Book Review - ReWork

Being an entrepreneur I like to read business books to keep up on trends and to give me ideas on marketing and sales.  I've decided to review the books I've read so you can decide if you want to read them also. 

The first book I'll review is called "REWORK" by Jason Fried and David Heineeier Hansson.  The authors are the founders of a very successful computer software company called 37signals.

I really enjoyed REWORK.  Yes, enjoyed a business book, who knew there was one out there that one could enjoy.  This is not your typical business book. These guys are down to earth, keep it simple, use your common sense kind of guys. The chapters are short, only a few pages long, and they write in language you can understand.  They go against the typical advice that every other business book says, and I love their advice. They take a no-nonsense approach to business that is refreshing.

The line on the inside cover that got me to buy this book was, "... artists who don't want to starve anymore will all find valuable guidance in these pages" and I agree 100%.  I think even people in big corporations should read this book.  There is too much red tape in Corporate America.  I worked in the insurance industry for a good part of my career and there were more meetings than there was work.  There were meeting to plan other meetings, meetings to summarize what happened in previous meetings, and meetings that just didn't seem to accomplish anything.  In this book, the chapter on meetings is titled "Meetings are Toxic". 

I think we all tend to get bogged down in the mire of "the established rules of business". Like having to write a business plan and finding investors and having meetings. Basically they say to stop talking and start working.  This book will make you think  and look at things in a different way. It's not just theory, these guys have built an extremely successful company using the wisdom that they share in the pages of this book.

My favorite line in the book, and also a title of a chapter, is "Build half a product, not a half-assed product". Good advice, maybe another well known software manufacturer should take that advice. There is so much that I like about this book, well actually I like everything about this book, so it's hard not to quote the whole thing while reviewing it. Anyway I don't want to give away anything.  It doesn't matter where you are in your work life, whether you work in the corporate world or have your own business or you are just thinking about starting a business, the advice these guys give will work anywhere.

If you have read this book, please let me know what you think of it.

October Birthstone

This month's birthstone is the Opal.  The opal is the perfect stone for October because of the explosion of beautiful colors, not unlike those of a magnificent rainbow or the changing colors of the leaves on the fall trees.  The Opal derives its name from the Latin word "opalus," meaning precious jewel.  Having the unique ability to refract and reflect specific wavelengths of light, the Opal was valued by the Romans and called "Cupid Paederos" meaning a child beautiful as love.  One legendary explanation for this gemstone's origin is that it fell from heaven in a flash of fiery lightning.

 

A gift of Opal is symbolic of faithfulness and confidence.  And the powerful energy radiating from this fiery gemstone will surely illuminate any occasion! 

If you are interested in a custom made piece of jewelry, possibly made with an Opal, you can contact me a denise@jewelrybydm.com

Enjoy your October and the changing leaves.

Fall Is Here

Yeah!  Fall is here and the weather has cooled off and the leaves are starting to turn.  It's my second favorite time of year; spring is my favorite.

In honor of fall and my friend Regina's birthday I made the vintage look earrings shown at the left. 

The stone is an amber color Swarovski Rivoli crystal.  The picture makes the metal look different colors but the earring is all one color metal. These earrings can be found at my store, and here is the link to them  My Best Friend's Earrings

I hope you will visit me at one of the craft fairs listed at the right.  The one that I'm doing on October 9th is an all hand made craft fair called BarronFest at Parker Press Park in Woodbridge. This will be my first year doing this fair and I look forward to being there.

Have a great fall and I look forward to meeting you all at one of the craft fairs.

Changes Coming

It's almost the official end of summer, only a few days away and I'm excited about the upcoming fall. I like fall a lot, if only it didn't lead to winter I would like it even more. So many things are going on with my business I can't wait to tell you.

First let me tell you the big news. As you may know, I discovered while doing some craft shows that there are other jewelry sellers out there with the business name Designs By Denise. So I did some research and compiled a list of new names, then put a survey on my newsletter and website to get opinions on what the new name should be.  As of September 1st the new name will be:

McLachlan Design Studio

I'm so excited about the change, but it was a lot of work getting all new business cards and post cards printed, having a new banner made, etc. I wanted to get it all done before the upcoming craft fair/holiday season.  I'll have a new banner on the website, here on my blog and also on my  Etsy Store.

I've also opened a new store at 1000 markets and will eventually phase out jewelry in my Etsy store. My jewelry business won't change, just the name. In addition to the current jewelry I'll be adding more sterling silver bracelets and a new line of rings. 

