Echoes of Ela

Artistry in metal, stone and glass

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One of a kind vs repeating a design

How has the end of April come so quickly? Whoa time, slow down a bit! Don’t know about you, but I am not in a hurry to get old…

Anyway, the end of the month means it’s JAC blog hop time. Carina from Violetmoon.nl  over in the Netherlands was gracious enough to choose this month’s topic:

One of a kind vs repeating design.

If you create jewelry, or probably pretty much anything, and sell it, this will come up – for sure. Yes, you are an artist and ideally want all of your works to be stunning one of a kinds aka OOAK, but the reality is that sooner or later someone will want to buy the same pair of earrings/bracelet/necklace you just sold to someone else. Are you going to tell them that you only make them once? Probably not if you like selling your wares. So, how do I handle this in my own shop?

Well, lets look at some of the benefits of repeating designs:

  • allows you to calculate and plan for materials used
  • eliminates need for photographing – take pics once of a specific design and just renew when sold
  • can function as signature pieces for your business
  • gives admirers of your jewelry an opportunity to purchase something they may have seen on someone else
  • practice makes perfect – the more you create a certain design, the more you can tweak it

There are designs that really seem to resonate, like this pair of woven earrings I have carried in my shop for quite a while. I don’t see them “going away” any time soon. They are fun, unique and classic. I love making them and my customers like buying them.

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Then there are those pieces that are created specifically with a certain type of customer in mind. They will likely include techniques that are a little more involved and challenging or time consuming and will often feature unique elements that would be difficult to duplicate consistently.

Benefits of one of a kind designs include:

  • opportunities to grow creatively by challenging design skills
  • motivation to learn new skills and use different materials
  • showcases artistic vision
  • adds to artistic credibility
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A one of a kind necklace featuring a lamp work glass cabochon, assorted mixed metal elements, hand crafted bead caps.

Since the design and creation of one of a kind pieces hones in on a potentially very limited market, for the time being, I have focused on a third category, which happens to be a hybrid of the two.

It includes designs that can be duplicated fairly easily and consistently. But it also gives my customer the option to customize it to their very specific tastes and preferences. Like the bead, but not the metal? No problem. Like the metal, but not the texture and/or patina? Let’s change that! Like the design with or without the beads? Your wish is my command:)

These earrings would be good examples of what I am talking about.

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Same style, different beads and textures

So it is the third, the hybrid option, I see my customers prefer the most. And I have to say I like that as well. It makes me feel good knowing that the recipient loves the design and either gets to have a hand in customizing or that I am able to give the same design a completely different look just by varying my components, metals, beads, texture and patina. It’s a win-win.

Which do you prefer? Do you try to create designs that re-invent the wheel each and every time or do you prefer to stick to more or less standardized creations that can be duplicated over and over?

Be sure to check out my fellow jewelry creators posts:

Catswire.blogspot.de

Violetmoon.nl

Jewelryartbydawn.blogspot.com

 

Karin

 

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Lights, camera, action – tackling jewelry photography

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Etsy recently began rolling out a new shop design, as they do every now and so often. As you can imagine forums in the Etsy community are abuzz:) Some like the new design, touted as more mobile friendly and apparently many do not.

For me it’s a cue to really buckle down on a project that has kept me busy for sometime – branding.

Branding is the buzzword for business owners. It is an umbrella term used to corral several different and equally important areas. If done well, it will make your business instantly recognizable and distinguish you from the herd. Not an easy feat on an enormous market place like Etsy, in a saturated field like jewelry.

Common wisdom says you have about 3 seconds to make a good impression – better make it memorable.

So over the course of the last few months I have really buckled down on what it is that needs fixing, why and how. I decided to to group them in the order that makes the most sense to me to have a starting point:

  • Photography
  • Design 
  • Marketing strategies
  • Logo 

For simplicity’s sake I will begin by focusing on jewelry photography basics. Pictures are the first impression, the hook, if you will. What do you want them to convey?

