Tangible Tidbits 2012 #26: Setbacks S*ck!

Hi, everyone! Well, I didn't get enough votes for the Mission: Small Business grant...I ended up with 90, which isn't even half-way. :( The outgoing President of BSNJ even offered to let me "solicit" votes from the members at Thursday's meeting, which I thought was very kewl of her. :-bd Many of the members were more than willing to help me, but a lot of them are not on Facebook. I really think that's short-sighted of Chase and LivingSocial, although it does effectively eliminate people from the running. :P Maybe next year?!

Speaking of Thursday's BSNJ meeting, I did not win the necklace category for the Bead Challenge. :( Nor did I win any of the prizes in the raffle held that evening. C'est la vie! That was our last meeting for this year. We will resume in September with the new Board, of which I am still a part. :D

I've posted a poll on our Facebook page -- my first attempt -- to help me decide in which category to enter my Bead Challenge piece for the Beaded Impressions Beading Contest. The categories are not very straight-forward, and I want to make sure I enter the appropriate one. Thanks in advance for the help! ;)

Ever a glutton for punishment, I've also started the application to submit two necklaces for consideration in the 2013 Showcase 500 Necklaces book published by Lark Crafts. I have until August 1 to complete the application. I've already added the Marsha Neal & Kabela key piece I made a few weeks ago, now entitled "Pretty in Purple" because the file name had to be 48 characters or less. :-? I started to submit my beaded Swan necklace, but I was having trouble finding the color names for all of the seed beads, so I may have to go with something else. Another option is the bronze & sterling silver wax cast piece on copper beading wire and chain, but pieces have to be no older than 2010. I have to look back, but I think I made that in the Fall of 2009. :-/

The auto-responder I use to send out the email version of this message, Mad Mimi, changed its format last week. I'm not very comfortable with it, so if the messages come through a bit "off" for the next few weeks, that's why. 8-|

On the personal side of life, work is crazy. We have three issues that have recently switched to Direct Registration System (DRS), which means they are now eligible to send shares electronically to the Depository Trust Company (DTC) in New York City. Since one of my daily responsibilities is to balance our records with DTC's records, this is pretty much a nightmare for me. The Out-of-Balance (O-O-B) report is usually around 15 pages. This morning, it was 73 pages! I worked until nearly 5:00 p.m. last Friday -- and employes left at 4:00 p.m. for summer Friday hours -- spending all day on the report and not doing any other work. This morning, I had a very large pile of work in my basket from Friday, plus today's work. Luckily, I've come up with a shortcut that will help me get through the O-O-B report more quickly (and painlessly?), so I won't get so far behind for at least the next month or so. :P

A high school friend is having a house-warming party on Saturday. I will be venturing out of my comfort zone a bit because I won't know many people there. I was actually surprised when I saw on the Facebook Event page who was attending. There were a number of familiar names from school, but I didn't know he kept in touch with these people. Most of them, I barely knew! #-o

I hope everyone in the U.S. enjoys their Independence Day on Wednesday! Our office is closed and closing early tomorrow. WHOO HOO! :O)

Take care and have a great week! B-)

Tangible Tidbits 2012 #23: A Flurry of Activity!

Hey, everyone! Well, I’ve FINALLY finished my Bead Challenge project for BSNJ over the weekend. It’s not due until June 28, but I wanted to get it out of the way and not wait until the last minute. I changed the category from bracelet to necklace, as the cuff bracelet I was attempting to make was not coming together as well as I’d like. I still think it was a good idea, and I may revisit it at a later date. :)

I received my recommendation letter from my former professor at MSU the other day. He wrote a very nice letter, and specifically mentioned that I am “willing to take criticism,” which made me chuckle. I emailed him back and told him I thought the director of the Metalwork & Jewelry program at MSU might not agree. :)) I still have to take a couple more pictures this week before the deadline on Friday. I’m hoping my mother will either model pieces for me or be willing to take my picture. I have two necklaces I want to include as part of the application. Mom is not very technologically-inclined, so please wish both of luck! :-S

