Instead of the usual ten links, I'm posting 5 videos. These are all basic wire wrapping techniques to make useful and basic components for your jewelry.
How to wire wrap end caps (could also be used as bead caps for the right bead shape)
How to wire wrap ends on leather cord (this is the technique I use for my jewelry, I really like the way it looks)
How to wire wrap a briolette or stone
How to wire wrap a hook & loop clasp
How to make a simple wire wrapped ring (once you have the basic technique down, you can make more complex designs!)
Enjoy :)
Amber
Thursday, September 19, 2013
Thursday, September 12, 2013
The Weekly Ten - Color Inspiration!
Every now and then, I'll see a photo, or something in a vintage shop, or even the way my cat's grey fur contrasts the colorful toy he's attempting to destroy, and the colors inspire me to make a new jewelry design. Sometimes it happens just by poking around in my boxes of beads, holding different colors up together to see how I like them.
Here are ten photos from Pinterest that have gorgeous, inspiring colors! (and shapes!)
Enjoy :)
Amber
Here are ten photos from Pinterest that have gorgeous, inspiring colors! (and shapes!)
Enjoy :)
Amber
Monday, September 9, 2013
DIY Craft Show Displays
If you're like me, you take joy in making everything by hand, not just jewelry. Most of my craft show displays have been either made from scratch or customized. I do this both because it is often less expensive to build than it is to buy, and because it gives displays a unique look so they don't blend in at shows.
Here's a list of some of my favorite ways to build or customize craft show displays. Feel free to adapt them to suit your tastes, after all, your business should reflect you!
1. Painted Thrift Store Finds
I have found wooden bowls, wicker baskets, odd candle pedestals and wooden divided lunch trays at thrift stores. Usually, they don't look like much when I find them and have a good deal of wear or staining. I like to sand them lightly with a medium grit paper (around 400) and then paint them with a couple of coats of interior latex paint. It gives them a fresh face and if you paint them all in the same color, it can give you a cohesive display even if the pieces are different in shape.
The reason I use interior latex is because it dries harder than artists acrylic. If you paint objects with acrylic, it will be more likely that the paint will stick to plastic, glass, paper or other painted surfaces, and lift onto the objects being displayed. The safest way to protect against any paint lifting is to line the container or tray with fabric or a filler before adding your display items.
2. Paper Mache Bust / Necklace display
I started with a framework of mesh and wire, but you could just as easily use a balloon for the head and crumpled up newspaper taped together for the neck and shoulders. You don't need to put features onto the bust, just shape it into the general impression of a life sized head, neck and shoulders. Another option is to use plaster of paris to actually cast a bust of yourself or a friend, then once it is cured add a base with more plaster so that it will stand up.
Either method of building a bust can then be painted, decoupaged, or left as is, depending on the look you're going for.
3. Suitcase
I've said before that I love suitcase displays, especially if they are made so that they can just be opened and popped up on a table, for a super fast setup. One method to accomplish this is to remove the "guts" of the suitcase or briefcase, up to and including the liner if you're comfortable with it. You can then re-line the case with fabric or vinyl, or you could even paint the inside of it if the original liner came out cleanly. You could add cork board sheeting, chalk board paint, or a magnetic surface to the inside of the lid, where you can hang items for display, write messages, or display magnetic items. You can use self-adhesive hooks or magnetic hooks as well.
The bottom of the case can be filled with bins to hold items or it can serve as a large basket for loose items.
4. Frames
I have used frames a few different ways in my displays: I covered a frame with fine mesh to display earrings & necklaces, I've filled a frame with a sheet of cork-board to display thumbtacks or use tacks as hooks to display jewelry. There is also the link I posted previously for filling small frames with ring-holders. I like frames because they can be used either flat on a table or vertically, especially if the original back of the frame is still in-tact and can hold it upright or allow it to hang from a fixture. The frame itself can add some visual blank space between sections of your display, giving the eye a place to rest before moving on to the next display. They can also be painted to match the rest of your display and you can even paint over a cork board in a frame.
5. Tiered Displays
You could buy tiered dessert/serving trays at some major stores and vintage stores, but it's fun to make a unique version yourself. If you can find a few glasses (stemmed are great) or even medium-tall candle holders, as well as some assorted sizes of plates, they can be glued together in a stack to form a unique tiered display. I recommend using a glue like E9000 or Gorilla, something that adheres well to glass & smooth surfaces. White glue or hot glue does not normally form a good adhesion to non-porous surfaces.
There are many other ways to build & create your own displays, these just happen to be my favorites. More ideas can be found on the JellyPins Pinterest board, and I add to it often when I find fun ideas! Amber
Here's a list of some of my favorite ways to build or customize craft show displays. Feel free to adapt them to suit your tastes, after all, your business should reflect you!
1. Painted Thrift Store Finds
I have found wooden bowls, wicker baskets, odd candle pedestals and wooden divided lunch trays at thrift stores. Usually, they don't look like much when I find them and have a good deal of wear or staining. I like to sand them lightly with a medium grit paper (around 400) and then paint them with a couple of coats of interior latex paint. It gives them a fresh face and if you paint them all in the same color, it can give you a cohesive display even if the pieces are different in shape.
