Someting New

Sorry it's been so long since I blogged but honestly there hasn't been anything to talk about.  Let me just say I've had some serious changes in direction for work and life.  I can't write about it because I can't even explain it when speaking to someone.  However, if I continue to have a positive mind and stay focused then I will meet my goal in 1 year. 

Mother's Day = Money (Hopefully)

There wasn't a blog from me yesterday because my day got turned around a little.  It started out just chillin out in the house and then something brought me out.  When I got out the house I took full advantage and didn't get back in until 12:30am.  I didn't realize it but this is the perfect week to go out because Mother's Day is right around the corner and I had many people asking to see my jewelry to purchase something for their mother.  If I would have been thinking yesterday would've been the perfect day for me to carry around my jewelry bag but I didn't have it.  That's cool because it still didn't stop me from passing out my business cards. 

While I was out I texted Nicole and she asked me to email her all my pieces I have for sale to her.  Hopefully she will buy one, which I think she will.  P.S. - that's the girl in NY - she's awesome!

Mr. District365 also is working his magic and trying to help connect me with other jewelry makers or people who can help further me along.  Also, I'm still working with the facebook page making and posting pictures and giving information about the stones I use.  I even try to share things about how I feel and what I want to use material wise.

Last minute I'm not going to the lounge tonight as I mentioned 2 days ago.  Why you asked, well first I'm tired from last night and two I don't know, but it's cool.  Gotta go and update my facebook page.  Hope you check out  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jewelry-By-Miava/199258913444783
 

Goldstone Is So Beautiful

I made another necklace today with the Goldstone beads I have.  They are not the focal point of my necklace but they just seem to go so well with the stones I have.  So today I decided to put them with this green and orange colored Agate I have.  I'd been wanting to make this necklace for awhile and today was the day I did it.  It was so beautiful out that I actually got a lot accomplished.  I was able to even people watch at Lafayette Park, but that's beside the point. 

So on my way to people watching, I was waiting at the light and saw that this lady on a wonderful leather and pearl necklace.  Now usually pearls are very formal and kinda boring, but with the leather it gave the pearls an informal look with an S&M twist.  I was all over it!!!  I've decided next trip to the store leather will be in my bag.  Plus I have enough beads where I can make something fun and funky with a little leather added to it. 

Also,  I've been keeping up with my facebook page Jewelry By Miava and I have 1 person (other than myself) that likes my page - I feel good.  I wonder if they read or have read my blog?

P.S.: Before I forget I might have an opportunity to show my jewelry this Wednesday.  Not quite sure as the place is a lounge and it's like a party or something going on but I got the "somewhat" invite from a person who is friends with the lounge owner.  It's kinda nerve wrecking for me to do things like that as I still suffer from anxiety really bad, but I can have a drink and be cool, but right now I don't have anything to lose.  So if I go what's the worse that could happen, nobody buy anything.  Well hell that would happen if I stayed home.  So at least if I do take this opportunity at least people will see me and I'll be out and about mingling around.  But like I said I'm not quite sure if it's going to happen but it's only 2 days away so I will let you know if I do it or not. 

I'm gonna leave you with the necklace I made tonight.  The Agate beads ROCK!  Hope you like it.

Possibilities

So I finally had the meeting with the guy from twitter and things went really well.  We talked, ate and I showed him my jewelry.  He liked all my stuff and thought there was great potential for me to go far.  He said he would try and help me as much as possible and even gave some great advice (which I'm always willing to take).  The thing that was so good about him was that he goes to all these different places in and around DC so he was able to recommend places to me that would be good for me to put on a show.  Despite the fact that I've been looking around for arts and crafts shows to display my jewelry, I still want to put on a show myself.  The only thing that's been hard is getting the people because I don't know alot of people and also if I did have a show in someones house I know, I don't want to post flyers all around DC and then have strangers show up - a little awkard if you ask me.  And also meeting the guy yesterday he gave me a great idea about possibly using this place BloomBars which is a non-profit place.  I think they allow artists to put on shows there, not quite sure I have to do more research. 

In the end he said that May could be a good month for me, yeah really, I hope so too but maybe he knows something I don't know. 

Aside from that things went good and I'm happy with the possibilities that could be. 

One more thing, I put up a facebook page dedicated to my jewelry called "Jewelry By Miava".  For some reason it's linked to my personal facebook site but i'm thinking that could be a good thing for those that don't read my blog or go to my Etsy shop could then see these post I put up and go there just to be curious.  This is definately going to be a challenge because I usually don't write on facebook but now I'm going to have too but just in a business way.  Hey another thing for me to learn about.  I swear I hope this pays off in the long run cause I would be really pissed to put all this effort and time into something that doesn't pan out.   

Praying For Something Good

Since I went out on Thursday I've been laying low in the house for a couple of days making necklaces.  I made this light weight Rock Crystal, Tourmalated Quartz and Pearl necklace.  The Rock Crystal is clear so it has a very spring/summer look to it despite the darnkess of the Tourmalated Quartz.  I've been trying to make more necklaces that people would want to buy for the spring/summer time but it's kind of hard because when I go and buy beads I always gravitate towards heavy looking stones or darker colored stones. 

Aside from that I'm finally going to meet this guy today who would be helpful in getting the word out about my jewelry.  He runs a really good website for things to do in DC and we've been trying to meet for about the last month but something always happens where we can't meet.  But today is the day.  He's already seen some pictures of my work but it's nothing like seeing it in person.  It's going to be very informal at Bus Boys but you never know what can come of an informal meeting. 

You know the title of this post is Praying for Something Good because now I really need some additional prayers. I find myself doing things I would have never done before and it's getting really hard.  I'll just leave it at that.  I still have my Etsy shop which I check more than I want to on a daily basis only to see the numbers the same and no request to buy anything.  Just for fun here's the shop name http://www.jgirlred.etsy.com/  Oh but I do have some good news - I did find a site where I was able to make a free banner for my shop.  So instead of it being super bland with bad pictures, it's just bad pictures with a nice banner.  LOL!  Hey if I don't have a sense of humor who the hell will?  But my next purchase will be the necklace stands/statues.  It's a good investment especially when doing shows.  It shows the necklaces off instead of them just laying down on a table.

