Shannon Cintron Jewelry

Bright and Bold

2010-03-07T08:12:00.000-08:00

Vermilion is featured today in UlixisCrafts . I'm creating new mandela style pieces for the Bohemian Lace collection, in smaller versions and in an array of brillant colors, so look for more in the coming weeks before summer. Thank you Amanda☺

A Day of Art

2010-01-10T20:10:00.000-08:00

Last week, I decided to go to my local arts museum-the M.A.G. If there were any place that I would describe as my own private little santuary then this would be it. The M.A.G holds a modest collection compared to, lets say the Metropolitian but the pieces that they do have are so well curated that it more than makes up for it. It's been a while since I've been there so I decided to stay for an extended visit so that I could really get into my 'zone' and meditate and reflect.

I brought my camera along and went on a photographing frenzy. I've learned a long time ago that many of these artifacts and magnificent pieces of art can be great inspirations for my jewelry designs. Taking into account the lines,colors and texture of the various artwork, one could easily incorporate these elements into a soulful piece of jewelry. For example the patina and grain of the helmet pictured, would carry over beautifully, into a pair of 'diskus' earrings.

The structure of a piece can also lend itself to the design of jewelry. The multistrand necklace shown can be reinterpreted with so many variations or can act as a model for reproduction using 'new' material. The composition of a pieces, such as with the carved mahogany sculpture, can be reinterpreted in color (mahogany beads) or shape(casted carved pendant).

I'll be going on a nature hike this weekend. I'll definately take more photos and I also plan to use this opportunity to draw inspiration from my surroundings.

Happy New Year!!!

2010-01-02T23:07:00.000-08:00

It's 2010 and I am full of avidity and enthusiasm. I will be introducing my line of metal smith work this month as well as some new twist to my traditional artisan beaded creations. Colors and textures will abound and in this collection, many organic forms such as rocks, pods and shells will be the inspiration for these jewelry designs.

You will see fabrics incorporated into these pieces in rich bright hues and vintage prints. New gemstones , vintage glass and authentic Bakelite will make its premier in my shop as limited edition pendants.

My new Spring/Summer line will be available at my new website shannoncintron.com and at Etsy. Stay tuned...

(harmony)

2009-08-27T14:10:00.000-07:00

Hi all,

I came home today to find a lovely Treasury from TW that included my Tatao Earrings:

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=66157

Thank you, Elde for including me in such a lovely Treasury☺

Sol

2009-08-18T19:25:00.000-07:00

Here's a nice grouping of beautiful handcrafted items from Etsy that I curated as a compliment to the Sol Earrings that are available at SCJ for Etsy. I love the amber tones and although these earrings are intended for summer wear, I think they fit quite nicely in this collection of autumn inspired creations.

Blogging Again

2009-07-29T19:04:00.000-07:00

I've been out of the loop for the last week and a half. My computer started to malfunction and I had to call a professional. They took my Dell away for a week to their repair shop and I went through "internet withdrawl".

However in my hiatus I was able to get some creativity done. I've sketched some new ideas-for Spring- and have started to work on some more creations for Fall and Winter. I've also applied to a couple of local shows that will occur in September, one of which is right in my neighborhood. I'll have pictures of my booth set-up soon☺

My website is coming along great and is still scheduled for August 20th. I've figured out a way to simplify the process and I may have it up and running before the 20th.

My two eldest children(17 and 16) are out camping for the week and I miss them very much. This is the first time they've ever been away for so long. They are in an area where a lot of natural gems and minerals are found-they promised to bring me back what they find so that I can use it in my work(I'm a lucky mom☺) I can't wait for Friday to come so that I can see them again♥

UPDATE: August 17th 2009
The kids got back over two weeks ago and they are still talking about what fun they had☺ My daughter learned how to crochet and my son caught 18 fish at the lake!

I may have to postpone my website premiere until early September due to a few minor setbacks
I'll know for certain by August 19th.

SCJ @ Trunkt.org

2009-07-13T09:17:00.000-07:00

I've been accepted into Trunkt. I applied a while back and was not accepted. I guess after a year of refining my work and taking better pictures(in MY opinion of course☺) have finally paid off.

Here's my portfolio: www.trunkt.org/shannoncintron

I plan to use this opportunity as a way to network and get to know more artists as well as to further promote my work.

Yipee!

Almost There...

2009-07-09T04:27:00.000-07:00

I've been listing new creations on Etsy steadily now for the past two weeks.

I know in my previous post that I mentioned that would allow my listings to expire on Etsy. I've decided that I will utilize Etsy in a different way. I'm building a "gallery" at Etsy to house my lower end work-that is, creations that would fall in the category of being more affordable . I've priced these creations accordingly so that they would be available for wholesale purchasing. To be truthful, I don't expect many individuals sale-maybe a few, hopefully☺ Instead my wholesale clients(on and offline) would be able to view the selection there and make their choices.

