Archive for the ‘Grow your business’ Category

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How to market your crafts book

Tuesday, October 13th, 2009

No general guidance here — just a tip of the hat to someone for a great idea she had!

We received a package of really attractive bookmarks from our blog partner Lisa Crone:

We loved these cute bookmarks :)

We loved these cute bookmarks :)

She combines stylish design, plus her ongoing theme (at least for me, “A Bead A Day” is suggested by the single bead here), plus a quick plug for her upcoming book, “A Bead in Time”.

Lisa made this promo short, sweet enough to make people want to keep it around, useful, and unique.  I’d call this example a great craft business tip!

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Posted in Community, Grow your business | No Comments »

Start conversations…about your craft jewelry

Thursday, August 13th, 2009

From a thread of conversation over at Twitter.  Thanks, tweeter friends!

Craft business tip (1):  Always carry your business cards with you.

Craft business tip (2):  Wear your craft jewelry wherever you go.

Craft business tip (1+2=3):  Wear your jewelry and hand out your business cards.  It’s amazing how many people have told me about someone approaching them asking “Where did you get that great jewelry? Oh my gosh, you made it??”  The next step from there is obvious: snag a new customer.

Craft business tip (3+1=4):  Make a t-shirt that artfully invites, “Ask me about my jewelry!”  How about a button too?

Ask me about my etsy store

Ask me about my etsy store!

It works.

Share a story about “conversation starters” that led to sales–leave a comment!

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Posted in Grow your business | 3 Comments »

Craft business tip: win a contest

Thursday, May 21st, 2009

Sometimes the craft business tips I share come from a lot of people’s hard work & experience…

Today I want to talk about the few, the proud, the lucky winners.  And what winning can do for your business.

It's not a gift certificate, but you can cash in on it! (Image from Zoya Gutina's blog)

It's not a gift certificate, but you can cash in on it! (Image from Zoya Gutina's blog)

Earlier today I noticed someone’s item on Etsy that was already familiar to me.*  Know why?  Because it had been one of the really great, and memorable, winners in a Rings & Things design contest.  It’s been awarded other prizes too, so we’re talking about a proven, multiple winner.  I knew all that already.

The remarkable thing to me today, though, was the price on this item.  I’ll just estimate that it’s now going for five times what it would otherwise sell for.  As a jewelry artisan, you know that your creations are legitimately worth money.  Entering them into competitions and being independently judged as high-quality jewelry backs up that claim.

I’m very proud of the jewelry artist whose winning creation I’m talking about.  Assuming you’re going to sell that superb jewelry item that you made, it’s wise to set its price to reflect your reputation.  Good move!

We all know you can’t sell every one of your items at a high price.  But it says a lot about your status as a serious jewelry artisan, if you have some “high-end” items.

Think about what designs you can come up with, create, and enter into design contests.  Besides the prizes available in these contests, and the sheer glory of winning, you may find yourself recouping your investment of materials and labor many times over.

And that can grow your business!

* I’ve kept the artist’s name and the title of the piece anonymous.  They’re tangential to my point!

Have your sales benefited after you’ve won a design contest?  Share your story in a comment!

May giveaway:
* You enter by leaving comments this month
* At the end of May, 2 winners will receive coveted Rings & Things goodie packs!
*So read the blog regularly, to enter a lot & to see if you won!

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Posted in Grow your business | 2 Comments »

The price of amethyst, and how to benefit from it

Wednesday, May 13th, 2009

A showroom customer asked about the price of amethyst, particularly the “A” grade amethyst we carry.  We had not noticed the recent price of this, so we asked our supplier who specializes in amethyst.

a-grade_amethyst

A-grade amethyst beads from Rings & Things...an investment?

She told us,

“Yes, Amethyst rough has kept increasing for the last two-three years.  For the same price, we won’t be able to get the same quality rough.  Since last year, I notice vendors in [market shops] are now selling the “A” grade amethyst by grams, just like peridot and aqua.”

So take a tip:

FYI for all birthstone / purple lovers.  Don’t wait till you’re old to get hold of genuine amethyst beads, if they’re your thing!

Have more insider gemstone tips?  You can share them with enthusiastic readers right here, in a comment!

May giveaway:
* You enter by leaving comments this month
* At the end of May, 2 winners will receive coveted Rings & Things goodie packs!
*So read the blog regularly, to enter a lot & to see if you won!

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Posted in Grow your business, Trendspotting | 8 Comments »

Strand enhancers enhance your business

Thursday, May 7th, 2009

Looking at the new Wedding / Bridal / Prom section that we’re building in our Design Gallery, I learned a technique…

Strand enhancers can grow your business.  For a second, I thought this might mean “necklace extenders“, which are amazingly useful findings themselves.

But no, strand enhancers are yet a different way of offering extra value to your jewelry customers.  They instantly make any necklace into a “Y” necklace, as @wendytgibson put it on Twitter.  See one detache, and one in action, in this “Always a Bridesmaid” necklace design:

The "Always a Bridesmaid" design from Rings & Things

The "Always a Bridesmaid" design from Rings & Things

For this necklace, designer Cindy made the “pearl enhancer” with a #39-541-11 9×15mm oval no-trigger lobster clasp, in sterling silver.  Have a custom wedding order?  You can make clip-on strand enhancers with colors that match the bridesmaids’ dresses!