In addition to Wire-sculpture.com’s 2012 Druzy Contest -- which I had mentioned previously -- there are two more contests coming up that I may or may not enter. Beaded Impressions has a Beading Contest with a deadline of July 8. The categories include Whimsical or Romantic; Eclectic or Bohemian; and Traditional. I may enter my Bead Challenge project in the "Eclectic or Bohemian" category. Once you see a picture of it, you’ll see why. ;) I can’t post it or describe it before the June meeting because some of my BSNJ friends may read this or see my Facebook page. :-S I also received an email this morning about Fire Mountain Gems and Beads' Swarovski Elements Jewelry-making Contest, with a September 30 deadline. I don’t really have anything existing that I’d like to enter, so I have to see if I am inspired over the summer to come up with something appropriate...I'm thinking maybe an elaborate pair of earrings. :-? I still haven’t decided if I am going to enter the Druzy Contest, but I will concentrate on a project for that now that I have completed the Bead Challenge piece. The deadline is June 30, which is part of why I wanted to finish the Bead Challenge project early. If I can’t figure something out in the next couple of weeks, I will just skip it. :|

I'm looking forward to attending a workshop in Tinton Falls on Saturday called "Jazz Up Your Bead Embroidery," being taught by my friend Meg Fillmore of Bead My Love. :)

On a personal note, I had another NAET treatment on Saturday...this one was to complete the areas that were only partially cleared in previous treatments -- namely corn, chocolate, and nut mix I, which includes peanuts. I had headaches off and on all day Saturday, so I didn’t accomplish much. :P Man, will I be glad when these are over! #-o

Our weather can’t quite decide what it wants to be these days. Lots of storms passing through the area lately and it seems to be humid one day; cool the next. Morris County got hit hard with a storm yesterday. A couple of towns there may be without power for 2-3 days! :-O

Two ladies at work requested earrings, which I have to work on tonight...and I have a bunch of recent projects that I have not priced out yet. I seem to put that off as long as possible. Since I am switching out pieces at the chiropractor’s office again tomorrow, the last minute is pretty much tonight! I guess it's a good thing I am more or less required to do it every two weeks. ;)

Take care and have a great week! B-)

Tangible Tidbits 2012 #22: On Scholarships and Stir

Hi, everyone! Well, it's cooled off considerably here since last weekend. The weatherman on TV today said, "You thought we missed April? Where here it is!" :))

I spent the majority of yesterday afternoon working on my application for the MJSA Education Foundation Jewelry Scholarship, as the deadline is coming up on June 15. I completed the Financial Information Worksheet and essay, as well as two Work Sample photos I took at the Networking Charity Brunch Image Forum. While I was taking photos of my display -- which I posted to the Craft Show, Workshop & Exhibit Pictures album on Facebook this week, BTW -- I put on two of the rings from my casting class at MSU and took pictures them on my own hands. ;) Naturally, I had to crop the photos so it wasn't too obvious they were my hands, but I think I managed to focus on the rings pretty well. I still have 2-3 more Work Samples to include. I'll have to find a model this week, so I can get them done in time. :-?

As promised, I've started catching up on posting new product photos to Facebook this week...I posted more than a dozen in just the past few days! :-bd Once I get caught up with those, I will concentrate on entering my latest creations into my database. I've fallen behind of that and on entering supplies as I've purchased them. I keep thinking I should enter one entire invoice a week, regardless of how many items are on it. I should really start putting that into practice. :|

I've got a couple of deadlines coming up toward the end of the month...the BSNJ Bead Challenge project is due June 28. I've kind of slacked off on that to concentrate on more "urgent" things lately. There is also Wire-sculpture.com's 2012 Druzy Contest with a deadline of June 30. Druzy cabochons have an area of small quartz crystals within or on the surface of the stone. They are generally one of a kind, and very pretty. I purchased half a dozen of them recently in preparation for the contest. They are various shapes, sizes and colors, so I wasn't sure what I might want to use for the contest. The theme is "Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue" -- it is June after all! ;) We can use one or all of the "somethings" in our piece. Since the contest is hosted by Wire-Sculpture.com, the entries must also include wire. I've been looking at the pieces I bought, but I have not been inspired yet. If I decide not to enter the contest, it's no great loss as I got a really good deal on the cabochons. B-)