Unlike a conventional brick and mortar store, an internet based shop won’t allow your your customers to physically pick up an item for close inspection, see how it will fit, etc. A good point to always keep in mind. What do you want to see when you are shopping for jewelry? And as a seller: what do you want your customer to be able to appreciate that makes your piece so special?

While it can easily become overwhelming, not to mention time consuming, especially when you wind up having to re-photograph your pieces again and again – it really shouldn’t be.

Lucky for you, I have made every mistake in the book at one time or another when it comes to jewelry photography, so while I am far from a professional jewelry photographer, I definitely consider myself a bit of an expert in the field of what-not-to-do:)

Let me show you an example…

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Kinda makes your eyes bleed, doesn’t it? Let’s dissect the unfortunate victim.

Aside from the less than stellar perspective there are three major areas in this image that need addressing:

One of the first impressions on Etsy is the clean overall design aesthetic, minimalist look and the prevalence of “Etsy white”.  And that is exactly what I was going for here – with what I considered a “natural vibe”. I thought I aimed well… BUT obviously I missed the target by a mile.

  1. It is not the amount of light you use, it’s the QUALITY of the light
  2. Choose the right kind of back ground
  3. Pay attention to every little detail

 

So what type of light should you use?

For me that has been a difficult issue to figure out. If you have consistent access to the right amount of filtered daylight, it is not only the cheapest, but also the most eye-pleasing light source.

A major disadvantage to this setup was the dependence on weather conditions to time picture taking sessions.

Finding the proper degree, amount and angle of lighting became nothing shy of a Holy Grail quest.  tired of having to migrate with the light from room to room depending on the season, I bought lamps, special daylight bulbs, built a light box and relentlessly tweaked the white balance on my camera. But even all of that and a hardy amount of post processing did not achieve the result I was looking for.

So I bought a new camera. And I took photography classes. And got Photoshop and Lightroom. Still, the lighting issue continued to be a thorn in my side.

In the end I decided to go with a set of three enormous, legit photography lights. (When I bought them they were on sale for around $100 for the entire set, including bulbs and carrying case, so it might pay off to shop around)

While they may look a little like overkill, I assure you they are not. I highly recommend getting the lights with 4 bulbs. Some of my photography objects just don’t like having spotty lighting and before I got this set of lights, I found that I was constantly battling shadows seemingly coming from nowhere. The overhead lamp now nearly eliminates this issue for me. Each of the lights have a diffusing cover which results in lighting that is pretty darn close to natural daylight.

Here are some examples of what similar bracelets look like when photographed with the new lights:

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And a brighter version of a different bracelet:

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An example of earrings

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After experimenting with various settings on my camera, I have finally found the sweet spot that has reduced any time required to edit after the fact significantly. One feature my camera sadly lacks is tethered shooting in Live View, which would have allowed me to tether my camera directly to my laptop while taking pictures.

I forgot to mention that I ALWAYS use a tripod, as well as a 2 sec delay when I photograph my jewelry to eliminate unwanted blur. Shooting in a RAW format gives me a much greater range when it comes to editing.

If you are interested in learning more photography basics, I have found Craftsy.com to be a wonderful source for classes. They are affordable and you have access whenever it’s convenient.

Here is a link to jewelry lighting basics you might find informative as well.

In the coming weeks I will be addressing more of the issues I have mentioned above. I would love to hear a little about your own experiences with photography.

Karin

*disclaimer: I have not been reimbursed for any of the statements made in this post. All opinions are my own.

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Etsy Photography

Don’t you just love the beautifully photographed images on Etsy’s front page? Ever try to take one of those pictures? Easy? No. Intimidating? You bet. Etsy photography is what sells…

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Now, I have always fancied myself a photography enthusiast, at least back in the day, you know, when there was actual film in cameras! Digital cameras have come such a long way since their introduction and offer a stunning array of super complicated nifty features that enable just about anyone to take amazing shots. Well, provided you are willing to invest in a Master’s degree in imaging… or maybe not.

