A Project in Motion

When is my site ever idle or stagnant? Never it seems. I became dissatisfied with the look of Rock Your Wire (http://rockyourwire.etsy.com/) and felt the need to remove the rock and leaf, and all things distracting in the background, which led me to the local dollar store in search of backgrounds. This time I chose some colored foam and started taking photos and I was (am) SO pleased with the result!


I adore the deep, rich colors and the way the pieces are showcased against the clear, bright backdrop.

I've heard that your photos are a continual work in progress when you sell online, and I can honestly say that this has been my greatest challenge - creating photos that
work well for my work and for my customers shopping experience. I hope I've gotten there - finally!

A Passion for Business

When I'm not making jewellery, I have another job working as a Business Coach. I work with people with disabilities who are exploring self employment as an option. It's rewarding and fun to see people develop businesses and get excited about the launch of their new venture. As we're going through the exploration process, one thing I always reiterate is that I think it is important to have a passion for what you're going to do.

Passion is the thing that will drive you to put in the hours required for success, it is the thing that will give you the nudge to get your books over to the accountant or set up your spreadsheets to track your income and expenses. For most of us (unless your business is accounting), the paperwork is the least loved part of our businesses, but it is a necessity that must be done. Passion for our business helps motivate us to do the tasks of necessity.

I am extremely busy because I work four days a week coaching and in my 'spare' time, I work on developing my jewellery business. I have recently opened two more Etsy shops to showcase my work. In addition to my Rock Your Wire shop, and my fairly recent venture, Rock Your Nose, for handmade nose adornments, I launched Rock Your Belly - a shop for - you guessed it - belly jewellery. I had also recently brought home some pieces of mine that were on consignment that hadn't sold, and that gave me the idea to create a new shop to liquidate older stock - things that hadn't sold in my other shops, designs that didn't catch on for some reason, or pieces that I don't make anymore because I've moved into a different area of design. The more I thought about the idea and brainstormed it with a friend, the more I liked it. I chose to open another Etsy shop called "Liquidation Mall" and am busy stocking it with a lot of great, quality, handmade items at bargain liquidation prices. I think it will be very successful once it catches on.

So back to the topic of passion - I simply could not, or would not do all of these things if I didn't have a passion for my business. These launches have required me to stretch my time, effort and energy to new levels. Because I love my business, I am a willing spirit.

There is So Much to be Grateful For

I'm looking out my studio window while the sun illuminates the leaves on the trees across the road and I'm thinking that I'm grateful for my view, for being able to see, and for so many things in my life.

If any of you read one of my earlier posts about the health challenges I've been facing, this will be an update for you. I finally received my diagnosis - I have MS. I knew it in all the fibers of my being, and in a way, it was a relief to be able to put a name to this previously nameless thing. Am I scared? You bet. But I am alive. And I'm grateful for all that I have - because today I have relative health, and family, and things to look forward to. I have a little business that's growing daily, a list of customers who admire what I do, and a head full of creations that are waiting to be made. I've made connections with people through my business and am grateful that they're willing to tell others about me, like Gabby at http://inspiteofmycrazyself.blogspot.com/, whose writings I love to read.

Behind me is my bench, my torch, my sterling and rocks and all the things that make me feel alive. And I am deeply grateful.

How Exciting!!

When I launched my Etsy shop "RockYourNose"
(http://rockyournose.etsy.com/) I just knew I wanted to have some real gold pieces available, so with great trepidation (gold is expensive!), I bought some gold and got started.


I created this lovely flower out of 14 karat gold and listed it for sale in the shop. It was viewed just over one hundred times and I wondered if I had made a mistake in thinking there was a marketplace for quality, handmade gold nose jewellery.


Yesterday my fears were proved unfounded when it sold. Now the exciting thing is not only that it sold but where it went. I shipped a package today to Israel! It's incredible for me to think that something made by my own hands will be worn by a woman who lives halfway around the world from me. It is inspiring and humbling all at the same time.

What to Do When You Have a Block?

Blockages occur in all kinds of things: drainpipes, arteries, rivers and streams, writing, painting, and just about any other creative process. I've been thinking about writing in my blog for a long time now, but have been experiencing writer's block. I figured, "what the heck"? - let's write about that!

I suppose it's a thing that's not new to most folks who are creative. That moment we experience when we just can't do that thing we always do so well. Perhaps that's what makes it the most frustrating; the knowledge that we can do this because we've done it so many times before but this time...this time... something is stuck.

The night before last I heard something on a TV documentary I was watching about the life of Johnny Cash. There was a colleague of his who is a songwriter (and I wish I could remember his name but sometimes I don't catch those little details). Anyway, this man is a great songwriter and he said something that helped me to get a little less stuck. He was speaking about his writing process and he said, "don't think about it. Just do it."

Powerful stuff, I thought: Just DO it. Today, thanks to him, I am just doing it.