You can take this idea to craft fairs and jewelry shops too!  Offer necklace-buying customers a matching strand enhancer for a little sales bump.  They let the customer multi-purpose her necklace, choosing the style she wants.  And they’re easy to make — so you could even offer to “build to order”.  As @CreationsWHeart (also on Twitter) pointed out, “I can see how you could come up w/ a ton of designs whether it’s on a chain or beaded necklace! How fun!”

PS: A little extra design trick is to use seed beads in a pearl necklace like the one seen here.  They’re easy, affordable spacers and they take far less time than knotting the cord!

Want to suggest more necklace design tricks and tips?  Share them in a comment below.  You’ll be entered in our raffle!

May giveaway:
* You enter by leaving comments this month
* At the end of May, 2 winners will receive coveted Rings & Things goodie packs!
*So read the blog regularly, to enter a lot & to see if you won!

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Posted in Grow your business | 4 Comments »

Multipurposing: teapot bead cap => Aladdin’s lamp charm

Tuesday, April 28th, 2009

Multipurposing tip:  Rings & Things’ sterling silver teapot bead caps also make a magical Aladdin’s lamp charm.

sterling_teapot_bead_cap_43-546-02

Sterling silver teapot bead cap (Rings & Things #43-546-02)

Credit goes to @tamdoll on Twitter for this great craft business tip!  Just “cap” this finding around your favorite 10- to 12mm bead.  It makes a fine addition to a charm bracelet, or earrings…  Here’s another style that we offer:

Sterling silver teapot bead cap (Rings & Things #43-546-01)

Sterling silver teapot bead cap (Rings & Things #43-546-01)

This means you have at least three flavors of lamp for Arabian Nights-themed jewelry, because we’ve also added this new antiqued-silver plated Aladdin charm:

Aladdin's lamp charm (Rings & Things #44-940-17-AS)

Aladdin's lamp charm (Rings & Things #44-940-17-AS)

How about an aquiline crystal bead as a lamp?  Check out this Aladdin’s Lamp earring design from our Design Gallery!

normal_aladdins_lamp_earrings

Have more ideas for Arabian Nights jewelry?  More multipurposing magic in mind?  Share by leaving a comment!

April giveaway: “DIY Display Ideas”:
* You enter by leaving comments under the March 31 giveaway announcement
* At the end of April, 2 winners will receive coveted Rings & Things goodie packs!
*So read the blog regularly to see if you won!

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Posted in Grow your business, multipurposing | 7 Comments »

Announcing the Kreativ Blog Awards

Tuesday, April 21st, 2009

Rings & Things’ blog received the Kreativ Blog Award from A Bead A Day.  We’re honored by Lisa’s vote of confidence!  Now to pass the torch…

These are the rules of the Kreativ blog award:

  • The winner may put this award on their blog
  • Please put a link to the person that presented you for this award
  • Nominate 5 blogs
  • Put links to all their blogs
  • Leave a message for your nominees

For blogging above & beyond the call of duty, Rings & Things gives the Kreativ Blog Award to these highly readable bloggers who help others grow their craft business:

  • Jen at Naughty Secretary Club
    (it’s as much fun as it sounds; new techniques all the time!)
  • Cindy at Polymer Clay Tutor
    (she’s an endless source of crystal-clear how-to’s)
  • Etsy’s official Storque blog
    (a superb resource for craft business tips)
  • The Craftzine.com blog
    (like an encyclopedia, only funner)
  • The Blog for Beaders
    (they’ve been putting up some entertaining stuff…and you’ve got to take a break for fun sometimes!)

Thanks to all five of you for some genuinely top-notch blog writing.  We’re looking forward to seeing who each of you picks out to give Kreativ Blogger Awards to!

Want to nominate more great bloggers for recognition?  Talk about them (with a link to their blog) in a comment!

April giveaway: “DIY Display Ideas”:
* You enter by leaving comments under the March 31 giveaway announcement
* At the end of April, 2 winners will receive coveted Rings & Things goodie packs!
*So read the blog regularly to see if you won!

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Posted in Community, Grow your business | 6 Comments »

Grow your business: Team-blogging

Wednesday, April 8th, 2009

Everyone says you should have a blog in order to get noticed!  You want to grow your craft business, but there’s not enough time in the day. What to do?  Team-blog!

Collaborative artisan blogs like Collective Creatives rock my world. Many hands make light work, so the individual artists have more time for creating.

Multi-author blogs like this also make great reading!  You get a steady supply of fresh perspectives, and nobody burns out from constantly having to write something interesting.  With the pool of writers involved, the blog gets updated often, so readers find it a lively place to visit.

(A different solution to lightening the load of blogging is to have periodic guest bloggers.  That approach might sound better if you want to keep control over your own blog.  But then you’ll have to keep track of articles that have been promised to you, so the job of managing the blog just gets bigger.)

