Two exciting upcoming events

Hi!  I thought I'd have a new beading thing to show you, but it turns out that what I thought was going to be a mini SDN15 - Dino-spine ended up being a different technique for a long Polka Dot beaded bead.  For the "official" instructions for that, the smaller bead, and the Waltz rope, click here.  Oops!

Since that didn't work, I thought today I'd take the opportunity to tell you about two events I have in the next month.

The first one is local to Milwaukee and is the Milwaukee Bead Show hosted by Knot Just Beads on October 5th from 10a - 4p.  This year we're at the Greenfield Community Center (7215 W. Coldspring Road, Greenfield, WI).  That's very close to Knot Just Beads, so if you know where that is, you should be able to find the community center just fine.  Parking is free, and admission is just $2.  There will be a beading lounge for open beading, and there are a number of vendors, including me (Creative Pursuits), Knot Just Beads, friend of the blog Cindy Collins/Beadwork Ingenieur (you have to see her polymer clay pumpkins and other creations!), Funky Hannah's, and more!  There will be concessions there offered by American Legion Auxiliary #416, so come early, get lunch, and stay for the day!

I'll have my tutorials, kits, keys, and some Xuron tools.  I have some new designs from last year, so please stop by and see me!

Just two days later Steve and I will be riding the rails from Chicago to Washington D.C.!  We will be sleeping upright in the train (instead of in a very expensive sleeper car) then touring the sights and a few museums.  We're both very excited by this trip - we never leave for more than a day or two - and we're so happy that my friend Amy will be by every day to poke at the cats and change their water and all the rest.  I hope Frisco (our youngest) will let her see him at least a little so we don't have to worry.

I believe I've mentioned before that Terry's Treasures carries tutorials of my designs.  They're in King George, Virginia, which turns out to be just about an hour away from where we'll be staying in Springfield, Virginia.  I couldn't be so close and not go to see them, so I called and offered to teach a class or two.  They very graciously let me have the entire day on Saturday, October 11th!

I'll be teaching two classes.  The first one will be earrings using my Jack O' Lantern Tubed Key design:

I'll be making a sample pair of earrings, so look for that in an upcoming post!  I'll also be bringing my keys in case anyone is interested.

The best thing about this is that I'll be able to meet Karen (you can see what she did with one of my large tubed key patterns here).  She's been my best customer, and I love corresponding with her!  It'll be so nice to put a face to her name!  She's already signed up for both of my classes.  Thanks, Karen!

The second class is the ever-popular Ever-Evolving Spiral.  We'll cover the bracelet, but they'll have the instructions for the matching necklace:

That's about it!  If you're in the Milwaukee area, come see me at the Milwaukee Bead Show on October 5th, and if you live in Virginia, please take one of my classes at Terry's Treasures on October 11th!  If you live somewhere else but know folks either in Milwaukee or Virginia, please share this blog!

Book Review: What Is Your WHAT? by Steve Olsher

Today I'm going to post another of my Amazon book reviews for two reasons:  I'm still frantically getting ready for Sunday's Milwaukee Bead Show so need to be quick today, and What Is Your WHAT: Discover The One Amazing Thing You Were Born To Do is fabulous.

Many or most of you know that I run a small business making jewelry (and a few other things), teaching my jewelry designs, and selling tutorials and kits of my designs.  Some of you know that I didn't always do this and that I was a computer programmer for many years.  A very few of you know that job was not my first choice.

My junior year of high school I had an awesome math teacher, so I wanted to be a math teacher.  My math teacher my senior year was awful, and I lost interest in being a math teacher.  I seemed to have an aptitude for computers and programming, so I majored in computers in college.  I didn't know if that's what I really wanted to do, but I didn't know what else to major in.

While there I decided to specialize in AI (Artificial Intelligence), and there were so few women in the computer major that there were no women in the AI track when I joined.  (To give you a time reference, this was in 1989 or 1990.)  I told one of the guys about my decision, and he yelled up and down the hall, "There's a woman in AI!  There's a woman in AI!"  I really didn't know what I was going to do with it, but I thought it'd be neat to program robots and to be involved in other experimental things.

Unfortunately I fell into a deep depression (partially because of a man and partially because I had a bunch of philosophical questions in my head I couldn't/can't answer) my junior year of college, and by my senior year I was pretty useless.  I ended up dropping out after the first semester after scraping by in my computer classes.  I took a semester off to regroup, and I switched schools.  Again, I didn't know what I wanted to do, so I stuck with computer programming and got my Bachelor of Science degree.

