Back to black

Today is one year since the death of Amy Whinehouse and I was listening to "back to black" on the radio and got a bit inspired to do a small tribute. I had a few items I had allready photographed that were waiting for me to list them in my store, so inspired by the song, I listed a few black jewelry designs today.

I find black to be very practical and versatile color. You can wear a black pair of earrings or bangle with basically every outfit and every color. You can wear it for a casual look or for a more dramatic evening look. You simply can't go wrong with black don't you think?

Sterling silver and Onyx bangle bracelet

Sterling silver and black Agate earrings

Meet my new jewelry model

Photographing jewelry is a difficult task. I often take dozens of pictures until I get the results I want. Over the years I've developed my tricks and accessories to help me get the best results. However, sometimes you just can't express the beauty of a jewelry design unless you see it on a real person.


I have been asking my beautiful sister for some time now to model for me and she finally said yes! It's amazing how different it makes some items look. I just hope everyone can stay focused on the jewelry designs and not on the pretty model :-)
 
Here are some "before and after" pictures. What do you think represents my jewelry better? Let me know in the comments below.
 

Gold filled bracelet - one design with various color options

I've written before about making the same design in several colors so that people have several options to choose from. So I've decided to take my own advice and made this 14k gold filled bracelet in 4 different colors. I love how by a simple change of color they get a different character.
What's your favorite?

  

The advantages of buying handmade

One of the great things about buying handmade products is that you are buying from a real person that cares! Unlike factories where you are just another buyer, the small business owner will go the extra mile to make you happy. I know I do this for my buyers. That's because I really want them to be happy with the jewelry they buy from me.

A few weeks ago I had a buyer that wanted to give my infinity ring as a gift to someone. Unfortunately she was unable to get the ring size. Problem. So I suggested that I make a change in the ring and make it open and adjustable. Since I make the ring myself from scratch, it was no problem for me to alter it a little. This way she could give it as a gift without the need to know the exact ring size. She was happy and I was happy too that I could offer a solution.

Symbols of love to make your valentine gift perfect

Now that the holiday season is behind us, we are on our way to the next special occasion on the calendar - Valentines day!
So how do you find the perfect gift that will express the way you feel? Jewelry has always been a great idea for a gift but to make it even more perfect, you want to get a jewelry item that has a symbolic meaning, that conveys a message from you to the person receiving it.

To do this you have 2 ways to go. Choose something that carries a special meaning to the person you love. If she loves a specific color, shape etc, pick something accordingly. This will say that you know her, know what she likes and  that you pay attention. What more could a women want?

The second way is to choose a jewelry item with a symbolic message of love and commitment.
There are all kinds of symbols that have become popular forms of expressing feelings:

Hearts
The most common and popular form of expressing love and emotions is through a heart shape. The message of this symbol is very simple - "I give you my heart" or "you have my heart in your hand".

Heart ring

Infinity symbol
When you give someone a jewelry piece decorated with an infinity symbol you want to express your endless love and say to them that you will always be there for them. Now that is a nice message to give or receive isn't it?



Infinity bracelet

 Circle
Circles are also considered to be symbols of infinity and love, simply because they have no beginning and no end. They symbolize a unity, a becoming of one. Another perfect message for loved ones.



Gold circle necklace


Roses and flowers
Flowers are always a wonderful gift to get the women you love. And they are also wonderful as inspiration for jewelry items. The best part about roses in jewelry pieces is that they stay forever.

Rose stud earrings

Bows and ribbons
These are actually symbols of gifts but when they are used to inspire a jewelry design, they can also express your love and your wish to give to the one you love.



Gold bow necklace

I know some people don't like celebrating valentine for various reasons but I personally like having a day to stop our everyday running and express our feelings to those we love. (Read more in my last year's post about Valentine). Remember, the gifts are only the way to express your feelings, not the main event. So don't forget to say and show that you care, with or without gifts.


Top 5

I was looking at my statistics for the month of November and noticed an interesting fact. It seems all the top 5 items that were most popular in my store this month, were rings! No earrings, necklaces, bangles, just rings. So thought I'd share with you what my top 5 popular jewelry items were:

5. Bubble ring.

4. Black rose ring

3. Square opal ring

2. Set of 3 hammered gold-filled rings

1. Branch ring

Wonder which items will be most popular next month.

Chaos, and my new year's resolution

I know it might be a little too early for a new years resolution, but I have made one anyway! I decided I need to get a bit more organized. Normally I work well in chaos. I always say that chaos has it's own internal order that others just can't see. But a few weeks ago I was visiting a friend's studio and it was so perfectly organized and so stunning that I got really jealous and thought to myself - "I want my studio to look like that too!"