McLachlan Design Studio on 1000 Markets

In addition to craft shows and my online presence I am starting to do Home Parties also.  This way I can come to you, so you can shop from home.  I realize that sometimes it's difficult to get to a craft fair, you work all week and want to get errands done on the weekend.  Shopping online is sometimes difficult because you want to see the piece in person, touch it, try it on and that can't be done online. If you want me to come to your home or your office just let me know. My email address is denise@jewelrybydm.com - tell me what date and time and leave your phone number.  I'll call to get directions and answer any questions.

So, you may be thinking, "Why all the changes?" That's a good question. First is that I want to make shopping for jewelry easier for you, give you more of a selection and be able to keep my prices reasonable.  Etsy is costing me a lot and for some reason I am not selling on their site. 1000 Markets is much more cost effective which will help to keep my prices down and less overwhelming in terms of the number of sellers.  The price of silver and gold just keeps going up and I want to keep my overhead down so I don't have to pass it on to you. That's why I'm changing my sales venue. Doing home sales will be much better for you as a customer, saving you time, as I mentioned above. And adding more jewelry selections will give you a broader range of jewelry to choose from and help you with your holiday shopping.

I look forward to seeing you at one or all of my craft shows (listed in the box to the right). Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have a special order. I'm always willing to work with you on that special piece of jewelry that you need for an outfit or a gift.

Friday Finds

Instead of writing a Team Tuesday I decided to do a Friday Finds this week.  It's still a NJ Team Member that I'm featuring with a different angle, I choose one item in the store.  My Friday Finds pick is Autumn Witch ORIGINAL by The Vintage Sister.  This piece caught my eye because it is so original.

I love the way several different types of media are used to create the picture, and the Halloween uses of this are great, but it is such a fun picture you could use it all year round.  The piece is signed by the artist, Tracy. One good thing is the piece measures 8 x 24 inches, so it's a nice size and can fit in lots of places. Look at the details of the picture, even the spider, which is made of vintage buttons, is so unique. 

Here is a link to this item in The Vintage Sister's store:
Autumn Witch ORIGINAL

Check out the other items in The Vintage Sister's store, she has some really cute things, her store link is The Vintage Sister

I hope you enjoyed Friday Finds and will leave a comment. 
Have a great weekend!

Gearing up for the Holiday Season Ahead

Yes, I know, it's been a while since I've blogged. Life has been a bit overwhelming. February 26th was my official last day at a traditional job, since the company that I worked for closed and put 100 of us out of work. Oh well, it happens, that's life. So I've been spending a lot of time on my jewelry business, trying to get it going so I don't have to go back to work. I've also been looking for a job, my plan B. Or is building my business plan B? At this point I'm making slow progress on both fronts.

I do however have a great plan for this holiday season, and that's doing the craft fair circuit. So far I have 4 shows lined up and I'm very excited about doing them. Last year I started doing craft fairs in November, and had so much fun. I am looking forward to this year and have some great shows to go to. Here is my list so far:

October 9th - Barron Fest in Woodbridge, NJ this is a juried craft fair
November 13th - Sgt John F Basilone Columbiettes craft fair in Raritan, NJ
November 20th - PTSA Holiday Craft Fair in Brick, NJ
December 4th - BRHS Band Parents Association Craft Fair in Bridgewater, NJ

Come out and visit. If you tell me you are a follower of my blog I will give you 10% off of your order total. I'm even including free gift wrap.

There are great new pieces of jewelry for you to get for yourself or for people on your gift list. I'm excited about the new techniques that I've learned using sterling and 14K gold wire and can't wait to show you. I also picked up some new beads at the bead show recently and have been working hard to make some new pieces for you.

September I will be announcing the new name for my business, so if you took my survey, watch to see if your suggestion was the winning name.

Happy crafting, I hope you see you soon.

Team Tuesday for August 3rd

Happy Tuesday!  Today my featured Etsy NJ seller is Living Vintage.  This is the first vintage shop that I have featured, and that surprises even me because I love vintage. I collect Nippon china and depression glass (that is, when I have a job to support my collection bug).  Lynn the owner of Living Vintage has 2 shops, I'll list them below, but today I'm focusing on her vintage collection.  She has some great finds, so please check out her store, and right now she is having a 10% off sale.  My favorite piece in the store is the vintage blue pressed glass dish, it's so pretty.  Here are the links to her shops:

www.PearlGem.etsy.com

www.OuterKnits.etsy.com

www.LivingVintage.etsy.com

Here is an Etsy mini of her store: