BeadStyle : jewelry gifts

Great recessionista idea

Cathy Jakicic — Fri, 08 May 2009 17:23:00 GMT

Word of mouth is a fabulous thing for finding life's hidden treasures. My sister just told me about a jewelry line (that a friend told her about) that has hit on a great idea in financially challenging times for artists. The line is called "Circle of Friends." The necklaces feature a simple circle-centric pendant that is customized with a few gemstones. Each piece is only $10, and the many different styles offered make them really nice, personalized gifts for a range of different personalities and styles. It goes to show that with a really simple, adaptable idea, it's possible to keep material costs down enough to be able to offer a reasonably priced, but not cheap-looking creation.

Exboyfriendjewelry.com

Stacy Hillmer — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 17:56:00 GMT

Last week, I blogged about wedding cake jewelry – bead-and-wirework accessories for the most important (or at least most expensive) pastry of your life.

But for those who might not be in that place right now, here’s a different jewelry offering: exboyfriendjewelry.com. This is the site where women ready to move on after a relationship can sell jewelry they received from their ex. Jewelry for sale is classified by necklaces, bracelets, earrings, etc. and ranges from Tiffany engagement and wedding bands to beaded jewelry, like this bracelet listed as A beautiful gift I can’t stand to see! or this silver and briolette necklace. Each piece is introduced by the (sad) story behind it, though strangely enough the stories don’t taint the beauty of the jewelry. Rather, readers who have been jilted themselves sympathize with the seller, adding compassion to transaction. I guess you could call it resale therapy.

Other amusing features of the site include items for sale as Gifts that should have been jewelry (handbags abound) and a For the boys page featuring “stuff men get stuck with.” You can also donate a portion of your profit to the Susan G. Komen Foundation in case you have karmic concerns about said profit.

Two new tips for giving jewelry gifts

Stacy Hillmer — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 20:06:00 GMT

I recently gave my aunt a bracelet for her birthday. When she unwrapped the strand of colorful polymer clay frogs and gunmetal findings, I said what I always say when I give the gift of handmade jewelry: “If it’s too big or too small – I can fix it.”

Only this was the first time I had to put my money where my mouth is – the bracelet was indeed a tad too big.

Now came the tricky part. With my aunt wearing the bracelet, we began pinching and pulling at the strand, first overlapping the ends one way, then another, trying to figure out how much shorter the bracelet needed to be. We took a guess, but I won’t know for sure if it was a good guess until this weekend when I can return the bracelet to my aunt.

Things would have been much easier if I had only brought along a soft measuring tape! I could have easily looped it around her wrist to find the perfect length, then adjusted the bracelet with confidence. From now on, I’m packing a measuring tape in my purse whenever I give jewelry. After all, if I say I can fix it, I better have the right tools!

Also, my aunt made a request I never anticipated. As I pointed to the frog beads that would have to be removed, she said in a sad voice, “Oh, but I don’t want to lose those.” Translation: “Don’t take those away from me! You were going to give them to me if the bracelet fit!” I promised I would find something else to do with the beads.

One solution would have been to make a dangle for the clasp, but there were too many beads for that. Another solution could be matching earrings, but my aunt prefers a favorite pair of studs to drop earrings. Instead, I strung the beads on head pins and attached them to different lengths of silver and gunmetal chain. Then I attached the chains to a keychain ring. That way my aunt can always have the beads close by, even when she’s not wearing her bracelet.

Do you have any other tips for giving handmade jewelry? Please share them below, as well as the stories that inspired your aha moment.

Give the gift of jewelry…it’s statistically sound!

Stacy Hillmer — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 15:18:00 GMT

According to a recent survey by the National Retail Federation (NRF), just over 19% of holiday shoppers plan on purchasing jewelry as gifts this season. That makes jewelry one of the most popular gift ideas this year, behind other festive favorites like clothing and accessories (57.4%), gift certificates (53.5%), and personal care and beauty items (20.8%).

Tracy Mullin, NRF president and CEO, recently told JCKonline.com, “Americans may be hesitant to purchase expensive gifts this holiday season, but personal and practical gifts will resonate most with shoppers this year.” Which makes jewelry the perfect gift – a handmade piece is both personal and practical!

If you’re looking for projects to make as gifts, you’re in luck. Every BeadStyle online project is on sale for 50% off – that’s only $1.95 for step-by-step photos, easy-to-read instructions, and complete supply lists! Our sister publications, Bead&Button and Art Jewelry magazines, are also participating in the sale, so the selection is phenomenal. To shop, click browse BeadStyleMag.com's projects for sale. To see Bead&Button and Art Jewelry offerings, visit BeadAndCraftBooks.com.

Not sure you’re up to giving handmade jewelry this season? Try giving the Beading 2009 calendar. Every month features a beautiful jewelry project with photos, instructions, and supplies. And for the beader who has everything, Kalmbach Publishing gift certificates will give her the BeadStyle, Bead&Button, and Art Jewelry projects and products of her choice!

Tips for giving beaded gifts?

Stacy Hillmer — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 15:18:00 GMT

This will be my first holiday season as a beader, so I am making a few jewelry gifts for friends and family. Having never done this before, I am learning as I go how to make jewelry that the recipient will like and hopefully wear. Here are some ideas I’ve come up with so far, but please add to the list! No one wants to sink time, energy, and money into jewelry that someone won’t appreciate.

• For me, I decided that giving bracelets was best. If for whatever reason I miss the mark on someone’s fashion style, at least she can wear it somewhat discretely.
• Kits are super helpful! I love to design, but not when I feel like I have a deadline that doesn’t permit me to shop around for just the right components. I found that buying jewelry kits with all the materials I need is an easy way to give a handmade gift without the hassle of tracking down the parts and pieces. I bought my most recent kit from www.etsy.com.
• Think carefully about sizing. Adding an extender chain to a necklace or bracelet is pretty foolproof. For me, I imagined other peoples’ wrists in comparison to my own, and strung my bracelets to size.

What jewelry gift-giving tips have you picked up? Please share by posting below! And after you’ve strung all your gorgeous pieces, here’s an idea for packaging your wares.

Transforming a totem

Stacy Hillmer — Tue, 27 May 2008 13:35:00 GMT

A few weeks ago, my mom and I were strolling the mall when we were arrested by the necklace below. My mom and I are both nature nuts, with a special fondness for all creatures great and small, so we loved the idea of wearing the entire animal kingdom around our necks. Plus, the way the beads sat perpendicular to each other gave the necklace an unusual totem pole feel.

However, the necklace had a few drawbacks that made me hesitate: 1) It was far too long for my tastes; 2) the bone beads, painted almost to look like turquoise, made me wish that they were gemstone; 3) the standing-bear pendant, though very cool, was just too much for my personal style. For these reasons, I was going to pass up the necklace. My mom, however, guessed correctly that I would regret my decision, so she bought it for me.

My mom’s one stipulation for the purchase was that I use just a few of the beads to make necklaces for her and my younger sisters. The remaining beads would allow me to recreate the totem pole feel in a design more to my own liking. So I set out to achieve both of these goals. Here are the results:

For my necklace, I used sterling sliver wire, chain, and clasp plus Hill Tribe silver bead caps and accent beads (I thought the organic designs of Hill Tribe silver were quite appropriate for this necklace). Then I threw in red and mint jasper rounds, with their earthy tones, to continue the theme of nature.

My mom selected favorite animals for her and my sisters, suggesting that only the very front portion of their necklaces be beaded. I used the same red and mint jasper rounds I used in my own necklace, throwing in some different silver accent beads. For the rest of the necklaces, I tied hemp cord with snake knots.

I finished making these pieces over the holiday weekend, and I feel I’ve taken my first steps toward designing jewelry. While I’ve made several pieces since coming to BeadStyle, I generally rushed through them because I got caught up in the “doing” rather than the “designing.” The result is that I don’t wear, or have dismantled, most of those designs because they do not show to quality that I put into everything else in life.

With the above pieces, however, I took the time to move the beads around, sometimes over many days, until I felt I had the designs right where I wanted them. I shopped for the “right” supplies, rather than limiting myself to leftovers. I even learned a new technique – snake knots – despite the difficult learning curve. In short, I made jewelry that I am proud to wear and to give away because they reflect my time, effort, and imagination.

Fair Trade Connections

Jane Konkel — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 13:38:00 GMT

This weekend in my neighborhood is the Westside Artwalk. I am honored to be displaying some of my tagua bead jewelry at Four Corners of the World. The jewelry is made with beads similar to the tagua sliced used in the necklace on the March cover of BeadStyle.

Four Corners of the World carries a variety of Fair Trade products, including: coffee, tea, chocolate bars, table cloths, gifty item for kids, finger puppets, musical instruments, carved animals, clothing, baskets, Putumayo World Music, purses, scented soaps and lots of beautiful jewelry.

Approximately 2.7 billion people in the world exist on less than $2 a day. Fifteen thousand children between the ages of 9 and 12 have been sold into forced labor on conventional cotton, coffee and cocoa plantations.
Fair trade is a system of exchange that seeks to create greater equity and partnership with people internationally through fair wages, public accountability, consumer education, cultural identity, and financial and technical support. Shopping at places like Four Corner of the World is a unique experience. The purchase of fair trade items is money ethically spent.

If you live in the Milwaukee area, or if you have plans to travel to Milwaukee for the Bead&Button Show (June 1st–8th). Stop and shop at Four Corners of the World.

Mother’s Day jewelry quiz

Stacy Hillmer — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 13:59:00 GMT

It’s never too early to start thinking about what to give the woman who brought you into the world and/or raised you and/or otherwise functions as a mother figure in your life. Jewelry is a perennial favorite come Mother’s Day (May 11, this year), but you hate to give her something she doesn’t like, making her feel obligated to wear something that’s not her style.

Well, now there’s help! Blue Nile offers a five-question Mom’s Jewelry Personality Quiz to help you determine what kinds of jewelry would make a great gift. Select the multiple-choice answers that best fit your mom, click “submit,” and you’ll get a great gift option and accessory option. Click on either, and you’ll see a wealth of versions and related jewelry.

If you click on diamond earrings, don’t miss the “Earring size” feature. It shows an earlobe in proportion to different carat weights, so you don’t buy a stone that’s too big or small for your mom’s features.

Of course, if Blue Nile’s offerings cost more than your wallet can swing, you can still get some inspiration for jewelry gifts you can make yourself!

Give a gift of…toilet paper rolls and take-out containers?

Stacy Hillmer — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 17:43:00 GMT

Perhaps you’ve seen colorful take-out food containers at your local craft store (check near the wrapping paper). I’d heard that these boxes are great for packaging jewelry gifts, so I decided to try it for myself. I recently gifted a bracelet in one such container, and the external effect was lovely. The view from the inside, however, was not so pretty. Even though I lined the container with tissue paper, the bracelet was just kind of sprawled helter-skelter.

The solution? Empty toilet paper rolls. Cut the roll so that the open ends fit snugly against the container’s walls. (To avoid flattening the roll as you cut it, cut in from one of the open ends, make a right-angle turn, and cut around the roll in little snips.) Then, wrap the roll in wrapping paper or fabric scraps. Finally, drape a bracelet over the roll and set it in place inside the container. Ten points for presentation!