 Of course that's easier said than done. You can't just take a chaos created in years of work and magically turn it into a well organized work place. So it's a work in progress. I've started with installing a new big table, buying new storage drawers from Ikea and now I am in the middle of going through piles of boxes and trying to organize what's inside them in a way that makes sense. In the process I have discovered a lot of supplies I have forgotten I even had, so I guess that's also a bonus!

Since I am doing this while also working on orders, stocking and preparing for the holiday season and life in general, it will take some time until everything is done. But I figured if I write About it, I will feel more obligated to follow it through. Hopefully it won't be too long until I can post some pictures of my new and improved studio. In the mean time, here are some pictures of some new items I've been working on and that are now available in my store. Enjoy!

Black Friday goes international !

It has been a while since I last wrote in my blog. I had a lot of things on my plate and I just didn't get around to it. But I am back now!

I wanted to share some thoughts about black friday. Black Friday is basically an American thing. A few years ago I didn't even know that it existed. As I live in Israel where most people are jewish, Christmas is not celebrated here and there is no shopping frenzy.

But as the world becomes more and more of a small global village, in recent years several shops here in Israel started having black Friday sales and this trend seems to be catching on. After all everyone loves a good sale and you don't even need a special reason for it right?

So far I have seen these sales mainly in electronics stores which is not very helpful since I don't need any new electronic devices right now (I always want new devices but I really don't need any). But who knows if this trend continues to spread, maybe I will also be able to enjoy great sales without having to travel overseas!

I am also having a black Friday-cyber Monday sale in my Etsy store. Use coupon code "cybermonday" when you purchase something from my store and you will get free shipping. No limit on the number of items you can buy, everything ships for free worldwide. Happy holidays and happy shopping!

Variations - same design in different colors

Being a creative person I don't really like repeating myself. I enjoy making new jewelry designs all the time and re-inventing myself. On the other hand, since I became a professional jewelry designer and started selling my designs I understant that I sometimes need to think about things from a buyes' point of view.

One good example for this is offering various color options for the same design. In the past I used to make each jewelry piece in one color only. I picked the gemstones that seemed best for the item and that was it. Then one day it hit me - this was not so smart. If I was a customer looking for a pink ring to fit my outfit and I found a ring I liked but was in the wrong color, what would I do? Most likely I would go on looking somewhere else. So wouldn't it be much smarter to offer the ring in a variety of colors so that anyone who likes it can find a color they like and fits them?

It just seems logical. After all, different people like different colors and why shouldn't they have a choice?

Some artists might see this as a compomise but I think it is just me thinking of my buyers needs. After all if I wanted to make jewelry just for myself I would not be selling them!

What do you think?

Stackable Turquoise flower ring



Set of 3 sterling silver stacking rings - red, pink and purple



Stackable Perinite flower ring



Will you be celebrating Valentine's day?

Valentine day is coming soon and at the risk of losing a few readers here, I must admit - I love Valentine day. I know some people feel that Valentine day is just a commercialization of love and invented only to sell flowers, candy etc. I myself don't feel like that. I think it's nice that we have a day when we are reminded to take a short break from everyday life and give some appreciation to the person who shaers our life.

Sure we can do this every other day of the year but to be honest, how many really do this?  We are always busy with so many things, running and trying to accomplish everything. If you happen to be one of those few who do express how you feel every day of the year - than you really don't need Valentine's day. Most people, myslef included,  need to mark a date on the calender to make sure they do the things they want to do.

So I will be celbrating valentine this year, as I do every year. Don't know exactly how yet but I will think of something.
For those who also plan to celebrate Valentine day I of course will be offering some heart shaped jewelry in my store and if you don't like hearts, there are many other jewelry items that would make great gifts.

1. Red heart earrings in sterling silver and agate gemstones

2. Thin bangle with 3 hearts in a drop design

3. Sterling silver heart ring

4. Lariat of 2 hearts - sterling silver

Clearance sale to make room for new jewelry designs

A new year is a great time for new beginnings. One of the things I like doing as a new year begins is to refresh my shop. I think it's important to have new jewelry designs all the time so that people will enjoy coming back to visit. Not to mention that it's much more fun for me to create new jewelry and not repeat myself all the time.

So now is the time when I evaluate my jewelry and decide which items to keep and which I want to take out of my line. This is not an easy decision. As the creator I do get attached to all of my jewelry.

So how do I decide what stays and what goes? popularity of an item is one criteria. I have a few items that are my "stars" or best-seller and those obiously will stay in my line. But this does not mean that any item that doesn't sell well is taken out. Many times I have found that taking a better picture of an item or even making a small change to it, can turn it around and it will suddenly begin to sell.

More often I just take out items that are from older collections or items that I got tired of making.

I am a big believer in making small series of each design. After all, that is the purpose of handmade isn't it? Having something you will not see on every person you meet.

