Another Wordless Wednesday - Enjoy!

Dreaming of Sea Glass

Raining and overcast today on the Jersey shore. Saturday is change-over day and the traffic getting to and on LBI is going to be stop and go, so going to my favorite stretch of beach is probably a crazy idea. Instead I will add a new piece of jewelry or two to my Etsy shop, work on my blogs , pour myself a cup of coffee and dream of finding that elusive piece of orange sea glass. Or a few more like the piece below... : )

'til next time
R

Listening to My Customers

Listening to your customers can often breathe life into a shop's bottom line. My Etsy shop sales were rather disappointing. My inventory had stagnated, views were low and there was really nothing happening with my jewelry. Rather than just continuing on with my current inventory lines and hoping for a positive holiday sales season, I chose to try to figure out how to turn my sea glass inventory into new product line.

Several customers requested sea glass anklets and these creations proved quite challenging. Trying to avoid making something similar to my bracelets, I eventually decided to take a few pieces of sea glass that were marble and egg-shaped and drill through them length-wise. We had a few casualties along the way, losing a few gorgeous pieces of sea glass that suffered blowouts, but some pieces (like the image above) came through the drilling process perfectly. In hindsight, I'm not sure if I will create many more anklets with this type of drilling, but I will still make them like this...

I also had a few requests for necklaces that were a bit more subtle. I have made custom pieces for customers using smaller pieces of sea glass and people who visited my table displays last season showed quite a bit of interest. So I delved into my sea glass collection and pulled out several tiny pieces- all measuring 1/2" to just short of 5/8" in length and wrapped several. The "Petites" have really turned the momentum around in my shop... my views have increased and my bottom line has improved.

Both of these items came to fruition after listening to customer suggestions. They have allowed me to expand a stagnate inventory and give customers that visit my shop, a few additional options. When it comes to sea glass, you can't always give the customers what they want, if the ocean isn't providing the needed "gems". But in these cases, I'm glad my collection contained what was needed to make my customers happy! 'til next time... R

Craft Show- Tips and Trends

At my most recent show, my hubby pointed out several things he observed during the show. Some of these observations were trends he noticed before and in the next few events they seemed to prove themselves as situations I wanted to create or avoid. Hubby is a people watcher and he'll often at shows, whisper to me that a certain person is going to buy something. The most bizarre thing is, he does it as the person is leaving my display and more often than not, he's correct because they come back and make a purchase!

The observation that he finds that often leads to a sale is- a crowd at the display and the bigger, the better! When I have several people standing in front of my display tables, it seems that more people see the crowd and get drawn in, like moths to a porch light. Others become curious and just have to see why there is a crowd at my display tables. Because two pieces of sea glass are rarely alike, my jewelry creations are essentially one-of-a-kind creations. And large crowds at my display make those right in front a little antsy, especially if they "love" one of my items. I have watched people have conversations with each other, almost justifying a reason why they are going to make a purchase... upcoming birthday, Put it away for a Christmas present, this is her color, etc. Sometimes it seems like the person feels that this could be there last chance to make the purchase and if they walk away and come back, "their" piece of jewelry will be bought by someone else. So crowds, especially a large and getting bigger crowd, will often facilitate a purchase and there is nothing better than a large group of people seeing someone make a purchase. I rarely make jewelry at a show. It's often just too hectic and I never liked the pressure of doing it in front of people. At my most recent show, I pulled out some jewelry-quality pieces of sea glass and decided I would try to wrap a couple. The foot traffic at the show was good, but sales were slow and hubby has always encouraged me to make jewelry at the show, "on-the-fly". With my hubby and two boys at the tables to talk with anyone who came to my display, I was able to start wrapping without interruption and just got lost wrapping jewelry. I had a nice flow going and after turning several pieces of sea glass into pendants, I looked up to find I had a large audience off to the side of my table, all watching me do my thing. Several inquired if I would consider making jewelry with a piece of sea glass they personally found on the beach, took business cards, and a couple of them made purchases. One person claimed that after they observed the process of how I chose to wrap a piece, it became more personable watching "the artist" create it right in front of them (wow, I'm an artist in somebody's mind!) Crafters, if you can preform your craft live at a show, seriously consider it- it goes back to my first tip- it draws a crowd to your display and that often results in something positive for you. Business cards are a must and if you feel comfortable, jot your phone number down on a few to hand out to those you feel may be a future customer. I went through a lot of cards in my last show and if only 10% of those people contact me in the coming months, that show will go from "above expectations" to "HUGE!!!" Credit Cards- I always accept credit card purchases and have only been burned twice in several years (both for small amounts, but it still gets me angry because sea glass is one-of-a-kind and I'll never find another piece like the one I just "gave away") This last show, I noticed that about 60% of the sales were credit cards, and that most of the mid-range price-point items were purchased via a cc. The lower end price points were cash purchases and the high-end items didn't sell. If you can, bring all of your inventory to the show. I sold a piece that I have had in my inventory for a couple of years. I know that there have been shows when this piece wasn't included in the inventory, but you can't sell what you didn't bring and luckily, this piece has found a new home...and the new owner was thrilled because it's her favorite color!

