancy chandelier drop necklace from my Cocktail Hour Collection, and a wide plexiglass cuff, studded with black diamond Swarovski crystals. The cuff is a prototype. I hope to produce some of these for sale by fall.

Now I'm going to grab my Tony Hawk and roll into the kitchen for another latte. Skate or die! : )

Outfit:
Jeans: To The Max via WalMart / $7 on Clearance
Top: 2Kuhl via TJMaxx / $8
Shoes: Converse One Star / Ebay / $12 including shipping (I was especially excited about the shoes because a new pair like this goes for about $70)

Sail Away

2010-06-25T12:40:00.001-07:00

Sail away is exactly what I wish I could do to escape the oppressive heat of this summer day in Kansas! I took these shots outside and had to hurry before I was overtaken by the humidity! However, if I were taking a trip to the west coast, I would definitely include this ensemble in my luggage, as the pieces are all easy to care for and a perfect neutral backdrop to my jewelry accents. I also chose neutral heels to keep the focus on the jewelry.

Here I am showcasing a long necklace and a cocktail ring from my Ocean View Collection. I love the way the pieces look paired with this neutral cowl neck top and white cropped denim pants! I also had to also add a dash of seaworthy color to my nails :)The cocktail rings are available online and also at Nikki Grant Boutique in Westport! But there are very few left, so go get yours before they are gone!

Outfit: Cowl neck shirt / Forever21 $15 - white denim pants / Moschino via Target $20 - platform heels / Bongo via TJMaxx $20

Butterfly Rising

2010-06-22T13:12:00.000-07:00

It's hot here in Kansas City. Really hot. And humid. Really humid. And that calls for a gauzy, light maxi dress. Covered in butterflies :) and accented with pieces from my Rising Collection.

I wore this dress to a somewhat informal wedding about 12 years ago. I love it! The colors are amazing, and it is very comfortable. Trying to find pieces from my collections to accent this dress was rather difficult. I didn't want to select any piece that would compete with the fabric design.

Therefore, I chose a simple necklace and earrings. Cast in clear resin, they feature glass seed beads, meticulously hand-placed in a cascading arrangement. The pieces shown here are my own that I sanded to a matte finish. You can see the actual collection for sale here.

Happy Summer!

Third Fridays!

2010-06-19T15:39:00.001-07:00

I had my first taste of "Third Fridays" in downtown Overland Park last night! Jeanne McKay, co-owner of The Tasteful Olive, invited me to set up a table and sell my jewelry. Even with the temperatures in the mid-nineties, there was quite a crowd! I was really impressed by the store (owned by Jeanne and her husband), which sells quite a selection of olive oils and balsamic vinegars. I never knew there was so much to know about olive oil and vinegar, but they seem to know it all! Customers can taste as many varieties as they want, even mixing different oils and vinegars for unique blends! My favorites were the Tuscan Herb Olive Oil and the Strawberry Balsamic Vinegar. In addition to olive oils and balsamic vinegars, they also carry a wide variety of pastas, sauces, and other cooking items. It's definitely a must-visit if you are ever in downtown O.P.!

Many other downtown O.P. stores were open for Third Fridays, including The Culinary Center of Kansas City, Olive Branch Art, Images Art Gallery, Green Light and Sugar Pop Kids. Over at Pinkie Couture, they had music and a vintage fashion show!

Even more exciting is that Overland Park is celebrating it's 50th year! See news coverage of downtown O.P.'s Third Fridays celebration here.

A Vine Time

2010-06-17T14:03:00.001-07:00

I recently had dinner with a group of women who blog about fashion. Since discovering fashion blogs, I have had SO much fun perusing through hundreds of them! It is so interesting to see how different people put fashion together in different ways throughout the world!

I never considered myself a fashion blogger because this blog is mainly for my jewelry designs. However, the more I think about it, the more I realize that jewelry is such an integral part of fashion, that I should infuse more fashion with my jewelry to better show it. So, I have decided to try my hand at photographing myself wearing my jewelry - thank goodness for my tripod!

The other day I finally got to my hairstylist for a long overdue cut and style. This was my ensemble for the day, accented with my one-of-a-kind Waffle Necklace, and a stack of three of my resin bangle designs: Floating Gold, Muted Gold, and Black Crystal , which was recently sold to a buyer in London (yay!). I should note that the jewelry shown was only worn for the photo.

The rest of my outfit consists of: vine-printed shirt, Frazier Lawrence via TJMaxx (I bought this shirt years ago and it has been fabulous! It's just stretchy enought that I was even able to wear it through half of my pregnancy six years ago), skirt (I love a skirt with pockets!), Forever21, $10.50, shoes, Mila Paoli, $20 via TJ Maxx.

In A Boutique, Baby!

2010-06-02T21:25:00.000-07:00

I am so excited to announce that a selection of my jewelry will be available at Nikki Grant Boutique!

Nikki Grant just moved to Kansas City from New York, where she lived and worked during the last ten years. Her Kansas City store is total awesomeness!

If you live in Kansas City, you should visit her boutique in Westport. She does all her own buying, and is very, very good at selecting edgy styles that are not too over-the-top. See incoming styles on the NGB facebook page here.

Farasha Style

2010-05-25T12:28:00.000-07:00

A few months ago I was contacted by a firm in New York that seeking designers for a client who was opening a new boutique. I was asked to send my press kit to them, which they forwarded to the owner of a new boutique in Park City, Utah, called Farasha. I was SO excited to be chosen as one of the designers to be featured in this new shop!

Recently, Farasha hosted a runway show featuring its designers. Here is a stack of my hand-carved resin bangles on one of the models as she walks the runway.

You can check out the rest of the photos (by David Galbraith) here. Phenomenal! You can find my bangles and other designs featured in the runway show at farasha-style.com.

Line Sheets

2010-05-18T16:46:00.000-07:00

In my previous post, I mentioned "line sheets". Until a few months ago, I had no idea what a line sheet was or it's function. Basically, it's a sheet that has your products listed and pictured, along with the wholesale price, suggested retail price, and wholesale terms (minimum quantity, etc.). At least that's my take on it. After doing some research and looking at other line sheet examples, I came up with this for my new summer line, Ocean View.
It features the following: Clear photos of the merchandise, short and concise descriptions, basic measurements of each piece, the wholesale price and suggested retail price, and the minimum purchase requirements.

I might need to make changes down the line, but you have to start somewhere! Plus, it sure is nice to have something that can easily be emailed to retailers!

Speaking of retailers, I have an appointment next week at a fabulous boutique in town! All because of the promo card I sent out! If anything develops, I'll be sure to post the news on this blog!

Courting Retail

2010-05-14T12:25:00.000-07:00

After spending the last few months preparing collections and getting my website together, I decided it was time to seek out some potential partnerships with retail shops. I have done consignment, and still do, but it is quite a financial strain to have to create all product up front, then wait (sometimes for a loooong time) for it to sell.