Ahh other good news, I got a response back from Crafty Bastards and they haven't posted their application but it will be up soon.  So I'm gonna keep an eye up for that.  If I can get in there it will be amazing.  Their next show is in October in Adams Morgan so you know that's gonna be big.  I must also say that I have this really good woman who's been helping me and I kind of look to her as a mentor somewhat.  We don't speak on a regular basis but she always sends me information for possible craft shows to sign up for. 

Anyways,  one more thing to be happy for is today is my 1 year anniversary. 

Here's the necklace I made yesterday.  My camera really sucks and this is under the best light in my house.  But I hope you enjoy.

Questions

Why do people leave you when you need them the most? 
Does being successful mean you have to be sad?
Is traveling your own path right if it makes you feel wrong?
What good is anything if there's no one there to share it with?
If you don't have anyone to talk to is it okay to talk to yourself?  If you don't know the answer then what good is it to talk to yourself?  Where then do you get the answer from when you need one?

I'm in a sad mood right now and since I'm the only person that reads my blog I guess no one else will judge or answer my questions. 

Good Night. 

Dainty and Feminine

It's been about a week since I've made a necklace and this morning I made a beautiful necklace with Rose Quartz and Pearl.  I wanted to do something dainty and feminine since my last two necklaces I made were kind of funky looking.  Considering the weather here in DC has been hot and sticky, this light hearted necklace goes perfect with the weather and would go perfect with something light and airy. 

Let me switch to another topic which is my shop that I have on Etsy.  I've placed 6 necklaces up for sale and haven't sold anything.  I'm not expecting for people to automatically buy my stuff because I realize that my shop isn't all that appealing.  I don't have a banner, no colors to catch peoples attention, and no shop name, just not so great pictures of my jewelry.  Compared to the thousands of other people that sale on Etsy, this shouldn't come as any surprise but I'm gonna be honest and say that it is a little shocking.  Maybe that's just my ego speaking because I think my stuff is great. 

However, because I want to be successful with my jewelry business and things are getting a little stressed for me and money isn't falling from the sky, I'm going to definately start working longer and harder to get what it is I need.  Don't get me wrong I thought I had been putting in long hours but I need to do more obviously.  Anyways, I'm going to leave you with a picutre of my new Rose Quartz and Pearl necklace. 

Enjoy!

I Love NY

With the New York trip finally behind me I can now tell you how awesome it was.  I left on Wednesday with a one-way ticket not knowing how long I was going to stay and not knowing what was going to happen.  Let me be clear when I say that was the BEST decision I ever made.  As you know, I finished the rosary for the girl and decided that it would be best for me to go to NY to hand deliver the rosary.  That way I would get a chance to meet her and I also thought that hand delivery would give a good impression and show dedication.  When I finally met her, she absolutely loved the rosary I made for her.  She said that it was just what she wanted and the colors were perfect.  I was beyond happy and still don't have any words to describe my feeling.  She was very nice and we had a good dinner where we were able to chat and just get to know one another.  During the dinner she took me by surprise and said that she wanted to sell necklaces and wanted me to make them for her.  She said she was really impressed with the way I kept in contact with her and my overall work.  I was stunned!  I was in no way expecting that but it just reassured me that coming to NY was a good decision.  And after we finished dinner, of course I had my jewelry bag with me, I showed her all my other jewelry made and she loved my work. 

Then I finally decided to leave NY on Saturday at 1:00.  Little did I know that a light was shining down on me because here I am standing in line and there's a young girl standing behind me.  We begin talking having a good conversation and we sit next to each on the bus.  She tells me that she works for NY Magazine and I tell her that I make jewelry.  She ask me do I have a website and I tell her no and she says that she makes websites and will make me one for free.  WTF!!!  She continues on to say that she makes websites for fun and they are pretty easy to make.  Thank you JESUS. We talk the whole trip down to DC and she's a really nice person.  We exchanged information and she tells me to email her on Monday, which I do.  The one thing I've been struggling with and I knew was most important to having a business just fell in my lap.  I couldn't have been more thankful.  So I emailed her today and she won't be able to start working on the site until this weekend.  However, she gives me a website to check out.  I can't wait for her to help me with this.  Once again, I'm blessed. 

Rosary Done New York Here I Come

I've finally finished the rosary that I was working on and man was it a doozy.  I think the last time I spoke about it I was still waiting for the letters to come and when they did I was disappointed because they were smaller than what I wanted.  They are 1/2" tall and when I saw them online I thought they would look fine with the beads that I had on, but instead they wound up looking small to me.  But I still put the rosary together and was emailing the owner back and forth and I took pictures and showed them to her.  To my surprise, she liked it and didn't have a problem with the letters.  She asked me to take pictures with the rosary on and I did in various ways since it is so long and now I'm just waiting for her response, I'm thinking I should get it tonight.  We've been emailing one another today and I'm gonna go to NY on Wednesday, just because I think it would look good for me to hand deliver it to her and I'd get to meet her.  I want to make the best impression I can because you never what could happen.  When I go up on Wednesday we're gonna have dinner and that way we can chat and talk and I'll get a chance to show her my other work and maybe I'll get more work from her.  To be honest, I don't mind going to NY because I love the city and hell it's a break from DC.  I wish I could show you a picture of the finished product but it's too long for one picture.  Literally I had to take 3 picutres just to show the whole thing.  CRAZY!

But other than that I haven't been doing anything, no jewelry made.  Unfortunately I was sick yesterday so my creativity was stiffled.  But I will blog tomorrow before I leave.  I'm super siked about meeting this girl.  I want to make the best impression I can.  Another reason I want to go to NY is because if she has anything she wants me to change I want to be available to do.  I want her to see my dedication to my work and my customers.  These are the things I have to do. 

