One Ringy Dingy

At the risk of aging myself - does anyone remember Laugh In. Kind of a late 60's/early 70's version of SNL - although I think it was on Monday nights. I was the youngest girl in a very large extended family and was naive enough to be convinced that my impression of Lili Tomlin doing Geraldine the telephone operator was spot on. Like Pavlov's dog at the sound of the bell, I would perform this routine - and many others - at the slightest fein of a request. I'm sure I was that kid that would do it even if no one requested it. Perhaps they requested that I stop doing it and I got confused.

Summer rings - polymer on brass

Must Love Dogs

"Psst, hey you!", I heard the threatening whisper. I ignored it - or at least tried. It pressed up against the door - fighting to get out. Stalking me. Taunting me from it's dark enclosure, "I'm getting bigger by the minute and if you don't do something about it  - well, you know what'll happen." When my studio was miles across town I was in control - I was the one that dictated who was boss. I surrendered. Waiving my white flag, which was actually a dirty dish towel – I gave in to the massive pile of laundry. This is exactly the trap I don't want to fall into. With my studio just steps from my back door I find myself - just throwing on a quick load, just filling up and running the dishwasher, just...you see where I'm going.

I'm trying to steer this ship in a different direction quickly. It's okay to do those things – I guess – as long as you can stay focused. Focus is not my strong suit. A few years back I had a conversation with Claire Cook author of Must Love Dogs and many other books. She talked about her strict rule that before she did anything else she had to spend at least two hours writing. Sometimes this led to many more hours at her desk but often it led to nothing else. It was discipline however. Today I spent a a few hours in the studio. This was the result.

May Days

This month is only half over and I feel like I've experienced as much as I did in the 5 months that occurred previously. The bad and the good, the ying and the yang, the black and the white. There's always an upside. With many more days to this month we've still got proms and graduations and award dinners and Memorial Day weekend on the horizon.

Chrysanthe -Mum

And we're back. I have been swamped with a nutty variety of necessary distractions. My studio has been moved but now I'm faced with the tedious task of finding homes for all the minute one might find in a creative's tool box. I took some time out to create this little chrysanthemum bracelet I've had stuck in my head for days. Hope all you Mums had a nice Mother's Day yesterday!

Sara Campbell

Last night I met Sara Campbell. (Warning: Her website doesn't do justice to her incredible clothes.) She hosted a group of female creatives from the group Boston Design Salon in her shop on Plympton St. in Boston's South End. Sara has over 30 years experience in the women's apparel business. Her colorful frocks are gorgeous - I wanted one of everything. A small gathering due to the recent events in Boston, the 12 or so of us chatted about the ins and outs of trying to get a design business off the ground.  But it wasn't about shopping last night. For three hours we listened to each other's stories about successes and failures, production headaches, wholesale vs. retail and more. The variety of businesses represented were so intriguing from hand dyed shibori tee shirts to beautifully reproduced luxury wall murals. But the beauty of it all was the brutal honesty with which everyone spoke. Sara could've safely hid behind our perceived vision of effortless success that we all assume must be the case if you run 10 retail shops as she does. But she let us in to her world and shared the lesson that it's very hard work that comes with both doubts and absolute bliss. It was just what I needed to hear. We're all in the same boat - trying to figure out what works. 

Studio Updates

Back to the task at hand. In just one week I'll be packing up the last of my belongings and moving back to my home studio which is in a great little building on my property. My husband built it about 13 years ago as a playhouse for my daughters. It's got about 165 sq. feet of workable space with a loft for storage. Perfect size. My only beef - it's got no heat. With temperatures barely squeaking out of the 40's today, it's a necessity. I'll be working on that over the next few months - installing a small propane heater with a thermostat that I can control. Before we left for vacation I had a couple of windows installed that were castoffs from a friend's home renovation project. I brought the carpenter(husband) with me on vacation so we now have to get back to work to finish up the carpentry work before I can move in. There's nothing better than doing a major reorg. It's halted the creative process for a bit but I hope to be up and running again by the end of next week.