Now that I have a more concrete focus and definition to my collections, I feel confident in offering a select few as wholesale options. But how to go about it? I have no real experience or training in selling or marketing, plus I'm not a natural born salesperson...it is a challenge for me to get out there and see people face to face, touting my product. I tend to market the way I like to be marketed to...no pressure, show me what you have to offer, let me decide. SO, what I started off with is a "targeted" mailing, focusing on a select group of shops and boutiques where I think my product would be a good fit.

First, I did A LOT of research on local and regional boutiques, creating a list, then narrowing it down to those I considered the most relevant to my product offerings. Once I had my mailing list finalized, I needed to decide what to send. It would need to engage the store owners within the first, oh, three seconds of looking at it. I know how fast promotional mail gets tossed. It would also have to be limited in cost. Like many small business, my marketing budget is teeny.

Lucky for me, I am a graphic designer by trade, so I know how to create a marketing piece on the cheap that has impact. Instead of paying to have a postcard-type piece printed, I wanted a piece that looked custom, so this is what I did:

I took 4x6 prints from the photo shoot of my newest collection and adhered them to 5x7 pieces of high-quality ivory cardstock. Then I printed my logo and copy onto 5x7 sheets of ivory vellum, which I used to overlay the photos. I chose dark brown metallic envelopes and addressed them with gold ink, giving them a rich and a bit more high-end look, which is very important if you want the recipient to actually open your mailing, instead of throwing it out with the rest of the unsolicited promo material they recieve.

I kept copy to a bare minimum because my goal is to drive the shop owner to my website for more information, where they will look through my products, and at some point (hopefully) request line sheets. Speaking of linesheets, I will post another entry about them soon, so stay tuned.

The cost of this marketing piece? Well, the paper was on sale, making each 5x7 sheet approximately 15 cents (2 pieces cut from an 8.5 x 11 sheet), the photo print was 20 cents, the envelope was 50 cents, and the stamp of course was 44 cents. That brings the total cost per piece to $1.29, including postage. Not bad at all for a custom-designed piece!

In case some of the shop owners don't make it to my web site, I will send a follow-up email after the initial mailing. Even if I don't receive an immediate response, this piece still gets me in front of potential buyers. They might not buy now, or next week, or next month, but maybe, just maybe, they'll be thinking about me when they have coffee with their friends, or they'll happen to mention my company or my designs in random conversation. I have learned that every little bit of exposure helps, and that you never know where your next raving fan will come from...sometimes they show up seemingly out of nowhere...then you find out they are a friend of a friend's sister, whose mother's cousin owns a boutique and received your promotional material...you just never know.

Ocean View

2010-05-04T15:10:00.000-07:00

I have a secret desire to one day live in Southern California, specifically the Laguna Beach area - and NO, it has nothing to do with "that show," which I have never seen.

It all started a few years ago, when my husband, daughter and I went out to visit a good friend of mine and his wife, who live in Los Angeles. I told him we wanted to stay near the ocean, and he suggested Laguna Beach. Needless to say I loved this artist community! And the climate of course is to die for. My favorite view is above, from the gazebo at the top of Heisler Park.

After visiting the town a few times, seeing the multitude of art galleries, and meeting people from all over the world, I began dreaming of living there, creating my pieces somewhere near the ocean...well, probably inland a little, since anything close to the ocean is beyond prohibitively expensive.

Who knows, we may end up there one day...anything is possible, right? Until that day arrives, however, I have created the Ocean View line to represent my dream.

I designed the pendant and ring for this line so that it seems like a small piece of the ocean, captured and held still in time.I also created a long beaded necklace that can also be doubled-up for a shorter look. Incorporated into the necklace and also the bracelet design are handmade resin beads, embedded with glass seed beads and shells.The resin beads are quite time consuming, but their beauty is definitely worth the time spent creating them!All in all, I'm very pleased with the look and feel of this collection! The pricing ranges from $15 to $35, allowing you to have your own ocean view without the pricetag!

All pieces are now available online here.

Adventures in Dreamweaver

2010-05-01T21:06:00.000-07:00

Ten years ago I purchased Macromedia Dreamweaver 3, thinking that, as a graphic designer, it would be a good thing to expand my skills into the web design arena. That thought quickly faded and the program sat virtually unused until recently.

Since the beginning of the year, I have really wanted to design my own website, so I finally opened up Dreamweaver and ran with it. My biggest hurdle was that my design mind thinks in "print media" - I spent years designing brochures and magazines - instead of "web media", which is an entirely different animal. SO, I would work on it a little, get frustrated, set it aside, go back to it a few days later, figure something out, get excited, get stumped again, get frustrated, set it aside, and so on...I of course didn't read any manuals or watch any tutorials because of my innate desire to make things as difficult as possible. :)

After a few months, I had figured out enough to actually create my site with links that actually worked (after few rounds of adjustments). I researched the crap out of hosting options, then just settled on godaddy because I had used them previously, and frankly, because I got tired of doing the research. It's really hard to find honest reviewers of hosting sites that aren't being rewarded in some way shape or form for their review.

One HUGE lesson I learned is that most ftps (file transfer protocols, which you use to upload your files to the hosting server) do not like slashes or spaces in titles. So, I had to rename some files and fix a bunch of links. Once I did that, to my surprise, everything actually WORKED. I have since even made a change to one of my web pages, uploaded through the ftp, and the change actually appeared almost instantly on my website - that was a relief. I'm feeling a bit more comfortable with my abilities now, but I still have a looooong way to go!

I wanted to keep my website simple and clean, with the main focus being the photos of my products. Each collection has a shop link, which takes the visitor to my etsy site to make any purchases. As confident as I'm feeling about getting a handle on basic web design, I'm not ready to handle the ecommerce aspects of it on my own - yet. I did, however, figure out how to add meta tags to my site - oh, was I giddy over that discovery!

One other thing. Being from the print media side, I assumed that if you manually centered elements in your web page, they would automatically show up that way on the web. Of course that isn't the case, so I need to rework the layout at some point - this time, I have a book I'm reading so I can do it right the first time.

Ok, now that you're dying of suspense, here's a link to my "possibly" centered website (but no guarantees).

What A Blast!

2010-03-25T15:00:00.000-07:00

The Gypsy Emporium was so much fun last weekend! Despite the crazy snowstorm, there was quite a crowd, and I was so fortunate to have my mom with me all day to help out. I had never been to the Madrid Theater before. It is amAZing! Built in the 1920s, it just oozes character and the perfect ambience! See photos of this historic theater here.

Cali Roberta put on a fabulous fashion show, and graciously showcased jewelry and accessories from various vendors at the event, myself included.

Therese Livella also did an awesome job coordinating this event! I hope to be a part of future shows!

Gypsy Emporium!