Application Where Art Thou

As I predicted I wasn't able to blog yesterday but I'm back today with not much, but something to talk about.  So the weather is crappy and I've been in the house all day.  I had plans but the weather definately put a dent in them.  But I've dedicated the past 2 hours to surfing the Internet and looking for different art shows coming up to apply for.  Well luck struck not once but twice.  They are still accepting applications for crafty bastards which is having their arts & crafts show in Adams Morgan in October.  So once I find out where the application is I will fill it out and hopefully I'll get picked to be a vendor.  That's a huge show and I'm sure things will be good the second time around.  Plus I'm also gonna check out the Liberty North market here in NW and SW. 

Yesterday I went to a mixer for a Radio Station and it was cool.  I met a lot of nice people there and it was just good to get out.  I believe I said before that I'd been in the house for like 3 days, ugh, I know but it's good to relax sometimes.  I'm finding the more I relax the more I'm able to concentrate and

Oh I think I promised the pictures of the 2 necklaces I made the other day.  Well look no further here they are.  What do you think? 

2 Down How Many to Go

I'm sitting here on my bed working on this Kyanite and Goldstone necklace.  I've been wanting to put these two stones together and now that I finally have I'm wondering how it's gonna turn out.  The Kyanite is green and the goldstone is like orange color with brushed gold.  Don't know exactly how to describe it but the stone is a beauty.  Anyways, as I'm sitting here looking at it (not quite done), it's much different from my pieces in that it doesn't have the consistency of pattern as my other pieces do.  I usually stick with some type of pattern to give it a balance but this one doesn't have it.  Like I said, I absolutely love the stones but the pattern throws me off a little, but in a good way.  Maybe it's the mood I'm in.  You know my feelings have always driven me in the way the necklaces come out and this off balance necklace is exactly how I feel right now - off balance.  But that still doesn't take away from the beauty of the necklace.

Earlier this morning I made a necklace with turquoise and silver.  Ahh, talk about AMAZING!  That stone gets me everytime, especially when paired with silver.  But check this out, I did a U-turn and added another stone with it - HOWLITE!  That's right I did it - Turquoise, Howlite and Silver balls.  At first I was just playing around with the Turquoise and silver then I decided to try something different and those 4 Howlite beads I used were exactly what I needed.  It gave me what I was looking for.  I'm sure you're thinking by now what mood was she in earlier?  Well let me tell you I was amped up and in a funky, fun mood and that's what the necklace is - funky and fun. 

I haven't uploaded the pictures of the 2 necklaces to my computer but I will post the pictures tomorrow.  P.S. I got my contest necklace back and it's on the market for sale.  No I didn't win but one of the women who works in Beadazzled told me that she loved my piece.  She loved the funkiness of it.

So let me jump ahead to tomorrow because there's a good probability that I might not blog.  I told you about the React Radio Station premiere thing I'm going to, well it's not for me but my girlfriend but I'm gonna go and use it to gain contacts and show my jewelry.  It's early from 3-7:30 but there's a good chance I will go out afterwards and just try and sell or get more business.  I find myself always looking to meet contacts, etc.  My going out just to be going out days I'm noticing are kind of over because I'm always promoting myself/jewelry.  I guess that's what happens when you rely on yourself for income and not a bi-weekly paycheck.  Whatever, I'm not complaining.

Lets Try it Etsy

I've decided that I could not go a full 3rd day without blogging so here I am.  With my past weekend and Monday being hectic, I've been laying low the past couple of days by doing a little R&R.  My body was worn down and I feel like I'm working harder than I did when I had a 9-5.  Now don't get it wrong, it's not like I've been laying in the house doing absolutely nothing, remember I spoke about my rosary project, well yeah I've been working on that.  And trust me making a rosary is a lot harder than you would think.  I'm making a chain, vintage, non-traditional rosary, plus on top of that, instead of the crucifix, I had to shop around and find brass letters (which I finally found on Etsy last night).  For the last 3 days, I've had wire burns on my index fingers from all the wire wrapping I've done, but I must say this rosary is beautiful.  The colors of antique brass and metallic bronze came together to make a beautiful statement.  Now I'm just waiting for the letters to come in and once they do I will add those and stare at my masterpiece before I send it off to its rightful owner. 

In shopping for these brass charm letters I never thought that I would find them on Etsy, but the site came through for me.  And although I've known about Etsy for awhile I finally decided today to open shop there at http://www.jgirlred.etsy.com/ and try to sell some of my necklaces on there.  When I tell you I've been trying all the stops to sell my jewelry I really have.  I already posted two pictures on there and they've received quite a few views so I just might add another one tonight.  The good thing is they give you 4 months for each picture to stay up for only .20 or until they sell.  If they don't sell in the 4 months then the site automatically takes them down.  But hell, 4 months is a long time.  Plus do you know how many necklaces I can make in 4 months?  Anyways, I hope it works out cause it would be nice to have an income come in from just posting pictures on the Internet. 

Networking

Okay so yesterday I was drained of all energy I had but managed to get myself out of the bed early this morning to go to a bead show at the Marriott Hotel, and boy am I happy I went.  I carried myself and my bag of jewelry down there, brought cheap strands of gemstones and even did networking.  I spoke with some vendors down there and even the woman who hosts the event.  She was very nice and I showed her my jewelry (which she loved so much she even took pictures to diplay on her website).  We swapped information and I talked to her about my interest in doing more jewelry shows and she said she was willing to help me and wanted me to be a vendor at the next show she hosts. 

When I left there I caught the bus and went to another bead store where I had to pick up more beads to start working on a rosay project I have.  I managed to work on the rosary for about an hour and half but still have more to do.  Sometime this week I have to go to Michaels craft store and look for some metal letters for this rosary.  It's not the traditional rosay but has a more vintage look, I'm already loving the colors I picked out for it.  This time I'm not using gemstones but instead colored glass czech beads, they have a metallic brass color which gives it that very antiquish look. 

Anyways, I'm tired so I will follow up tomorrow.  No more bead buying for awhile but I definately have a lot of work ahead of me. 

   

First Show

Let me start off with saying that I would like to thank the woman who gave me the opportunity to show my jewelry at an art gallery. 