My new website will house my higher end creations-creations that are composed of materials such as high karat gold and AAA gems. Both sites will display my Fall/Winter 2009 collections. The estimated debut date for my website will be August 20th(*crosses fingers*)

I've decided to close both my 1000Markets and Ecrater accounts. The reason for this is not because of low traffic although that is one factor. At 1000Markets, I could not fully take advantage of the features there. I kept getting blocked from listing my work and from posting on "walls" and in the forums. The only thing that functioned correctly was my blog and I naturally had that directed here. I've worked with the admin and the programmer at 1KM about resolving the issue. They were very friendly and went the extra mile to try and help me with the issue but nothing we tried seemed to work. Other than that, I think it would have been promising.

My Ecrater account will be replaced by my new website. I've already informed my local customers here in Rochester. They are just as excited as me☺. I think that my new website will be more user friendly and easier to navigate than Ecrater.

'Til next time....

Designing my Website

2009-06-05T14:30:00.000-07:00

O.K. For the last few weeks I've been working on the layout of my website for Shannon Cintron Jewelry. It's been a slow and steady process but I'm nearly complete. I already have my domains secure and I decided to use NVU to design my site. NVU is a free web authoring software program that is amazing! I've played with it for the first few days; trying to get a feel for it. I also checked out some YOU TUBE tutorial vids which helped out a lot.

The look that I wanted for SCJ is very simple, earthy and almost masculine. I've so far used a single backgound with a simple font design. If you go to my Etsy shop, you can check out my banner and see a sample of what I mean. The banner at Etsy shows up a little blurry (don't know why) but the NVU pages are incredibly crisp and sharp. I'm going to replace my 1000Markets and Ecrater banners and this blog banner with the same style soon.

I won't have an immediate checkout system in place at first, therefore I will direct my traffic to Etsy,Ecrater and 1000Markets for the time being. My next steps will be to choose a host and set up my site. I can't wait!!!

If you're interested...

Here is the link for NVU .
Here are some You Tube Vids to help get you started.

Reflections, growth and moving on...

2009-05-11T06:51:00.000-07:00

Well it's been a while since I've last posted. I've been very busy. I've been revamping and preparing new products for summer, fall and winter collections. I've also been doing some preparations for promotional work and press releases.

I believe that I am now at a crossroad with Shannon Cintron Jewelry. I feel that I am ready to take it to the next level. I'm working on designing my own website now and I think that once my items expire at Etsy I will no longer be selling there as a jewelry artist. I really like selling at Etsy. Etsy has provided me with a platform to test my market for what I want to sell but right now I want to expand my visibility and make my mark in the world of artistic high end jewelry.

I've been practicing new techniques and have been streamlining my product line. I've tried my hand at soldering for the first time and must say that it is much easier than I'd anticipated. I probably will not create any metal smith work for sale until next year because this technique is very new to me and I want to truly "perfect" my skills. I've also brushed up on some of my bead weaving and knotting techniques. I've reviewed a lot of my past selling items and have sketched revisions to make them "new" again.

Right now things are a bit at a stand still as I wait for more supplies. With the supplies that I did have around , I was able to come up with a new type of earring that I named Topek that I may consider adding to my product line once my own website is set up(which should be by late summer, hopefully). I have a version of these earrings already listed at Etsy. I used oxidized sterling silver beads and a basic stitch pattern to create the triangular shapes. I attached these to closed sterling silver jump rings and hand formed the ear wires to resemble claws. I wanted these to hang the way that a hoop earring would. They came out really nice! I wore a smaller version of these all weekend and I got a few inquiries about where I got them from and those who didn't ask, looked at them in curiosity-so I'm pretty sure I'm on the right track with these.

☺

Aphora

2009-03-27T06:46:00.000-07:00

Aphora Hoops are the latest edition to my 1000 Markets portfolio. I think that these are perfect for everyday, office or casual wear.

These are simple sterling silver wire formed hoop earrings. I've slightly flattened and textured the edges for a more uniform look and also to add strength to the earrings. Aphora hoops have what I call an "ocular" shape-not quite an oval. These hoops are made to order and are approximately 1inch in length and width.

These are available in both bright sterling silver or oxidized (blackened) sterling silver for 6.00(US).

http://www.1000markets.com/users/shannoncintronjewelry

Torso and Torture

2009-03-05T04:09:00.000-08:00

Description...

This is my first small series of tribal inspired adornments for SCJ. They include a pendant necklace and earrings (Torso), and a focal bead necklace (Torture).

About the pieces...

Torso is a pendant necklace/earring grouping created by me that is composed of sterling silver chain and components. I completely oxidized the sterling silver to a black hue and sealed the patina. The pendant/charm pieces are composed of brass plated aluminum. The construction of the design is clean simple and minimal with all of the impact focused on the vintage findings. Torso(necklace) falls gracefully just below the hollow of the neckline. The earrings are 2 inches total in length and frames the face, beautifully.

Torture is a double stranded creation of oxidized sterling silver. I used the same technique as with the Torso pieces to create this necklace. It has the same sophistication and ethnic feel to it and as with Torso, it's form suggests it's name.

The history...

A gaudier necklace from my mother's jewelery box become reinvented as tribal inspired adornments. These jewelry pieces are reminiscent of ancient civilization.

Available at 1000Markets, Ecrater and *Etsy.

*please not that the Torso earrings are exclusive to my Etsy shop.