2010-03-14T17:20:00.000-07:00

The Gypsy Emporium is next Saturday, March 20th, the first official day of spring! This amazing spring equinox celebration will be held at the historic Madrid Theater in midtown Kansas City. Fashion, food, and fun will be there, and so will I, with a load of yummy jewelry! I will be showing the Sweet Dreams Collection live for the first time, so don't miss it!

Find more information about location and times here. Hope to see you there!

It's here!

2010-03-14T17:15:00.000-07:00

The new Sweet Dreams Collection is officially available in my shop!

I began working on this collection in the dead of winter, after Christmas, when we were knee deep in snow and I could only dream about warmer days. Finally, it is complete - and spring is just about "officially" here! I couldn't be happier!

Wild!

2010-02-24T06:25:00.000-08:00

I am expanding my Wild At Heart Collection! In addition to the necklaces, I will be adding earrings, rings and hairclips in the coming weeks, so keep a lookout!

Sneak Peek

2010-01-28T13:59:00.000-08:00

Coming soon!

The Bleeding Heart Ring

2010-01-25T10:10:00.001-08:00

I decided to add a ring instead of a bracelet to the Bleeding Heart Collection. The first one I listed sold ultra-fast - yay! I found out my supplier is no longer going to carry the reptile embossed bands that I was hoping to use for these rings, soooo, I have ONE band left. After it's gone, I will be using a brushed finish band for these rings. Still cool, but not as edgy as the reptile finish! Wish I'd stocked up on more!

Be Still My "Bleeding" Heart!

2010-01-05T08:07:00.000-08:00

Bleeding Heart necklace and earrings are new to my shop and I am SO excited about them! I am also working on a bracelet design, which I will add as soon as it is finished! The heart pendant is made from two separate hand cast resin hearts that are adhered together with resin. I carve the extra resin off the edges where the two meet, and then sand and sand and sand until the seam is barely visible. Then I sand the rest of the piece to a frosted finish. Next, I mix more resin and add the "veins" to the surface, which adds a beautifull glossy contrast!

I am loving the finished product! The necklace sells for $40 and the earrings for $20 in my etsy shop. Hope you love them as much as I do!

2010 Will Be The Year!!!

2009-12-31T15:07:00.000-08:00

2009 was great, really. I grew enormously as an artist, and my understanding of business has grown exponentially. Ok, maybe not exponentially, but I do understand more than I did!

As great as 2009 was, 2010 is going to be even better! I will have some fun and fabulous "collections" and I will promote them ferociously! I am working on several of these collections currently, and hope to have a photo shoot in the next month! For the first time, ideas are actually coming together into multiple pieces...very exciting, as I have spent a lot of time evolving my style and focus since beginning my company in 2007. I feel more than ever that I actually "know what I'm doing".

My main goal for 2010 is to further develop the branding of my business, as well as obtain press coverage to get my name out there, all while having fun and continuing the learning process, which never stops!

I hope all of you realize your goals in 2010...at least some of them. Never stop trying! And never stop dreaming!

URBAN BAZAAR

2009-12-02T07:44:00.001-08:00

The Urban Bazaar is this weekend!!
I will be there sharing a booth with MayBug Bows!!!

Jewelry Tag Branding

2009-11-23T09:57:00.000-08:00

As anyone who is trying to build a business knows, branding is a crucial part of marketing. For quite a while I have realized that when someone purchased one of my items, chances are, two months later they will not remember who made the necklace or where it came from. I finally came up with a solution after seeing what a fellow seller on etsy was doing.

After running out of ink on my inkjet printer and not wanting to pay the money for new cartridges, I decided to hand-typeset a logo tag on shrink plastic. Not perfect, but it really adds something to my pieces, and at least now people will remember where their purchase came from. I wish I had done this sooner! I was able to fit about 48 tags on one 8x10 sheet of shrink plastic. The cost of one sheet is around 60 cents. So each tag costs me just over 1 cent!

Don't get me wrong, I would love to have tiny metal tags with a professionally embossed logo like this, but for now, my charming little hand made plastic tags will have to do.

M&M Pendants!

2009-11-18T08:47:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite new items in my etsy shop! Real m&ms encased in resin with real candy sprinkles! You can choose any of the usual m&m colors and either the tiny round rainbow sprinkles or the oblong rainbow "jimmies". SO sweet! Each pendant measures about one and one-eighth inches in diameter. Yummy!

Gift Gallery 2009

2009-11-15T09:11:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I participated in the 2009 Gift Gallery, held at Cure of Ars church and school in Leawood, Kansas. It was a great show - the best I've ever had, actually! Here are some shots of my booth:My good friend Lauri Meyers also had a booth with her mom that was super cute!And here's a shot of Angie with JunieC's setting up her darling booth.

I think I had more success at this show than in past shows because of my booth set up. In the past I have had just one small table, but I have learned to utilize more space and spread things out so buyers can see. Overall, it was a great experience! I really, REALLY appreciate my mom helping me with this show, although I didn't get a photo of her - she's the BEST!!!

New Press Kit - Finally!

2009-09-16T11:31:00.000-07:00

I have been working on my "new" press kit slash look book since early this year and finally have it up. Feel free to take a look by clicking on the link in the upper right of this page.

Custom Swarovski Necklace

2009-08-25T08:33:00.000-07:00

I just finished this custom Swarovski necklace that will be worn to a wedding by the mother of the bride. It's a simple design, but is so stunning! I used a large teardrop crystal AB pendant flanked on each side by smaller teardrops. The remaining beads are rounded bicones, which are much more comfortable against the skin than the non-rounded version. I hope the customer loves this as much as I do!

Seeing Stars!

2009-08-23T18:52:00.000-07:00

When I went to buy resin last week, I found a star shape mold and had to get it! I have been wanting to do stars for a while and there was only one mold left, so I took that as a sign :) I also found some spiritual quote decals that I used to make some new pendants and I love how they are turning out!

Here are some of the new designs I worked on over the weekend:

Resin Star RingResin Star Pendant Resin Pendants with religious/spiritual text.And, my favorite of the bunch, a trio of black resin stars with silver holographic glitter, each accented with a single Swarovski crystal.

A Lesson In Wholesale

2009-08-05T14:47:00.000-07:00

I haven't had much of an opportunity to do wholesale orders, so when I was recently approached regarding one, I was pretty excited. The pieces in question, though, sell for $16-$20 in my shop. How much did the person want to pay? $2 per piece. Hmmm. My first thought was "no way!" Then I started looking at how slow my shop has been and how nice it would be to have cash flow.

The potential buyer mentioned needing restocking every two weeks because her shop was busy. Hmmm again...cash flow...that would be nice. Then I started trying to figure out how I could create these pendants for $2 while still making some money for my time. Finally, I figured out a way to do them faster, using a faster-setting resin so I could pour the layers more quickly. I quickly (well, over a week's time) churned out 60 of these pieces and had them ready to ship. All was paid for upfront (which I would always recommend, at least until a rapport is established with the buyer). I sent photos of the pieces and once approved, they were on their way, first class, delivery confirmation, insurance. My first miscalculation? Shipping was a total of $10. I had charged $5.