Today I accomplished a big milestone with doing a jewelry show.  I was a vendor along with two others at a gallery and I must say it was an experience.  It wasn't good and it wasn't bad, it just was what it was.  I learned alot about selling, displaying and people.  Lets start with selling.  I learned that I don't have to be intoxicated to sell my jewelry, that I have a lot more to learn and that for the first show I did very well at selling my pieces, although not many sold.  When it comes to display, I need more money.  My table was very bland compared to everyone else table, however, the vast array of colors in my jewelry helped tremendously in catching peoples attention along with me saying hello to the customers.  And lastly people - ahh this I could go on awhile about.  But I will be nice but I'm sure you will be able to sense a little tension and ire as I write.  First off, I cannot say enough about how this was a great opportunity for me to display my jewelry and have so many different people see it, but I also ran into some rude people.  People picking up my jewelry (which I make with gemstones so some them break very easily) and throwing them back on the table.  Other people being dishonest, and then lastly, the unreliable.  Now before I go any further let me say that I can deal with the first two, but the unreliable ones gets under my skin a little.  I'm not going to explain why but when I did a show such as tonight where all of the customers where friends of the other two vendors (with the exception of 2 people - who came to see me and then a few walk-ins), it makes things very difficult to sell jewelry because they aren't there for you.  They come into the door and go straight to their friends.  They take a couple of looks at my stuff and keep it moving.  Okay I get that because I would probably do the same, but when your support doesn't support you on your big day, yeah it's a stab in the heart.  But you know what, at the end of the day I did make a small profit, not what my initial goal was but something is always better than nothing.

Now on from the ranting, I will tell you which pieces I sold and which pieces I exchanged.  Ain't that some shit, an exchange at a showing where I'm supposed to be selling jewelry.  But whatever to keep the customer happy.  Oh and one last thing, I cannot thank the one person that is my biggest supporter for everything they have done.  I'm not going to say any names but that person has always supported when no one else did, and for that I cannot thank them enough. 

So on to the pieces that I sold and made an exchange for tonight.  Lets start with the exchange cause this is so funny.  Remeber I told you I sold the Chipped Carnelian necklace (I did a post called the Carnelian Wonderland) well that got exchanged for the Magnesite and Pearl necklace.  There was no charge because the Magnesite necklace was $15.00 less than the Chipped Carnelian necklace.  Now the necklaces and earrings that got sold were the Shell and Rock Crystal necklace, the Rhodonite necklace, Olive Jade with black beads and wrapped wire necklace (I will post a pictures of these), and the brass leaf earrings.  Funny because the brass leaf earrings are actually part of a set with an accompanying necklace (but hey whatever a sell is a sell).

                                                             Rhodonite Necklace

                                             Olive Jade with black beads wrapped wire necklace

P.S. I don't know if this is how most people start out with their first jewelry show but I would love to have comments from my fellow followers.  Good nite and you will definately hear from me soon. 

Keeping My Promise

With 4 days left for me to show my jewelry at the DC Loft Gallery, I spent all day working on jewelry.  My goal is to have at least 4 new pieces ready by the showing and I'm almost there.  I made one last night and 2 today, so I'm almost there.  So in keeping with my promise here are the 3 new necklaces made.  Enjoy! 


                                          Magnesite and Pearl

Amazonite and Tourmalated Quartz

Rock Crystal and Shell

Long Day = Productive

This post is gonna be short and sweet.  I accomplished all that I wanted to do today which was getting up early, picking up my beads, enjoying the weather and making a necklace.  I know I said I would upload some of the beads I brought but I'm so tired now I can hardly keep my eyes open.  I finished one necklace made with Magnesite and Pearl so I'll upload that picture tomorrow.  I'm also gonna start working on another necklace made with Amazonite and Tourmalated Quartz, it's gonna be stunning don't worry.  But like I said this is short and sweet so I'll chat tomorrow.  Good Night. 

Playing Catch-Up

Hey everyone, as you can see my days are getting busier and I'm not able to blog everyday.  But it's cool.  To give you a recap of yesterday, first off it was long, I was out the house early and back in late.   I went to the Arts, Beats and Lyrics Exhibit down at the Mellon Auditorium and it was really nice.  It was my first time going and it was a huge hip-hop party with art.  It was really cool to see all the different people there, all creative in their own ways.  Since I don't usually go out to parties, it was really nice to be somewhere where they played good hip-hop music and you could also walk around and see the different artists work.  It was also a great place for networking.  I must admit I just walked around looking at the art and then chilled in the corner listening to the music, but I was content with that.  The exhibit was over at 12 which was a good time because I was able to catch the train and go straight home.

I'm gonna play catch-up and tell you about my day today which was all about the computer, surfing the net looking for different art events in the DC area and just learning how to get exposure for my jewelry.  Staying on the Internet for 3 hours can be hard but I see that it's really paying off because I'm finding more sites that are beneficial to me.  That means that I'm also meeting more people too, and the art world is all about networking.  

In a few days I will be uploading some pictures of some beads I brought and let me tell you that this one stone I brought is gonna blow your mind away.  It's off the wall crazy looking.  I can't wait to make a necklace out of this, it's gonna blow your mind.

Well I gotta go but i'm gonna leave you with a necklace.  This is one of my more aggressive pieces but also one of my favorites.  This is Granite with African Metal and Brass Balls.  ENJOY!

Long Days and Long Nights

I can't say enough about yesterday and how good it was.  My girlfriend invited me to her photoshoot that she was doing for a radio station.  Okay I know the shoot had nothing to do with me, but in her shoots she wore my jewelry.  I swear she's such a good friend trying to bring all the creative people up with her.  Besides the free advertisement for my jewelry, I got a chance to meet a photographer which is always good.  I saw some of his work and it's just amazing.  After the shoot, which lasted 3 hours, we packed our stuff and went out to celebrate her friends birthday.  Let me just say it's getting a lot harder to stay up all day and go out to parties that start after 9pm.  But I'm realizing that this is the lifestyle that comes with the creative world.  While we were at her friends birthday party I received a text message from a girl who is going to place an ad on her website promoting my jewelry, and all I have to do is make a necklace for her.  I mean things just couldn't be any better. 