Luckily, you can make your photos look like they were shot by someone who has a clue. And today I want to show you some of those simple strategies that will improve your photography skills instantly – I promise.

Turns out you can make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear! Yeah! I will let you in on some very basic and fairly fool proof secrets that anyone can use. You can read my first post about it here. If you are looking for more advanced tips, sorry, not today, but I would sure love to hear from anyone who can add to my suggestions.

Do you need a fancy, expensive camera with tons of features and all kinds of bells and whistles? Nope. As a matter of fact most of the images I will show you in this post have been shot with this:

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My trusty little Nikon S6000 coolpix camera. And I have even dropped the poor thing on it’s head a couple of times – not proud of that:(

Okey dokey. On to the hall of shame. Some of the very first pictures I took and listed (oh the horror!) looked like this:

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While it is probably not as horrid exposure wise as some of my other humdingers attempts, well there is lots of room for improvement. My heart was in the right place!

Then I decided a white background was the way to go…

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 White with a bunch of undesirable shadows that is! After consulting the interwebz, I decided to build this light box, or really more of a white box. And I also came to the realization that direct sunlight might not be all it was cracked up to be – and neither were lamps! Up the white balance I was told and came up with this washed out and over-exposed example. I had reached my “Oy vey” phase of this project!

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But, I don’t give up that easy! White background, indirect, filtered sunlight, a TRIPOD… now we are beginning to see the light – pun totally intended. Maybe white wasn’t the way to go after all. So I hopped on over to Home Depot and scoured the tile isle for just the right materials. I came up with four different styles of tiles:) Black granite, white marble, white oversize subway and a tile with a wood grain look. And I liked what came out of my little camera after that!

 

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For this bracelet I decided to stick with shiny black – and that was the picture that finally sold it!

So, what are the most important tips I want you to take away from this?

Here’s a list of what I always do when I shoot my jewelry:

  • use a tripod
  • set a 2 second delay on my camera
  • use the macro setting that is a feature on most cameras these days – it’s usually the setting with the flower symbol
  • shoot in filtered daylight
  • pay very close attention to any shadows
  • change perspective, usually your images will look much better if shot from a lower angle
  • play with my white balance until it’s just right
  • use the editing software on my computer to crop, improve brightness, contrast, etc. or take advantage of free programs like pixlr.com
  • optimize my images – try imageoptimizer.net, it’s free to free up storage space

I recently purchased an actual DSLR camera. While I am still busy trying to figure out this much fancier contraption, I know that all of the things I mentioned above will work with it just the same, and that I need to save my allowance for a macro lens;)

Let me know if any of these tips help, and even better, if you have some of your own. This is something that will always be a part of the sales part of my jewelry business, so stay tuned for regular updates! I can’t wait to show you all the fancy stuff my new camera can do, as soon as I figure out how to work it…

Karin

P.S.: The picture at the very top was taken with my new camera just a few days ago!

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Exciting times are ahead!

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These are exciting times for me folks! Since my last post good things have happened and it is a wonderful feeling finally seeing a lot of hard work pay off! So, first of all if you are here reading this:

THANK YOU!

True, I have been a bit slack on the blogging end of my jewelry adventure, but no less dedicated! The fact of the matter is that when you are really trying to make a go of your home based jewelry business, be it as an online shop owner or brick and mortar seller and anything in between, a lot of little stuff has to happen to insure you will turn it into a success down the line. And often making jewelry (and writing blog posts about it) gets left on the back burner. But I am trying to balance the business end in a way that will allow me as much time as possible to do what I love the most and that is creating!

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Recently I celebrated my one year anniversary as an Etsy shop owner.  And I can definitely say that this past year has been a tremendous learning experience for me. I guess naive is a pretty good description of me a year ago. Naive in the sense that while I knew it wouldn’t be easy, I didn’t think it would be this hard! But just like giving birth to a real baby, this business baby of mine is something that I am learning to raise. Now I can look back (with horror) at my earliest fledgling attempts at photography, description writing, tags, (what the heck is) SEO?! All that along with trying to find my style, “create a brand”, find high quality suppliers, start writing a blog (!), get all the business stuff in order…

And now I am beginning to get a sense how it all ties in together, how photographing my creations has also made me a better artist essentially forcing me to take a very close look at what I have created, flaws and all. It is also making me much more aware of the spirit or personality of the piece I created. I am not the kind of person who is happy with taking the same old boring sets of pictures over and over. That kind of homogenized approach has never been my bag. Each creation has a right to be shown in its best light and I want to be sure that I have done it justice.