Reinventions and New Perspectives

2009-03-01T14:12:00.000-08:00

I've been doing a lot of preparations for reopening SCJ and I think it has paid off. I decided not to get the new camera but instead try to maximize the performance of my old one. I purchased two new photographers lamps and decided to make use of my photo booth. I finally broke down and decided to us my tripod and I think that made a big difference. I still wanted to keep that old ancient look with the deeper hue background but I also wanted my photos to not look too dark Here's a pic of one of my new pieces called Torso in the form of earrings. What do you think?

The majority of my creative time has been spent making new items for SCJ and Emberseed my latest venture. Most of my supply orders have come in so I was able to create an entire line of fragrances oil perfumes for Emberseed. They included the Vintage Lilac, Milkpod and Moonberry. I'm am going to present these oils as monthly gift prizes for my blog ♥TreasuryTroll♥ in order to get them out their and to get people talking about them. You can view new creations and read postings that pertain to Emberseed here:

http://www.emberseed.blogspot.com/

And here's the store:

http://www.emberseed.etsy.com/

I've re-evaluated SCJ and have been able to streamline which creations will be offered at which stores. Ecrater, I now consider my "housing" shop while Etsy and 1000Markets are my "gallery" sites where people are free to purchase items and the pieces there are also a sample of the items offered at Ecrater. Each store will be stocked with what is listed. I'm listing new products on a weekly bases which goes according to my new scheduling program (I'll talk more about that in my next post☺).

My daughter and I are still waiting for a shipment of supplies for Baby Dragon so the re-opening of our shop will be postponed for another week.

I've been very active at ♥TreasuryTroll♥ and will be posting two new Treasury picks tonight. The Treasury winner of the month and a voter will be chosen in another week. Stay tuned...

♥TreasuryTroll♥

2009-02-09T11:44:00.000-08:00

My treasury post here last week inspired me to try something new that I feel will help promote the talent that is on Etsy that may not otherwise get noticed. Here is my new blog called ♥TreasuryTroll♥. It is my own alternate Treasury site for fantastic artisans, vintage and supply carriers on Etsy. This blog will be updated daily. After I've done enough posts there, I'm going to run curator contest for free gifts from one of my shops☺

http://treasurytroll.blogspot.com/

***************************************************************************************

Since my last post, I've been able to come up with an efficient schedule that will allow me to focus on my shops and properly take care of home. However this schedule calls for some re-constructions. Therefore, I will be temporarily closing all of my shops (Etsy, Ecrater and 1000Markets) on 2/15/09-2/27/09. I'm doing a major overhaul (new material orders, re-shooting and taking new pics, listing new items, new banners, policy revisions, etc...) and since I want everything to be perfect, I'm allowing myself about two weeks to accomplish all of this.

2009-02-05T15:52:00.000-08:00

It's been a little while since I've posted so I am attempting to play catch-up with all of my networking sites. So this is what's been going on in my life as of late...

Things have suddenly gotten very hectic for me and I am wondering whether it's getting to the point that I should put my shops on vacation mode until thing settle down. Fred had to go into the hospital last week therefore I pretty much ran the house solo. Doing this with three autistic children is very challenging but I managed to pull it off. Now Fred's home and is still recovering so now I have taken on the role as a make-shift nurse as well as a mom not to mention that I'm trying to manage my shops. I really don't want to go on a hiatus but at the same time, I want to be able to provide my customers with quality jewelry and customer service. I don't want to have to compromise between taking care of my home and my business-I want to have ample time to do both, the way that I'm used to doing it.

You see that picture up there?...*Sigh*...I'm very unsatisfied with my camera. I have all of my items made and ready to list for SCJ, Baby Dragon and Emberseed but I HATE all of the pictures. The picture that you see now is one of the better ones. Sad, isn't it? It seems as if my Canon is not working the way that it used to. It is a few years old and it was suggested to me just the other day that I upgrade. so I guess I know where part of my income tax return is going☺

One the plus side I did receive my very first sale at Emberseed just the other day. I've already shipped out the package and I hope that it finds its receipent well.

...So... if you visit and of my shops (1000Market, Etsy Ecrater) within the next few days and you happen to find them empty, it's O.K... I 'll be back soon enough☺

Finding your Target Audience and Making it Work for You

2009-01-11T15:17:00.000-08:00

Spending a year on Etsy has provided me with alot of insight with selling online. I officially opened my shop Shannon Cintron Jewelry one year ago. Since then, I've had 76 sales on Etsy. Of those online sales I've never had a negative feedback or a private request for a refund or an exchange. Unfortunately, of those 76 customers, I have no idea of how any of them found my shop. Were they already members of Etsy and wanted to purchase from me? Did they see that I was mentioned in someones blog? Were they just randomly searching the web and found my shop? More importantly-Are these jewelry items for themselves or are they gifts? Why do they want my jewelry? These are questions that could have been easily answered if I'd have just taken a few extra steps to insure that I was familiar with the characteristics of my customer base.

With the arrival of Google Analytics for Etsy, I should be able to roughly tell where the traffic to my Etsy shops are coming from. I'm not very computer savvy so I've yet to implement this feature for my shops-I'm going to try to have it set up by the end of this week. 1000Markets carry in house stats that allow me to see how many visits total compared to how many unique visits which helps a little. Ecrater is also compatible with the GA system. However, all of this info does not "personalize" my visits. I still don't know why #412 visited my shop. Keywords from GA tells me what they searched under but it doesn't tell me if the "brown linen" that they were looking for was for a supply or for a component in one of my bracelets.