The pieces arrived safely. However, the buyer did not like the quality. "I cannot sell these in my shop...they look too handmade". Talking to my mother about it on the phone, she said "why didn't you send a couple of samples to her before you did all that work?". A big "DUH" sounded out in my head. Why didn't I do that? Another thing I would HIGHLY recommend.

So, of course the buyer wants a refund. We agree on a partial refund. I am covered for the materials and maybe a tiny bit for my time. Now I will have 60 resin pendants to get rid of...so don't be surprised if you see them pop up in my shop. Some of them I will take down to Crown Center to Gifted Hands where I have a display.

All in all, this could have been a super bad experience, but it has been a really good learning experience for me. After going through all the hard work, I realized that I have to be really careful, no matter how tempting the idea of "cash flow" might be. I hadn't taken into account the hours of labor involved in trimming and sanding the pieces, not to mention drilling them and inserting jump rings so they would be ready to place on a chain. All of the little things you forget to add in all add up to hours of extra time. So if you are reading this, DON'T forget to count every step involved in creating your product when figuring out a reasonable wholesale price.

The silver lining in this is that there were other pendants that this particular buyer DOES like and has purchased. So it may be a long-term, cash flow positive opportunity after all. Even though it didn't completely work out, I'm really glad I gave it a shot! I improved my skill a bit at my craft and learned what REALLY goes into what I create so I will be better prepared next time.

Collections?

2009-06-24T08:54:00.000-07:00

When I began designing jewelry a couple of years ago, I never really thought about where I wanted it to go, who I wanted to market to, what my ultimate goals were. I'm still trying to figure this whole thing out, but am starting to realize some things.

First, I've realized that I want to be a brand. I want people to see my product and know that it is a "Deanna Burasco". How to go about that is a long and arduous journey. With so many designers out there, I think it can be daunting to establish yourself apart from everyone else. Also, I've seen how designers are constantly copied, and that to remain on the forefront, a designer has to re-invent themselves constantly to stay ahead of the copycats.

Second, I've realized that I have wasted a lot of time creating pieces and have not spent enough time marketing. I would try to make new pieces weekly or even daily, hoping each new design would spark a sale. This led to a mish mash of products (I think) with a lack of consistency and direction. One of my new goals is to create fewer pieces, then focus on marketing them, eventually gaining a solid fan base and establishing some solid wholesale accounts.

Third and last, I am working on creating "collections", which ties into what I just mentioned. Not only do I want to create fewer pieces, I want to have lines of pieces that coordinate and compliment one another. Whittling down all of the designs that I'm excited about is the hard part. My mind seems to not understand the concept :). When I look at the mainstream successful designers, most, if not all, have collections. They carry these collections for a time, then retire them and introduce new collections. It allows them to have a more cohesive grouping of products, which is easier to market and sell, in my opinion.

So, that's where I am...

On a side note, I am excited to be involved in the next Impact Fashion workshop. It's a day-long event for fashion designers, make-up artists, photographers and stylists to explore ideas and build portfolios. I'm the only participating jewelry designer, so this will be a great opportunity to get some model shots of my "collections", which I will figure out soon....I hope!

Nature's Spring Jewelry

2009-04-23T18:33:00.000-07:00

Spring is my favorite time of year in Kansas City (fall is a close second). It arrives after what always seems like an endless winter (for me anyway). As soon as my tulip bulbs break the ground in February I count down the days until spring. It seems like this time of year is the only time in Kansas City when you can go outside and enjoy the weather and not get eaten alive by mosquitoes. Another couple of weeks and that won't be the case (at least for me). So, I spent a good hour in our front yard taking photos. Enjoy!All of the above pictured tulips came from a variety pack I bought at Home Depot.

Every spring I plant a flat of impatiens. Once established, they look gorgeous into November!
Lily of the Valley - I dug some of these up from the yard of a house we rehabbed a couple of summers ago and they are taking hold quite well!

Lamium - great shade plant. We also have a lighter green version.

Purple Sand Cherry - I like to call it the poor man's japanese maple :)

Azalea

Crystal Wrap Collection

2009-04-17T10:14:00.000-07:00

I have been experimenting with plastics for a while and have come up with my first collection created out of plexiglass! Each piece was hand cut, sanded, softened in an oven, then hand molded. I accented each piece with varying colors and sizes of Swarovski crystals set in resin. I am really happy with the designs. I think they look incredible!

This photo is of the entire collection thus far, including rings, bangles, necklace and earrings. I am sending the aqua-toned group out to Los Angeles to be photographed. It will be featured in a LookBook for an upcoming fashion event. I cannot wait to see the model shots with the product!

Photo Shoot!

2009-04-08T19:45:00.001-07:00

Recently I had the opportunity to collaborate with photographer Vicki Smith, make-up artist Jolie Carrillo-Allen, and model Sarah Nelson. It was actually my first experience being involved in a professional photo shoot! Not only did I learn a lot, I had a great time and made some new contacts I hope to work with again in the future. Thank you all for bringing my jewelry designs to life!

Eighties Leopard - Resin Heart Necklace

Hot Pink Leopard - resin heart necklace
Nailed and Ball Chain - resin bangles

Silver Rising - resin pendant necklace

Mardi Gras - hand painted wooden bead and fringe necklace

Neon Zebra - resin heart necklace

Pinwheel - resin pendant necklace

Purple Leopard - resin heart necklace

All of these items are available in my etsy shop, except Mardi Gras, which is available in my other shop on smashingdarling.com.

Special thanks to my collaborators: Sarah Nelson (Sarah is also an aspiring clothing designer: see more here. Vicki Smith Photography, and make-up artist Jolie Carrillo-Allen.

New Pink Symphony Collection!

2009-04-08T19:32:00.001-07:00

The new Pink Symphony Duet Collection is here! Pink Symphony is my collaboration line with singer/songwriter Jillian Riscoe.

Music Shakes The City necklace and bracelet.

Hit That High Note To The Stars necklace and earrings.

Percussion Like Patchwork necklace and ring.

Trunk Show featuring music by Jillian Riscoe DECEMBER 12, 2008

2008-11-11T07:03:00.000-08:00

I am SO excited about this upcoming event! I have been collaborating with local musician Jillian Riscoe and we are creating a new line of jewelry titled "Pink Symphony". There are three necklace designs and one ring design that will debut at the event on December 12th. Jillian will be performing a live acoustic set! We are going to raffle away a gift also! This will be such a fun event! There is no address on the flyer because it's taking place at a private residence. We will be giving the address of the event when people rsvp. Fun fun fun!!!

My First Taste of Press!

2008-07-15T19:18:00.000-07:00

It's SO nice to finally receive some direct press coverage of my designs! Thank you to Heather Kraft of the Kansas City Star for featuring one of my pieces and doing such a nice little write-up on me!