The reason I use interior latex is because it dries harder than artists acrylic. If you paint objects with acrylic, it will be more likely that the paint will stick to plastic, glass, paper or other painted surfaces, and lift onto the objects being displayed. The safest way to protect against any paint lifting is to line the container or tray with fabric or a filler before adding your display items.
2. Paper Mache Bust / Necklace display
I started with a framework of mesh and wire, but you could just as easily use a balloon for the head and crumpled up newspaper taped together for the neck and shoulders. You don't need to put features onto the bust, just shape it into the general impression of a life sized head, neck and shoulders. Another option is to use plaster of paris to actually cast a bust of yourself or a friend, then once it is cured add a base with more plaster so that it will stand up.
Either method of building a bust can then be painted, decoupaged, or left as is, depending on the look you're going for.
3. Suitcase
I've said before that I love suitcase displays, especially if they are made so that they can just be opened and popped up on a table, for a super fast setup. One method to accomplish this is to remove the "guts" of the suitcase or briefcase, up to and including the liner if you're comfortable with it. You can then re-line the case with fabric or vinyl, or you could even paint the inside of it if the original liner came out cleanly. You could add cork board sheeting, chalk board paint, or a magnetic surface to the inside of the lid, where you can hang items for display, write messages, or display magnetic items. You can use self-adhesive hooks or magnetic hooks as well.
The bottom of the case can be filled with bins to hold items or it can serve as a large basket for loose items.
4. Frames
I have used frames a few different ways in my displays: I covered a frame with fine mesh to display earrings & necklaces, I've filled a frame with a sheet of cork-board to display thumbtacks or use tacks as hooks to display jewelry. There is also the link I posted previously for filling small frames with ring-holders. I like frames because they can be used either flat on a table or vertically, especially if the original back of the frame is still in-tact and can hold it upright or allow it to hang from a fixture. The frame itself can add some visual blank space between sections of your display, giving the eye a place to rest before moving on to the next display. They can also be painted to match the rest of your display and you can even paint over a cork board in a frame.
5. Tiered Displays
You could buy tiered dessert/serving trays at some major stores and vintage stores, but it's fun to make a unique version yourself. If you can find a few glasses (stemmed are great) or even medium-tall candle holders, as well as some assorted sizes of plates, they can be glued together in a stack to form a unique tiered display. I recommend using a glue like E9000 or Gorilla, something that adheres well to glass & smooth surfaces. White glue or hot glue does not normally form a good adhesion to non-porous surfaces.
There are many other ways to build & create your own displays, these just happen to be my favorites. More ideas can be found on the JellyPins Pinterest board, and I add to it often when I find fun ideas! Amber
Saturday, September 7, 2013
Photography - Finding the Sweet Spot (of focus)
I'm going to use a photograph that is a much larger scale than product photography typically is, in order to better illustrate where the focal point falls in an image.
In the first photo, the majority of the picture is out of focus, but near the middle there is a crisp area of pavement that catches the eye. The second photo has been cropped so that the focused area is closer to the bottom of the frame, which feels more natural to the eye than having out of focus area at the bottom.
This is because our eyes find it natural that the closest part of the picture is in focus, but when the bottom of the frame is out of focus, our eyes attempt to bring that area into focus when we look at it. It can actually cause physical discomfort.
When you are taking photos of small items using a macro setting on your camera, you want the leading edge of the object to be in that crisply focused area. Here is an example:
Here is the photo before cropping, with a line indicating where the focus zone falls:
When cropping your photos of small objects, it is best to have that focus zone on the bottom 1/3 line. This is a concept of photography, where the visual frame is divided in thirds horizontally and in thirds vertically. In framing a photo, the guideline is to have the primary subject on one of the lines delineating the thirds of the photo. Here is the image again, with an overlay grid showing the horizontal and vertical thirds:
Notice that the focal line which was marked earlier is now lined up with the bottom 1/3 line, and the left most area of the product is approximately over the left 1/3 line. When cropping, the crop would follow the outer edges of the grid, so that the thirds remain lined up as they are.
That leaves you with a photo cropped so that the focal line is in a very comfortable and natural spot, which draws the eye (and the viewer) in!
In the first photo, the majority of the picture is out of focus, but near the middle there is a crisp area of pavement that catches the eye. The second photo has been cropped so that the focused area is closer to the bottom of the frame, which feels more natural to the eye than having out of focus area at the bottom.
This is because our eyes find it natural that the closest part of the picture is in focus, but when the bottom of the frame is out of focus, our eyes attempt to bring that area into focus when we look at it. It can actually cause physical discomfort.
When you are taking photos of small items using a macro setting on your camera, you want the leading edge of the object to be in that crisply focused area. Here is an example:
Here is the photo before cropping, with a line indicating where the focus zone falls:
When cropping your photos of small objects, it is best to have that focus zone on the bottom 1/3 line. This is a concept of photography, where the visual frame is divided in thirds horizontally and in thirds vertically. In framing a photo, the guideline is to have the primary subject on one of the lines delineating the thirds of the photo. Here is the image again, with an overlay grid showing the horizontal and vertical thirds:
Notice that the focal line which was marked earlier is now lined up with the bottom 1/3 line, and the left most area of the product is approximately over the left 1/3 line. When cropping, the crop would follow the outer edges of the grid, so that the thirds remain lined up as they are.