Watching a movie on cable last night, I saw a commercial for something new from Match.com called Stir. It's a series of local events across the country such as cooking classes, happy hours, bowling, etc. for members to informally meet each other. I think that's a really smart idea. So many people are uncomfortable with the potential for dishonesty in internet dating -- myself included. Meeting informally at an event of mutual interest helps to (1) narrow down the field to people with similar interests to yours, and (2) minimize the potential for disillusionment. If you're meeting someone in person, it's harder for him/her to hide behind an anonymous profile. I think this is probably the next generation after Speed Dating. I never really understood the appeal of that concept. It works for you if you're talking to someone in whom you have little interest, but I think it works against you if you connect with someone with whom you'd like to spend more time. I've never tried it myself, but it kind of seems like a lot of pressure...like trying to date on a game show or reality TV. Personally, I can't imagine competing with a dozen or more other women for the attention of one man on a show like The Bachelor. That's just too bizarre for me! :P

On a semi-related note, one character in the movie I was watching had a great line: "The only way to get over someone is to meet someone else you care about more." Two years and counting for me. :x

In the immortal words of Porky Pig, "That's all folks!" ;) Take care and have a great week! B-)

Tangible Tidbits 2011 # 25: Happy Father's Day!

Hey, all! Hope all of the fathers out there were appropriately feted today! :)

A few ladies at the office asked to see my "latest creations" (as one put it), so I am updating my binder. I had the majority of my photos already formatted, but I hadn't printed them out and inserted them because the ink is pretty expensive and the photos use a lot of it. Still, I'm glad I have a reason to get it done. I'm not finished, but it should be done by mid-week. :p Being slightly OCD, I have to have even numbers of pieces to fill the pages of the binder, since I usually fit 2-4 to a page and the pages are double-sided. I don't want to show it to people with blank pages in it. Therefore, I spent most of today creating new pieces to fill in the "open" slots: two bracelets, two rings, two pins/brooches, and a key chain. The new photos will be posted to Facebook this week. :)

As I've been working on the binder, I did not finish the last 10 percent of the office/studio clean-up, hence no video today. :\ I did charge the camera, though, so it's ready when I do get the job done!

Sadly, I did not win my category in BSNJ's Bead Challenge this past Thursday. :\ There were two other people who submitted pieces in my category, but even I have to admit the winner deserved it. :)

I forgot to mention last week that I signed up for a five-hour workshop in July. There are a few projects being covered that I want to learn, including wire knit chains and wire-wrapping a cabochon. :)

OH! And I placed in another affiliate marketing contest! Vans selected my submission on the Virtual Mall Facebook page as the 2nd place winner in the Show Us Your Best Placement Contest for the Yo Gabba Gabba Collection! That's a Vans gift card in the amount of $75! Two for two! :D

I've been a bit more active on eBay this week, posting three more items from the company and two personally: a ColdHeat™ Soldering Tool, which sold pretty quickly for parts, as it is not working (WHOO HOO!); a Eurotool® Soldering Tripod; and self-pickling flux. It turns out the $20 listing fee is for heavy duty metalworking equipment, so I listed these under Home & Garden > Tools > Welding & Soldering Tools. :D In addition, I listed a plantar fasciitis splint and the Buttoneer Fastening System from myself. The listings benefit, respectively: Habitat for Humanity International, the Alzheimer's Association National Office, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, the American Heart Association National Center, and the Central and South Jersey Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure. ;) Last week's two auctions should end in a few minutes.

Have a great week, one and all! :D

Tangible Tidbits 2011 # 24: Back To The Daily Grind...