Eventually I found a programming job at a small business but didn't enjoy it.  Sure, I enjoyed aspects of the job, but there was much of it I found tedious.  Same thing happened years later when I had another programming job with another small company.  The parts I liked best were talking with customers, teaching them how to use their software, and troubleshooting problems (when there wasn't a time crunch).

I'm not going to go into all the details here of either job and what I had problems with, but in 2010 it was decided (by me, my husband, and our parents) that I would quit.  Because I wasn't caught up with what was current in programming, I was more than a little scarred from my last job, I had developed the Fibromyalgia and Osteoarthritis I'm always complaining about, and a few other factors, we decided that I would start my own business doing web design for creative folks.  That didn't work out very well, so now I make jewelry and teach.

I'm very lucky that Steve can support us and that our parents help us when unexpected expenses pop up.  My business is called "Creative Pursuits" for a reason - I am free to pursue my creativity and (with luck) make money at it.

So knowing all that, one might wonder why I picked up What Is Your WHAT?.  It seems that through a series of events I've figured out what "amazing thing I was born to do".  To be blunt, the author offered an advance ebook version for free in exchange for writing the review I'm about to share with you.  Also, I'm curious if what I'm doing is really what I'm supposed to be doing.  I love to write (as you can tell by the length of my blog posts), so perhaps I should be focusing on that.  Wow, as I write this I'm getting quite the jolt of deja vu.  Have I typed those exact words before?  :::shiver:::

Anyway.  I'll let the review tell the rest of it so I can get back to preparing for Sunday's show and a class I'm teaching tomorrow:

I was a bit skeptical when I started reading this book because it opened with six pages of "Praise for What Is Your WHAT?". Quotes upon quotes touting this book as the best thing since sliced bread. I read them all and was curious if the author could really deliver the "ultimate guide on self-discovery" as Erika Gilchrist says in her review. However, it didn't take too long to see why so many people came forward to endorse Steve Olsher and "What Is Your WHAT?".

Instead of diving right into figuring out what your WHAT is, the author helps the reader lay the groundwork for it with explanations of the four stages of learning (and what that means in practical terms) and exercises so you can begin to recognize where you're vulnerable and where you excel. The author walks you through step by step and encourages you to take all the time you need and even to talk to other people (if you're up to it) to gain insights into your faults and strengths. Once that's done, he leads you through designing your ideal life and what you need to do to stop the downward slide and start to live a better life through seven life-altering principles. Once you've absorbed all of this, it's time to discover what your WHAT is and how to achieve it.

The author covers every topic thoroughly with numerous examples from the author's life and from people who have taken his reinvention workshops. There are many case studies of people who are doing what they're meant to do and how they got there. He also includes the people's websites so if you're interested in learning more about them you know right where to look.

This book is ideal for those who feel like they should be doing more with their lives but don't know how to get there. I will say that this is hard work and not to be taken lightly. The exercises are designed to really make you look at your life with a magnifying glass. The ultimate goal is for you to live the life of your dreams by doing what you love to do and getting paid well for it, and that's not something most people can just fall into. You need to shed the bad and cultivate the good, and that takes serious introspection and time. The author is with you throughout the whole process, asking questions to help you along.

I was very impressed with the information presented in this book and will definitely be working through all of the exercises and keeping the seven life-altering principles in mind as I live day-to-day, figure out what my WHAT is (although I already have an inkling what that might be), and become successful at it. I plan to frequently dip into the book to refresh my memory and to plan for the future.

The author also gives a website where you can get another of his books for free. That book is for folks who want to profit online. I already had it but haven't started reading it yet. Now that I'm comfortable with the author and how helpful he is in "What Is Your WHAT?" I'm really looking forward to it! 

If you have any doubts that you're doing what you were meant to do, read this book.  It's never too late to change careers (the author recommends a slow change, not a dive-in-head-first-like-Traci-did approach).  Have your children read it before they go off to college and stumble around trying to pick a major and a career.  If you read it and gain any valuable insights, e-mail me at traci@creative-pursuits.biz and tell me about it!

Busy busy busy!

Has it really been almost two months since my last post?  You need to poke me every once in a while and say, "Hey!  Post something!"  Truth to tell, I've been poking myself quite a bit (about posting - get your minds out of the gutter, if you please), but as you know from my Time post, time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana.  (Heh - I blinked, and it's Thursday.  You'll have to read the Time post to know what I'm talking about.)