Haute Market Rings!

2008-07-10T14:39:00.000-07:00

I just made 100 of these rings for the Haute Market goody bags to be given out at their next event on July 17th. My fingers are pretty much raw and numb from hand-making all of these. The photo isn't the best (it was almost dark out and I had to ship the rings the next day), but hopefully the free publicity I get will pay off in the long run. I had an extra one I let my mom have and she's been wearing it almost daily. She's my number one fan and ya gotta love your number one fan! :)

Press Kit - Finally!

2008-06-21T16:24:00.000-07:00

When starting a new business such as mine, or any other, really, it is important to create a press kit to "spread the word" to media outlets that might just give your business publicity through featuring it on their website or in their publication. I had never heard of press kits before becoming involved in this new venture. So, I did research for about a month, looked at many of them online and read through articles giving tips and tricks. Finally, after making the final polishing touches, I sent it out to several places last week, which is exhilarating and terrifying at the same time :)

If you want to see it, there is now a link at the top right of this page.

Encounters of the "I'm not so sure" Kind

2008-05-10T11:33:00.000-07:00

I discovered a store in Brookside called Stuff recently, when out with a group of friends. My first impression upon entering the store was "wow, what a lot of stuff" :) I was overwhelmed by the multitude of products. Being involved in jewelry design, I of course browsed other jewelry desigers' products that were displayed. There was quite a selection...perhaps too much of one. It seemed the glass cases were overflowing with so many products, one artist sort of blended into the next. I had to search in most cases to find a tag or card that identified the artist.

While browsing, one of the employees commented on my jewelry I was wearing and I told her I made it. I wrote down my web store address for her on a scrap piece of paper, thinking "I still don't have business cards! I've got to get on that!" I thought about offering to sell her the piece off my neck, but did not because it seemed a bit tacky. Hopefully she will visit my shop and perhaps make a purchase :) It is always nice to get the positive feedback!

I met one of the shop's owners, who was obviously busy behind the counter. When I asked her if they did consignment, she replied, "Well, we don't discuss that in public." I thought that was a strange response. A simple yes or no would have answered my question, but I took the artist information packet anyway so I could have a look.

When I read through the artist requirements, one statement jumped out at me - "Our guidelines include regional exclusivity and one-on-one access to you, the artist." Whoa - that one made me do a double-take. To me this sounds like if you sell at their store, you don't sell at any other store within the same "region". Whether "region" refers to a one mile radius or a twenty mile radius, that sounds like a good deal for the store, not so much for the artist.

I did some more online research and discovered an article in the Kansas City Star http://www.kansascity.com/business/story/582832.html that discusses a local team of artists that sells recycled purses at Stuff. It states that the team gets 50% of the proceeds. I am assuming that means the store takes the other 50%. Again, sounds like a good deal for the store, not so much for the artist.

Needless to say, I don't think this store is for me as a seller. I doubt there would be a place for me with such an overabundance of products, not to mention talent. Oh, well, on to the next great adventure - tonight I am going to help paint the inside of Now and Then, where I currently sell on consignment (and receive an 80% cut, might I add - I even have my own dedicated display for my product - it doesn't get better than that!). Cheryl Hocker (the owner) is an awesome gal to work with!

New Pendants!

2008-05-08T07:39:00.000-07:00

I am so excited about these new pendants! I am using recycled "play-doh" caps as the mold to create them. Some feature inspirational words and some feature glass beads. Creating the glass beads version is somewhat tedious, as each bead must be slowly positioned into the resin. This drives me nuts, but I love the way they are turning out! I will be listing more in my etsy shop soon, so stay tuned :)

The Mighty B

2008-05-02T19:31:00.000-07:00

Many of you without young children may not have seen it yet, but oh, my gosh! My daughter saw the first episode of this new cartoon and is HOOKED. It was created by a Erik Wiese, a writer on Sponge Bob, Cynthia True from Fairly Odd Parents and Amy Poehler, from Saturday Night Live. Amy Poehler provides the voice for the main character, Bessie Higgenbottom, who is nine years old (she is missing her two front teeth and Poehler is great at inflicting that lisp you get without those teeth). Bessie is a honey bee scout and is attempting to win every scout award possible. When she faces obstacles in her everyday life, she imagines she is the "Mighty B", a really "buff" bee-like superhero (very humorous to watch).

Anyway, Sophia is hooked on it (it's nice to have her obsessing over something other than Sponge Bob) and asks me every day when the next one will come on...luckily tonight we remembered to tape the episode so she won't go into too much of a withdrawl between episodes :)

My First Fashion Show!!

2008-04-22T07:54:00.000-07:00

I participated in my first fashion show last weekend at the Mosaic Lounge in the Kansas City Power and Light District. It was so fun to see my designs on the runway! And all proceeds from the show went to benefit the Chameleon children's charity of Kansas City!

This is a shot of some of my designs featured on the runway. All runway photos are courtesy of Stephen Melvin. He does some awesome work! http://stevemelvin.com/. I now have a slideshow of the runway up on myspace at http://myspace.com/shakeitnbakeit.

My parents and husband came to help me celebrate. We sat right next to the dj booth. I think we were all a bit out of our element :) I drank some fancy Norwegian water because they didn't serve coffee with Frangelico :(

Here I am with Matt (isn't he a cutie?) after the show. We met earlier in the day when he picked up my product for the show. He designed the shirt he's wearing and is going to be designing full time when he graduates this spring. In the background on the left you can barely see Keylee Sanders, who helped organize the event and chose wardrobe for all of the models. She is a stylist out of California. She is currently reworking her website. http://keyleesanders.com

Opportunities and Payoffs, Part Two

2008-04-11T13:06:00.000-07:00

I browse Craigslist almost daily. I began looking at the site when my family's home rehabbing business was no longer and I was pondering what to do with myself. At the time I was designing jewelry and listing items on etsy, but sales were few and far between, so I looked through part time job listings, among other categories. One day a couple of months ago I saw a headline stating "calling all fashion designers". It said something about a charity fashion show looking for designers to donate time and product for the show. I answered the ad and got a response from Keylee Sanders, a stylist out of California. She liked my stuff. I sent out some samples to her and will be meeting with her briefly next week to give her some product to be featured in the Artful Threads charity fashion show benefitting the Chameleon childrens' charity in Kansas City. It will be held at the Mosaic Lounge in the Power and Light District on April 18th. This is an exciting opportunity for me! I can't wait to see the show in person, as I've never been to one!

On a side note regarding Craigslist, I also recently answered an ad requesting products from local artists to be placed in a shop. I ended up getting a decent size wholesale order from Alyssa Aley, the new owner of Nancy's Niche in Shawnee, Kansas. It is a very cute shop! It looks like a little cottage! I hope my product does well for her.

