Well, this might sound very weird but I SOLD MY FIRST BRACELET yesterday and I did not think it would ever happen!  Needless to say, I am ecstatic, I really am.  I did not think it would  happen and certainly not this soon.  I’ve only been doing this jewelry business seriously for a little under 2 months.  I am so stoked!  I hope my good fortune keeps up.

The man who purchased the bracelet seems to be quite nice.  He’s in San Diego California and found me through Fine Art America, of all places.  I was shocked!  He said that he’d been “trolling hundreds of websites to find the perfect bracelet for a dear friend of his who turns 60 in a few weeks.”  He said “he was having trouble finding what he wanted but he knew he hand found the perfect gift when he saw my piece.”  He bought the Turquoise “Forget Me Not” bracelet, which doesn’t surprise me!  Everyone who sees that piece LOVES it!

I actually managed to purchase a few more lampwork beads similar to the ones in the “Forget Me Not” from the guy in Mississippi who worked the first set of beads.  I bought them in turquoise and amethyst.  I LOVE PURPLE…it’s my favorite color.  Anyhow…

So, it’s not yet sunk in but I hope my customer in California loves the bracelet as much as I do.  He asked for a re-sizing, which I did for free.  I added some black diamond Swarovski crystals to the piece and it came out really nice.  I haven’t yet wrapped my head around the fact that I handcrafted a piece of jewelry, a very small and inconsequential item, that this man will lovingly gift to his dear friend for her 60th year on the planet.

I guess dreams really do come true!

Today has not been such a great day, so far.  I woke up feeling as though the weight of the world is on my shoulders.  Why???  I don’t know why.

After giving it much thought , I decided NOT to pursue the Heritage Festival, the Plymouth Arts Festival or ANY arts & crafts festivals this year.  It’s just too much, too soon.  I’m close to many of the deadlines for entries already (if not past).  I just don’t feel quite prepared.  Mostly, I don’t have the budget to buy props, tents, folding tables, lights, pedestals, busts, cash boxes, mobile credit card services, stationary, packaging materials, etc. AND make the entrance fees & deadlines for fairs.  Not yet.  Not this year anyhow.

I had the sales rep from Target ‘Em contact me yesterday and send me a quote for services.  This SEO and Marketing firm called Target ‘Em wants nearly $5000 to maximize my site, develop links on appropriate jewelry sites, fix my website pages, etc, etc.  WHAT?????  I nearly fell from my chair when the rep quoted the price.  No, no, no….waaay to much $$$$.  This guy tells me that “he sees me making over $2000-$3000 per month in projected sales in the very near future.”  I’m like “What???”

Let’s see…let’s do the math on this one.  If I were to make $3000 monthly with this business, I would have to sell the equivalent of 35-38 bracelets or necklaces @ approximately $85 per piece EACH month!  That’s the equivalent of 7-8 bracelets or necklaces (or their equivalent) weekly.  Then, I would have to replenish my inventory by making at least 1 bracelet per day.  That means about $40-$60 per every 2-3 days, if not more, on beads, wire, silver, clasps, crystals and other findings.

So, let’s say that’s $100 out each week on supplies, $750 in each week on sales.  There’s travel costs, website costs, web hosting costs, consultation fees, group costs, marketing costs, stationary costs, gas costs.  Okay, I think we all get it.

And $3000 per month?  C’mon…I don’t see that happening!

Needless to say, I’m going to decline on the marketing plan/strategy :0(

So, I feel stuck at this point.  I have crafted nearly 40 pieces of beautiful jewelry (about 22 are earrings) but I feel crappy.  It’s like the gal at the garage sale said on Saturday, “It’s gotta be tough sitting on nearly $2000 in inventory with no sales in sight!”

Yeah…right…it is!

So, I need to pray, contemplate and give things some thought.  I’m not sure how best to proceed at this point.  My big dilemma is whether or not I should pursue work for the fall ‘08 or at the latest, January ‘09.

Tina at Merchant Moms, my Web host company, is going to do SEO and marketing stuff when she’s better.  The poor gal is so kind but she’s having surgery in two weeks, so she’s not up to full steam and she won’t be for a few weeks thereafter.  I’m reading and absorbing all I can about marketing, sales, promotions, networking, maximizing websites, etc to help promote my business from that angle.  I know that all of this…SEO, web marketing, link backs, etc. will only do so much!

John and I have decided that we will troll the fairs in our area that I wish to apply to next year, so we can gain ideas about booth displays, pricing, competion, etc, etc.

So…I don’t have the budget to make lots of new jewelry (minus earrings).  The day is gloomy, rainy and cold, so I can’t get good photos of my new products.  I don’t have findings and items to complete my uncompleted projects.  I don’t have the budget or the drive to shop for promotional or packaging items. 

I’ve been catching up on emails and such.  Not sure what I’ll do today.

Big Rex is curled up on the wicker rocker in our bedroom, fast, fast asleep.  Rudy and Tigger are curled up on their love seat and futon, respectively, in their suite (our rear laundry room), snoozing and snoring…

Hmmmmmmm…

Going to follow the rules and start a blog!

Anything to get noticed and to start selling my jewelry!

I have MySpace (dedicated to the Pink Floyd and the Ramones), Facebook (dedicated to the Pink Floyd and the Ramones), eBay, Etsy…oh, so much more!

Welcome to Ventian Vibes…it’s all about the bead!

Ciao!