1. going on a photoshoot
2. meeting a photographer
3. having ad placed on popular website

WINNING!

I know these 3 things may seem small but starting from nothing and having these things happen all in one day is huge to me.  But they are still baby steps.

So to complete it all I have an Arts Exhibit party to go to tomorrow night.  Once again I'm gonna have a long day but it's gonna be worth it.  Not only will the radio station be there who my girlfriend took the pictures for but other artists.  So this could be exactly what I need, meeting other creative people who could help me further my career. 

Crimp Me Bad???

At first I was gonna talk about my day and what I did but there's a change of plans.  Remember I said I sold two necklaces last Saturday and how happy I was.  Well this evening I got a phone call from a friend of the woman whom I sold the necklace to only to be told that the necklace she brought broke.  WTF!!!!  Mind you I was just waking from a nap so this made me jump up out my bed.  I couldn't believe it.  I've had this necklace for about 2 years and have even worn it, and it never broke.  I've never even had to restring the damn thing.  And it BROKE!  But she told me she had all the beads and asked if I could make it over for her and of course I said yes.  I felt so embarassed about it because here I am trying to move forward with this jewelry business and I get a good sell and then a necklace breaks.  I guess the most important thing is to stand behind my jewelry knowing that I make good products, plus I also have no idea how the woman handled the necklace after she brought it.  Don't get it twisted I'm not making excuses but I just don't understand.

So after I heard this news I immediately call the bead store I get my supplies from and start talking to one of the employees because I want to know what could've happened and what I can do to fix this problem, because I have a show on April 9.  I find out there could be a problem with the crimps I use.  She asks do I use the sterling silver crimps and I say no and she says that I should because they are stronger than the cheaper ones and will last a lot longer.  Okay, so now I know.  I have to go and buy 50 sterling silver crimps for $8.99, but it's all an investment. 

Since I've gotten that outta my system like I promised I have a picture of the Sodalite necklace I made.  As you see it's a multi-strand with square and round sodalite beads.  Also at the top are some pearl beads.  I hope you like it as much as I do. 

4 More to Go

Let me just start off by apologizing for not uploading the Sodalite necklace I made.  Now, on to the next one, today was a day of thinking about pricing and all the work I have to do to get ready for the show.  I know I have about 2 weeks until the event but I want to be as ready as possible, covering all my bases.  I already have 16 necklaces and 2 pairs of earrings ready to sell, but I want more.  I would like to have 20 necklaces for sell.  You would think that making four necklaces wouldn't be hard in 2 weeks but sometimes it can take a week for me to make one.  It's the creativity part that takes the longest and putting together a necklace that I love.  The key to all my jewelry is that I have to love it in order to sell it.

I was trying to work on one tonight but it just wasn't coming together.  I want to make a necklace out of some Granite that I have.  The key with Granite is to use less so it's no so heavy and more of a bead.  I don't know I will see.  My brain is fried right now I can't type or think anymore. 

I'm Up for the Ride

These past few days since my last blog have been umm AWESOME.  Let me start with Friday was boring, but Saturday rocked.  A woman had a posting up for an arts show in her gallery and she was looking for artists to display their work.  So on Saturday I went to her gallery and she absolutely loved my jewelry.  As we were sitting there talkikng she was like I love this piece, oh I love this one, and that one too.  Every piece I made she said she would buy.  I mean when she said that my jaw hit the floor.  I walked into the gallery stuttering and a nervous wreck, but 20 minutes into the meeting I literally had people walking up to me asking about my work.  I felt kinda stupid because here it was I had people inquiring about my necklaces and I was digging around picking them out of plastic bags.  Aside from that, I soon became overjoyed when a man decided to buy 2 necklaces from me.  TWO can you believe it???  I sure as hell couldn't but I was also happy to have people love my necklaces so much.  By the end of the meeting, I gathered 3 business cards from people, will be displaying my jewelry at the gallery on April 9 and 10, and have to go meet an owner of a bridal store in Georgetown because she thinks my work could be displayed in her store.  My day was kinda crappy before then but after 3pm you couldn't pay me to shut up.  Not only that but the guy who brought 2 necklaces from me, wants me to make another necklace for him.

The two necklaces sold were the Chipped Carnelian and Crysoprase necklaces.   I can't say enough how excited I am about the sell of these 2 pieces but now I have to get back on the grind and make more for the show.  I have a feeling things are going to pick up.  If so I'm up for the ride.

I almost forgot, I finally made a necklace with the Sodalite beads I'd been crying about the last couple of blogs.  I will post them next blog so you can see my work.  I'm really feeling this piece but then again I love all my necklaces.  If I didn't I sure as sh*t wouldn't be selling them.  Sidebar:  You will probably hear me speaking more about earrings soon.  That and seed bead work are gonna be next on my things to accomplish list.

Hustle and Grind

I had my meeting yesterday and it turned into the longest day.  I'm not gonna complain because I did a lot of networking.  The meeting lasted for about 2 hours but I didn't get home until 11pm.  I was so exhausted that I slept in late and didn't go anywhere today.  But once again don't take this as a complaint.  I managed to pass out some business cards, meet some great people who saw my jewelry and thought I was very talented, and I almost had a sale. 

As you know I had a meeting with a friend to discuss plans for preparing my jewelry party and it went good.  She gave me a lot of advice and things to think about.  She gave me a task list to do which I've started working on and I'm determined to have them complete in 2 weeks.  Tomorrow will be a day for making calls and getting emails.  I was on the computer today trying to find some good free flyer templates to use but I just didn't find any that I liked.  Don't worry there's always tomorrow.   My friend said that the flyers are in addition to the Evites I have to send out.  Ahh, so much to do.  I'm not going to lie, after the meeting yesterday I had to go and have a drink because I was becoming anxious (in a bad way) and I felt overwhelmed.  Once I sat down and thought about it all, and spoke to some people, I realized this is all a part of the hustle and grind it takes to become successful. 