Boston - You're my Home

I'm back after being in South Carolina for the week. It was surreal to be so far from home while greater Boston was going through the ordeal it had. This event has reminded us as to how comfortable we are with the general political atmosphere we have here - not thinking about bombings and devastation on a daily basis. In that respect we are extremely fortunate and at times like these it's inspiring to witness the patriotism that is awakened throughout the nation. On a magnified level - the outpouring of support for the victims of the bombings in the smaller communities in and around Boston is heartening. My hometown of Dorchester, a neighborhood within Boston, is home to the Richard family that suffered such casualties it's impossible to fathom how this poor family will get through the aftermath. Knowing Dorchester as I do - this community filled with an abundance of love and all around incredible people will aid in the healing - doing everything they can to lighten the load. My heart goes out to all of the victims of the Boston Marathon tragedy as well as the people in Waco, Texas who also experienced a devastating week. God bless.

So Sad Today

Heartbroken that my hometown suffered the horror it did yesterday. I'm so saddened by the loss of lives and for all of those who suffered such terrible injuries. My heart goes out to all of those directly affected. I knew many people in town yesterday including many of the first responders. My husband would have been one of them had we not been on vacation. We were updated through friends and family as the events unfolded. I just can't believe this has happened. Such a tragedy. I feel very far from home right now.

My Tale of Woe

I figure if I'm going to crow about the windfalls it's only fair I let you in on the pitfalls as well. On Friday, while enjoying the first hours of a family vacation, I noticed that I had missed a phone call and there was a message waiting for me. Turns out one of the shop owners that had placed an order with Boston Baked Beads last month at the Boston Gift Show had a change of heart and decided to cancel their order. I returned the call immediately and the owner confessed that although she was in love my work she just wasn't sure her clientele had the pocketbook for it. For the record, I honestly don't believe she was hinting for me to reduce her cost - which I wouldn't offer any way. I do think she got caught up in the excitement of an interesting new find and lost touch of her target market's budget. My work is meticulously crafted and unique and priced accordingly. Truly a cottage industry, my business is all about creating hand crafted wearable works of art in small lots using original designs exclusive to Boston Baked Beads. And that kind of work takes time, expertise, skills and creativity. My prices are determined by a formula that considers my production material, construction time, overhead, packaging and more. Although this situation was disappointing it wasn't the end of the world. I'll learn from it and move on. I'm not even mad at this vendor (can't say I felt the same way Friday) - I'd like to think in the future we'll find a fit together. Like my good friend Irene says "and so a new chapter in business begins"!

organized mess

This is my work table as it appears most days. As much as I try to be organized,  the creative process is never neat in my book. But it works for me. And I'm not going to apologize for it. When you create are you neat or messy?

blue bird, blue bird through my window...

According to several online sources the blue bird is a widely accepted symbol of cheerfulness, happiness, and prosperity. One source even suggested that it is a symbol of fertility. I've never seen one in person although my mother says she sees them all the time and she only lives 15 miles west of me. If you're celebrating Easter this weekend - have a good one! 

The Great Gatsby Premier

I am very eager for the premier of The Great Gatsby with Leonardo DiCaprio and crew. I've seen a trailer or two and it looks pretty spectacular. I just hope they didn't make it too over the top. The original was pretty perfect. I'm obsessed with anything from the '20s. Prom dress shopping this last weekend I saw a lot of dresses that Daisy would love! This is a little something I put together this week with a bit of art deco influence.