Back to the fashion show, here is the ad promoting the show. My name is misspelled :( , but my logo turned out! :)

Opportunities and Pay-Offs, Part One

2008-03-25T13:55:00.000-07:00

Last fall I had the opportunity to set up a table at a local retail shop for their open house. There was no charge, nor did they take any part of my sales. That day a group of women came in the store. They were all part of a sorority that was in town for a convention. They had just redesigned their logo and commented on how one of my necklace designs almost exactly matched their logo. I only had one of those necklaces available, which I sold to one of the women and another of the women placed an order for one. All in all I think I sold six items, which I thought was great for my first real live "sale".

Fast forward to a few days ago. I receive a message on my answering machine from the woman who first purchased a necklace from me. She had been trying to track down my phone number for over a month and finally found it. The women in her group just loved the necklace and could she order ELEVEN more? Wow, what a great feeling to hear that!

You never know which opportunities are really going to pay off, so you have to remember to take advantage of as many as possible!

Okay, Here's My Gold

2008-03-14T19:23:00.000-07:00

In my previous post I mentioned I was going to create a cuff bracelet out of sections of resin. After deliberating on the idea for a while, I have decided against it for now. It is very time consuming because of all of the pours I have to do to create one bracelet. Because of the time and material cost, as well as the labor involved, the necessary price point would just be too high. Instead, I have settled on these two necklace designs for the time being.

I love the sleekness of them. They have a modern feel with a touch of the 70s. The heart shaped pendant is actually two resin hearts adhered together back to back to create a "puffy" heart. It looks great! I am hoping to find ribbon to be able to do a silver version of both.

I Love Goooooold!

2008-03-10T10:51:00.000-07:00

Remember that quote from Austin Powers Goldmember? I love that movie and these new pieces totally remind me of it! I am creating these 70s inspired pieces with resin and gold foiled ribbin chopped up into little triangles. The resin is a bit more bubbly than I would like, but they will look really cool when assembled. I will be creating eight of the long pieces, then drilling them and creating a cuff bracelet. The square piece will become a ring, and the heart will be a pendant. The teardrop I'm not sure about yet. When the pieces are completed I'll post photos for your viewing pleasure :) Happy Monday!

Tarina Tarantino

2008-03-06T19:51:00.000-08:00

I just had to blog about one of my favorite jewelry designers, Tarina Tarantino. I just happened onto her website about a year ago when I began dabbling in making jewelry. I knew nothing about jewelry design and had the impression that most people that made jewelry were either metalsmith designers or beaders. I did not really care for traditional "beading" and knew nothing about working with metal. Being a graphic designer by career, I knew I liked to "put pretty things together to make them prettier." I also liked pretty skulls. I liked how something "evil" could be made beautiful. It was during my research of this current trend that I found Tarina. "Oh my gosh!," I remember thinking, "If I made jewelry, this is totally the look I would love to create!"

I read her story and looked at all of her product and have watched some of her video work as she opens her new store in Milan, Italy. If I could sit down with anyone and chat with them about how to build a business and market your talent, it would have to be her. And the pink hair! Awesome! I would never have the courage to wear such a bold color, but it works for her.

One aspect of her business that I truly admire is that everything is assembled in her warehouse in California, not overseas, which is something many companies do not do when they grow so large. I stumbled across this article from a back issue of Swindle magazine that is an interesting read:
http://swindlemagazine.com/issue04/tarina-tarantino/

And, if you want to see some amazing, sparkling jewelry, see her shop at http://tarinatarantino.com/

Adventures in Resin

2008-03-02T14:23:00.000-08:00

I have been experimenting with resin and am so excited about this medium! I am finally starting to produce some pieces I feel I can show to the public! The best part is that I am using a lot of bottle caps that would normally be thrown away to create a lot of my pieces. The toughest part is waiting for the resin to cure, as I don't have much patience :) These pieces were worth the wait, though:

This piece is made from a bright orange Naked Juice bottle cap. It is loaded with multi-colored plastic and glass beads. In the center is a shimmery shell bead that looks like an eye. In the middle of the "eye" sits a blue-green plastic bead surrounded by glass beads. There is also glitter placed throughout the resin that gives this pendant a lot of sparkle.

This has got to be my favorite project of the whole week! I call it "Vitamin Candy". It is made from a Flinstones Vitamins cap. It has a doll head "floating" in a sea of candy sprinkles coated in resin. It is not the sort of piece to wear if you don't want to be noticed. :)

This bottlecap pendant is the first one I created using two different layers of resin. You can't tell from the picture, but in the background is neon pink and neon green glitter. Once that layer was cured, I did a second layer and added plastic and glass beads. The three accent pieces are painted glass baubles. It's called "Primary Colors" even though I used hot pink instead of red. :)All of these pieces will be in my etsy shop soon, so check them out! AND, if you want to see some other REALLY awesome resin work, check out this shop: http://stoopidgerl.etsy.com/. She kicks BUTT in this medium and was my inspiration for trying it out!

Hardware

2008-02-26T19:00:00.000-08:00

Don't you love it when you discover how to transform an everyday something into a magnificent, wearable work of art?

I rehabbed and re-sold houses with my family for about 6 years and always LOVED going to the local Home Depot or Lowes to pick up a new faucet, sink, cabinet knob, or anything needed during an extensive remodel. During my frequent trips I would walk up and down the isles just ooing and awwing at all the shiny stuff on display. I didn't see just washers or copper pipes, I always saw a bit of art in them.

Last year when it became apparent that the real estate market was heading south and we were losing money, we quit rehabbing homes. As we were finishing our final rehab project, and I was trying to figure out what to do with my life :) I was picking up some things at Home Depot and just for fun grabbed some washers thinking I could figure out a way to make them into something cool. After many experiments, I discovered ways to incorporate not only washers, but woodruff keys, retaining rings and simple hole plugs into my jewelry designs.

These are some of the designs I have created using items purchased at a hardware store:

It's just amazing to see what simple things can become when you use your imagination! I can't wait to see what I discover next!

Photography

2008-02-25T09:39:00.000-08:00

A lot of designers post photography tips, and I guess I'll have to join that group because I just have to share my success story! I have this new ring design that has been a pain in the you-know-what to photograph! It has a lot of reflective qualities, which give it tremendous beauty in person. However, when photographed, it of course picks up the shadows in the background. Here is the first series I took of it:

Besides being on the dark side, in the first photo you can see a pink shadow in what should be clear glass. It doesn't look horrible, but it doesn't do the piece justice. Same with the second photo. The glass is shadowed by the reflected background.

The solution I found was this: I placed it closer to the light source (my south-facing front door) and draped a sheer white curtain over my head and the piece to cut out some of the glare. Next, I held a 9x12 inch piece of white paper in front of the ring so that only the white of the paper reflected. Here's the result:

Much better, huh? I'm so happy with the adjustment! It now shows how beautiful this ring really is! By the way, all of the photos were taken using a Canon Powershot S3IS set on super macro. It is a great camera (my folks are probably going to want this one back one of these days :)

Now I'm off to list this beauty in my etsy shop!

