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 How to Break The Ice
When showing my jewelry to a new shop, I ask the buyer to select a free pair of earrings to keep as a gift, after they’ve made their selection of my jewelry to carry in the shop. It’s a small gesture that can go a long way toward establishing a great relationship with the buyer. The buyer can keep the earrings for their own use, or use them as a prize for a store promotion.
 Be Prepared To Tell Your Story
It’s a good idea to mentally prepare informal, interesting answers to questions about how you became a jewelry artist, how long you’ve been doing this, other places you sell your jewelry, what supplies and materials you use, how you make your jewelry, where you get your supplies, etc.
Whenever people see your jewelry at shows and home parties, or compliment you on the unique pieces you’re wearing, they’re interested in how you got where you are.
So think out some intriguing things to say about your art and what’s unique about your business - make your craft sound appealing and valuable! It’s a way of establishing a relationship with potential customers, which is an essential part of selling your work.
 Make A List
To keep your level of productivity high, end each day’s jewelry-making session or website-building session by writing a list of tomorrow’s priorities. That way when you sit down at your studio or computer the next day, you won’t waste time figuring out where to begin with no momentum.
Wear Your Own Creations
Instead of selling all your best beaded creations, you may want to keep one or two of your very best pieces for yourself. Modeling some of your own finest jewelry art gives you the advantage of displaying your most outstanding work to a wide audience even when you’re not at a show. The piece I’m glad I didn’t sell is an unusual and eye-catching amber pendant with lots of sparkly plant material inside the stone. I’m sure the attention it has drawn to my jewelry business has brought me more in extra sales than I could have received from just selling the pendant. And I have the pleasure of wearing one of the best pieces I’ve ever made.
Sell The Sizzle Along with The Steak
 If you sell your jewelry, it’s a good idea to have some knowledge of gemstone lore, crystal properties, and other metaphysical matters related to jewelry. Regardless of whether you believe in this lore, many customers are extremely fascinated with it. The lore of a particular stone very often influences someone to purchase jewelry made with it. I recommend that you have a reference book on this topic as part of your jewelry library; it will get a lot of use, especially if you have it at your booth during shows
Orphan Bead Suggestions
 What I do with orphan beads is make key chains. Mine are usually 3-4” in lenghth. All it takes is some fishing line, orphan beads, a knot ;-) or a crimp and whallaa...
Elisa Padilla
My Killer Creations
www.mykillercreations.com
Great idea Elisa, A $10 BeadBabe.com Coupon ($10 because you sent us a picture) is being emailed to you! I have also included Elisa’s website so you can visit her site and check out the great designs she is creating. Rena
 Three Great Ideas
Hi Rena, I use my orphans to do a few other fun projects you haven’t mentioned yet:
- Bookmarks, using “official” book mark findings like the ones at beadbabe.com PB-073. Or if the string holes are large enough, I string them on long satin or leather.
- Suncatchers (if the beads are sort of translucent) or other fun window hangers using heavier gauge craft wire.
- A cool dangle for a wine charm. Wine charms are really hot right now and using a variety of orphan beads can help you create a set in no time.
Thanks!
Heather Dismore.
More On Orphan Beads
Here are a few more uses for bead orphans (those single beads left over from projects, that you can’t find another use for):
 Create a set of Christmas ornaments, each with a different focal bead orphan- Make some fabulous bead orphan fan pulls (those fancy ends for the pull-chains that hang down from ceiling fans).
- Use wire or leather to dangle a bead orphan at the end of a hairstick or the neck of a vase.
- Make a necklace or bracelet of all different bead orphans; sometimes this can be very striking.
- Make a lovely bead orphan zipper pull; put it on a lobster clasp so you can attach it to different jackets.
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