Hi, all! I had a pretty productive "staycation" this week. That's the first time I've ever done that; I will definitely do it again! :D As the saying goes, though..."all good things must come to an end." Back to the office job tomorrow! :\

I've just finished putting up two items on eBay. I have a bunch more, but since it takes me forever to write the listings, I think I will quit for the night. ;) I posted a hot glue gun and all-purpose glue sticks, if anyone is interested. I was going to list them together, but it seems more advantageous to list them separately so that's what I did. I also posted them on my Facebook profile and two company pages, since a percentage of the sales is going to charity. :) I tried to list a soldering tripod, but there is a $20 insertion fee for metalworking equipment! :o I may have to rethink some of these items...or list them in a different category to avoid that fee. I will try a few other items later in the week and see what I can do. :p

A major task on my To-Do list this week was to organize my studio/office. I'm about 90 percent there, and I will try to get to the last 10 percent this week. Once I'm finished, I think I will film a quick video to show it off, and for posterity since it may not last long! LOL

I also started working on some minor repairs and unfinished projects that have been sitting around here. I would like to keep up with that as well, so I can finally get to a "clean slate." I'm maybe one-third of the way done with those. One thing I am trying to do is secure/reinforce some of my clasps...particularly toggle clasps. I decided to "enhance" the bar side with wire-wrapping, which will make it bulkier and therefore less likely to slip through the loop and open. I think there may be a Factoid on that subject to be written soon! LOL

One of the projects I completed is a second Bottle of Hope for the Bead Society to donate to cancer patients. This one is dark blue, in memory of two friends who had colon cancer. Here's the first one, in case you missed it. That one is purple and lavender for general cancer and pancreatic cancer (Grandma). I have one more kit to do. Since I don't have periwinkle beads for stomach cancer (Dad), I think I will do teal and white for cervical cancer. I will have to track down some periwinkle beads for the next go-round! ;)

Our final Bead Society meeting is this Thursday. We will break for the summer and resume in September. This week is the Bead Challenge, so people who participated will submit their projects anonymously in brown paper bags. All entries will be displayed and the members will vote in six categories. Mine is in the Wearable Objects category. Wish me luck! :) I asked the BSNJ President if I could bring my video camera and record the results in my category -- I thought that would make a fun and interesting blog post -- and I offered to submit it to the Society's Yahoo group and website. Unfortunately, she is afraid other members will get upset if their pieces -- or themselves in background shots for that matter -- end up on the internet. I plan to bring it up at the next Board meeting, as she suggested we get their feedback for future events. ;)

I had a follow-up NAET treatment for sugar and yeast yesterday. That was by far the easiest one to date, as I did not have to avoid water! Of the six calcium oxalate-related treatments we did a few weeks ago, four are all clear. I'm going back for the other two (calcium oxinate and oxalic acid) again on June 25. If this doesn't alleviate the itching problem, I will have to have treatments for vegetables, nuts, fruits, and spices, etc. individually. I'm really hoping it doesn't come to that! :o

That's more than enough for now. Have a great week! :)

Tangible Tidbits 2010 #22: It's All About Time Management and Productivity

When you own your own company, it takes a lot of dedication, determination, patience, flexibility, (money!), and very good time management skills to make it a success. I'm learning this the hard way, but it's still early enough in my journey to make the most of my new discovery.

I ended up working most of the day today...and it is a Sunday...because I got very little done on Friday. I went to lunch with a former colleague, accompanied her to Walmart afterward, and ended up getting home close to 5:00 p.m. I also have a bunch of appointments scheduled for next week, very few of them business-related. However, I've made an investment in two tools of modern technology that will hopefully help me to maximize the time I am working. One of them will also help me in my personal life.

The first investment is making an effort to organize my schedule. I decided to start using the Google Calendar feature on Gmail, since my new Palm Pixi (free upgrade from Verizon) can sync with it and keep me on time (for a change). You can input events and tasks in the calendar and assign times when you want to receive email and pop-up reminders for each event. I actually got to see this week's episode of "Three Rivers" -- congratulations to Alex O'Loughlin for being named Donate Life's Person of the Year 2010! -- live! I got involved in something last week and forgot all about it. I had to watch it online mid-week at CBS.com. With the calendar's pop-up feature, I got a message on my screen 10 minutes before the show started, so I could finish what I was doing and watch it! My Palm Pixi also alerted me to the airtime, and I could hit the "Snooze" button to have it remind me again in five minutes! I LOVE these features! :) And adding my To-Do tasks into the calendar rids my desk of the multitude of notes on tiny slips of paper I had all over it. I will be beyond organized if I keep this up. Good-bye pocket calendar! ;)

