Hey guys! My name is Alli and I blog over at Allena Mistral. When Brittany asked me to write a guest post, I was so thrilled about getting to share with all of you lovely readers, but I had NO idea what to write about! So Brittany and I decided that it would be great for me to tell you all about why I reopened my jewelry shoppe.
Back in high school, I went in to a big department store and fell in LOVE with some earrings that I saw but, after looking at the price, said, "I'm NOT paying $28 for these... I could MAKE these." So later that night, I went home and talked to my dad, who is also an artist about getting the supplies needed to make the earrings. He referred me to a jewelry supplier and I order the Swarovski crystals needed to make the earrings.
Now, they were slightly different from the ones that I had seen in the store, but I was was super happy with them. I wore them to school a few times and one of my friends asked me if I could make a copy of one of her necklaces. I said I could try, I inspected the necklace and decided how to go about making the copy for her. I did it (for free) and decided that it was time for me to come up with my own designs. The next piece I came up with my signature necklace, the crystal flower necklace.
I also did some pieces with adorable clay beads as the focal piece.
I worked pretty hard on this business for a while, but after I started college, my time that I could devote to my business was cut back to almost nil. The business went by the way side with only a few orders over the course of the next couple years. I had no time to go to shows or to really promote and, although I never officially closed my shoppe, I haven't really done anything with it in years.
But everything changed when I graduated in December. I decided that I needed to reopen and to do something that I loved again. I love making jewelry and I love making other people happy with my jewelry!
I reopened my shoppe using Storenvy and I couldn't be happier! I focus mostly on metal working. In "real life" I'm an inorganic chemist, so I play with metals all the time at the molecular level, but playing with bulk metal is different. Plus, when I do fold forming, I get to pound metal, which is a great stress reliever. (It also makes a really pretty texture)
I love making something that every woman can wear. Jewelry is great because it's a one size fits all piece, unlike clothing.
To thank Brittany for letting me share my story with you, I'm offering all of you wonderful readers a 10% discount on everything in my shoppe! You can use the code TYDFAN to receive 10% off!