boston gift show 2013 recap

The Boston Gift Show was a flurry of preparation and participation. Last week at this time I was knee deep in black paint and styrofoam – adding the final touches to my booth display – my samples all polished and packaged. I was so intimidated by the 32 page set up manual that the show coordinators had provided I was afraid for sure I was going to upset a Teamster somehow and get booted out of the show for violating union rules.This did not happen of course. People couldn't have been nicer. On Friday night we brought my booth walls to the Boston Convention Center and built my surroundings. It went up fairly easy. The following day under a blanket of exhaustion mixed with hesitation we finished our set up. Oh sure, we had our moments. The silhouette  heads that I had so carefully engineered to display my necklaces and had secured on the walls kept getting caught on sleeves and ladders and dropping down like defeated warriors. Thank goodness for glue and double sided tape. On Sunday morning Debbie (my Booth Buddy) and I were excited by the crowd of attendees outside the doors of the Exhibition Hall – were some of them here for us? The doors opened and they poured in. We were two booths from the door - good or bad we wondered. Good - I guess. We had our fair share of questions and interested shop owners - many had come expressly to see our owls which had been featured on the cover of the show book. And we took orders! And accepted challenges for future projects and special theme motifs requested by shop owners and museum directors with niche markets. That's the beauty of creating your own product. I'm alway open to new inspirations for figurative canes and happy to conquer a new image! On day two out of the gate we were greeted by a couple of gentlemen representing a well known magazine - seeking out new prospects for their catalog. They asked lots of questions and took notes and business cards. What a great way to start the day. A visit from some friendly gallery collaborators prompted an invitation to participate in an event they're hosting in June. We chatted it up with shop owners galore.Towards the end of the day a buyer from one of Boston's prominent museums' gift shops paid a call - noting interest in may of our flower themed pieces to complement an upcoming exhibit. Tuesday brought a mixture of rain and snow and as anticipated put a huge damper on the attendance level. There were a few die hards that came in but I used much of the time to network with my booth neighbors and do some online research on some of the leads we had picked up and scouted for potential new accounts. Wednesday the traffic had increased. "Vultures" is the term I coined to categorize a selection of the mornings visitors – It seems it's common practice for some folks to come in on the last day to seek out show samples as cost. I'm not talking about other vendors with whom you share a camaraderie having spent the last four days together - I'd gladly share my wares with them. These are people who don't actually ever intend to place orders nor do they actually own shops or businesses most likely - just looking for a deal. No thanks. Breakdown began at 1. The Convention Center literally turns the overhead lights out while everyone dismantles. Many have hours of work but luckily my booth broke down quickly. Once again those damn silhouette heads gave us a run for our money as the wind would catch their light weight and send them off into the air as we headed for our car. We tracked them down and stuffed everything in the car - had it expanded somehow? All in all I had a blast. I will probably do it again next year and am considering sharing a booth with another vendor in another major venue as well.

last day of the boston gift show - i hate to see you go!

Sadly, today is the last day of the Boston Gift Show. It seems as though its been my been my focus for so long now – I'm definitely going to miss the entire experience once it's over at 1:00 this afternoon. I would consider it a huge success. We took orders - which is key. We networked with vendors, buyers, reps, suppliers and had a great time in the process. Debbie and I met gallery directors, museum shop owners, specialty catalog developers and more. Even with a slow day yesterday due to the lousy weather I had fun chatting it up with my booth neighbors from California, New Jersey and Seattle. A lot of opportunities presented themselves and it's going to be really interesting to see which of them pan out - hopefully all of them! I'll keep you posted on each one as they develop. 

A snapshot of my assembled booth up top. A quick pic of me in the booth taken by Debbie.
And a shot of the booth from a bird' s eye view.

new bracelets!

Hooray! My samples of our new children's hook bracelets have arrived! They look fantastic. I'm looking forward to introducing them this weekend. We're still in production with our jewelry caster to produce a larger version for adults. They'll be available for sale next month. And yes! I will have a precious little cross and in time for the First Communion season.

a band of bald headed women

More booth talk. Down to the final touches at this point. Pulling off a booth on a budget is no small task and requires lots of man hours and creativity. The positive side is that my booth will be like no other and will definitely have the Boston Baked Beads stamp on it. I'm enjoying the process and won't know what to do with all my time after the show's over. Hopefully filling wholesale orders?

Don Draper

When the creators of Mad Men tried and failed to recreate the look and feel of a poster from the '60's - they went back to the source and hired 75 year old illustrator Brian Sanders. He worked on the TWA campaign back in his prime. Or was it his prime - who designates prime anyway? I love this story. Although Mr. Sanders is still active in his profession it must've felt awesome to receive that call regarding the project. Go Brian!

Sample Weekend

My time management skills have really been put to the test over the past couple of months. I'm feeling pretty good though. Next Sunday is the first day of the Boston Gift Show. I've got most of my samples together. Just waiting on something really awesome that (I'm hoping) will be delivered tomorrow. There's definitely more work to be done but I'm confident I can get it done.

boston baked bangle

As the sun starts to descend in the sky, the beach starts to grow a little more quiet. The tide heads out and the quick stroll to the water's edge now requires some endurance. A mixture of salt and sand decorates your skin that sports the special glow that only a relaxing day at the beach can deliver.

