Enhancing your creations with polymer clay beads

By now, if you have not discovered the wonderful world of polymer clay beads, it is still not too late!

Handmade polymer clay beads has been a favourite medium for many independent artistes around the world. Google "polymer clay beads" and you will find thousands (if not millions!) of articles from making them to buying ready made ones from renowned artisans. If you want total exclusivity in designs, you can also have them customised!

The learning process of making my own polymer clay beads have brought me much gratification the past 2 years. These clay beads have certainly enhanced my jewelry collections, making them stand out from the crowd, especially when no two beads will be exactly the same. You will be surprised at how even a small clay bead focal makes a creation special and attractive.

I will leave you here with some of my sold out creations featuring the use of my handmade clay beads as focals.

Perhaps you would consider using them in your next creation!

Article by : Adeline Oon
Visit her store @ www.adessentials.sg

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Watch Me: How To Promote Your Handmade Jewelry Club Through Press Release

The following article was submitted to The Star's Citizen Blog as part of the public relation efforts to promote Handmade-Jewelry-Club. Click here to go the the article or simply just read the article below.

People often wonder how to get started selling their jewelry online, so I thought I'd jot down a few tips. These are just my personal recommendations from my experience of running an online Handmade-Jewelry-Club and participations on other marketplaces.

I've found the web is the most conducive venue for young brands as it is virtually zero cost in terms of barrier to entry, overheads are exceedingly low and there are some excellent marketplaces which are themselves already established thus guaranteeing a certain level of traffic.

As promoting your creations online through your own website can be very time consuming. Instead of starting your own website straight away, I would recommend you start with some craft related marketplaces. Etsy could be a good place for you if you are new and testing out as it is "a place to buy and sell all things handmade"it really is a great deal because all your products get put into their catalog so people can search and find them. Etsy is charging relatively reasonable insertion fee as compared some other marketplaces. There are also free venue for posting your creations for sale or for sharing such as Handmade-Jewelry-Club.

More marketplace websites:

• Ecrater
• Ruby Lane
• eBay

In one of my interviews with Malaysian Handmade Jewelry Artists – Sheela Goh who is on her way building her brand internationally, she has given the following advice: “I'm sure you've all heard this before but it's true - be unique. Create something different, differently you. Be patient. Rome wasn't built in a day and despite what you hear about so and so being discovered and becoming a millionaire in 2 months, real life doesn't work that way. Be patient and work really hard, work really smart to carve your own design identity and promote, promote, promote. Another very important thing to remember - don't overstock on the gems. It's a natural addiction for all jewellery designers. We hoard more than we use which makes for lovely personal drooling but does nothing in helping to pay bills :) so buy what you need, don't buy more until you've used up what you have on hand. That's an adage I'm still trying to come to terms with.”

Hope you are able to see some lights on where to start. Good luck!

Regards

Jane Chew

Community Chief Editor

www.handmade-jewelry-club.com

Get Free Blogger Name Card

Do you carry business cards to promote yourself, your blog as well as your jewelry making business? Well, I think you should. It's a low key way to network.

Here are some of the 'kiasu' ways to promote yourself by distributing business cards:

Carry business cards with you everywhere you go.
Post your card on bulletin boards,
Put them in fishbowls at restaurants,
leave them on restaurant tables with your tip.
Give one to your dentist, hairdresser, tailor, and anyone else you may come in contact with on a daily basis.

The best thing is I found a place that offers free business cards. You just need to pay for delivery charges. Go to http://www.ooprint.com/ more info!

I have gotton mine from them as well. This photo above is the design template I used for my card. Hope this info is useful to you!! Cheers

Would You Like To Start your Own Home Based Jewelry Business?

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This amazing book is divided up into 5 comprehensive sections:

Section 1 - Getting Started

Step 1 - Your Reasons for Starting a Business

Step 2 - Establish Goals and Objectives

Step 3 - Is a Jewelry Business the Right Fit for Me?

Step 4 - Setting and Managing Expectations on your Time

Step 5 - Identify Your Customers

Step 6 - Identify your Products

Step 7 - Competition, Supply & Demand

Step 8 - Pricing Strategies

Section 2 - Business Operations and Legal Issues

Step 9 - Maintaining Records

Step 10 - Identifying Startup Costs

Step 11 - Planning to Pay Yourself

Step 12 - Projecting your Income

Step 13 - Business Legal Structure

Step 14 - Business Name

Step 15 - Handling Taxes

Step 16 - Business Licenses, Certificates, and Restrictions

Step 17 - Business and Personal Insurance

Step 18 - Credit Card Processing

Step 19 - Building an On-line Presence

Step 20 - Protecting your Business

Step 21 - Writing your Business Plan

Section 3 - Sales and Marketing

Step 22 - Building Client Relationships

Step 23 - Create Marketing Materials

Section 4 - Having a Successful Jewelry Party

Step 24 - Recruiting Party Hosts with Incentives

Step 25 - Design Great Party Invitations

Step 26 - Party Preparation

Step 27 - Party Refreshments

Step 28 - What to Expect During the Party

Step 29 - New Jewelry Party Formats

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Inspiration - Where to find new Design Ideas

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eBay Category Updates - Selling make easier

EBay's Seller Experience team this week made several changes to the Sell Your Item (SYI) form, in another attempt at making the listing process easier for sellers. Starting this week, the category choices under top-level groups are organized in such a way that you can more quickly select the appropriate categories.

