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!