I'm happy that some people seemed to be in a purchasing mood at the show and I have made a couple of recent sales in my shop. But I am still pessimistic about the economy. I hope things are taking a turn for the better and that sales and future shows (for you and I) prove to be successful. Perhaps these tips will help you make a few sales and maybe attract a couple repeat customers for your products and business. Looking forward to see you on the show circuit! 'til next time, R

Review- The 2012 Beach Plum Festival

If you haven't been following my recent blog entries- a quick catch-up... The economy has really affected my small handmade jewelry crafting business and with one of my favorite shows approaching, I decided to make a personal investment. Best case scenario, it would be a good show and I'd make my money back (and hopefully a decent profit) or worse case, I would have replenished my inventory and would put everything into my Etsy shop and gear up for holiday sales.

The Festival- for those that live in the NJ area, the Beach Plum Festival is held every September on Island Beach State Park (near Seaside) The park is gorgeous, the beaches very clean and one of the few beaches in NJ staffed with lifeguards after Labor Day. The Festival attracts several handmade crafters, displays featuring local non-profits and food vendors, along with many displays featuring the topic of the day...Beach Plums (the ice cream and jellies are outstanding, BTW) The show is very well run and receives quite a bit of local media attention. For crafters considering this event, the show always attracts a great deal of foot-traffic- many who plan to hit the beach and stroll in find a great festival in progress. If you have a beach-theme craft or business, this should be a must-do show. An overview of how the festival went for me personally would be- better than expected. I really didn't know what to expect because I was not selling much out of my Etsy shop and other crafters had reported below average sales over the summer. With many fellow crafters cutting back on shows, I didn't really know what to expect. The show started out slowly sales-wise. There was a large crowd right at the start of the festival (perhaps beach-goers) and I had a lot of foot traffic, but very few people looked to be making purchases anywhere. The traffic continued to pour in and I decided to find a few pieces in my collection to make into pendants for necklaces. I began wire-wrapping several pieces and that seemed to draw a small crowd and that seemed to change the "luck" for me, as I starting selling a few pieces. By noon, it was clear I would cover my expenses and make a little money. I'd love to say this was my best year at this venue, but it wasn't. But with the expectations I had coming into the show, I have to admit that I am so happy to have made the investment in myself because it seems that people are beginning to feel good about the economy. And they appear to be looking to buy something different and unique.

I'd love to find another show to do before the holidays, but realistically, I'm probably not going to find a better match for my product than this show. Island Beach State Park's Beach Plum Festival and my handmade sea glass jewelry just seem to be a perfect match for me. But I'll keep looking for the right spot. After the show, I sat with my hubby and discussed how the show went and realized there were a few trends on my sales and a things that helped me make sales that I hope to blog about soon. A few of these are ideas that I will continue to do at future shows and these thoughts might help fellow crafters make a few extra sales at their shows in the future. 'til next time, R

Creating One Product and Selling Another

It's funny. No matter how you figure what you area of your business you believe you need to focus on, your customers always know best.

I've been working on building up my necklace inventory for my upcoming craft show on December 3rd (Toms River Intermediate South, in Beachwood, NJ) because that is my best selling item at shows and also in my Etsy shop. And as I'm looking through my sea glass collection for pendant quality pieces, my shop gets wiped out of earrings- not that I'm complaining. (actually, Yay I made an online sale!)

Just when I thought I knew best, my customers strongly have me focusing on another project because they have made it a glaring weakness in my shop inventory. So it's back to the drawing board, going through smaller pieces of sea glass and marking off the area I'd like hubby to drill holes while I check the inventory of earring components.

While I search I lay out a plan to replenish my earring inventory, I hope you enjoy the images of a couple of my latest sea glass necklaces and one of my favorite pairs of earrings that are departing for the desert of Tucson, Az.

'til next time,
R

Craft Show Results- Upcoming Sea Glass Festival

Earlier this month I did my first craft show of the year, the Beach Plum Festival. This show has been on my "A" list of shows after a few good outings.

