New retail locations for KMS Designs resin jewelry

Announcing several new places across the country to purchase my resin and scrabble tile pendants.

Florida:

Lyonia Environmental Center, Deltona

Vickie Lynn's Salon, Lakeland


Massachusetts:

Prelude Gifts, Needham

Missouri:

Trova, St. Louis

New Mexico:

Lilly Barrack, three locations in Albuquerque

Pennsylvania:

The Malone Flower Shop, Canonsburg

Tennessee:

Dandridge General Store, Dandridge

Stop in and say hi.  (Even if you don't buy anything, please tell them you think they're pretty cool.  *wink*)

Reviewing accomplishments in resin jewelry making

This past week, I have taken the opportunity to review 2010 and my resin jewelry business. This is a time for me to reflect upon and evaluate my decisions. A lesson I have learned from other successful business owners, regardless of the enterprise, is not that they always made the right decisions, but that they always made a decision and executed it. I make it a point to gather facts, review, then make a choice accordingly. It seems that most businesses (and people for that matter), can get the first two things done, but not the last one.  It is in that frame of mind, that I'm going to discuss my decisions here.

What major decisions did I work on this year?

I began the year with a larger focus on selling wholesale. I resigned from the local artisans' guild and decided not to do the spring art shows like I have done in the past. I only participated in two, local, fall art shows, mostly because they are local and have been good venues for me in the past.  While the economy has not made it a stellar year, I am excited about the future of this and look forward to expanding my wholesale market.

I met my goal of teaching a jewelry making class locally each month.  I find it is a great way to keep my skills in check. Teaching others how to make jewelry forces me to think creatively as well.

Through social media, I was able to network with a few influential people within the art business world.  I'm excited that I have a close business relationship with these people and can rely on them for expert help within my art business.

I continued to support a few, worthy charities with my art jewelry for their auctions and benefits.

What other specific decisions worked?

Introducing a line of jewelry with a price point under $15 was successful. I think after the economy recovers, I can continue to have success with these pieces of contemporary jewelry because they are unique and colorful.

I hired someone to help me with my jewelry making.  This was a tough decision for me since I am the type that expects perfection from myself.  It's hard to task someone else to do things in the jewelry making process without knowing if that same person will also take the assignments just as seriously.  My assistant started with a few small tasks and has asked for more responsibility.  I look forward to giving her expanded duties in 2011.

I reduced the number of galleries I work with that are "consignment only ".  While this reduced the total amount of my jewelry in retail outlets by more than half, I managed to increase my overall sales volume by working with cash, wholesale customers only.

So what wasn't successful?

I'm disappointed my advertisements I bought in wholesale catalogs didn't bring more leads. I don't know whether this is due to not advertising the right jewelry, not having an "eye-catching" ad, or perhaps that it wasn't the right place to advertise. I have put this on hold until after my wholesale show next month when I can see what resonates with wholesale customers.

I started another website, Handmade Resin Jewelry.   My hope was that it would bring more sales to my KMS Designs Resin and Acrylic jewelry website.  While it may still be too early to tell, the results have not been exciting as of yet.

What decisions am I contemplating now?

I am mulling over the possibility of having an outside source manage the commerce portion of my retail website.  I am exploring options now and hope to have a decision made by the end of January.

I would like to expand tasks to another person (hired or intern) to get more public relations exposure.  There are a lot of bloggers and media outlets I would like to work with and obtain press coverage from.  This would also give me more time to work on jewelry!

What things are you considering for 2011?

Handmade silver and resin jewelry video

I finally took the plunge into making a "movie" about my resin jewelry. It's been something I've wanted to do, but quite frankly, I just didn't know how to do it. A blogging buddy of mine turned me on to Windows Movie Maker and I used it to create this two minute video about my silver and resin jewelry. While it's not going to win an Academy Award for best short documentary, I think it turned out pretty well. Enjoy!

Tips for art show attendees

If you're thinking of attending the Downtown Festival and Art show, Gainesville, Florida (or any art show for that matter) this coming weekend, these are a few suggestions I have for anyone that might be attending.

The KMS Designs jewelry art show jewelry booth

1.  If you see something you like and want it, don't wait, buy it.  Artists enjoy making a lot of one-of-a-kind pieces.  I always have a few shoppers that come back by my booth to purchase a piece of jewelry they saw earlier only to be disappointed that it's gone.

2.  Get there early.  Intent on buying a piece of art?  Saturday morning will have the largest selection of art.  I have found the serious shoppers come out early.

3.  Don't get there too early.  Ever planned a dinner party only to have people show up early?  EEK!  This is an artist's version of a dinner party.  Verify when the show officially opens and maybe get there 10 to 15 minutes before it starts, but not earlier.  Many artists are still setting up their booths and their art and need the time to get fully prepared for the day.

4.  Leave the pets at home.  There are way too many smells and people!  I have seen first hand dogs getting upset about all the excitement.  Plus, there is the need for dogs to relieve themselves at some point during the day.  Trust me, they will do it in a art booth.  Yuck!

5.  Be careful about bargaining.  Artists have an emotional attachment to their work.  Many consider asking for a bargain or discount a personal insult.  Instead, go into it with a "win-win" attitude.  Ask if there is a discount for cash.  Will they offer free installation and delivery?