According to Wendy Rosen, once you've developed a customer profile it "should become a tool that you use daily". You should also try to expand your customer profile and try to find new directions for your work. Suggested reading: Crafting as a Business by Wendy Rosen pgs. 58-68

Because they are past customers,I would never spam them or send unsolicited material. I feel that opportunity to involve my old customers in that way has passed. Besides spam is yucky☺ However, I can do damage control. One great feature of Etsy is the ability to look through past customers profiles. There, you can find the person who purchased from you , their favorite materials(hint). On their min page you can look through their favorite(hint, hint) and even through all their past purchases(jackpot!) plus the feedback that they left for each purchase(bonus!!).

This information to me is gold-it gives me a detailed profile of my ideal customer. I can view their buying trends-the time of month or year when their purchases increase. I can get an age demographic as well as a demographic in location for my past customers to see in what area and which age group my items are most popular. From past purchases, I can come up with new creations based on a particular material or constant favorite color that is present in some of the items that they've already brought from other shops. No, I'm not talking about "copying" someones work-rather I'm suggesting an new interpretation based on popular material make-up, shape or composition. For example If I see that the majority of my customers tend to purchase items that have the color red in it then I would simply create an item of jewelry that has the color red in it. If the demand was high enough, I could even create an entire collection based around that color. I've come to realize that like my customers, I love natural materials, fabrics and beads so it isn't very hard to come up with items that are appealing to me and them.

With my soon to be new customers and repeat clients I have decided to send out either written or emailed option to receive announcements about my shops. With this option, I plan to send a quick survey to get the full picture about how they found me, what they were looking for and who they were shoping for. I may even offer a small incentive to get the ball rolling for this info.

Doing all of this research(and taking a lot of notes) is time consuming but I believe that it will pay off in the end.

This year I plan to dedicate a large portion of my time to reach out to both old and new customers. By immediately including the new customers and reaching out to past customers an ideal target audience can be established. If you have any other thoughts about this blogpost-please leave a comment below.

Oh oh!...now I've done it...

2009-01-02T10:24:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year! I'm really excited about what's in store for me and my businesses in 2009. I've been so busy with preparations I haven't done much blogging or listing in any of my shops. They may look stagnant right now however within three weeks, I anticipate I'll be busy listing for a long time. I have three new items for SCJ that will be available at Etsy, Ecrater and 1000Markets on January 20. BabyDragon is going to get a totally new look...and many, many new items. And, here's the big Oh,Oh....

I've opened a third shop at Etsy by the name of Emberseed. The inspiration for this shop, comes from my interest in botany and the holistic lifestyle. My hopes for this new venture is to bring forth an awareness of natural living. I have not listed anything yet but some of the items in this shop will include scented oils, small home decorations and of course jewelry items. The style of this shop is simple with an hint of nostalgia.

At first I felt very intimidated about taking on another shop because of time and cost. However I thought about it and felt that this shop would allow me to become more creative with my use of available materials, display my other crafting talents and share my enthusiasm about natural living. Also, after a little research, I am convinced that there is a strong market for the items that I will be selling on Etsy.

Emberseed will officially make it's "debut" on January 21st. I will also have a blog dedicated to Emberseed coming soon. You can see pics of my preparations for Emberseed at my Flickr page on January 6.

On January 12 I will continue with my series on business building and will focus on finding your target audience.

Take care☺

What is Style?

2008-12-20T03:43:00.000-08:00

I was browsing early this morning-can't sleep because of a slight toothache-and I came across this article that talks about my first improvement point from my last post:

http://naia-artists.org/resources/Newspaper/Issue4/Page11.htm

It's a great article and it pretty much validates what I've been thinking all along. I often wonder however, what separates style from trend and can you ever incorporate the two in order to reach a larger consumer base without alienating loyal customers. For example, if you've ever seen a United Colors of Benetton ad or have seen the tribal photography of National Geographic I'd say I pretty much like that style. Many of my family and friends (and some of my local customers) are into styles like Baby Phat and Rocawear. They've always expressed admiration for my work whenever they see a new creation of mine. Nevertheless , its often been a struggle to modify my jewelry to fit their taste without compromising my own creativity. How do you feel about this? Feel free to post your thoughts and comments.

A Year Older and Wiser...I hope

2008-12-19T05:12:00.000-08:00

Today is my birthday and for the last few days I've been reflecting on how my life's path is going. Right now I feel at peace about where I am spiritually, mentally and with my family and friends. At the same time I also feel a sense of urgency and motivation to go on to the next level with my business in jewelry making and design. Lately, I've been reading a book called Crafting as a Business by Wendy Rosen and I'm beginning to find it to be a very resourceful tool.

My jewelry, at first, was offered to myself, family and close friends. Soon others that noticed my work started to want to buy my creations. After a while I finally got up the courage to do my first small home party and to my surprise it was successful-that is, I made a small profit-enough to treat my family to a pizza dinner the next night, at least. I was still working out my pricing formula and it seemed that I was selling jewelry just to have to buy more supplies to make more jewelry. I wanted to get out of that cycle. Not only that, I was struggling with trying to figure out my packaging and business image, how to obtain materials at a wholesale price, figuring out how to obtain a business licenses, and so on and so on...