Considering the economy, this year's version was pretty good. The weather cooperated, and there was a great deal of foot traffic wandering about. My booth was packed most of the day, as the locals had plenty of sea glass stories to share with me.

Sales wise, it was by far the lowest number of sales at this show since I began vending here. It seemed like people just were out enjoying the nice day. They spent a few bucks to sample the beach plum ice cream or beach plum muffins...but clearly, the economy has forced people to cut way back on their spending habits and I saw many people leaving the show empty-handed.

In previous years, the customers at this show began buying gifts for the holidays and it seemed like that wasn't happening this year. Those that visited my booth also didn't seem to have or want to spend the money they had. In fact, if I didn't offer customers the option of paying via credit card, I probably would have lost 5 or 6 sales.

In all, it was a pretty okay show...certainly not a waste of time. Plus, I had the chance to enjoy the beautiful day, while speaking and sharing sea glass stories with with very nice people.

Not a bad way to spend a September Sunday afternoon.

'til next time...

R

Q & A on Seaglassing

Between work and my youngest son's extended baseball season (yes, he's now playing a summer/fall season for his 4th team of the year) it's been a long time between blog entries.

Over the last few months, we've been asked several questions about the "where, when, hows" of sea glass hunting. My hubby has mentioned that yesterday we had 3 different emails asking info about sea glass hunting when a hurricane is coming. So here are the many questions, and our answers.

Because of the impending storm, we'll go with these questions/answers first.

-Would I consider going out during the storm looking for sea glass? No absolutely not. Visibility will be poor, the winds will be unforgiving and you will be risking your life. Stay indoors until the brunt of the storm has passed.

-(with a hurricane in the forecast) When is the best time to look for sea glass?
I would go out prior to the storm's arrival and after the storm has clearly passed. Depending upon the strength of the tides, I would consider checking out the beach after the peak of high tide, and just before, during and after low tide. I would consider the same process AFTER the storm has passed, especially at low tide.

-Are there specific areas you will go to and will you be kind and share them? Yes, there will be and no, I don't tell anyone where our "special" spots are (they haven't been too special lately) Actually, anywhere that you have found nice pieces of sea glass in the past will probably be a good place to check after the storm has passed.

Final thoughts on this storm... If you do not have a profound respect for the ocean, then you really have no business being on the beach just prior, during or just after this storm. The sea reclaims what it has left behind, and has no problem grabbing you if you happen to be there. If you don't understand the tides, their habits and histories, please stay off the beach until it is safe.
We live on the coast, and we are concerned about the damage this storm may bring. As sea glassers, we are excited about the prospects that the ocean might stir up. The potential of finding sea glass that has been tumbling around the ocean floor for several decades is exciting... but the damage to the dunes and beach front homes can be devastating. If you are planning to go out...be smart and be safe!

Other questions that we've received during the last couple of months...

-Where is the best location for sea glass? While we've never been there, word of mouth indicates the best sea glassing areas is "Glass Beach" in Fort Bragg, Ca. Glass Beach was at one time, a garbage dump. We've been told that the garbage was dumped on the beach, set on fire, and the tide took what was left. We have been shown several pictures of the surf, and the amount of glass (and the amazing colors) is breath-taking. (the top image is from Glass Beach and the photo is taken by Jef Poskanzer)
Puerto Rico has some great areas that often yield some incredible finds. Researching an area's history will often lead you to areas where you may have success. One such area exists in Puerto Rico, where a glass factory once existed. This companies specialty? They made beer bottles...red beer bottles. Red sea glass is very rare, but in this area, it is found more frequently.
We've also never been to the beaches in northern UK, but the beautiful pieces that are found there are usually found in the areas where glass factories existed decades ago.
The Great Lakes have been a very "hot" sea glassing spot recently and the Chesapeake Bay and Delaware beaches have also been "hot spots" in recent years. History also shows that by the time word-of-mouth gets to you about a hot spot and the time it takes for you to get there, everyone else will be there too. The best hot spots are those that you find yourself (that's why we don't spill the beans on our little hot spots) The spot that my hubby calls "Cobalt Beach" is a small stretch that frequently turns up pretty pieces of cobalt sea glass. It took him about 6 months to bring me to the supposed little hot spot, but we did find 6 pieces of cobalt blue sea glass that day, along with more than 50 other pieces

To answer most of the usual questions... I like to go out shortly after high tide, while my hubby prefers low tide. Despite the competition, I like going out during the warmer summer months. Hubby prefers the late fall, winter and early spring. Because of the brutal winds and cold temps in the winter, the amount of time he can spend on the beach is limited and he hits specific locations that have been successful in the past. In the summer, I just go wherever and stroll the surf. When we go to the beach in the summer (to swim, sunbathe)usually produces common color sea glass, but my favorite piece in recent years, a very old piece of deep teal, was found in the surf... so you just never know when and where a beautiful gem is going to wash up.
The potential for great finds increases with the impending storm this weekend. Please be safe, be prepared, and go out to the beach with a partner after the storm has passed.