Let's see... what happened since my last post on 9/24/2012 (not necessarily in chronological order):

I co-hosted a baby shower for my cousin Dawn.  I made the invitations a month before, of course, but I had decorations to make.  Here's a mobile I made that hung in the dining room:

I was a vendor at the Milwaukee Bead Show (hosted by Knot Just Beads) with my darling Steve there to help me:

Steve and I went away for a night for our 4th anniversary to Madison.  I made a contact with a bead store that will hopefully carry my designs, and we did a lot of antiquing.  We stayed at a wonderful Bed & Breakfast (Sweet Autumn Inn in Lake Mills, WI) and saw "Hello Dolly" at the Fireside Theatre in Fort Atkinson.  I'm planning on doing a "Bead Organization Porn" blog about a bunch of the different things I saw while antiquing.    We also went to Ella's Deli in Madison which was amazing.  It has to be seen to be believed.  There's stuff moving all over the place inside - I really cannot describe it.  To give you a hint about what it's like, here's Steve and me on the full size carousel outside the restaurant:

The following Saturday I taught a class at Knot Just Beads (Shadowed Diamonds), and it was my mother's birthday.  We had dinner with them on Sunday.  The following week I led a class at Vision Forward for blind and visually impaired ladies (for community service for the Loose Bead Society), and the cold that was brewing hit me (and Steve) hard.  I barely moved off of the couch for over a week.

After that was Loominosity - a collaborative sale that the Loose Bead Society holds with the Wisconsin Handweavers.  I helped with checking pieces in from a number of vendors and with cashiering for a few hours on a few days.  It was a lot of fun!

The NEXT week was Jewelry at the Domes (at the Mitchell Park Domes in Milwaukee).  That was two days of selling and visiting with my friends.  It was a lot of fun but very tiring!  Here's Tammy Rae Wolter who was my neighbor at the show with her gorgeous display:

And somewhere in the middle of all that:

I signed up to have a table at the Madison Art Glass and Bead Show in March, and I'll be participating in the Make 'n Take event.  I'm also hopeful I'll teach a class, but I need to get that proposal sent in soon!

And finally, I also found out that I'm teaching my "Tubed Key, or Not Tubed Key" class at the Bead&Button Show next year!

That covers the highlights.  Tomorrow I'll fill you in on what's going on in the next month.  I need a nap!

Making sales at a sale

As I've been mentioning for a while, I had a show yesterday - the Donna Lexa Memorial Art Fair in Wales, Wisconsin.

Here's how my space looked after we finished setting up:

The table fee was larger than any art/craft show I've been to and it was juried (meaning your work has to be quality to get in). I had high hopes that I would sell a bunch and make a lot of money.  Friends on Facebook all said I'd do fine and that I have beautiful work.  I should relax and enjoy myself.

The one thing I was worried about was the weather - outdoor shows are very risky - but it was beautiful.  It wasn't too hot, it didn't rain, and it wasn't very windy.  The sun did cause a bit of a problem, even with the tent, but in general the day was beautiful.

So I started the show with a positive attitude.  However, the morning started off slowly with just a trickle of people walking through (or biking through - we were along the Glacial Drumlin bike trail).  Those that did come by either walked on past or just glanced in as they walked.

As time went on the traffic at my booth picked up.  A number of people looked very interested, touching things, playing with my rings and key/badge holder (from my Crystal clay adventures post a few days ago), but then they walked away, many telling me I had beautiful things.  A few took my card.

The first hour passed with no sales.  Then the second.  Then the third.  Then the fourth.

Suffice it to say that Steve and I got increasingly more worried and distressed.

Mom and John came around 1:00 (I'm not sure exactly when), and she bought my red and black RAW set (see it in my Red and Black post).  This was my first sale.

Fortunately, it got a little better after that.  The red crystal ring (from my Crystal clay adventures post a few days ago) sold while Mom and John were still there.  I made two other sales between 2:00 and 3:00.

I was lucky that I sold enough to cover the show's costs (table fee + administrative fee) plus some extra.  If Mom hadn't bought from me, I would have only gone over the show's costs by $10.  I know she thinks she should count, but she's my mother, and she nearly always buys from me at my sales.  If she doesn't, John does.  Not that I'm not grateful, but she loved that necklace and would have bought it from me whether at a sale or not.

Then there's lunch we had to buy plus the gas to get there, and the show was... I hate to say it... a bust.  That's not even counting our time yesterday - two of us for an entire day.

So we set to analyzing what could have gone wrong, but we couldn't come up with anything.  I was pleasant and greeted everyone who came to the table (and even a few people who just walked by).  I tried not to be overbearing but pointed out when something they were looking at had matching pieces.  I explained what the key/badge holder was at least 10 times (I understand that not selling - it's to meet a very specific need) and told everyone who was looking at the rings that they're adjustable.  Because of the large price tags, I explained what Precious Metal Clay is when someone was interested in the large PMC medallion necklace (you can see that here) and what the different components were to other pieces (primarily the gear necklace you can see here).  I handed out business cards and said the pieces would be on Etsy if they didn't sell in case they changed their minds - those two pieces are $100 each.