6.  Love a piece but can't afford it as a big lump sum payment?  Ask about layaway.  It has been my experience that many artists will be happy to work with you on a layaway plan.

7.  Unsure how to transport?  Ask about installation.  Get specific!  Are there particular hooks, wall supports, etc needed? 

8.  Ask for care instructions.  This is essential for any piece of art you purchase, from pottery to watercolor paintings. 


9.  Ask about joining the artist's mailing list.  Artists will share their best deals and unveil new art to their customer list first.  Ask if there is the possibility to get on a postal and/or electronic mail list.

10.  Inquire about the return/exchange policy.  Not sure you're going to like that painting hanging over the sofa once you get it up?  Ask the artist if there is return/exchange policy.  Since many people buy from me for Hannukah and Christmas gifts, I would also suggest asking if there is an extended policy for art being purchased for a holiday gift.

Most of all, enjoy the day!  Art shows are a museum all to themselves.  Learn, ask questions, and hopefully, take home something to enrich your life.

Jewelry making mistakes

I don't think it's completely fair to put up all the pictures of my jewelry without showing you that I'm not perfect.  Two lessons that reared their ugly head this week:

You can't be too stingy with the glue when you're sealing your artwork.  This pendant was from a batch of scrabble tile pendants for Christmas.  I was running low on glue sealant and didn't go over the back of the papers as thick as I normally do.  I figured since I was gluing them to the scrabble tiles, it would be okay.  As you can see, the results were a disaster!  About half of that batch of pendants have "water marks" and can't be used.

I also found out that I can't look for bubbles too often.  Once I pour resin over the tiles, I go back over them and look for bubbles to remove.  (I use a combination of a heat gun and toothpick to get them out.)  Aargh!  I missed one on this pendant.  It's also headed to the scrap pile.




Overall, I feel good when everything goes well, but hate when I get to the end and don't have a salable piece of jewelry.

Corrugated metal earrings - jewelry making class pictures

I taught another class this past Monday evening on how to make corrugated metal earrings.  Five of the six students had taken a class from me before, so it was fun for me to get a chance to catch up with everyone.


Students for this class got to make two different pair of earrings: one with sheet metal and one with wire.

(These are student Kathy's collection of future earrings from class.)

Everyone had some kind of metalsmithing and jewelry making experience, which helped to allow students to get both pairs made in the two hour class.










We had fun chatting it up too.  It was a great energy in the class.

A little concentration doesn't hurt either.

The general consensus was that making earrings this way is a lot of fun.  Almost everyone purchased extra metal to make a few extra earring pairs for friends and family.

 These are just a few of the finished projects everyone completed in about two hours. 

Chris made these earrings; a pair for her and a pair for her daughter.

 These are Jill's wire earrings.  She couldn't decide on the beads, so she made one of each.

Claudia also made a pair of each.  She admitted she was going to have to do this again. *smile*

A close up of Claudia's wire earrings with the beautiful denim lapis beads.

Cheryl made her wire earrings with brown goldstone.  

Cheryl's corrugated sheet earrings were also the "guinea pigs" for the tumbler.  













Linda decided she would rather have pendants than earrings.  Her four designs are shown here.







I don't know when I will be teaching this class again, but I know I will also be teaching an "intermediate" level metal corrugation and crimping class sometime in the near future. Check my class schedule to get the latest.

Getting jewelry ready to sell at art shows

Part of getting ready for an art show is more than just showing up. It actually requires the same planning as opening up a retail shop, except that this one is only open for 48 hours. When an artist applies for an art show and gets accepted, all he/she gets is an empty space.  No tent, no tables, no outside help from the show staff. 

Here's a little bit about what I have to do to get my jewelry ready to sell at an art show:

The week or so before I have the art show, I concentrate on the business side of things.  I might work on new jewelry, but I don't do so with the intention of needing to have it ready for the show that week.  It's much less stressful that way.

I make sure I have plenty of cards and cello bags to package jewelry in.  I also have gift boxes available for an small additional charge.










For this show, I decided to prepackage the majority of my sale jewelry.  It's such a mixture of pieces, it just doesn't display well.  It looks better packaged and placed in a basket.









All the sale jewelry is in the basket.  (There's also something about digging through and looking for a bargain.  Does that go back to the sandbox days?)  I also take the time to go through all the jewelry I'm selling and make sure it is polished and tarnish free.









I always have an assortment of chains and cords for necklaces available.  People have their preference for styles and length of chains, so I try to be prepared with a variety.  I also find that as I'm getting these items organized, it gives me the opportunity to reorganize and get rid of items I no longer need or are outdated.








I also have my preprinted materials ready to go.  This includes any signage, business cards, bags, and artist information cards.









With the next post, I hope to show you a little about how I manage to shove so much stuff into a vehicle for a weekend show!

Resin jewelry tips

I found another resin jewelry making tips video to share with readers.  I also use the clear molds she uses in her video for the very reason:  being able to see the bubbles!  It is so much easier to find them when you can look from beneath.  This short 3 1/2 minute video will also give you an idea of what it looks like when you place found objects in the first layer of (clear) resin.