'til next time...
R

New Summertime Creations

It's been a while since my last blog entry. Hope you like a few of my
newest sea glass jewelry creations!

Going Shopping for New Supplies

Saturday morning I woke up earlier than usual. After my cup of coffee and a quick scan of my emails, I decided it would be a very good day to do a little "shopping" for some new focal beads for my jewelry creations.

"Shopping" for sea glass is something I look forward to, especially as the weather starts to turn away from winter and head towards spring. So on this sunny Saturday morning, I was off to a place where the prices for sea glass are the best....FREE!

It was still a bit overcast as I arrived at the beach, but as the sun climbed in the sky, the clouds quickly disappeared. The entrance onto the beach was proof of how hard a winter the NJ coast experienced this year. Heavy machinery had been moving sand around, trying to create new support dunes to keep the high tide away from the expensive beach-front homes.

Heavy machinery, moving sand from one place to another and any type of general repairs to the beach are often a tell-tale sign that today's shopping isn't going to be a very good one. As I looked up and down the beach, I knew that today's "shopping" trip was about to turn into a nice stroll up and down the beach and anything I found would be a bonus.

The beaches I encountered on Long Beach Island on Saturday were basically flat. One straight shot from the surf, right to the dunes. All of the fall preps that were created to protect the dunes were eradicated by the combination of rough seas and a brutal winter. Despite the efforts of of the city workers moving sand to shore up the dunes, much of LBI's dune barrier that protects the beach front homes are quite vulnerable to one good storm as we enter spring.

Flat beaches are terrible for sea glassing on LBI because the tide has very little trouble reclaiming anything it has left behind. The area of beach that was to the north of where the sand shifting was taking place did have a few decent collections of shells that tides had left behind. I was hopeful that there would be a few sea glass gems in the mix since my foot prints were the first on the beach, but there these shell beds were basically void of sea glass.

With the exception of a couple of undercooked larger pieces, only a couple of small Budweiser brown pieces were located. The nearby jetty yielded a well-weather, much older brown piece that looked almost red from a distance. After walking north several blocks, and only finding a couple more pieces- both older and nicely weathered, I turned back and decided I would try my luck to the south.... only to realize this was not going to be my lucky day. The beaches were absolutely flat and pristine...no garbage, no shells, no nothing. At least the walk was invigorating and I can say that my 75 minute beach walk was a bit of a workout.

So I came away from my shopping spree basically empty-handed. What I did find were pieces that I can't use for my handmade jewelry creations, but they were older pieces that have spent a great deal of time in the ocean and the best part is... the price was right : )

'til next time...
R

Random Thoughts... Etsy and the Economy

In my previous entry, I mentioned that it appears that sea glass has disappeared from the beaches in New Jersey. The extreme winter took it's toll on the beaches, and the reconstruction of the beach has buried much of the glass. As current and future storms erode the beach, the glass in and near the beach is also getting buried.

Since their really hasn't been much to look for on the beach, I've found myself (sitting in my beach chair, working on my tan) thinking more about how the current economy has affected my online and craft fair sales. To say the economy is not good is an understatement. It has not been good for quite some time and this has affected my small handmade jewelry business.

Yet as August rolls around, there are many mixed signals coming from the state of our economy, and yet again, it is showing it's affect for me on Etsy. And this time, it appears to be a positive affect.

My DH has always been a number/stats type of person. He has been responsible listing items, and has noticed trends, that have allowed him to predict when I'm about to make a sale. He noticed these tell-tale signs starting in late July, and mentioned to me that things might be picking up soon.

I was quite skeptical because August has never really been a good month for my shop. Since sea glass is more of a beachy, summery type of accessory, I had already chalked up the summer season as another disappointment...just like the holiday season of 2009, the spring wedding season, Valentine's Day, etc. The economy was still shaky, the daily stock market reports resembled a roller-coaster ride on the boardwalk, so I assumed the "things might be picking up soon" comment to be a future sale, perhaps two (welcomed sales, nonetheless)

My hubby always looks to see how many members are hearting my shop & items. Not just any members, but members that don't have shops. It has always been his indicator that a sale could be forthcoming. And from late July thru the first week of August, I saw several "buyer-only" hearts in my shop... and despite what is usually a slow month, despite an economy that just can't seem to turn the corner, and in spite of the end of summer coming quickly...a sale, followed by another, and then a request, and a sale.