And the Meetings Begin

So here I am sitting down thinking about my next steps.  Don't worry I already have a plan and it's gonna be implemented starting tomorrow.  I will be meeting with my friend who will assist in the planning of my jewelry party.  She's going to host the party and we found a nice place (for free) where we can have it.  But although those two are done, there's so much more she wants me to do, and that's writing and planning.  Let me just say I've never been big on writing things down, but she's not having that.  So, for the whole day today, I've been writing down what I want to do NOW and where I want to go in the FUTURE.  At first I thought this was going to be easy but it's totally not.  Considering my go with the flow type of attitude writing down things I want to accomplish six months to a year down the line is a little difficult for me.  But I was able to do it.  I'm sure there are some things that I forgot or didn't think of but that's why I'm having a meeting with my friend tomorrow.  Like I blogged before, she picks up where I leave off.  I don't always think about everything so it's good to have that second person.

Also, I got another person to vote for my necklace again!!! Yeah it's borderline obsessive but if I could pull people off the street to vote I probably would.  I told you I want to win so my obsessiveness shouldn't be a total shock. But it also feels good to have people support me. 

Since I've come to the end of this blog I'm going to leave you with a necklace of mines.  It's a Red Tiger Eye necklace with a matching pendant.  Hope you love it as much as I do. 

Back On Track

As far as I was concerned today was gonna be just another lazy Sunday, not do much but lay around the house, eat and sleep.  But instead things took a turn for the best.  First let me say I have one of the best friends EVER!  Not just because she's there for me when I need her, tells me when I'm wrong, and is there to celebrate me when something good happens, but she brings in other people to help me win.  For instance, while she was taking headshots she brought her photographer to vote for my necklace.  Thinking about me when she didn't have too. 

But that was just the beginning.  After she finished her headshots, she came and picked me up and I went with her to a brunch at a really nice restaurant.  As we were leaving she started asking the waitors about holding events, etc. etc.  She basically pitched an event for me. That's another reason she's my best friend because she fills in where I fall off.  So I'm telling all this to say that my jewelry party is still on.  I must be honest in that the March 26 date will be pushed back but it's still going to happen. 

Of course I will keep you posted. 

What is Success?

Riddle me this.  How do you know when you have become successful?  Is success measured by what you physically have or by what one has attempted to do?  All the while sometimes failing and sometimes succeeding.  This question may seem a little odd but today I was at the party of a 61 year old.  The conversation took many turns and eventually led to an hour long conversation of government work and benefits for life. As I sat there listening, I began thinking if I made the right decision in life.  Lets just say I never worked for the government and won't be receiving any benefits for life.  Would my life be better knowing that I have a guaranteed check every month, yet was miserable for the years I worked, or am I better person doing what I want to and taking the hard road by chasing my dreams of becoming a successful jewelry maker and actually loving what I do?  My mind gears towards the later because that's the road I'm on now, but will it all be worth it lets say 1 year down the line.  Will I have accomplished the goals I've set for myself.  And even if I haven't will I still feel good about my attempt at chasing my dreams. 

This is what I'm thinking now.

Sodalite Me

Lets start off with today being the most beautiful day ever!  I was determined to take advantage of the 75 degree weather we were blessed with.  When I left the house around noon I met up with a friend and went down to the bead shop where my contest necklace is displayed.  Go ahead and say it...Yes I'm pressed.  Today was the first day it was on display and damnit I was gonna be the first person to vote and drag one of my friends down there to vote as well.  My desperation also drug me down there to see the competition.  I was a little shocked to see there weren't as many entries as I thought but there was some good work done.  The multi-strand category my necklace is in really only had one other necklace that looked good, the other were, hmmm so-so.  But I must say that I was super impressed with the seed bead work.  I think I'm going to learn how to do that.  I saw a book that teaches how to do it and it doesn't look all that hard.  Anyways, I will be going back down to take more people so they can vote for me.  I feel so ridiculous dragging people down there, but in the end, it would be nice to win. I can't lie. 

On to the next topic.  As you can see, the title for this post is Sodalite Me.  Why you may ask?  Well I've been messing around with these square Sodalite beads I have and damn if they aren't hard to work with.  I brought them last year when they were half off and I just knew they would be easy to work.  Boy was I WRONG!!! These square beads are alot harder than expected.  It's not the color, but the square shape that makes it difficult.  You know as I was getting dressed today I was going through my jewelry box picking out a necklace to wear and I ran across this multi-strand coral necklace I have and I got an idea.  Hmmm, I could do the same but with the Sodalite, and not use anything else and that would be nice.  Or, I also have some extra Mother of Pearl funky shape beads I could use in the necklace too, but that's just a thought.  I will try to make this necklace but I have a feeling it's gonna be a put it together and take apart type of thing. You know this is like the third time I've made and taken apart a necklace using this stone.  Oh well, eventually it will come together.   

See this once again goes back to my previous blog of wishing I could draw and it would make things so much easier.  You know I have this saying, "people in hell want ice water but you can't always get what you want."  Drawing is like that for me.  On the other end it's cool too because all my jewelry designs come off the top of my head and in the end that's what separates me from everyone else.  That's what makes me ME. 

Agate off the Brain

First I would like to apologize for not blogging yesterday, I was sick to my stomach.  Yesterday was a stay in the house and sleep all day type of day.  Hell, I don't even think I ate anything.  That's when you know I'm sick cause I love to eat. 

So, as you know a couple of days ago I had Agate on the brain and was wondering what I could do with these strings of Agate I had left.  I tried putting it with Sodalite (which didn't work), so my final decision was to use it solo.  I also put in a few Black Onyx stones just for a different color (I guess). And my fellow followers I believe I created a good piece.  When I first put it together, I was looking at it and thinking to myself is this good or not?  It looks really funny when it's laying flat so I couldn't quite figure it out.  But to help me figure this necklace out, I decided to wear it to the store, with a round neck t-shirt and jeans.  And guess what, it was perfect!   But check it out and tell me what you think.

SIDENOTE:  Now that I think about it, it could probably be worn with a nice work outfit depending on exactly what the outfit is.  Can you see this simply as a get up and go necklace or jazz up a suit piece? 