The Collective Creatives blog I mentioned has about a dozen members, and I assume all of them are able to log right in and post a piece by themselves.  Any “co-editor” like this should also be able to edit any posts or comments that need sprucing up.  So, all of the blog duties can be shared.

Art Bead Scene is another group blog that seems to always be lively, with five editors contributing on a regular basis.  Each has her own strengths, including a specialization in a particular kind of beadmaking.  When you set up your team blog, think about what each potential member can bring to the experience.  Will each of you be responsible for posting on a different day of the week?  Or take care of whole weeks, in rotation?

The Blogging Queen wrote a good post on the question, Should you join a team blog? She does a great job of bringing up the main questions involved:

  • What will be the common theme (idea) of the blog?
  • How will you achieve a common “voice” or tone?
  • Will a team blog be beneficial to your own craft business?  Put some thought into choosing your co-editors!

Have experiences with team blogs?  Questions about how they work?  Want to recommend a favorite one?  Leave a comment below!

April giveaway: “DIY Display Ideas”:
* You enter by leaving comments under the March 31 giveaway announcement
* At the end of April, 2 winners will receive coveted Rings & Things goodie packs!
*So read the blog regularly to see if you won!

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Posted in Grow your business | 8 Comments »

More uses for: Glueables (bracelets, pendants)

Monday, April 6th, 2009

You know Rings & Things is all about the “grow your business” tips.  One of the most inspiring kinds of tips we’ve found in the craft jewelry world are ways to multipurpose the parts you use and the designs you make.  Here’s another way of getting that extra mileage…out of bracelet blanks and frame charms/pendant blanks:

cindy_rtcolorexplosionwebInstead of gluing onto them, “paint” pretty designs on the flat pads with rubber-stamping inks.  Cindy Gimbrone shows off this great inspiration in her wonderfully titled blog post, “Glue is Not My BFF”.

cindy_rtcoprbraceletwebCindy also came up with the idea of adding texture and design elements by hammering a bracelet blank.  This way, you wind up with a personalized piece of jewelry with no need to spend much on embellishments!

cindy_rtwatchpropellerswebAnother unglued inspiration from Cindy is this Deconstructed Watch on our brass square frame.  This project can be done for under $10!

Here’s one of Lisa’s ideas from her A Bead A Day blog:

lisa_brace5multi-stranding by adding a couple strands of chainmaille-type link work on either side of the bracelet blank.

lisa_flower-funlong1In another great burst of inspiration, Lisa also created not just a bejeweled pendant, but also an amazing bracelet centerpiece, from our glue-on pendant frames.

Lisa says that this third design– lisa_round_p_earl_31–is easy to do, but I think it’s so impressive that you’d think it took a jewelry master’s touch.

The always-productive Lisa also came up with this cool approach,  lisa_black_and_white6which she titled “Jewelry Making w/Scrapbooking Supplies”.

Tish (quite brilliantly I think) documented her first experiment with bracelet blanks, “in case it was brilliant.”   She wasn’t satisfied with the results of the bracelet, but wound up with a great tutorial on what to look out for when combining polymer clay with bracelet forms!

tish_img_8994More “Glueable Challenge” pieces by Tish included the poly clay design above…

dawno_gluablewip1_1braceletDawno deconstructed a bracelet blank in a nice tutorial at her blog…

…and invented a cool new technique–

dawno_asian-woman-pendant–that I want to call faux cloisonné!

Melanie of Earthenwood Studios had multiple ideas too.  Interestingly she also took apart a bracelet blank,

melanie_025this time to make a necklace.

She also combined her unique “cog” and “face” ceramic creations with our frame charms:

melanie_013We hope these neat creations by our Blog Partners give you some ideas that you’ll run with and make your own!

Have more ideas for using glueable frame charms & bracelet blanks?  Talk about them in a comment below!

April giveaway: “DIY Display Ideas”:
* You enter by leaving comments under the March 31 giveaway announcement
* At the end of April, 2 winners will receive coveted Rings & Things goodie packs!
*So read the blog regularly to see if you won!

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Posted in About Rings & Things, Grow your business | 2 Comments »

Multi-purposing frame charms: Inchies

Thursday, April 2nd, 2009

Quick post today!

A trend we’ve noticed in the scrapbooking world is “inchies”.  These are like little challenges to yourself: Create a nice collage in the space of a square inch (ergo the name).  What about wearable inchies?

Can you say "inchies"?!

Can you say "inchies"?!

Check out our item #49-441-0, 30mm square brass picture-frame charm!  The usable surface inside the frame is almost exactly a square inch.  This finding is perfect for gluing things onto.  You could even follow Dawno’s idea and incorporate some brass wire into your collage, for a neat faux cloisonné look.

Thanks to Amy M for this idea.  PS: a 2″x2″ collage is called a twinchie!

More mini-collage ideas?  Share ‘em here in a comment!

April giveaway: “DIY Display Ideas”:
* You enter by leaving comments under the March 31 giveaway announcement
* At the end of April, 2 winners will receive coveted Rings & Things goodie packs!
*So read the blog regularly to see if you won!

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Posted in Grow your business, multipurposing | 5 Comments »

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