Thursday 10 September 2015

Been a Year. . . Blimey. .


Early stuff

One year ago, I had been playing around with polymer clay for a couple of months, discovered that people made beads with it and got interested in the whole subject of what beads were and could be and what polymer clay could be made to do and be. . . And had started making beads.

Early pod like things

I realised very early on that I had a feel for the more crudely handmade or 'rustic' side of things. Especially when I started to work out what paint and inks and gilder's paste etc could do the surface of said beads. making them look like ancient artifacts or strange tribal beads from somewhere dim and distant.

First sale. I still like these ones. . .

I liked what I was producing and decided to try putting them up on Etsy to see what would happen. I had very little expectation that anyone would buy anything for months at least, if that. And anyway, it wasn't exactly expensive. Amazingly, I sold something within a couple of weeks. Then sold something else. So I took it a bit more seriously and started making more and listing more.



So my shop has been active for a fraction over a year now. I've learned about SEO and Relevancy, well, up to a point, but what I have managed to put in place has helped me get seen in what is a very saturated niche on Etsy. Sales have slowly grown in frequency and I think my work and style is gradually becoming more widely known.



So I'm really pleased that I started on this strange polymer clay adventure. Strange, because it is such a departure from anything else I do or have done, and also strange, because I seem to have managed to get something pretty much 'right' from the get go, which is not my normal pattern of learning.
Let's hope the next twelve months are as interesting.
Jon x

Recent stuff

4 comments:

  1. I think your beads are outstanding! The look of them really intrigues me - enough to follow your blog now!

    I appreciate your thoughts on your work and am excited each time I see you have posted because you always put up something that makes me go 'Oh Wow'.

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  2. Thanks ;-)
    Nice of you to say so. I shall have to make sure I keep the 'wow' factor going in future posts.
    I always intend to post more frequently, but then 10 days or more pass and I suddenly realise how long ago my last post was and hurriedly get something down. . . Planning, that's what I need. Yeah, right. .

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  3. It seems to me that when you make a copy of something you don't say to yourself, "I wonder how this will turn out.", instead you say, "I hope I don't mess this up."
    Wow did you ever hit the nail on the head with that statement. It perfectly explains why I don't like to reproduce my pieces ( which I am asked to do on many occasions) I end up making 3 times the amount just trying to get what I think the customer wants and when I'm simply creating and letting my muse take me down whatever path it wants to flow I feel so much more free. I'm loving seeing the pieces you've been posting on Creative Bead Chat, be ready for some big sales via that outlet!- Kim aka numinositybeads

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Kim,
      I'm a fan of your work btw ;-)
      I'm quite taken aback, in a nice way, by the reaction to my shard beads. I shall have to make some more to keep everyone happy ;-) But I won't need to copy any of them, just lots of 'the same sort of thing'.
      best,
      Jon

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