The Key to Selling Your Jewelry Successfully: Research, Research, Research

When I started selling my jewelry on Ebay I had no idea that I was diving head first into a pool of sharks.  Ebay is one of the toughest markets to sell in because there are always sellers watching and waiting to steal your best-selling designs. It didn't take me long to realize that if I was going to survive I needed to find an edge. That's when I found Research, I admit it may be a bit time consuming but research is the key to success for anyone who sells jewelry anywhere.

The difference between you being a thriving seller and someone who just can't seem to break in, is finding the trends and using that information in your designs.Most buyers are fickle so you always have to be one step ahead and try your best to predict where jewelry is going in the future.

The first place to look is Hollywood. What are the "it" girls wearing? You wouldn't believe how much mileage sellers, including me, got from the Jennifer Aniston leaf necklace from " the Break-up" and the Rhianna, handcuff necklace. Sure after a while the excitement dies but no one really knows how long these trends will be in vogue so you have to ride the wave as long as you can.

Places to find the intel you need:
1. People "Style" edition magazine.
2. In Style magazine (remember these trends are usually 6-8 months ahead of the standard market.)
3. Any websites that cater to current jewelry themes like http://www.emitations.com/ (celebrity jewelry section) and Sundance(http://www.sundancecatalog.com/CATEGORY/Jewelry.html)
4. Bead Style Magazine
5. Fire Mountain gems http://www.firemountaingems.com/fashion-trends/default.asp
6.Kitson  http://shopkitson.com/
7.Any designer who is the "in" designer, for Celebrities, just check out their websites there might be something inspiring.  http://www.meandrojewelry.com/ and  http://www.adinadesign.com/

8. Check out popular movies, and television shows and see what people are wearing. This is where the palm tree necklace from Kate Hudson and the movie Fool's Gold came into play.
Of Course this list is just the beginning, the more you look the more you find. Good luck and happy researching.
D.

How to Make a Double Loop Bail For a Top Drilled Bead

Someone asked me how to make a double loop bail so here is a quick tutorial on how to do just that. D

Tools needed.

1.Dead soft or half hard wire

2.top drilled bead,

3.wire cutters

4.rosary pliers

1. Thread wire through the bead, use appropriate size wire to fit the bead. This is a 24 g dead soft with a 10 mm blue faceted chalcedony bead

2. Bend up one side of the wire as shown in the picture.

3. Bend up the other side of the wire so they are parallel but not crossing.

4. Wrap the wire around the plier tips once to form a single loop. 

5. Slip the loop over the tip of the pliers.

6. Slowly wrap another loop around the plier tips. Do this only once.

7. Grasp the rings in you pliers and begin to wrap.

8. Trim the wire as close to the bead as you can.

9. Carefully squeeze the wire end in place (to stablilize) with the wraps, some people tuck it under, be very gentle otherwise you may damage the bead.

10. If the loop is facing the wrong angle for your design give it a 90 degree twist, again be careful to maintain the shape and wraps.

11. Wear it.

I'm Coming Back!

I have to admit I've been lax with my blog but I am making a promise to do better. So in the future I'll be talking about how to find trends in jewelry so you'll be updated but you'll also be able to get ahead of other sellers if you are selling your pieces. I'll show a few techniques I like and talk about a few products I love, so until then...I'll see you soon. D.