Steve even tried a hard sell approach a few times:  "This necklace would go great with your coloring" or something similar, and Mom pointed out things to people saying, "Isn't this pretty?"

I complimented jewelry that customers were wearing or their clothes or purse.  I petted dogs and talked with children.  But most of the time we were just approachable.

People looked and complimented and asked about items then just left.  Steve said that it seemed that there was some sort of signal that made everyone at the table turn away.  It happened with one person, two people, five people...  All of a sudden they just left.

Maybe it was because I had just one table instead of a huge U or other multi-table set up.  Was there not enough to choose from?  Here's a close-up of my table:

I know that next time I'll want to have sides that come down on the tent to help with the sun.  I don't want it too dark in there, though.  We did move the table at one point to be better under the shade.

What about my prices?  Because it was a juried art fair I left my cheapest items at home.  I don't think there was anything under $7 (maybe a few pairs of earrings that I brought to match necklaces).  My rings were almost all $7, but it went up from there to $135.  The more expensive necklaces get a lot of looks and interest, but maybe they cost too much.  Because of the material costs and the labor that goes into them, I can't lower the prices by much.

Was it the type of items?  I have a myriad of different techniques:  strung, stitched, polymer clay, PMC, crystal clay, and even a steel wire (that's the gear necklace I mentioned earlier).  Is it because I have so many different styles?

Was it the type of show?  Steve said that maybe we should have attended the show before applying for it.  We've done that before.  I said that we would have decided it was a lovely fair.  It truly was.  There was music, food, a nice long row of booths with interesting and quality merchandise, and we parked the car in our booth space.  Can't get any better than that.

Was it that we were next to the silent auction booth?  That should have increased traffic, I would think.

So while I'm grateful that I made enough to cover the day's costs, I need to figure out what I need to do differently so I can succeed.  If you have any ideas, please e-mail me (traci@creative-pursuits.biz) and let me know, especially if you've been to one of my shows.  If you do shows, please let me know how you typically do at a show similar to this and if you have any tips for me.  How do you set up your booth (not in detail, of course) and how do you approach your customers?

Thanks for reading this and for any advice you can give me.

The 2010 Bead&Button Show!

Last year I was just a wide-eyed newcomer to the B&B Show. Steve works for Kalmbach, the host of the Show and the publisher of Bead&Button, Bead Style, and Art Jewelry magazines, so he got free tickets. Before we even got into the marketplace, I saw the table for the Loose Bead Society of Greater Milwaukee, and I haven't looked back since. I'm now the website coordinator (Webgoddess, even!) for our Society and attend as many of our functions and community projects as I can. I had thought I was too new to be so involved, but it turns out I fit in just fine!

Shopping at the Show last year was awe-inspiring. It's held in a very large room, and there are hundreds of vendors. I hadn't scoped anything out before going, so we just wandered around until my budget and feet were exhausted.

This year was quite a different experience. I took a class on Wednesday and learned that pounding steel wire on a baby anvil was an exhilarating experience, and I look forward to doing more of it! Afterward, Brenda (the President of our Society and the teacher of the class) and Kat (our Vice President of Special Events) and I went to lunch. I hung out for a while until I met up with Cindy (our Vice President of Programming), then we hung out chatting with pretty much everyone and setting up the Loose Bead Society tables. Here's what happened when I let Cindy get a hold of my camera:

We went to the Meet the Teachers event that night, which was a great experience. I talked with a number of people who I would see the rest of the weekend, and I even tried out a few of the Japanese words I know to some teachers who came all the way from Japan.  Here I got Cindy back by making her pose with the longest beaded necklace:

I stayed home on Thursday, but I was not idle in the slightest! I was supposed to work for a vendor on Friday, but they found someone who could work the whole show instead of just one day. I decided that I would use the day to market my new business, and I spent Thursday finishing up the list of vendors I wanted to talk to.

On Friday I headed to the Show after lunch and spent the afternoon on my "marketing campaign".  Some of them seemed interested in talking further, and I will be e-mailing them in about a week so they can get settled after the show.  Others weren't interested, but I still enjoyed chatting with them!  I had dinner with Judy, then I worked at the Loose Bead Society table until the Show closed.