And that is the name of this bracelet. 

Only kidding of course - but that's exactly what I think of when I look at this bangle. Wishful thinking I guess. March is famous for its grey skies but the promise of sunshine and warmth in the months to come keeps us going. Before you know it we'll be wishing we invested all the energy yammering about the cold long days of winter into toning a few muscles and shedding a few pounds – oh...maybe that's just me.

big cartel vs. etsy

I list some of my products on Etsy. The upside is that there's a decent amount of traffic that comes through...not necessarily buyers – but it's nice to be part of a community that appreciates each other's work. I don't get a chance to get on it too much. It's definitely one of those sites where you could lose yourself for hours. Which brings me to the downside. Potential clients get lost in there! Lured by the promise of fun product linked from the website they've been perusing - one thing leads to another and they've gone from polymer clay jewelry to vintage headbands to silkscreened prints... you get the picture. It is however pretty useful for one of a kind pieces and it's very inexpensive. I'd say for me it doesn't generate a ton of sales but it's a decent marketing tool.

I just recently subscribed to Big Cartel. I've had my eye on this site for quite a while and jumped in the other day. They provide templates that can be customized fairly easily. And with some knowledge of coding  - one can really tailor the look of their online shopping site to their exact specifications. I plan on tackling that project over the next month or two but am pretty happy with the pristine look I've got happening at the moment. I'll be adding more product soon - hint: bracelets. Just waiting for my newest samples to arrive from the caster. 

bangles and bagels

Bagels signify weekends to me - and maybe muffins as well. Those rare indulgent moments when you get to put your feet up - maybe read the paper and drink a big cup of coffee. For the record – none of that happened over the past few days... 

I'm onto a new book on CD - The Cruelest Month. How fitting. Saturday was spent working on my latest shipment of brass bangles. I get engrossed in the story and lots of work gets done though - that's a good thing.  

the anticipation that the month of march brings

Well, March is here. This means 3 weeks til the start of spring but more importantly the Boston Gift Show, a trade show for the gift industry, begins on March 17 – which is also St. Patrick's Day. Two weeks to pull it all together and get my booth and samples complete for the big opening. This is my first foray into the wholesale world - wish me luck!

folk art sunshine

I used translucent clay on the face and I like how it resulted in an illustrated – almost watercolor – effect. Translucent clay can be tough to work with. It manages to find trace scraps of clay hidden in the ridges of your finger prints. But it produces some really nice results. If you back it with white it adds a little glow.

Weird Mushrooms

These polymer clay canes look like a weird bunch of mushrooms growing out of my studio table.

Foxy

And here she is - the latest addition to the mini-pendants!

crazy like a fox

Yesterday was one of those mornings when I felt like I could've used a little more sleep, a little more food, a little more coffee, etc. I was a little hesitant to jump into a new cane so soon after the anchor. That was one of those projects that felt like it took longer than it actually did. The little fox however, is coming together pretty quickly. I ran out of clay for the exterior which was probably a good thing. If I hadn't, I probably would have stayed for a couple more hours to finish it. Big turnaround from the morning. I'll post the reduced version once I get more material!

let go!

 "Maybe the past is like an anchor holding us back. Maybe, you have to let go of who you were to become who you will be." ~ Carrie Bradshaw, Sex and the City

Pheww! Finished at last. Adding a pattern to the background of a simple graphic proved to be a lot more work than I anticipated. I haven't quite mastered the art of reducing without waste. Let's not use the word impatient — I prefer eager. However, to combat the problem I try to sort the waste into color groups that I can use again. For instance I removed traces of the anchor from anything I had to cut off to eliminate as much distortion as I could. When the "waves" are blended together they make a really pretty blue I can incorporate into another design down the road. To see the total progression  - check out my Facebook page.

after the storm

I'm still plugging away on this anchor cane. The blizzard stole a couple of production days from me but I'm back on track. This cane is gigantic  - never anticipated it would get quite so large. Sure hope there's a lot of sailors out there! I'm very close to finishing the construction. A few more rows of waves and I'll be able to start to reduce it. 