The same concept really applies to writing descriptions. This is, however the more meat and potatoes, lets get to the nitty-gritty part of it all. I have to be able to supply my customer with all the information they need without sounding sterile about it. Too much would be a turn off, too little might make it seem I don’t care enough to sit down and do it right. I have tweaked a lot!

Now I am looking at a new year. It is already shaping up to be a good and creative one. Several projects are in the works, which I cannot wait to share with you soon!

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Wishing you all a very Happy, Healthy and Abundant New Year!

Karin

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Good to have you here!

A place for me to bring you along on my jewelry making journey!

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Writing my very own jewelry making blog has been on my mind for quite a while. But it has taken me some time to work up the courage to get really serious and get started on this newest venture of mine. I am far from computer savvy and anything tech related pretty much sends shivers down my spine. But I love to create and I love to write – so it is time to overcome my inner “nay-sayer” and just go for it.

I hope you’ll stop by frequently to check out what’s happening at my little work bench! I want to get one thing out of the way first: I am no expert by any means. But I do love creating jewelry and I am always trolling for ideas on how to improve my skills, come up with new designs, finding new materials.

Whenever possible I want to incorporate as many locally sourced components as possible. Join me as I explore! I am just putting my feelers out to connect with other local artists and I am already amazed at how many equally passionate jewelry buffs are all around me! The possibilities are endless.

When you are stuck in the zone and spend hour after hour working on your creations, it’s easy to forget how many kindred spirits are right there with you! And I am happy to report that I have encountered nothing but sharing, generous artists. It is a lovely community!

Enjoy your day and check back often to see what’s new and happening in my work shop!

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Why Etsy?

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For the past six years I have been a wife and a mother who no longer works outside the home. I have been a mother for nearly eighteen years, a wife for longer than I can remember. My family is not your typical family. My younger son has autism and requires a significant amount of care and attention. My husband has been battling cancer for the past year. Oh yes, and there is my oldest, to whom I will refer as the teenage person in the house.

And the cutest black lab mix you could ever lay eyes on.

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Flexibility is a definite must.

When I first came across Etsy a couple of years ago, I loved it just for the browsing and dreaming of beautiful things that would almost certainly never find their way to my house. A household full of male creatures does not bode well for beautiful things!

Over time I became more and more interested in the stories of those selling their creations on Etsy and it slowly dawned on me that many of them were people just like me, passionate about craft and motivated to sell their goods. From what I could tell Etsy seemed user friendly  enough and so far I can say that it has been. I do love how I can always fall back and ask just about any question in one of the many forums and it will be answered by someone who may have encountered a similar issue within minutes. I love the fact that Etsy features different stores at regular intervals! I love reading about how various sellers have overcome obstacles and found their own version of success. And of course I dream of being interviewed for one of their features some day…

Doesn’t everyone?

I finally took the Etsy plunge last November. I have to confess I was pretty naive. I completely underestimated the time and effort required over and above what it took to make my jewelry. Photography can be a real bear! And it is incredibly intimidating when you see the gorgeous pictures featured on the front page. I shudder even now when I look back at some of the photos I took in the very early beginning! Let’s not forget that for all intents and purposes I am still a newbie! But not as green as I was then, thank God!

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On the left is an example of one of my early attempts at photography! Geez Louise!

The right is an example of how my pictures look right now.

We’ll dissect this in the next post, alright?

If you are like me, passionate about your craft and want to earn an extra buck doing it and just aren’t quite sure if a platform like Etsy could work for you I invite you to follow along on this journey!

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