The Art of Website Creation 2

And off we go!!!  I started an account on Prostores.com then "purchased" my first month free of the basic business e-commerce package (up to 5,000 products).  I started by picking my template...   Not a huge variety or very fancy templates, but they get the job done.  Then I struggled for quite a while to find where to EDIT that template!  I wanted to add my own logo and such!  THEN I discovered that it's really easy:  Page Template Manager located in the "short list" of links!  haha.  This tool was very useful, however, quirky.  Most things I asked it to do were fine, but a few actions made the screen go haywire.  Here's what the tool looks like:

Just double click in each region to edit the text, links or pictures.  I discovered, then, the backup or "baseline" feature.  It asks you, "do you want to create a baseline" before you start editing, and the answer is YES!

Now I am setting up the shipping options.  For some reason, no matter what I change the shipping options to on the setup page, it's always $5 on the "real" website!?  Oh technology.  Maybe it just takes time?  And yes, only time will tell.

So far... scale of 1-10, where 10 is me thrilled with Prostores' performance, I'm at about a... 6?  This may change after I distance myself from this shipping issue! Ta-ta for now!

Website: www.SliversOfSilver.com

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How do I harden sterling?

As I created ear wires and longer sterling designs like below, I found that the dead-soft sterling silver wire I was using was too darn soft to maintain its shape well over time. That bothered me terribly since quality is of utmost importance to me!

So what can I do to make it “harder”? Well… I researched a few options that I alluded to previously in my “How To Make Ear Wires” posting:

1. Hardening the Metal: If you are at all familiar with the world of manufacturing, you might have heard about “heat treating” metal to change its hardness. “Age Hardening” is what you can do to increase the hardness. This website has good information in the section, “How can I put age hardening to use in my shop?” BUT! Cook my metal for an hour and a half? Not possible for me! I suppose if I had a kiln that would be reasonable, but, as fate would have it, no such luck. Notice, too, the note about not being able to solder after the metal is hardened – this will return your sterling back to its original, soft state. Sounds… too complicated for me.

2. Bending the Metal: Yeah, yeah. Bending the sterling wire makes it harder too – called “work hardening.” In order to do this, though, you have to ruin your shape! I don’t like this idea very much… I’ll just keep it in the back of my mind as a “good-to-know” item…

3. Hammering the Metal: As you hammer metal with your designated jewelry hammer, you are actually stiffening the metal! Try hammering a piece of wire, then bending it. More difficult, eh? That’s what we want in this scenario. I, therefore, hammer my ear wires (when it matches the design) in order to maintain the original shape of the wire.

4. Buying Harder Metal: Okay – not ALL designs look good with a hammered ear wire or with hammered wire dangles. There are different levels of hardness for sterling silver; for the earrings shown above, I used “half-hard” wire. This works really well! I also use half-hard for any ear wires that should not be hammered. Why not use half-hard all the time then? Well, it’s just not as easy for my little fingers to maneuver! I’d say have BOTH types on hand for the best results.

Summary:
- Don’t bother hardening the metal with heat.
- Bend to harden if you want to… I don’t want to.
- Hammer dead-soft wire when possible to solidify the design.
- Buy half-hard wire for designs that should not be hammered.

If you disagree with anything in this posting, please feel free to comment! I love to learn. :)

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B.B. Bellezza's Craft Show Tips

In my search for other Handcrafted Jewelry blogs, I found B.B. Bellezza. At the very bottom of the blog, on the right hand side, there is a link to her "Craft Show Tips" PDF file. This is an excellent read for first-time-craft-show-goers like myself! Want to know what you need to bring? What to say to your potential customers? What NOT to do!? She has great info about it all. So, get to it and enjoy!

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Jewelry Photography – Getting Started

I love the idea of photographing my jewelry in the GREAT OUTDOORS or somewhere COOL in my house, but disappointingly, I find that the lighting is really quite terrible. I learned online how to make my own mini-photography studio though! Here was the website that I followed loosely. And another site that looks helpful.

I, however, ended up attaching half of my husband’s old white t-shirt to only one side of the box and using a powerful lamp with two light settings. We also have a Canon Powershot SD-1000 camera (the heavy duty kind). This setup works great for me! I set the camera up on Manual mode to these settings:

- Macro (flower)
- Two second timer (I don’t have a tripod yet.)
- Low light
- No flash

Why use a two-second timer?  Because your hand shakes when you press the button!  It takes a while for the camera to take the picture when you don't have the flash on.  During that time the camera picks up every... little... movement of your hand!  So, press the button, hold your breath and CLICK!  You should have a nice picture.  It's BEST if you have a tripod or even a solid surface to rest the camera against for this reason too...