I wanna be a rock star!

2008-02-23T19:58:00.000-08:00

This is a sampling of my newest design I call "rock star". These are the rings, and I also made necklaces that have 2" stars hanging on ball chain necklaces. Currently these will be carried exclusively at my local retail location, Now and Then in downtown Overland Park, Kansas. I just love the way they turned out. Rock on!

The Sunday Special

2008-02-10T16:29:00.000-08:00

This week I am featuring three handbag sellers from etsy. While looking through the listings for handbags, I saw a lot of talented designers, but these three are my favorites:

Moxie and Oliver have some of the most detailed, to-die-for leather handbags I've ever seen. I can only imagine what they look like in person! It truly looks like craftsmanship from long ago, the kind of bags you might find hidden away in your grandmother's attic. The bag pictured is one of my favorites from their shop. See more of their designs at http://moxieandoliver.etsy.com/

The second seller, Pursecution, sells nicely detailed handbags that have an edge to them. I love this green and black beauty (this mossy green is one of my all time favorite colors). It reminds me of a somewhat recent design from Christian Dior. Very cool. See more of Pursecution's designs at http://pursecution.etsy.com/

The final seller I've chosen, Handbags by Daphne, uses distinctive and modern fabric to create a collection that is very stylish and versatile. I love the bag above from this shop because it would complement almost any outfit. It's modern and unique without being too over-the-top. There are many other cool patterns and styles in her shop at http://daphnenen.etsy.com

Well, now of course I really, really want a new handbag! :) Have a super Sunday everyone!

High Society

2008-02-05T13:24:00.000-08:00

I just finished this new necklace design. I am inventing some pieces with a little higher end look to feature on the other site I sell on, smashingdarling.com. I also love skulls and loved the idea of combining something edgy with something that had a classic, elegant look to it. I found this beautiful gold paint I had in my stash and started painted these giant wooden beads I recently purchased. I combined them with some extra cut glass beads I had and created this design I'm really excited about!

The best part about this piece is that the skull piece can be flipped over to a simple gold disk that matches the gold beads! I think I will have to make one in silver as well :)

The Sunday Special

2008-02-03T09:24:00.000-08:00

I can't believe another Sunday is here already! This week I have picked three sellers who feature fine art or photography. The first one just joined etsy this last week and has already seen numerous sales. I can understand why. The prints offered are reasonable an soooo cute!

One of my favorites is this golden retriever with a tennis ball. It reminds me of my dogs. You can see more at http://dogartstudio.etsy.com/

This next artist creates digital collages and has been part of etsy a little over a year. One of my favorites is the above piece, titled "Train Color". You can see more fabulous digital work at http://divineimages.etsy.com/

Finally, the third seller I'm featuring also does digital collage work as well as fine art. Her pieces are mystical, magical, and often quite eerie. The above piece is titled "New Shoes". I just love the ghostliness of it! You can see more of her work at http://artandghosts.etsy.com/

Well, that's it for today. Have a super Sunday!

Repeat Customers

2008-02-01T15:23:00.001-08:00

My shop has only been open for a few months and I have already had a repeat customer! This is such a good feeling! It is just great when someone likes your product to come back for more.

While I bask in that, my head is spinning with new ideas...too many new ideas. Some days it is so hard to get my thoughts organized! Spring is right around the corner and I am so excited to introduce new designs! I will post my new designs...once I narrow them down. :)

Kitty

2008-01-29T10:40:00.000-08:00

I was out in the 60-degree weather yesterday with my daughter playing in what is left of our leaves. The wind was ridiculous, but Sophia loved it! Of course, Kitty had to go outside with us. We have had Kitty for about 3 years now. She has been through the ringer, let me tell ya. Her tail has almost no fur left and her ears were chewed off by our two dogs (I felt really bad about that). She used to be white, but now, even with a thorough soaking by our washing machine, the closest she gets is a kind of light grey.

Discovering a Niche

2008-01-28T16:38:00.000-08:00

Ever since I joined etsy, I have been struggling to find a niche. I still have not found it, but I am narrowing it down as I go along. Right now I love doing dogtag-style designs, and have just started making word charms printed on frosted shrink plastic. They look really good combined together on a ball chain necklace.

Here is a photo of me wearing a couple of my charms and some of my dogtag designs. It would be nice to actually have a model and the correct lighting, oh, and maybe a cool studio to shoot in with a professional photographer, but that is not in the cards right now, so I am the model and the photographer. I think this shot came out all right. I just wanted to show some of my favorites that I'm working on right now :)

The Sunday Special

2008-01-27T07:31:00.000-08:00

Every Sunday I write about my favorites from etsy sellers. I recently discovered these lovelies:

This is from Crankbunny. They create these lovely pop-up cards. Just awesome! The one pictured sells for $8.00. You can see more of their product at http://crankbunny.etsy.com/

This next seller is Moth to Flame. She does paintings using bleach. Amazing work! Above is "Skeletal Moth". This particular shot is an art card of an original, which sells for $8.00. You can see more of her product at http://mothtoflame.etsy.com/

Finally, this artist is one of the first I discovered on etsy. Her needle-felted animals are superb! She will do a replica of your dog or cat for $145. Sounds like a lot, right? But if you see some of the close-up shots, you can see how much work goes into one of these beauties! Just look at their eyes! Each holds its own unique expression. Truly one-of-a-kind! You can see more of these cuties and her other fabulous illustration work at http://ameliamakesart.etsy.com/

Have a super Sunday!

The Sunday Special

2008-01-20T08:31:00.000-08:00

I have decided to select some favorites from etsy (or maybe other places too) to feature on my blog every Sunday. I have seen so much talent since beginning this venture, it is at times overwhelming. Last week I ran into a new designer on etsy, Ferociter. I love her style and she has some great photos. My favorite piece is this:

I love the foiled skull bead on this pearl choker! It is elegant and a bit evil at the same time! You can see more of ferociter at http://ferociter.etsy.com/

Another favorite of mine is:

This is called "I Am The Wind" by Beth Spatafora of Arete. It was my first etsy purchase. She has since upgraded the design so that the image sits inside a bezel. The version I purchased was simply soldered on the back. I love this change. It really adds polish to the piece! You can see more of her work at http://arete.etsy.com/.

Finally, this next etsy artist is new to the scene, and has a great style, combining vintage pieces with her own designs to create really visually appealing pieces. One of my favorites is this choker:

You can see more of her work at http://shalottlilly5.etsy.com/.

Have a super special Sunday, everyone!

OAK Boston, here I come! :)

2008-01-19T16:59:00.001-08:00

I finally got my display and product shipped out to Boston. Crossing my fingers that it arrives safe and sound. I included a mix of goodies: Plastic "letter yourself" pendants, suede pendants with Swarovski crystal accents, a couple of my "Spread your wings and fly" pendants, smile pendants and my steel pendant necklaces with glass accents. I'm both nervous and excited about this opportunity!