I finally sat down with a mentor of mine by the name of Elizabeth Agte. I'd attended a workshop of hers once that taught PMC and I regularly visit her booth whenever she does Artwalk. She pretty much broke it down for me-as far as obtaining a DBA in NY, how to avoid overrated craft shows that would have more resale vendors than crafters and how to avoid consignment shops and boutiques that would have your creations sitting in a pile of dust or becoming "lost"while they pushed sales for their "friends" and colleagues artwork.

Joining Etsy was and still is a sort of experiment for me. I wanted to see for one thing if people besides my closest companions would be interested in buying my work. I also wanted to see how others who also created jewelry were pricing their work. I've learned a lot from selling online but to be honest, I wish that when I first started I would have been more prepared. I actually studied Etsy as well as other eccomerce sites to see how things were done for a whole year before I opened up shop and I still had not put everything that I needed to in place.

Some things that I would have done different in the beginning:

1. Streamlined and developed my product. At first I was all over the place making things just because I knew how. I realized after a while that I needed to focus on a certain style for my work...something that would make my items recognizable to people. This does not apply just to the product but also to the details from the packaging to the business cards.(I'm still working on the details☺)

2. Find my customers. I know there are people out there like myself who love the eclectic, primitive, ethereal, natural, artistic sort of bohemian look(that's a mouthful). I just needed to find who they were and what they were willing to spend for my jewelry. My very first sale on Etsy was for a customer in Australia-a place known for its tribal art and influences.

3. Finding the value of my work. I was barely making a profit at first and I knew I had to reevaluate my prices if I was going to try to make this work as a business. I created a list of materials that I would use that would bring value to my work. For example, in my SCJ shop, I am using only sterling silver, raw brass and gold filled beads and components, gemstones,pearls natural beads and natural fibers. Any other materials or components placed in my work will be secondary-the majority of each of my jewelry pieces will consist of the more valuable material. I watch the silver market and keep up on the latest offers from my suppliers to let me know when is the best time to purchase more. In the near future, I plan to incorporate quality karat gold and other items (a surprise) into my work. Along with the time,techniques,methods and design process that I go through, I am able to come up with a fair value for my work which gives me a good profit and gives my customers a piece of my artwork at a good price.

These are just three things that I have or am working on. I'll be discussing more in the future (you'll see an opinion poll pop up once or twice here in the coming year). I'm anticipating that by my next birthday that I'll have become even more attuned to the needs of my customer base and how I want to represent myself and my work to the public.

About Baby Dragon

2008-12-11T11:56:00.000-08:00

Let me introduce you to Baby Dragon. I've only mentioned her once briefly in my very first blog post but now I think its time that you've become more acquainted with her...

Baby Dragon started out as a little girl born in 1992. My daughter, LaNina when she first emerged into the world came out crying and growling. Afterwards, whenever she was hungry or needed a change she would start up with her signature growling and huffing cry. My family promptly nicknamed her Baby Dragon. At age 16 she has long since grown out of this but the nickname still stuck. Of course she's forbidden me to use it in public.

Baby Dragon has now become collaborative works created by me and my daughter. These works can range from jewelry to house decor. We've decided to house our shops at two sites; one at Etsy and the other at Ecrater under the Shannon Cintron Jewelry site. Our weekly trips to the local craft store are a real treat for us. We love experimenting with new materials and equipment and we especially like to reuse and upcycle things. Because jewelry making is our favorite creative outlet, you will see that our jewelry creations dominate the majority of each shop. We also, however, offer small home decor and stationary items at Etsy.

LaNina, along with my other two children, has autism. With all of my children , I encourage them to be the best at what they have a passion and drive for. I put no limits to their abilities and I expect them not to either. All of my children have a creative niche-both of my sons like to sculpt and build with clay -and at every opportunity, I try and nurture their interests by exposing them to all types of skill building and social networks related to whatever we're learning about. We are regulars at our community centers and museums. Along with my husband, we take nature walks, go on road trips to unfamiliar areas and do other things so that they are constantly challenged and stimulated.

LaNina comes up with amazing ideas. Right now, in our Etsy shop, we have a series of jewelry pieces inspired by rock crystal formations. She came up with the concept and I helped to execute the design. We used the items that were immediately available to us and all and all we think that they came out lovely.

Our contributuions to Baby Dragon are equal and valuable. You will see that as my daughter grows and her ideas evolve, the look of Baby Dragon will change yet stay fresh, trendy and new and just like when she was a baby, it will be hard for me to keep up with her-creatively, that is☺

I'm Back and Ready to Work!

2008-12-02T11:05:00.000-08:00

I must say that this past weeks vacation did my body and soul wonders! I honestly had not realized how badly I needed to "get away" from my repetitive schedule and take a moment to breath. At home for the past few months I've been saturated in house duties, wifehood, motherhood and even my creative outlet of making and selling jewelry was becoming more work to me than fun. Especially the business part of networking and promoting my shop. As the holidays are approaching , I've been feeling the pressure to come up with some new pieces. Checking out the forums at Etsy and 1000Markets I can see that I'm not alone.