While eBay has made changes to several categories this week, those who list in Jewelry or Electronics will find significant updates. The Electronics category is now being called Consumer Electronics, making it a broader category for listing professional and consumer equipment. EBay said that at a later time, a Pro Audio & Stage Effects area for DJ gear, lighting effects, mixers and amplifiers will also be added. Sellers listing in the Musical Instruments section will now need to use Electronics to list Pro Audio items. The Electronics category has also been updated to eliminate the redundancy between categories and Item Specifics. For sellers who list in the Jewelry & Watches category, there are several changes you should be aware of. A new section has been added for Fine Jewelry, which has been included to spotlight non-vintage, non-bridal jewelry composed entirely of genuine gemstones and solid, unplated precious metals.
In the Vintage & Antique Jewelry category, eBay said it will make changes that will let buyers choose their era of interest before they pick the material of the piece. There will also be a third level to classify the jewelry type. During this transition, eBay advised sellers that many items will be moved into "Other" categories. Sellers should move listings into the new categories as soon as they become available.Also, a separate section for Engagement, Wedding, and Anniversary Jewelry has been added to highlight these popular items.

For How Much You Can Sell Your Handcrafted Jewelry

This is another area of handcrafted jewelry business that perplexes a lot of people, however it is actually very simple. You just have to take not of the costs of your materials, how much work you have placed on the crafts, and the overhead. To do this you need three steps: 1. List the cost all the materials and tools you used for making the jewelry. 2. Carefully think how much time and effort you gave to make your goods and decide how much you are willing to pay yourself. Perhaps in the beginning it is reasonable to pay yourself $10 or so for every hour you worked. You can increase this as your business grows. 3. Finally, take not of all the other expenses that is related to your jewelry making. This could include the rent of the stall in the trade fair you joined, or the website maintenance expenses, or the telephone charges you got from calling contacts. Usually, these miscellaneous expenses can be estimated by taking 25% of the your material and labor costs. With these in mind you would know how much your goods are worth, so that you would neither overprice nor under-price. Making money out of your handcrafted jewelry is not as difficult as it seems. With determination and hard work you could be earning from your hobby in no time.

Where to Sell Your Handmade Jewelries/ Necklace, Earrings, Pendant, Bracelets

So several years after you started taking on a handcrafted jewelry hobby, you are probably now an expert in the craft. Perhaps your drawers and cabinets are overfilled with necklaces, earrings, bracelets and other trinkets. Maybe you have already run out of friends and relatives to give these things away. Now is the time for you to make money from your handcrafted jewelry by selling them.
For many hobbyists, taking the next step of making a pastime into a means of earning is an exciting phase. However, there are also many of those who could still be quite hesitant take their handcrafted jewelry hobby making to the next level because of many uncertainties that may come along the way. If such is the case for you, read on and discover how you could make your hobby not only pleasurable but lucrative as well.
Where to Sell Your Handcrafted Jewelry
For many people, selling would mean putting up a store or a boutique, but this should not always be the case for beginners. Building a shop can be intimidating, and not to mention risky, especially during the early stages. The best thing to do is to test the waters (i.e. the market) first before taking the plunge into a full-pledged handcrafted jewelry business. Here are some great venues where you can start up.

1. Handcrafted Jewelry Parties at Home - this is where many successful handcrafted jewelers start out. They invite their friends for some snack or dinner one afternoon or evening. As desert is serve, and small talk begins, you can show your guests your latest creations. Let them take a look and feel of your products. Have mirrors handy and allow guests to try your jewels out for size. This relaxed and friendly environment could be a great venue not only to take pride of your handiwork but also to sell them to people who are close to you.

2. Flea Market or Handicraft Fairs - after hosting some parties, you may now try to venture into the outside world, and a great place to do this is in handicraft fairs, where people of the same interest gather to look and shop for interesting finds. Fairs provide great settings novice jewelers as they provide good learning experiences such as the latest trends in the business. This is also where you could meet with potential contacts for your future handcrafted jewelry ventures. In Malaysia, you can consider flea markets at Amcorp, The Curve, Mont Kiara etc.

3. Online Jewelry Shops - you may also take advantage of the convenience afforded by technology by selling your products online. The great thing about online shops is you could reach a wide market without having to leave your house. You may join an online shops that specialize on accessories or you may also sell you goods in online auction sites. For a minimal cost you could enter a vast ocean of potential customers. eBay is now a phenomenally popular site that sells everything from pets to computers, and you could greatly take advantage of his wonderful channel. Also, do not forget http://diyjewelryclub.blogspot.com/ also allows hobbyists to display their creations free of charge. Just contact: diyjewelryclub@gmail.com to receive an invitation to sell here :)

You may also put up your own website so that people would associate your products directly to you. Publishing and maintaining websites these days are no longer costly and considering how much you would earn with your handcrafted jewelry business, this could be a venture worth taking.


Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lee_Dobbins