That leaves you with a photo cropped so that the focal line is in a very comfortable and natural spot, which draws the eye (and the viewer) in!
Thursday, September 5, 2013
The Weekly Ten - Unique Bead Finds
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
How to Make Craft Shows a Little Easier
Anyone who has sold handmade goods at a craft show knows it is exhausting. Not only are we operating a pop-up store for hours on end, but we have to make that store appear and disappear, often all in a single day. It makes me tired just thinking about it!
Over the years, I've learned a few tactics to help make the craft show experience a little easier:
Ready To Go Displays -
Any aspect of your display that can be arranged or set up before hand will save you time and effort on the day of the show. Jewelry trays with the items laid out in advance, hanging racks with the jewelry hung on it and folding cases that stand vertically on the table are just a few examples of methods to have jewelry laid out and ready to go in a snap.
Business Operations in a Briefcase -
You can use a briefcase, small suitcase, lock box or even a plastic container to keep all of your transaction tools in one place and ready to go from show to show. I use a briefcase that holds my packaging & bags, change, pens, business cards, Square reader, calculator and ledger. When I arrive at a show and set up, I just put the case on the table, open it up and I'm ready to go. Because most of the items stay in there between shows, I always know where everything is and there is no last minute searching the night before or day of the show.
Folding Dolly / Carts -
These are really efficient because they fold up to be kept in your vehicle or under a table at a show, but they can hold a great deal with the addition of bungee cables. I've used these for years, and it has reduced the number of load-in trips to just one, and saved my back!
Pricing Reminder Card -
This is most effective if you have groups of items that are all the same price. I like to price these with signs, but it has lead to moments where I forget exactly what was on the sign so in mid-transaction, I have to run around the table and look at the sign. In order to make it easier, I take an index card and write down the price of any of these types of items and keep it in my briefcase. That way, I only need to glance at the card for a moment to make sure I'm charging the right prices.
Setting up Square -
The Square app has the ability to store your item information. During a transaction, whether cash or credit, you can tap the item you are selling rather than having to put items in individually or tally them up & write them in a ledger separately. Click here for Square's instructions on setting this up for the smart phone app.
With these tips you can set your display up ahead of time, have everything in one place & get it into your booth a little easier, so that you can spend all your energy on having a great show!
Amber
Over the years, I've learned a few tactics to help make the craft show experience a little easier:
Ready To Go Displays -
Any aspect of your display that can be arranged or set up before hand will save you time and effort on the day of the show. Jewelry trays with the items laid out in advance, hanging racks with the jewelry hung on it and folding cases that stand vertically on the table are just a few examples of methods to have jewelry laid out and ready to go in a snap.
Business Operations in a Briefcase -
You can use a briefcase, small suitcase, lock box or even a plastic container to keep all of your transaction tools in one place and ready to go from show to show. I use a briefcase that holds my packaging & bags, change, pens, business cards, Square reader, calculator and ledger. When I arrive at a show and set up, I just put the case on the table, open it up and I'm ready to go. Because most of the items stay in there between shows, I always know where everything is and there is no last minute searching the night before or day of the show.
Folding Dolly / Carts -
These are really efficient because they fold up to be kept in your vehicle or under a table at a show, but they can hold a great deal with the addition of bungee cables. I've used these for years, and it has reduced the number of load-in trips to just one, and saved my back!
Pricing Reminder Card -
This is most effective if you have groups of items that are all the same price. I like to price these with signs, but it has lead to moments where I forget exactly what was on the sign so in mid-transaction, I have to run around the table and look at the sign. In order to make it easier, I take an index card and write down the price of any of these types of items and keep it in my briefcase. That way, I only need to glance at the card for a moment to make sure I'm charging the right prices.
Setting up Square -
The Square app has the ability to store your item information. During a transaction, whether cash or credit, you can tap the item you are selling rather than having to put items in individually or tally them up & write them in a ledger separately. Click here for Square's instructions on setting this up for the smart phone app.
With these tips you can set your display up ahead of time, have everything in one place & get it into your booth a little easier, so that you can spend all your energy on having a great show!
Amber
Sunday, September 1, 2013
The Perfect JellyPins for Fall/Winter 2013 and Spring/Summer 2014 Color Trends
JellyPins come in a large variety of colors, but some are perfect for each season of color trends. What follows is a list of JellyPins that will fit well into the current season and next season.
Fall/Winter 2013
Spring/Summer 2014
We are also running a coupon right now in the Etsy shop - enter JP91320 for 20% off your entire order!
Till next time,
Amber
Fall/Winter 2013
Spring/Summer 2014
We are also running a coupon right now in the Etsy shop - enter JP91320 for 20% off your entire order!
Till next time,
Amber
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