this stopped being fun 4 days ago

My daughter told me she learned recently that if you found yourself starving to death in the desert, you would start to crave things like brain and marrow. I guess you revert to your most primitive state and these tempting morsels contain the most nutritional value. Right about now, starved creatively, I am fantasizing about calligraphy nibs and ink. Sucking off some free wi-fi miles from home, I'm dying to get back to the studio today to burn off some energy. I have power there – clearly a luxury in my little town at the moment. My home is one of thousands still without since last Friday. Did you know that if the temperature inside a home is a mere 3 degrees lower than the temperature outdoors you'll get condensation on the inside of your windows, just like in your car. My house is not equipped with a defroster however. With any luck, it'll all be over soon. In the meantime, enjoy Mardi Gras.

anchor's away!

I refer to these most recent canes as simple/complex canes. This is truly an oxymoron."Simple" because the images are just that, granted — when producing the cane however they are anything but. Maybe graphic/complex cane is more apropos. The graphic nature of the images require more symmetry to be successful than an organic cane might. I just have to keep reminding myself to make calculated decisions and not to take short cuts. Hopefully I'll get to finish this before the storm comes. Sounds like it might shut down the region as the day progresses tomorrow. I'll be curious to see how the waves hold up when reduced - but that will probably have to wait 'til next week.

potential problem avoided

As I was reducing this heart cane the other day I was a bit worried wondering if maybe I should have over exaggerated the arrow. It's a given that larger round canes reduce a little disproportionately. In the end the core always manages to shrink about a third less than the perimeter. But you can compensate for this by pumping up the volume on the outer walls. I actually like the way this came out in the long run. The plumpness of the heart image – and it's cartoon style – complements the petite little arrow. Lucky break! Maybe that had something to do with the shamrock!

luck o' the irish

I'm up early on this Saturday morning. My house is nice and quiet...for the  moment. I think I'll savor it for awhile. Yesterday I received a nice mention from Cynthia Tinapple on Polymer Clay Daily regarding my scalloped heart cane - thank you! I missed it entirely when I perused over the post in the morning. What a nice surprise to find it! When I'm making these simple/complex canes I'm trying to think two steps ahead of myself. (I'll tell you about a problem I hadn't considered when I post a shot of the reduced heart cane on Monday.) I reworked the outer edge on this shamrock cane to separate the yellow from the purple. If I didn't add a thin white strip between the two colors I would probably get an undesired brown. Of course I didn't think of this until I had completed the work. So I undid and reworked but I'm glad I took the time instead of getting some disappointing results.

for the love of David Sedaris

New heart. My goal is to work with strong color palettes and simple designs this go round. With the intent of reducing these images down to 1/2" size it makes no sense to create too complex of a cane. Red, golden yellow and aqua have always been a favorite color combo of mine. The hardest part for me when I work on projects like these is resisting the temptation to prematurely reduce the cane without letting it settle for a bit. With the help of a David Sedaris book on CD - I was able to keep my mind occupied. By the time the book was finished so was the cane. It was also quitting time. 

the way to this girls heart is through an exposure unit

This time of the year relying on the sun to expose photopolymer plates can be tricky. A constant guessing game - trying to estimate how long it will take the mid winter northeast sun to do the job can be risky. Even in the middle of summer I found it to be inconsistent. But how cool is it to have the option of harnessing the sun's power to burn a printing plate! This weekend - while others were mourning the Patriots loss or marveling at the fact that the Bruins settled the score with Winnepeg with a shootout - my husband and I were building an exposure unit. This week I'll be running test strips to determine the perfect length of time to expose my plates. 

cover girls

Just found out we made the cover of the Boston Gift Show Guide!

after the holidays - before the gift show

Now that the holidays are over I will be putting most of my efforts into my booth and product for the Boston Gift Show coming up in March. It's my first attempt at a wholesale show. Any experiences to share out there?

Happy Christmas and New Year!

Here's wishing you the happiest Christmas and if it's a holiday you don't celebrate may your day be filled with peace and joy! See you in 2013!

headless

Opened up a drawer today looking for a pin to hold my sweater together and found these unfortunate souls. A project from days ling ago - probably before they invented liquid scalp. I'll have to see if I can stick their heads back on.