FYI:  I'm still thinking about the jewelry party I'm want to have next weekend.  I think I've been slowly putting it off, but I'm trying not to.  Don't worry there will more updates until my party date of March 26. 

Agate on the Brain

I've had a few days of not having much to say about anything let alone beading.  But now I'm back on track where I've joined Flickr, posted pictures and also joined beading groups.  I feel that by extending myself in these various ways gives me a glimmer of hope that my work will become recognized.

So awhile back I brought these beautiful strings of Agate with different sized beads and now I've been thinking about what I could do with them.  Here's the thing, I have a huge jewelry box full of beads and as far as I'm concerned none of them match the other.  But I'm slowly getting over that because my contest piece doesn't really match and I'm still in love with that necklace. Anyhoo, I'm thinking about something funky, bold, and just all in your face.  ALERT!  I just remembered I have some super kick ass sodalite beads.  This is going to be amazing.  I feel a necklace stirring around in my mind.  I will keep you posted on the final result. 

Oh, here's a necklace with a few pieces of the Agate, the other stones are Mother of Pearl, Tourmalated Quartz and Black Onyx.  It's a off the wall opened-ended necklace.  I also managed to sneak in a small jump ring so it can be closed as well. This thing rocks!!!

The Haves and Have Nots

I was just watching The View and there was this big movie director on as a guest.  He's directed some of the funniest comedy movies out and was talking about how he was flying on private planes, buying mansions all across the country and then when he brought his last mansion in Beverly Hills, after the movers left he was standing all alone in the middle of his HUGE home and then he asked himself the question, "does money make you happy?"  He then went on to say that he began to simplify his life and moved into a very nice trailer park. WTF! LMAO!  So, now I'm thinking he has less crap but more money. 

My question is this, why does it take for a person who has large mansions, flying private planes, and lots of money to ask the question does money equal happiness?  Seriously. Were they asking this question when they didn't have any money?  I can tell you now and I ain't never flown in a private plane and don't have lots of money, that HELL YEAH money equals happiness.  Here's the reason, because money gives you options.

OPTIONS:  I'll pay my bills OR I won't pay my bills
NO OPTION:  I can't pay my bills

OPTIONS: Should I eat in OR should I eat out?
NO OPTION: I don't have anything to eat

I'M JUST SAYING.

Carnelian Wonderland

Here's another picture of my jewelry - this is Chipped Carnelian with Carnelian beads.  Did I forget to tell you that all of my jewelry is for sale?  All inquires will be answered about any jewelry made or even custom orders.  I do it all!

Sudden Detour and PRAYER

So I'm pushing forward to get myself together for the upcoming jewelry show.  Yes, the date is March 26 at 12:00 - supposedly.  Ugh, I had it all planned out and then there was a change (of place and people).  Nothing major but now I have to do a little more and deal with some things I wasn't really looking forward to doing.  I'm still very thankful to be able to pull off this task but simply overcoming my fear is a grand task in itself.  What's next?  What do I do?  First I have to find another place and second gather the people.  The place isn't hard to get but the people is another problem.  Ok, let me clear this up, the people aren't hard to get but getting people who will potentially buy my necklaces are.  You ever heard of the people that want something for nothing?  Well I know a lot of people like that and those are the ones I don't want to invite.  

See how easy it is to get pulled down after having such an amazing day?  Don't worry I have words of encouragement and prayer that will follow. 

Encouragement - You are so lucky to have 2 people support you.
Prayer - Please let people start reading my blog - AMEN!

And finally, yesterday I took my necklace to the bead store where the contest will be held and I already had positive feedback.  It made me feel like I was "WINNING."  lol.  But I must say I was good in that I didn't break out into a nervous sweat and twitches in wanting to buy beads.  I swear that place is like a crackhouse for crackheads.  The desire to buy beads is always overwhelming - but better that than crack.  Off topic - but in a couple of days I'm sure I will have started working on some necklace that I will want to show off so be on the look out.  If not don't worry I always have other wonderful pieces that I'm dying to show you.  You know what I'll just post one for the heck of it.  What's a jewelry blog if there's no jewelry huh?  In that respect I'll end this post with one of my famous necklaces made with AMETRINE.  She's a realy beauty huh? 

Who Da WOman

So I finally finished my contest necklace at 1:00am.  My fingers and eyes were burning along with severe tension in my neck and back.  But I'm very impressed with the final result.  When I blogged yesterday I was still in the middle of making the necklace and by the time I finished it, the necklace had taken yet another surprise turn in the way it would turn out.  Ok, remember I said my initial idea was a multi-strand chained necklace?  Well last night I didn't think it was possible and was just going with a single-stranded necklace (but with a funky flair) to it.  So by the time I finished putting on the beads, I was playing around with it and realized that I could still pull of my original idea.  So it's not with the blue and white beads I wanted but I definately love this better.  This has a two in one look to it.  Let me shut up and just post the picture and you can judge for yourself. 

Aren't the Howlite beads beautiful? 

As you can see I definitely swing towards the non-conventional type of necklaces.  If I saw this on someone I would totally die to have it.  It gives off the look that it shouldn't be together but totally does.  OMG I just had a thought.  Imagine this necklace with a white button down shirt (3 buttons un-opened) tucked in black slacks with a pair of black stilettos.  SEXY! 

Now that I have this project complete, I can now focus on the upcoming jewelry show on March 26.  And by focus I mean preparing myself mentally.  Yeah I've spoken about my fear and the drinks I'll have before, but I haven't really been thinking about it since I made the decision to go for it.  Anyways, not much to blog about but I'll keep you up to date.   

Carpal Tunnel

I've decided that I'm not going to enter the Carnelian necklace into the jewelry contest but I've started working on another necklace made out of the chained link.  It's not close to my original idea but I like this one better.  My friend was right about sometimes the second design being better than the first.  Hmmm I think I will start listening to people more, they actually have good advice I should take.  Anyways, this one is going to be Black Onyx and Howlite beads with some chain.  Don't get too anxious I will submit a picture after my masterpiece is complete.   

