New Venture

Started a new venture making Lithophanes.  Hopefully this will help with overall sales and allow me to continue working at what I love.  I hate to think of finding a "real" job.  Are there any out there?

Kind of scary trying something new.  A big investment that I hope pays off

If you are interested at all, I have an affiliate program that allows you to earn 10% of any sales from a link on your website or blog.  If anyone follows your link and makes a purchase within 90 days of visiting the first time, you will receive 10% of the sale.  This is not the typical pay per click program.  You can earn a lot more

Something to think about when we area ll looking to increase revenue.

www.RadiantMemories.com

Is a Design Good or Not?

Often this is a very subjective question.  Many times it is also based on function; Does it work?  If  a design is aesthetically pleasing, but does not function well it is not a good design. For the most part, I like simple forms.  I find them pleasing and have found that they sell well.  I have on occasion made a complex design, but find that they do not have same appeal.  People love to look at them, but don't buy them.

Is it a bad design if it doesn't sell?  For me it is.  Design to me is about producing something people will buy and that I find pleasing.  If I don't like a design on paper, it never makes to to production.  There have been pieces that made it to the production stage, that I have changed my mind about.  What looks good on paper doesn't always work.

Successful design for me incorporates the use space, line, balance, color, shape, texture and form to produce a functional piece of jewelry and one that is visually appealing.  Design should achieve harmony in the piece. All of the elements of design should work together to produce a piece that is comfortable to look at and comfortable to wear.  There are the pieces that are meant to catch your eye, but they need to have the same sense of balance to work.

I have never studied art or design.  I am self taught.  I believe I have a good sense of design and composition.  I have read on the subject and have learned some principles that I feel are somewhat natural.  As I said earlier, I often look to nature, and nature has an inherent sense of design.  I always ask for feedback.  Feedback to me is invaluable, it opens my eyes to my work in different ways.  Honest critiques of my work are the best.  I like to hear that my pieces are nice, but I would rather hear why they are or are not good designs.

So, if you have seen my work and have anything to say about them, please feel free to share your opinion.
:)

Markets Reopen

For those of you who are not from the are, there are some really great Markets here in the Tampa Bay area.  I sell my jewelry at two of them and do pretty well there.  Last year was tough for everyone, but the markets still did pretty well.  The Saturday Morning Market in Downtown St. Pete is a great Market.  Our markets close in the summer (most do) due to the summer heat.  It is just too hot for people to come out.  Unlike the northern States where Summer is the season, ours is Winter.

For me the market is more than just a place to sell, it is part of my life.  The other vendors and management are like my extended family.  It is the best part of my week.  With tomorrow being opening day, I am really looking forward to participating and meeting new people and dogs!  Meeting new people and dogs is the best part of the day for me.  (Well, that and the food.)

The Saturday Morning Market has really grown and has become a part of St. Pete's Downtown.  If you live in the area and have never been to the market, you are really missing out on a great way to spend the day.  Live music, GREAT FOOD, and great people, as well as some great arts and crafts.

I am still getting ready and finishing up some last minute details.  My injury really hampered my plans for a new display, but I will get that done soon.  I can't wait till tomorrow and greet the crowds.

Hope to see you there if you are in the area.  Look on my page for a coupon for opening day

Price Points

In this economy, most of us find that the good old days of great sales are on hiatus.  I sell a lot of items below $40.  Being handmade it is sometimes difficult to make quality items for that price range.  I often make these items in batches which can become tedious.  The fun of creating is lost and is replaced with repetition.

I try to finish each piece to perfection which takes time.  Finding ways to reduce labor is often essential to keeping your price down.  Many times if you are making a quality item, it is just not possible and we have to take a bit of a cut in profit to make those sales.

It becomes a question of keeping faithful to your work.  I could make these small items faster and increase profits if I were to skimp on quality, but then I would not be honest to myself and my craft.  Sometimes we just need to take what we can get and be happy that we are still doing what we love.

The economy will improve, maybe not soon, but it will.  Then the days of great sales will be back and I can make more of my Custom pieces than the little trinkets that pay the bills for now.  We just have to be patient and do whatever it takes to keep on doing what we love.

FEAR

I was sitting in Starbucks waiting for a friend and the front page read "1 in 7 living in Poverty". Can this be true? What happened and what are we doing to get back on track? That headline really freaked me out for a second. I sell non-essential luxury items. If that many people are in bad shape, what does it mean for me? For about a solid minute I was frozen in shock. Fear had gotten the best of me. I let myself be overcome with an irrational fear because of a headline.

If we succumb to our fears, then we already have lost. I firmly believe that positive thoughts cancreate positive results. Fear is not a positive thought. It might be an emotion for survival at the most basic level, but living in fear only feeds those negative thoughts.

Our daily life is a great opportunity for us to overcome our fears. Every day is a challenge to be more mindful of what we think, say and do. Every response is a lesson in self awareness and letting go. Fear is just one emotion that we can triumph over. Apathy, grief, hatred, shame, blame, regret, resentment, anger, and hostility are all emotion that we can practice to overcome.

Questioning our choice to be Artists

How many of us have questioned our decision to create art for a living.  The old cliche "Starving Artist" is no cliche, it is a tough gig. In this economy it is even tougher.  Those monthly commission checks are fewer, sales are down from the "good old days", and it is a competitive market. We need to up our game and make our work stand out. We need to be better at marketing and sales.  We need to be more creative in all aspects of our work.

I make my jewelry because I love working with wood. I love to create. I love working for myself, thought there are many aspects of it I do not like so much (accounting etc).  It is a passion.  Lately I have questioned whether or not I was doing the right thing.  I am.  I love what I do, so I am.

I have not been doing this very long so I am really just starting.  I know that I will get better and figure out all the aspects of Art that sometimes kick my butt. I know that my work is good and will only get better.  I know that I will look back at this time and ask myself how I made it through it.  I know I will.

I have had to make some sacrifices, but if it was easy, it wouldn't be as rewarding.  I love what I do, and that is all that matters for now.

Patience

I found a quote the other day: “Patience is waiting. Not passively waiting. That is laziness. But to keep going when the going is hard and slow - that is patience.” unknown.


It has been two weeks since my surgery.  I have not been able to use my arm, thus not been able to make anything in the shop.  It seems like it has been a month, not two weeks.  For the first week I really couldn't do much of anything, so I rested and healed.  The second week I found a way to type with my bad arm without moving it, so I was able to work on the computer.  I design (draw) with my right hand, so that was out of the question, but I found I could catch up on all the work I dislike, like accounting.  I also have been researching and getting inspired.  


I am drawn to fluid designs.  I have a number of facebook friends that are turners and have been looking at their work.   It is not jewelry, but the fluid lines of turnings have inspired a couple of new designs.  I can't get to the shop for another week, but I am getting prepared.


Having to wait, being told to wait, is often the hardest thing to do.  When we make a conscious choice to wait, it is our choice, but not being in control for those with personalities like mine, is the hardest thing.  It has been difficult, but it has also been a good lesson.  I can do other things, if I can let go of what I can not do.  


I'll be honest, I am a bit OCD when it comes to some things.  I have to finish things.  If I start a project, I think about every aspect of it till it is done.  Before my surgery I had a couple of unfinished projects, and I have managed to let them go.


I am not sure if it is patience, but i know that they will get done in time, and that I can not finish them now.  For me that is a big step.  Many of you reading this are probably laughing and wondering what I am talking about.  Others know exactly what I am talking about.  


Sometimes we have to let go of what we can not control.  In my case I have to wait, but still find something that I can do.  Sometimes it isn't what we want to to, but what we can do.