The most challenging part is finding great backgrounds that are NOT reflective. It’s even worse when the jewelry itself reflects your face, camera, camera “stand”, etc. I’ve been covering these items with a black cloth if possible, and that seems to help… somewhat.

If you try / tried making a light box or light tent yourself, let me know how yours turned out!

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How To Make Ear Wires

Tired of buying all your ear wires?  Here is a relatively simple recipe for making your own!

Tools you will need or want:
- 20 gauge wire*
- Wire cutter
- Round nose pliers
- Mandrel (or a pen with a ridge on it)
- Metal file (relatively fine)
- Nylon jaw pliers (nice to have)
- Polishing cloth (or cotton t-shirt)

*Wire comes in different "stiffnesses."  If you want to hammer your ear wires a bit to keep them in place, "dead soft" wire is fine it seems.  If you don't want to do this, I'd suggest buying "half-hard" wire.  This will help to maintain the shape of your ear wire over time.

Recipe:

1.  Cut two pieces of wire.  I like mine to be 1-3/4" long.

2.  Gently file both ends of the wires to clean them up.

3.  Use your round-nose pliers to wrap a loop at one end of each wire.  I like to go AGAINST the natural curve of the wire for this part.  If you're going to hang a soldered ring, etc. from the loop, it's a good idea to leave the loop a bit open, insert the ring when the ear wire is complete, and then close the loop with the nylon jaw pliers.

4.  Use your mandrel (or pen) to create a nice curve in the center of one wire.  I like to use the 1/4" or 6mm segment of the mandrel.

5.  Bend the second wire about half way on the mandrel.  Why not all the way?  You want to make sure your ear wires are the same length!  Match up the short side of your ear wires (sides with the loops) to see if they are the same. 

If not, bend the longer of the two ear wires slightly to shorten up that side - check again.  When both "short sides" are the same, then finish bending the second ear wire by wrapping only the side without the loop around the mandrel.

6.  Bend the tip of the ear wire with your round nose pliers to finish off the shape.

7.  Round off the tip of each ear wire with your file.  Check to make sure there are no sharp edges.

8.  Polish with your cloth or t-shirt and VOILA!  YOU ARE DONE!  :)

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Holly Gage Jewelry - High Impact Effects

We adore jewelry that is high impact. Especially in terms of designs that are asymmetrical, random, and visually intriguing. We are never disappointed when we see jewelry created by Holly Gage.

Using hand-sculpted precious metal clay embellished with a variety of materials, such as, gems, beads and titanium, Holly's pieces are always high impact in terms of the effect not only on the wearer but also of the effect on the viewer. Many of her pieces can be noticed from a distance. However, it is upon closer viewing that the real details can be appreciated.

An example of her signature techniques can be seen in this piece called "Empowerment." Its saturated color comes from a piece of metal called titanium that Holly describes as being free-formed in the furnace from a molten state.  It is sculptural and flowing with varied textures and curves. We love its effects.

Wonderful craftsmanship and asymmetrical design define Holly's work. We love the strength and intensity that so many of her pieces impart. And the patterns created by the textures on the precious metal clay make each item of jewelry a one-of-a-kind piece of work. Her pendants especially seem to possess immense strength and vitality, and we find ourselves continuously drawn to them.

Here is a pendant called "Serpentine."

We are inspired by her thought process about her work, her materials, and her sources of inspiration, which she readily shares on her website. For instance,

"I love being a pioneer with this relatively new medium, experimenting with its capabilities and working on the cutting edge of new developments. It has enabled me to blend many of my artistic studies to create unique pieces of jewelry which are inspired by my original photographic images, life experiences, and natural forms in nature."

Here we have a superb example of her work with PMC. This piece is called "Natures Renewal."

More exquisite titanium can be seen in this pendant called "River Blue."

We are always inspired by her beautiful work.  Are you inspired?

Let us know what you think.

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Fall colors!

When I was growing up, I would walk down the stairs in the morning where my father would great me with, "You're wearing THAT to school today!?"  Typically he referred to a pink and black cat print vest and silk black pants... or something of that nature.  Needless to say, my sense of "color" doesn't really follow any rules - especially those relating to seasons.

For those in the fashion industry, however, this is a critical piece of the puzzle!  They follow the seasonal color guides such as this one.  How fascinating it is!  It all makes a bit of sense, but I am completely baffled by their ability to predict the SPRING or SUMMER colors of 2010!  Well, to a degree.  I dare you to compare the spring/summer colors of 2009 and 2010... and tell me which colors are different?  Oh!  It's DISCO PINK instead of SUPER DUPER BRIGHT PINK this season.  Wow, now I understand it all.  haha.

I think... I'll stick to the plants.  Whatever the plants are doing (leaf colors, flower shades, etc.) in that season, that's what I'll try to focus on.  Seems to be a pretty good rule of thumb if you ask me.......

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