To make myself feel less guilty about leaving my shops dormant for a week to go enjoy myself, I vowed to do some type of self promotion. I packed cards to pass out to the boutique shop owners and put on my Boho Hoops to wear down there in Edenton. Once we got there all I wanted to do was sleep for hours. After I slept I just wanted to got outside, enjoy the weather (an average of 60 degrees the whole time we were there) and take in the scenery. I did no networking at all and I'm fine with that. Being down there in Edenton and doing things other than making jewelry allowed me to become inspired with brand new ideas for my jewelry line once I got home.

Some of the things I did:

1. Helped my Grandmother hand sew a quilt she had been working on. She's a very skilled and avid quilter and working on a different craft with her was fun.

2. Pecan picking. My family owns land there, right off of route 32N were there are pecan trees and a corn field. The pecans are just right for picking this time of year. I vow to make pecan pie with these before the year is up.

3. Visited historical Edenton. This is located downtown and along the main street are some mom and pop shops, boutiques and other retail stores. This street runs into the Albermarle Bay where there is a small park with a playground that has beautiful magnolia trees and a boardwalk.

Now my mind is all aswirl with ideas that will incorporate fabrics and natural textures and shapes (pecans and magnolias). I've already drawn up simple sketches but I'm pretty sure that I will not have these pieces done before the holiday rush. I'm still working on other jewelry items that I really am very excited about but I think these new inspirations will be worth the wait.

Here's a couple of pictures that I took of a cypress tree and a couple of magnolia pods. If you'd like to see more pics of our vacation, please click on the Flickr widget to your right☺

Off to Grandma's

2008-11-20T04:59:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow afternoon I, along with the kids and Fred. will be taking a twelve hour long drive to visit with my Grandma Lucille in Edenton, North Carolina. Last year my youngest son was two years old and he did fairly good on such a long trip (we only had to stop six times to quiet him down☺). This year, I'll make sure to bring plenty of small toys and gummibears.

Edenton is a small town near the border of Virginia. I must admit that I didn't know too much about the town until a few years ago. I did know that this was the place where my Grandmother grew up and where my mom spent here childhood along with my aunts and uncles. It's a fairly small place compared to Rochester but I love it's quaint appeal and slower pace.

A little, brief family history (as I know it):

My Grandma grew up in this town along with her mom, dad and 16 brothers and sisters. It was told to me that they did sharecropping of goods like peanuts, corn and cotton. She grew up and met a young man from Georgia, my Grandfather (we called him B.C). They married and had four children two boys and two girls, one of which is my mom. Things started to slow down in NC and jobs increased up North so Grandma, B.C and the kids rooted up and moved here in Rochester. My grandmother took up housekeeping here and B.C worked in an auto garage for many years, until his severe arthritis put him on disability. My Grandmother worked at a nursing home called St. Ann's Home for over 30 years before she retired. During all of this 21 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren were born (more are on the way but not by me-hehe!☺).

When B.C. past away some years ago-my Grandma began expressing a wanting to go back home. She really missed the simplicity and warmth of her home town and she had so many family and friends that still lived there. I think that she was beginning to feel a little lonely. B.C was gone and all of us were growing up and making families for ourselves. She finally moved back to Edenton just five years ago. And last year was the first time I'd ever visited the place. After my first experience there, I must say, I do know why she missed it so much.

If you ever visit Edenton be sure to check out these great handcraft and artisan shops on Main Street:
Byrums Gift and Crafts Shop-all types of handcrafted jewelry, textiles art as well as supplies
The Urban Village- this store carries handcrafted items such as these great vintage doorknob winestoppers called Knobstoppers

You can find out more about this towns rich history as well as its art culture by checking this link: http://mainstreetedenton.com/

Well I'm going to be really busy getting packed-not only clothes but business cards and a couple of jewelry pieces to wear-always networking, you know and there's plenty of B&M shops and boutiques in the area to visit. I'll have new pics, new stories and possibly some new jewelry design ideas when I return.

Take care☺

1000Markets...a dream come true?

2008-11-16T09:29:00.000-08:00

Three days ago I was reading another blog and clicked on a link that brought me to a handcrafting comer's site called 1000Markets http://www.1000markets.com/ .
At first glance I could already tell that this site would be one that would possibly rival Etsy's already established position in the handcrafting movement. After reading it's terms and browsing the stores (some of which are also well known and successful Etsy sellers), I decided to sign up to sell. Managing four stores is going to be abit of a challenge for me but since my schedule now allows me more time to do this, I think I'm more than up for the challenge.

1000Markets is a juried site that offers features such as stats, Marketgroups and an actual blog within your store. Customers go through the Amazon payment system for orders and along with the forum, you can contact another member by posting on their "wallboard" or by contacting them through their store (similar to the convo system provided by Etsy). The opening page of the site is very pleasing to the eye and it is fairly easy to navigate here. In short, this place has everything that a seller would need.

I'm still waiting for approval for my shop to began selling here and although my items cannot be seen by the public as of yet, my blog and comments can so that is still a plus in my book. I'll keep you all posted on how things go...