Herbie the Dentist

I am so much like Herbie from Rudolph the Rednose Reindeer it's uncanny. Not only is my hairstyle very similar, as well as my taste in clothes – I often have a hard time staying focused on the task at hand. Unlike Herbie however, I'm making doll ornaments instead of working and have no interest in dentistry. 

50 Shades of Clay

A couple of friends of mine and myself have decided that rather than referring to this necklace - shown here in shades of grey - as an eyeglass holder it sounds so much more inviting when you call it a funky pendant that doubles as a sunglass holder. There you have it.

See the post on HomeGrown Daily today to see how you can incorporate this into a sought after, whimsical theme gift!

git off my back...please

Ugh - has any one out there noticed the influx of websites and blogs devoted to teaching creatives how to find their way, stay on course, Get Organized!, wRite A bUsiNesS PlaN, MAXimize your impact, minimize your efforts, linkin,  sign up , navigate this, strategize that...all of for the low price of $$$, of course. Boy, I didn't realize I was in such dire need of help. No one knows my work load better than I. My roadblocks are my own whether valid or simply a reason to procrastinate - more often caused by a desire for perfection rather than apathy. Sometimes I just need to hold off - to let a few kinks work themselves out - before I can proceed. It works for me, how about you? You can have that bucket of insight for free by the way.

boston gift show

Boy - looks like we've got a good plan for the Boston Gift Show coming up in March! Right Demo Dollies?!

goldie my ear

These very lightweight mod earrings remind me of something Goldie Hawn would wear while go-go dancing on Laugh-In. Wow, did I just age myself or what. The sixties made quite a fashion statement. I recall as a little girl looking through a Life magazine that featured a spread on fashion. Models sporting maxi skirts, halter tops and mini skirts - must've been on the cusp of the 70's I guess. Last season a woman came in to purchase a pair because they went so well with her dress from Desigual - love that! 

Tonight's the holiday soiree at HomeGrwon Arts and Crafts at 285 St. George St. in Duxbury from 6-9pm. You'll receive 10% off every purchase and paid order including all Boston Baked Beads jewelry and accessories. I hope you'll get a chance to stop by!

secret life of owls

Sometimes I wonder if my jewelry has a better social life than I do.

new etsy finds

I've got some mini pendants listed on my Etsy site. More on the horizon. Any requests?

happy thanksgiving!

Today I'm thankful for –amongst other things – being featured in the Arts Business Institute's

2nd Annual Great Handmade Holiday Gift Guide.

Our owls have been selected to be a part of the guide featuring beautiful gifts lovingly hand crafted. This holiday season buy handmade in the USA, please.

Turtle or Tortoise?

Deep in the heart of summer when it was warm and I wasn't consumed with eating my weight in junk food daily, I started to make a turtle cane. The beads to the left are made with some left over turtle shell cane. And – obviously – the necklace to the right shows the completed turtle mini pendant.

I hope you enjoy your Thanksgiving! 

tomorrow's small business saturday

As a micro business - deciding the proper merchandising venue is critical. 
Can one make it in the wholesale market? The big kicker here is proper pricing. Materials, overhead and profit are to be carefully considered. We'll be testing the waters this coming March when we enter the Boston Gift Show for the very first time. I'm busy developing product that I can reproduce for a wholesale market while keeping an attainable price point for consumers in mind — without sacrificing an ounce of quality or creativity or fun!
How about craft shows? This can provide the crafter with a great way to connect directly with the end user. However, booth fees can be daunting and if you're working an outdoor show the weather can be a harsh determining factor to your financial success. A year ago August, a two day juried show that I was to attend was cancelled due to Hurricane Irene. Unfortunately for myself and the other participants, our $300 booth fee could not be refunded. Ugh - that's hard to swallow. 
How effective are trunk/home shows? Trunk shows are almost like a tiny craft show to a very specific audience. I'm honored when I'm asked to do a trunk show in someone's home or office. No offense Silpada or Stella & Dot - but give the little guy a shot! 
Support Small Business Saturday and you'll be supporting a dream. 
Pass it on!

Rescheduling