I had "coffee" with Laura Timmons on Saturday morning before heading back up to the LBS table for the morning.  Here's a picture of the table during a lull:

Steve came after my shift was over for us to have lunch and to shop.  He hates this story, but I'm going to tell it anyway because it's so funny.  We had a few display cases out with pieces made by some of our members.  He had forgotten that I had the necklace I made for our wedding on display, and after glancing through the cases he said, "You don't have a piece in here?"  I made him look again, "offended" that he couldn't find it.  He very carefully looked at each piece until.... "Ah, hell."  I said, "Yeah, you should recognize that one!"  He smoothly retorted, "I was gazing into your eyes that day - I wasn't paying attention to your necklace!"  That got a lot of laughs from the ladies present, let me tell you.

The funniest part of this story... when I introduced him to Maggie Roschyk who designed and was wearing the cover necklace for the June 2010 issue of Bead&Button, he said, "Wait - I recognize that necklace, don't I?"  SO not fair!

Wow - this is getting long!  Hope you've stuck with me.  I bought some beautiful beads from Nikki Thornburg-Lanigan, pendants from Priscilla Marban, an adorable glass flower bead from Bronwen Heilman, and a purple heart bead I'd been looking at since Wednesday night from Christi Friesen.  Since I'm not working, I had a limited budget.  There were so many beautiful pieces from so many vendors.... I need to save my pennies for next year!

Steve made some purchases, too.  He's been into challenging me - getting pieces and beads that are different than my usual fare so I will experiment with new things.  He got some wonderful art deco-looking pieces and chain, plus some purple crystals.  Turns out that he thought about the design so much that he made the necklace himself!  Pictures of that will be forthcoming.

Saturday night there was a meeting for the Global Bead Society which is just getting started.  It was a good meeting, and we learned a lot about The Bead Museum which will be the host organization for the Society.  I found out that it's close to Steve's Aunt Lynne and where his Aunt Charlotte and Uncle Jay winter, so we're looking forward to a trip to Arizona!

Sunday I was back at our table for a final shift.  I walked around afterward and said goodbye to the vendors I had chatted with a lot during the weekend.  I'm starting to weed through the pictures I took along with a few other people who gave me CDs of what they took.  I need to get the LBS website updated and send e-mails out to people I talked to, either about my business, the Loose Bead Society, my blog, or just to say hi.

It was an amazing weekend, and I'm so glad I could be involved in so many parts of it and that I met so many wonderful people.  I already can't wait until next year's Show!

Sunday night I made a necklace with Nikki Thornburg-Lanigan's beads so I could wear it to Monday's LBS meeting.  I asked Maggie to take a picture so I could send it to Nikki.  Here it is for you to see, too:

Whew - I think I'm done!  Future blogs will feature the necklace Steve made plus more of my projects, if I can ever get that green tubular peyote necklace done.  I'm over 14", but I still have quite a ways to go.

What I've been doing this week

Since I last posted, I've been feverishly working on my tubular peyote necklace to go with the bezel I just showed you.  It's a slow process, but I think I'm getting quicker at it.  I have 9 inches of the necklace done - I think that's about halfway.

One unfortunate thing... my black and white herringbone necklace that I'm wearing in my picture under "about me" seems to be coming apart.  It was my first stitching attempt, and the thread I used isn't very good.  I now have better thread (the Fireline I posted about this week), so I think I'm going to have to remake the necklace.  I thought about strengthening the part that is coming loose, but I have a feeling I'm going to have to keep doing it.  On the plus side, I know exactly how many beads I'll need!

The other thing I've been working on is the website for my web design company.  I have a name registered, my Employer Identification Number, a bank account, business cards, and as soon as I get my site up my shingle will be hung, and I'll be open for business.  I'll let you know when that happens!

Have a good weekend and Memorial Day!

A new beginning...

Hi!  I've finally joined the blog "craze".  As I mention in the description at the top of the page, this is going to cover quite a number of different things.  I want to show and explain a number of different crafts and techniques for those crafts.  For the most part I have made things up as I go along.  If something doesn't work, I'll make do with what I have or I'll try something else.  I'm sure a lot of us out there do the same.  Hopefully I can save you from making some of the same mistakes I've made.

Another area I'm going to explore is changing careers - particularly my own.  I have been a computer programmer for most of my career, and while it can be interesting work, it's not where my heart is.  I love working with people, teaching, and creating things (anything!), and I would like to move towards a career that will make that happen.  I know it will take some time and a whole lot of effort, but I'm sure that in the end it will be worth it.  I will be describing here what I am doing, what I hope to do, what works, and what doesn't work.  Hopefully it will be of use to some of you and to me.

Please feel free to e-mail me with questions or suggestions!  I'm on Facebook (under Traci Southern Otte), so you can look me up there as well.

Well, here we go.....