UPDATE:

I've been ACCEPTED! You can find my brand spanking new shop at: http://www.1000markets.com/shops/shannoncintronjewelry
Check out my blog there too.

A pleasant surprise☺

2008-11-12T07:56:00.000-08:00

So yesterday I was browsing the forums of Etsy when I came upon a post from a very talented artist by the name of FrucciDesigns asking for help from jewelers that were from New York. Post about NY always grabs my attention so I jumped in. I came to find out that she is moving from California right to my hometown of Rochester New York and not only that, but she's moving just ten minutes away from where I live. I became so excited, I replied to her post, along with a few other helpful members and then I convo'ed her to let her know that if she would like to meet I'd be happy to. It's not very often that I get to meet a fellow Etsy member (actually I have NEVER met another member) and this particular artist was one that I remember hearting her shop when I first began to explore Etsy-her unique style and unconventional artistry really stood out to me. I just got a reply back from her today and hopefully we will soon get together and chat over a cup of coffee about our experiences working in our craft and selling on Etsy. I'll keep you posted.

Here you can see her amazing work: http://www.FrucciDesign.etsy.com/

A lil' o' this, A lil' o' that

2008-11-10T07:55:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I attempted to be a virtual social butterfly.....

I always hear that in order to promote my online business, I need to do alot of socializing and networking via the web. On Etsy whenever I'm reading the business section of the forum I often see the words Blog, Twitter, Facebook and Flickr. I've already joined Flickr' and I now have a blog(the one your looking at right now☺) but sometimes I wonder how the sucessful sellers are able to make their items and still maintain an up to date account on their chosen networking sites.

As you can see from my blog log,I tend to post when I can get five spare minutes away from my motherly duties which is not very often. After a hiatus of at least two months, I logged into Flickr yesterday to add new pictures of my latest creations. While I was there, I joined a couple of groups and submitted pictures to a group that I had joined previously. I'll have to go back later to see if they were accepted. I left a comment for an unrelated picture of an African tribesman(I REALLY liked that pic) and that was it. I feel as if I could utilize Flickr better but I'm not sure how to. If anyone has any suggestions please comment below.

I also did my regular posting at Etsy and left comments for subjects that I was interested in, however it seems as if I'm constantly conversing with the same group-not that there is anything wrong with that-but the atmosphere gets stagnant and old after a while and it seems that I've seen the same subjects discussed over and over again. Not to mention that I'm not too sure that many buyers frequent this area of Etsy. Finally I visited Myspace and did my regular routine of emailing my friends and inviting new friend and then I decided to clean up my Ecrater site a little by deleting old listings and giving the shop page a fresh look.

I'm going to continue to read the business sections of Etsy to get some pointers and also surf the web for some new ideas. There's a wealth of info out there and I just have to find it and make it work.

Voting and Listing Today

2008-11-04T17:42:00.000-08:00

I'm sitting at home right now, contemplating on whether I should help myself to a second cup of tea and watching the election coverage on CNN. I did vote today-it allowed me to take a nice stroll down the street to my polling place(it was 70 out today) and I got to pass out a few bussiness cards too.

In my last post I said that I wanted to focus on bridal jewelry for my SCJ Etsy shop.

I realize now that to do this would mean fierce competition in this catagory on Etsy. I came to the conclusion that all I need to do is narrow my niche and really make my items more recognizable and unique. I'm going create a signiture look to my pieces and throughout the months of November to January, I'd like to have my first complete, cohesive collection.

I listed two new items on Etsy today. My Croc bracelet-a sterling silver beaded cuff that allowed me to get back to my "roots". I started making jewelry professionally using this technique but as time went on I started venturing into other techniques. Now I've decided to bring it back with a vengance in both my Etsy and Ecrater shops.

I've also remodified my classic Bohemian Hoop earrings. I used to make these earrings using a basic brass wire. The hoops that I created before are very pretty but I decided that I wanted a design that was more study and artistic in the way they looked. I picked up some pure raw brass low gauge wire from a craft and metal reclamation shop. It came in two long rods taped together. When I got it home, I tested it by bending a small section on one end and snipping it with a pair of old wire cutters. It's resistance was more than I'd anticipated-nothing like the brass wire I'd used before. It took me a while to get used to working with it and when I finally did, I was able to make a bracelet and a beautiful pair of hoop earrings. The earrings I made are not so different from my original hoops but they do have a sculptural element to them in that I've created a tapering effect for the earwires while the rest of the earring is hammered flat and textured.

Trying to Bring it all Together

2008-10-21T20:31:00.000-07:00

These last couple of weeks I've been thinking and contemplating about my shops. I have three -two on Etsy and one on Ecrater. I've been wondering how I can bring a sense of cohesiveness into all three. I really like many different styles of jewelry and I have learned and taught myself different techniques to execute many styles. However, it would be very apparent to anyone visiting my shops that I am a very fickle creator and will make something on a whim, unprepared and it will not necessarily flow with the other items in my shop. It's not that I question the quality or design appeal-it's just that I would like to have a more uniform look to all three shops.