Seriously I'm tired as hell.  I'm still working on my masterpiece and I swear putting all these little ass beads on this chain is tearing my fingers up.  But in all my sweat, time and hard work it's slowly coming together.  You know these are things that people don't see and I understand why people charge absurd amounts of money for handmade items.  There really is no price one can put on time spent making something.  For instance, I've been putting beads on a 12" chain for the past 2.5 hours.  Can someone please tell me how much that's worth?  Considering that under no circumstance could I ever get that 2.5 hours of my life back.  I mean I love what I'm doing but hell this alone is worth at least $100 and it's only half the necklace!    

So since I only have 5 days left and I don't want to rush during the weekend to complete this I'm gonna cut it early and see you guys tomorrow.  Plus my damn fingers hurt.  Can you get carpal tunnel in your fingers?  Sounds stupid huh?  Ok, gotta go.  I'll post the picture tomorrow.

Sleep Deprivation = CREATIVITY

This day has definitely been interesting considering that I couldn't get to sleep until 7:30am and then only managed to slip in an hour or two of sleep.  Then I was up again.  Even though the lack of sleep doesn't help because I was tired as hell, however, there was an up side to it.  1) I watched the early early morning news I think at 4:30am, 2), I mopped my floors at 5:30am, and lastly all the way up until I actually went to sleep, I was thinking about this necklace I wanted to make.  When I finally decided to get out the bed and be productive, I immediately went to my jewelry box and pulled out all the materials and beads I'd been thinking about all night/morning to make this necklace.  And there I was working diligently to put this necklace together.  There was no stopping me and my vision that I'd seen all along came to fruition.  After I finished, I was so proud of myself that I had to tweet about it.  The color combination of Carnelian along with the gold beads is not only beautiful, oh it's just heavenly.

Hmm...isn't orange supposed to be the new spring color?  Well if so then I'm sure someone will buy this from me.  I'm not being arrogant but this necklace is stunning.  I was even thinking about submitting it in for the jewelry contest, but I still want to try my multi-chained beaded necklace.   

You know what, here's a picture so you can see how stunning it is.  FYI: I'm a jewelry maker not a photographer so the true beauty of the carnelian stone doesn't pop as much but it's still a beauty.  Let me know what you think.

Oh, I almost forgot, I have one more important thing to share with my fellow followers.  I previously said that I have this overwhelming fear when I have to "sell" myself to people to sell my jewelry.  Well, I've taken the first step to overcoming this fear and that's setting up a jewelry show.  I know this may sound easy to do but for me, this is the equivalence of me standing naked in the middle of a crowded street.  Today I took the first step and called a friend to have the show at her house and send out the evites to her friends.  On March 26, 2011 at 12:00, people will arrive to see and potentially buy my jewelry.  Yeah, ok, so I usually don't drink before 4 or 5pm but at 12 noon (possibly before) I will have consumed some wine/alcohol to calm myself down.  Otherwise, it won't be pretty.  I've decided that in order for me to succeed, as I plan on doing, taking the easy road isn't an option anymore.  So fears, move out the way, SUCCESS HERE I COME!!!

Sticking to My Design

Ok, so now that I'm comfortable with "blogging", I'm slowly making changes fit to what I see attractive for a beading site.  I immediately start thinking about, now how do I get pictures of my jewelry up?  This is ultimately what I'll be talking about and what I want people to notice.  Blah, blah, blah I found out and the pictures will come.  Just not today. 

Today is a day for more writing and informing you of my decision to enter into a jewelry contest about 2 weeks ago.  I figured it would be good for me to do as it would be a challenge to push myself beyond what I normally make.  So when I entered the contest I figured 2 weeks was enough time for me to execute my piece (because I already had an idea in mind) and then submit it.  Well, lah di dah, it ain't quite working that way.  I started working on it and my original idea I saw was totally going down the drain as there was severe frustration on my part because a) I didn't know how to bring it together and b) I didn't have enough beads. P.S. I did tell you yesterday that following this dream takes all your time and money right?  Yeah, so the money is low and now I have to think up this great necklace in a week.  Sure it can be done but I'm not worried about that but I just totally loved my initial idea.  I'll let you in, it was going to be a multi-chained layer of beads (with all shades of blue and some white beads).  I even brought these beautiful Howlite beads and everything. 

You know the thing that sucks to me is that I can't draw to save my soul.  I swear my stick figures even suck.  So this makes things a little more difficult and it takes a lot longer for me to do something because I'm putting together, taking apart or fixing something and that crap can really take a long time.  See if I could draw I think it would be so much easier. 

Anyways, despite my second hurdle of not being able to draw, I'm still going to work on this piece and will submit my final necklace in all its glory.  I will even be nice and put a picture up for all my fans to see.  :)

Beading Here I Come

So this is my first time blogging and it feels kind of weird.  I'm on a new journey in life and I've given up the mainstream way of doing things and have finally decided to go to the edge of the cliff and dive off hoping that my parachute will open up before I hit the ground.  For the last 5 years I've always wanted to pursue my dreams of making jewelry full time, and now I'm finally doing it.  The thing about it is that it's alot harder than expected, it truly is the hardest thing I've ever done. I'm constantly questioning myself as to whether or not I can do it only to finish off my solo conversations saying chants to myself of encouragement and prayer. I've realized that making jewelry and selling jewelry are two different ball games.  One takes minimal effort and time and the other takes, well hell, everything you have to give and all your money! 

Here's a little background, I'm the creative/social person who can make a beautiful necklace and talk about it all day in any general type of conversation way.  But the moment I have to put on my sellers hat and actually try to get people to buy my jewelry I become overwhelemed with fear.  For instance, if I see something in the store that catches my eye I may walk away and look at other stuff, but if I really want that (i.e. clothes, shoes, jewelry) I will go back and get it.  I don't need a store clerk to sell me something.  Okay, I understand this isn't helping my case on me wanting to sell my jewelry, but this all ties into my non-selling abilities for my own jewelry.

However, despite my non-selling abilities, I'm determined to overcome my fear and bead my way with beautiful necklaces all the way to the top baby!