The second investment I made was a financial one, but still related to time management and productivity. I purchased Bead Manager Pro software to help me keep track of my materials, inventory, customers, vendors, etc. It even takes into account my overhead direct and indirect expenses to calculate my ideal hourly rate! It seems to be pretty straight-forward and easy to use. The challenge will be getting ALL of that information into the system. I wish I knew about this eight months ago! :p At times like this, I wish I had a partner or an employee...anyone with whom I can split up the work (and in the case of a partner, the finances! :D). So, I've blocked out an hour each weekday morning on the calendar to enter data into the system. Once I have that all completed, I can erase the handful of Excel spreadsheets I am currently using to keep track of expenses, NJ Sales Tax collected, funds invested in the company, etc. The program can print profit/loss statements (I'm not in a hurry to use that feature), catalogs (a more professional presentation binder, perhaps?), invoices, etc. Everything I did myself the hard way, this program will be able to expedite. Well worth the $97 investment (on sale for Wire-Sculpture.com customers until tonight), if you ask me. ;)

In addition to the Palm Pixi, I also received an Aspire One Acer Notebook I purchased on eBay this week. I've linked it up to my home PC, so I can take all of my files with me when I go on vacation in a couple of weeks. No rest for the weary! ;) Seriously, though, I don't plan to work all through my vacation, but being able to keep up with minimal administrative tasks while I'm gone will make my return that much easier. :)

I finished my Bead Challenge project for the Bead Society of New Jersey (BSNJ) meeting this Thursday. I'm happy with how it turned out...we'll see if the voters on Thursday are, too! Wish me luck! :)

Still trying to fit in some "real work" in the midst of all of the administrative set-up and personal stuff. I've been working on some handcrafted sterling silver blank links (there's a bracelet with hammered ones in the Design Samples GALLERY on the website and on the company's Facebook Fan Page if you don't know what I mean) for a family friend's necklace. She wants a Venetian glass necklace revamped because the original links looked like macaroni. LOL She bought the necklace in Venice, so she figures it is worth the cost of having it "fixed." :)

Back to work! Have a great week! At least the weather has calmed down here somewhat. :)

Tangible Tidbits 2010 #21: Plugging Right Along...

Last week was pretty productive for my first week as a full-time jewelry designer. I'm learning how to juggle my "job" with my other real-life commitments and responsibilities, but I think it will all eventually balance out. I ended up still working most nights and part of the weekend, but I figure that's a trade off for the "business hours" I spent doing personal stuff. :\ Eventually, I hope to be productive enough during the day to take evenings and weekends off! That may be a fantasy, but wish me luck! ;)

Still playing catch-up on "back burner" projects, but I'm hoping to get them done before the end of June. That may also be wishful thinking. LOL Yesterday, I started making a bracelet for the Bead Society of New Jersey's (BSNJ) Bead Challenge, which will take place at the June meeting in a couple of weeks. We were provided with a variety of beads to use (we must use a minimum of two of each kind). We can add anything we want to complete the project, so I'm adding the base material for the bracelet and a few additional beads. I'll let you know how it turns out next week! :)

I went to see "Peter Pan" today at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, NJ. Mom bought tickets for me, herself and my two nieces. It was a good production (PMP ones usually are), and we all had a good time. We met up with my sister and her husband for dinner afterward to celebrate Mom's birthday, which was Friday. She's 66. :)

Unfortunately, early June seems to have carried over May's "doom and gloom" element. I just received word that a high school friend's mother passed away last night, and I found out about the sudden death of an acquaintance yesterday. They say things like that happen in threes. I don't want to know what's coming next. Ironically, I did make my cemetery visit on Friday. The funeral flowers were still on the grave a month later...all dead. Not a pretty picture, but it seemed to fit the mood, I guess. :(

I got a surprise visit from another high school friend yesterday, who was visiting his sister in New Jersey (he currently works in Maryland). We had a nice visit...it's been four or five years since we saw each other in person, I think. At least he didn't bring any bad news with him! ;)

A new week starts tomorrow...best wishes to all! ;)