As of Monday, I came up with a plan to use Ecrater as my base store. It would house all of my creations which would include different styles of jewelry from bohemian, shabby chic to fine. These styles would be catagorized accordingly. I would also house Baby Dragon (an Etsy shop) items within this same shop and label them as so. This would pretty much become my main online boutique. My two Etsy shops (Baby Dragon and Shannon Cintron Jewelry) would be more streamlined. I've decided to create only matrimonial type pieces for my SCJ etsy shop and trendy children's kitsch jewelry for BD at Etsy.

Because Etsy does have a listing fee and a percentage fee for each item purchased(along with PayPal), I feel that using less costly materials for these shops would be more practical. In this way I can use the more costly materials at my leisure to create items for my practically free Ecrater site. Also the techniques that I use to create the jewelry that will be featured on Etsy will be less time consuming and therefore I can really focus on creating more of an inventory and perfecting my photos which is a must to get noticed on this site. Yesterday I added some new earrings to SCJ at Etsy and I love the way they look on the page. I even created a new banner using Bannersketch. I think I'm doing the right thing-only time (and a lot of promoting)will tell.

Discovering Etsy

2008-09-25T14:01:00.000-07:00

Three years ago I was sitting at home and bored out of my mind. I had just given birth to our son Lorenzo and still on maternity leave. During this time my creativity had gone on a hiatus. Actually I had no desire to make anything. Before that, I was constantly making necklaces and bracelets to give to friends and co-workers. Now that I look back on it, I think that I may have been going through some sort of post-partum depression episode, but I'm not a doctor so whose to say. I just know that I was sitting in front of our computer screen on the verge of tears. I was tired of sitting, tired of going into the kitchen to grab the same snack that I'd eatten ten minutes earlier and tired of watching the early morning talkshows. My husband was at work and I'm sure he was getting a little irritated with me calling him every other hour just to talk(especially while he's trying to drive his rig). At one point I was considering waking the baby just so that I could have something to do. I felt miserable. so going outdoors was out of the question.

So I sat there and decided to visit some celeb gossip sites. I figured that maybe I could get a kick out of reading about some actor or singers dirt . I felt mean and actually posted some nasty comments which is really not my nature. I then saw a spam post about a "new shopping experience" with the link attached. I was getting bored with the celebs and decided then to do some virtual "wish list" shopping. I clicked the link and was immediately brought to the Etsy main page. At first glance, I couldn't figure out exactly what type of store it was because I saw different pictures on the page with all of these different names. I soon concluded that it was some sort of online boutique but the items seemed very handcrafted which really appeals to me. I was intrigued with Etsy and started to navigate like crazy. I clicked a picture and was brought to a store that sold felt items (The Funky Felter). I then spied the category list and of course I had to click "Jewelry". I was blown away at the selection and saw that there was at least 4,000 pages worth of items. I viewed a few stores and then began to read some of the profiles. It became clear to me that these artist and crafters were everyday people like me and decided to open up a shop on this ecomerce site. At that moment, I felt motivated to pursue my passion for creating again. I found out how to sign up and I did that same day. I didn't open up shop right away-I wasn't ready. I wouldn't be ready until about a year later, but on that day I felt so happy and in some odd way, I felt validated. There was something that I could do to reclaim a bit of myself again and I did.

I'm an Etsy member now and in my store http://www.shannon75.etsy.com/, you can find bohemian and tribal inspired jewelry that will sometimes have a hint of victorian gothic flair. I also have another, fantastic store at http://www.shannoncintronjewelry.ecrater.com that has a variety of jewelry styles. I still consider Etsy my home turf . Etsy is truly a great place where I can continue to converse and learn with a community of talented crafters and artist. BTW- its a great place to shop☺

Hello All...

2008-09-22T15:44:00.000-07:00

This is my very first entry in any blog ever so I'd just like to start out by introducing myself. My name is Shannon and I make jewelry. My love for trinkets started when I was just a little girl. I would sneak into my grandmothers room sometimes and play with her collection of costume jewelry. As I became older I gained more siblings which meant less pocket money for me to indulge in. By the time I became a teenager I had learned to be very resourceful when it came to being fashionable in school. I realized that if you maintained a simple classic clothing(such as your basic jeans and white shirt) and add fantastic jewelry and accessories, it would make you look just as stylish as a girl that had spent a small fortune on trendy clothes.

However, being the eldest of eight children could not afford me even the least expensive pair of earrings many times and all of the fashionable jewelry of that time (like the bamboo earrings that are popular right now) would cost as much as clothing or shoes. On day, I went with my mom to our local flea market bazaar. As we were looking around, I saw some very pretty beads for sale. I asked the vendor how much and he told me that they were 2.00 per bag. These bags were about the size of a ziploc sandwich bag and filled to the brim with glass beads. I brought them, took them home and got to work. I used sewing thread (doubled up) because at the time I didn't have anything else, nor did I know of anything else that I could use. I made one necklace that night and wore it to school the next day. Everybody loved it and soon some of my friends were asking me to make one for them. My own necklace broke that night and I quickly found the right material to use to keep it together.

That's where it all started...and it's still going. Since then I've become a mom of three and a wife to a great husband. I'm now interested in all forms of jewelry making from metalsmithing to wirewrapping , but beading is my first love. I'm still evolving and am still searching for my niche but I love creating and sharing what I do make with others. You can see some of my creations at shannon75.etsy.com.

Thank you for reading. Until next time...☺