Welcome 2008

2008-01-08T11:09:00.000-08:00

I recently listed my new line of rings. I decided to package them in this tall, hard plastic box. With the insert, it looks very modern and allows me to advertise my shop address without taking over the clean look of the packaging. This one, "lava", sold the first day! I am working on some other versions to sell at my consignment gig. I sure am having fun making them!

Emo

2007-12-26T14:01:00.000-08:00

I had no idea what "emo" was when I heard one of my husband's nieces talking about it the other day. So, I looked it up on the Web and, well, apparently it's a style, or lifestyle, maybe. I'm not sure. It really doesn't seem any different than what was "alternative" in the mid-80's when I was a teenager. When I look at photos of the current "emo" style, it just seems a variation of Susie Sioux (remember Susie and the Banshees?) or Robert Smith from the Cure. Even Sid Viscious of the Sex Pistols had a little of the "emo" style. Anyway, it's just funny that these "new" looks come along that aren't really new at all.

The strangest part, though, is the stereotypes that accompany them, like being severely depressed and "that's why they wear black." I always wore black because it just suited me and still does. As much as I try to steer away from it, every new piece of clothing I buy is black or a dark shade of grey or brown. Of course, being older and a mom, I've learned to throw in a little bit of color every now and then, so I don't look too "depressed". lol

Anyway, I was inspired to create a little "emo" girl pendant. She reminds me of me as a teenager. I guess I was sort of an "emo", or alternative, or punk, or...something like that :)

"Ringing" in the New Year

2007-12-10T07:47:00.001-08:00

I am working on these new little fun rings to add to my site. I don't usually wear rings, but I am really excited about these! Before I add them to my shop I need to figure out how to package them. I have some ideas, but I need to test them out first.

I am realizing the importance of packaging and the branding of that packaging. I have received some orders that are Christmas gifts and I shipped them out with a thank you card but the actual products don't have my logo :( Let's say that person receives the gift and thinks "Wow, I really like that. Where can I get more?" -you never know, it might happen :) Well, if I don't have a tag of some sort on everything, they aren't going to know and the person who originally ordered will most likely have forgotten! Important lesson for me! Now, back to work, probably on tag design :)

My First Display!

2007-11-28T06:25:00.001-08:00

I am so excited to be setting up a display in a local retail shop! I worked on this display all through the Thanksgiving weekend and for being my first effort, I think it turned out quite well! It was just what I had pictured in my head. My family looked at me quite quizically when I was trying to explain my idea of using steel piping and plywood, but once it was done, I think they all liked it. I almost want to just keep it here in my house, but I guess I wouldn't sell anything that way :) Hopefully the shop owner will like my idea as much as I do!

Here it is!

2007-11-17T14:26:00.001-08:00

This has GOT to be the smallest studio ever! I got tired of my stuff inhabiting almost the entire dining room table in our house, so I off I went in search of a space to turn into a studio. It was either the office closet, or a dark, cold corner of our basement. So, I chose the closet, which is only about 32" wide by 24" deep. My husband thought I was crazy, and I wasn't sure it would work, but it did! Of course, someday I hope to outgrow it, but for now it will function just fine...and we will actually be able to eat at the dining room table again!

My First "Live" Sale

2007-11-15T06:17:00.000-08:00

I had the opportunity to have a table at the local retail shop Victorian Trading Company last weekend. It did not cost me anything to set up a table and I sold six items in about five hours of time, so I thought it went pretty well. Of course after I left I went to another sale and spent half of what I earned.

I am currently working on creating the "smallest" studio ever!
I'll post a photo of it once it's completed and you'll see what I mean. :)

Halloween

2007-11-05T07:24:00.000-08:00

It was my daughter Sophia's first Halloween to actually trick or treat. We went to the mall. Good thing we got there early! By the time we left it was packed! I made a Thomas the Train costume for her. She LOVES Thomas! Okay, back to work.

I love L.A.!

2007-10-30T17:30:00.001-07:00

I had the best weekend in L.A.! It was business for my husband and a little business and a lot of play for me! My best friend and his wife are expecting their first child in December and I got to see her oh-so-cute belly! I can't believe that within 48 hours I saw downtown L.A., Laguna Beach, Burbank and Santa Monica! The traffic was a little different than in K.C. On the way back from Laguna it was bumper to bumper the whole way even though there are 6 or 7 lanes of highway! Even with the traffic and the low air quality, I just love it! It smelled like Spring almost everywhere (except downtown, of course).

Before I left Kansas City, I printed off some small promotional cards (about 1" x 4") and left them in various places, like in the restrooms at the airport, tucked into the magazines on the airplane, stuck in the windows of the newspaper machines in L.A., and on the counter at various Starbucks. We'll see if I get any hits from those! I made a sale right before I left, which really got my psyched!

It has taken a couple of days to return to Kansas City time and get creating again, but I am going to list more product this week, so I'm happy.

Finally Fall

2007-10-15T09:41:00.000-07:00

Fall is finally here. It has been hard to believe it is October, as temperatures about a week or so ago were in the low 90s. I can finally feel the briskness entering the air and the leaves are changing color. We are going to have a lot of leaf clean up in our yard from our two monster white oaks! We've been rushing this past weekend to get the rest of our house painted, so I wasn't able to list anything for my shop. I can't believe it's already Monday! I better get rolling! I think I'm going to get my promotional postcards today. I can't wait to see them!

My store is OPEN!

2007-10-04T09:17:00.001-07:00

I finally listed a few items today and am preparing other product photos to be listed soon. I'm so excited!

Previews!

2007-09-28T06:53:00.000-07:00

Much of what I am working on are not quite finished pieces, but I just have to share my excitement! Above are birthday pendants that feature my original line art decoupaged onto wooden pendants. Each pendant features the appropriate birth month flower and all are adorned with corresponding Swarovski crystals for each month. With the sterling plated components, these pieces are absolutely beautiful!

I love working with Swarovski crystals! This pendant is titled "Autumn Splendor."

The "Letter Yourself" collection.

These hand-stamped wooden pendants have a silvery metallic glow and just a touch of attitude!

The Love, Sophia collection I am really excited about!

Prepare to be bombarded by glossy hot pink hearts and sparkling Swarovski crystals!

I will post more photos and information on my products soon!

Getting Ready

2007-09-24T06:11:00.000-07:00

Since March I have been contemplating my new direction in design. I have been experimenting, researching, creating gifts for family and it is almost time to introduce my stuff to the world :)

I am so excited to soon be opening up shop on etsy.com. I am creating fun jewelry pieces at the moment, to add to the already saturated jewelry market :) I am having so much fun with the creative process and with looking at what other artists are doing on etsy! It truly is an amazing venue! I will be posting some preview shots of some of my goodies soon and hope to open shop before the end of October!