After speaking with a few other Etsy shop owners, they also mentioned a few "buyer-only" members frequenting their shops, "a few more than usual" is what one shop owner stated. Since the last days of July, 50% of my shop hearts are either secret admirers, or buy-only members. In the previous 5 or 6 months, I'd be willing to bet that 90% of the hearts received during that time, came from shop owners.

Is this a case of the economy finally rounding the corner, and improving? Or have people been sitting on their money for so long that they are getting restless, and want to do a little shopping...perhaps an early start on their holiday shopping?

I'm not sure, but I am sure happy about the the increased visits to my shop...and I'm thrilled that I'm prepared to keep my shop in the buyers memory by promoting, and listing new items.

This almost makes me want to brave the 90 degree heat, and do an outdoor show...almost.

'til next time...
R

New Spring Creations, St Patty's Day, Spring-Summer Craft Fairs

In my last blog update, I blogged about winter doldrums, slower than usual sales and my plan to look back on what worked in 2009, what didn't perform up to expectations and how I would plan ahead for my busy selling season.

I'm really glad I used my "down-time" to put together a game-plan for the coming year. Just when you think winter will never end, spring is quickly forcing winter out the door. The snow piles are dwindling (no they are nowhere close to being gone, at least not yet) and many have already turned their attention to spring. With St Patrick's Day looming, followed up quickly by Easter, I found I needed to get a few ideas into gear because all of sudden, there are requests from some of my brick & mortar shops, my Etsy shop needs replenishing.... and this year I didn't have to scramble for solutions.

I spent most of Sunday creating jewelry, and planning out my displays at one of my local consignment galleries. In addition, I created a couple of green sea glass pieces just in time for St. Patty's Day... these will go into my Etsy shop during this week and I began working on a few items for my 2nd B&M shop, as I look to load up on what seems to be selling well there.

In the meantime, it's time to start considering what shows I will do during the spring and early summer. Once again, I hope to cut back on my shows (unless hubby wants to do them solo this year ...lol) The Handmade Faire is a MUST-DO show and OM Baby has so much potential. Those are two shows I try to pencil in to my calendar every year. There are also a couple local shows that seem to make sense for my product line, that I really need to be attending and in early summer, there are a couple of sea glass festivals that I would love to attend.

I'm hoping to limit my spring/summer shows to 5 or 6, so I can concentrate on my online shops and the shops I consign to. I'm also going to be looking at several possibilities to consign my sea glass creations over the next few weeks. I'd like to add 1 or 2 new opportunities for the warm weather, but it'll probably be tough to limit the amount to just a couple stores.

So in the matter of just a handful of days, it seems everything and everyone went from winter shut-ins to "let's get this party started". Thankfully, I'm more prepared this year than in previous years and I'm able to get product out where it's needed while things are still on the slower side.

Finally, I've actually followed through on a couple of my business New Year's resolutions : )

'til next time....
R

Wordless Wednesday... Rare Sea Glass Colors....

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

Busy Weekend,...New Creations...

With no shows on the calender this weekend, I've been trying to play catch-up. I made a few new items and put them into my Etsy shop, as I try to get my inventory numbers back up to a comfortable amount.

I woke up early, not of my own doing, but because my youngest son had a nightmare, climbed into bed with us and then proceeded to stretch his arms out....across my throat. Fearing possible suffocation, I climbed out of bed at 4:30am, made a pot of coffee and sat down to do finish some wire wrapping I had started the night before (see image above) for a custom order.

After breakfast, we dropped the boys off at their Aunt's and headed to LBI to add a few new pieces to my consignment collection there...only to find a couple of my necklaces were looking dingy. I cleaned what I could, and brought the rest home to clean up.

We headed up to Barnegat to another consignment...The Gold Duster. I brought a few new jewelry displays with me, in hopes of grabbing another shelf in this beautiful gallery...and lucky me, the curator (Karen) had one available for me...and even better, a check for a sold piece (don't you love when that happens!!)

We got back home in time to get the boys to a birthday party, and then ran them up to my younger sister's home for a sleep-over with their cousin...went home and passed out : )

Now I'm hoping I can get hubby to do a little early morning sea glass hunting and out to breakfast...maybe. Coffee is done brewing, I'm off to pour a cup and get hubby out of bed.

Enjoy the day!


'til next time...
R