So I have created a new section in my store "clearance sale" where I put a few items that I do not intend to re-make after they sell. If you like these jewelry designs, this is your chance to get them and even get a nice discount.

The little things that help us succeed

As we near the end of 2010 I've been thinking a lot about my business. What I accomplished this year and what I want to do next year to make it even better.

While doing this summary I started thinking about how some small things that you hardly even consider, can actually contribute and help one's success. Like the post office for me.

A few years back I was living in a city in the center of Israel and selling my jewelry in my own brick and mortar store. My online activity was very limited then. I had a website and a small etsy store but I wasn't really active since my b&m store was taking most of my time.

Then we decided to take a life changing step and moved to a small village in the north of Israel. I closed my store as it was too far away from my new home for me to be able to keep it. At this point I decided to focus on my online activity and started really working on my Etsy store and other online venues.

Now here's the funny part - when I was living in the city, every visit to the post office was a nightmare. They had long lines and I had to wait forever everytime I was there. No way I would have been able to go through this on a daily basis. If I had tried to focus on online selling at that time, It is very likely I would have given up or that my service would not be as good. The post office in my village is small but with great and fast service. It only takes me a few minutes. Beacause of this small thing, I am able to go to the post office every day and ship all my orders so that no package ever waits if it's ready to ship. So for me - this small thing, a small and efficient post office, is one of the factors that helped my busiess grow.

1. Small sterling silver leaf earrings

2. Lariat necklace with textured silver oval and a red Agate briolette

3. Hammred tear drops with pink and purple stones

Short vacation before the holiday rush begins

Last year was my first christmas as a full time internet seller so I was really not prepared for it. Of course it was wonderful to get so many orders but it was also very exhausting. So this year, just before the holiday rush begins, I went on a short vacation to Barcelona!

What a wonderfull city! So vibrant, colorful and happy. Not to mention how inspiring Barcelona is! Everywhere you look there's something beautiful and artistic. I am sure all this inspiration will develop into new design ideas for my future works.

So now I am back, rested, full of energy and ready for the upcoming holidays. I have started to prepare my store for christmas shopping, listing some new items and also making use of Etsy's new coupon feature to offer special deals for black friday, cyber monday etc. From today and untill cyber monday (29 november) I will be giving a 15% discount on all jewelry in my store. Just enter the coupon code BLACKTOCYBER to receive your discount.

1. Sterling silver branch and leaves ring

2. Sterling silver and aqua marine teardrop pendant 

3. Sterling silver dangling bouquet earrings

The jewelry I wear

You might think that being a jewelry designer and being sorrounded by jewelry all around means I wear some new jewelry every day. The fact is that I don't. Some people are loyal to one pendant or ring which they wear every day, others like to put on something different everyday. I am somewhere in between - I do stick with a few designs that I like wearing again and again for days, but my loyalty to these designs is only for a couple of weeks, not for life.

My daily jewelry "wardrobe" is basically just earrings, which I can't live without. I rarely wear other jewelry items for everyday, only for special ocassions.

Though I like all the jewelry I make (or else I wouldn't make them) I do find some of them are more me than others. So I admit - I have favorites! Every time I make new items I tend to get infatuated with a couple of the designs and make a copy for my personal use. I usually have about 2-3 favorite earrings that I wear for a while untill I am drawn to something else.

So here are my currently favorite earrings:

1. White pearls in sterling silver bubbles earrings
2. Rose Quartz flower earrings in sterling silver
3. Flower drop earrings in sterling silver and golden stones

What makes a best seller?

I often wonder what makes one item in a store sell better that another. What is the secret that makes a product into a best seller? If I knew the answer to that I would be rich and spending my time traveling around the world. But I do have a few ideas that are of course only based on my own personal experience.

Exposure - This is the obvious reason. Last year I had my filigree hoops featured in etsy's holiday gift guides and they received tons of daily views. As a result I sold many pairs of these. But since these earrings were one of my best sellers even before this extra attention I know this is not the only reason.

Pictures - when selling online, pictures are the basic thing that sells your item. I have several items that were not selling well and after improving their pictures, they suddenly became some of my most popular items in the store. It's amazing what a good picture can do.

Timing - If your item fits a specific need at the specific time it is needed, it will sell well. Of course you don't always know what that need is. A few years ago I made a ring with some birds parading on it. I sold only a few and stopped making them. Last year I re-made it and listed it in my store, It sold so much better. It turns out birds are "in" right now and the ring became very popular. Same design, different time and it made a huge difference.

I think you need a little bit of each of these factors to make a best seller. If you have the right product at the right time with a great set of pictures and a bit of exposure to display it to the world, success will come for sure. What do you think? any other ideas on what make an item succesful?

Here are some of my best selling items in the past and present: