Status Reports & Other Ramblings / trying new things
the slightly terrifying world of wholesale
I've been working on increasing the wholesale side of WS for a while now, both because it's an awesome way to get my work out into the world and because there are some days when I just don't have the spoons to design things but I can put my hands on autopilot and bingewatch an entire season of something (no I didn't yell at the TV when I ran out of episodes of The Crown, that was somebody else and definitely not me) and the next thing I know there are earrings everywhere.
The problem with wholesale, though, is that it involves contacting total strangers and going HI WOULD YOU LIKE TO CARRY MY SHINIES IN YOUR STORE? and when you live with brainweasels that can be a challenge. And by challenge I mean "possibly I have stress-cleaned my entire house to avoid sending a single email" and while scrubbing the bathroom ceiling DOES need to happen occasionally it's generally not the best use of my time.
But! I have been working on a proper wholesale section and it went live today and WOO I AM AN ACTUAL GROWNUP TIME TO GO WORK ON MY TAXES. I just thought you should know.
Letters from the Underworld
So I have this batch of labradorite with amazing little flashes of fire, but it lights up at odd angles so it's really hard to photograph, and I haven't been using it much. Which is a shame, because it's beautiful. And it's been a long cold snowy winter and spring here, and I'm trying to dig my way back up to the light, and for some reason labradorite always reminds me of underworld/rebirth mythology, and well, symbolism.
I decided to do something different with it - I made 20 really simple earrings. You can order 1, 2, 3, 7 - whatever you want. I'll reach into the bag and pull out however many earrings you ordered, completely at random. Much like life, you won't know exactly what you're getting into until it arrives at your door, and even then it will probably surprise you. There are a lot of stories and possibly also at least one poem in these stones. I'm working on writing one of them and I'll post it here when it's done, but if you write something I'd love to have the honor of reading it...
mischief managed
Saturday morning I spent a while hanging out downtown at the Concord Arts Market with my friend Ben, who gave me a handful of chainmaille pieces and asked me to wirewrap them.
Most stayed with him, and I'm looking forward to seeing what he does with them, but here's what I've done with mine:
It's a necklace that I think would be perfect as bridal jewelry, or for a fancy party, or just to wear to the grocery store. The chainmaille is aluminium, so it's actually very lightweight, and it's really pretty as a choker.
These are two of the pieces I left with Ben:
If you haven't seen his work yet (Earring Club subscribers all got a pair of his earrings in their February shipment!) check it out at Knitting Metal.
the end of an era
2008.
2009.
2014.
2016.
I'm always surprised at the way rooms echo when they're empty.
stand back, I'm going to do technology
A few weeks ago I realized that the batter-powered wire strands of LED lights would be amazing woven into wire necklaces and tiaras. So I ran out and bought some, and I made a necklace, and people pretty much fell all over themselves scrambling to be beta-testers for me.
The reports are overwhelmingly positive so far, so... they're going into production very soon. I am excited! The battery packs are small and can be tucked up into your hair (as shown in the middle photo above) or just left dangling inside your shirt at the back of your neck.
If you'd like to be on a waitlist for the first batch, just let me know. They'll be priced between $65 and $95 depending on complexity. Right now I only have white LEDs on silver wire, but I can also get colored LEDs and copper wire strands upon request, although they'll likely be more expensive.
