Imitator Sues Artist to Overturn Copyright

Yes, you read that right.  I just found out about the plight of metal artist John T. Unger, who is actually being sued by an imitator!  Talk about chutzpah.  If John doesn’t prevail, it sets a dangerous and chilling precedent affecting every artist.

I am unable to help John financially now.  All I can do is blog about it.

Please go here now to read about this outrage in John’s own words.

New Earrings in my Storefronts

Well, it’s Shameless Plug time again.  I’ve made several pairs of earrings in the last few days, and they are now available, attractively priced, in my Shop or my Studio.

Also available are a rather magnificently Victorian necklace and earrings of garnets and sterling silver wire, made last weekend.

I’ve been busy

The day after I was fired, I got a phone call from a client who wanted the nearly exact same custom cameo set I made for her cousin last summer. Yay! This time I had time to really buckle down and get it finished.  Here’s the photo:

You know, I found out that I was fired so that the owner could give my job to his friend.  Possibly hastening my demise was the fact that I had stood up to the company bully the week before.

I know this for sure: I don’t EVER want to be subject to someone’s whims ever again.  I will be in charge of my income.  I will be in charge of my medical insurance.  My husband has glaucoma, and, without his eyedrops, he will go blind.  I’ll be damned if I’ll let that happen.

I’ve been working diligently on preparations to begin wholesaling to shops and boutiques.  I live in a touristy part of Wisconsin, so there’s a lot of boutiques within 20 miles of my house.  Regular readers of my blog (do I have any?) will recall that I’ve written a few posts about being scared to approach shop owners.  Well, like I said in my last post, it’s time to put on my big-girl pants now.  No Excuses.

Fired, just like that

I was fired from my day job yesterday.  Over the phone.  So, it’s over, just like that.  I’m out of that pit of vipers.

I’m scared.  The steady (but meager) income and the medical insurance are gone.

I’m also more motivated than I’ve ever been to make this jewelry business work.  There’s lots more time in my day.  I’m going to fight my fears with action.  Luckily, I have recently been on a big push to make lots of jewelry, gearing up for the Holidays.

I’ll be brutally honest here: I haven’t made a sale in five months.  That’s going to have to change, and fast.

Time to put on my big-girl pants and get going.

Welcome Etsians!

I want to thank the folks from Etsy.com who were nice enough to stop by and visit my humble little blog.

Random observation: why does my avatar keep changing?

OK, so Craftgawker turned me down…

Last weekend, I submitted this photo to Craftgawker:

I thought it was a gorgeous photo, but then again, I’m too close to my work.  A few days later, I received word that my submitted photo had been rejected.

Rejected.

It threw me into a world of anger and discouragement for the better part of a day.  Power struggles at my day job amplified my feelings.  Sometimes I feel like I’ll be stuck at that place forever.

After I calmed down, I started finding and reading articles about improving my photography skills.  I’ll be building myself a light box, and trying some new things with my camera.

Trying to make Craftgawker was a point of pride for me – but – just because one photo was rejected, it doesn’t diminish me as an artist.  I’m still a darn good jewelry artist.

Maybe it’s a phobia…

A few weeks ago, a co-worker of mine decided she was going to try to help me get my jewelry into one of the touristy boutiques in the town where we work.  She encouraged me to take photos (not knowing that I have been taking multiple photos of every piece I have made for many years) and she was going to take the photos around the boutiques.  I didn’t have the inclination to explain to her the reality of selling in boutiques.  But – I noticed something that happened when she suggested that I go speak to the owners myself:  my chest tightened, and I felt pit-of-the-stomach dread at the very thought.  An honest-to-goodness panic reaction.

I’ve heard people with a fear of heights say something like, “I know intellectually that nothing will happen if I walk close to that plate glass window looking out on a multi-story drop, but I just cannot make myself go there.”   That’s how I feel about talking to shop owners.

My last visit to a shop owner, which I blogged about a few months ago, was pretty much a disaster.  She said my prices were too high, which I don’t agree with.

I’ve only found one boutique owner who was willing to do a wholesale arrangement, which is working well.  Mostly they want consignment arrangements, which ties up lots of my inventory with no income.

Some may think I’m being negative, but I’m just working through these things.  Thinking out loud, if you will.  If I had all the answers, I’d be happily self-employed, right?

I win!

I saved the ring.  That stone’s not going anywhere.  And now for my shameless plug: this ring is now available from my Artfire Studio or my Etsy Shop. Please visit, OK?

&#$@* Rings! Oh, the Frustration…

While going through my inventory recently, I found a rather large pendant that (obviously) hadn’t sold in the six years since I made it. I took the bi-color citrine out of the setting, intent on resetting it in a ring.

I don’t make rings very often – I’m not very good at it, perhaps from lack of proper tools. But this bi-color citrine is such a different-looking gem, I really wanted to set it in a spectacular way.

The first attempt went horribly wrong. I misunderstood a measurement on the DVD, and was left with a piece of unusable junk. Second attempt is still in progress, because I finally walked away from it.

I made the prongs too small. They won’t hold the stone in the setting. But I think I can still salvage the ring. If I do, I’ll post a photo.

Not Enough Hours In The Day

Yesterday, I was on the social site for the Victoriana guild I belong to, and I saw a photo of a cameo edged with tatting (a Google Image search brings up lots of nice photos of tatting).  I thought it was a lovely piece, and left a comment saying so.  Seeing that piece reminded me that I’d always wanted to learn to tat.

It’s hard to find time to read or to crochet, things I love to do.

Just like everywhere else, times are tough here in Northern Wisconsin, forcing me to take the full-time job that stifles me.

Besides the j-o-b, I work at growing my jewelry business, making and promoting the jewelry.

Then, for extra money, I sing with a husband-and-wife entertainment outfit.  I suppose you could call it “semi-live music” – we sing with pre-recorded music.  We’ve played street dances, casino bars, Christmas and birthday parties, and fundraisers.

You know, except for the big bad job, I’m lucky to be doing things I love.  Carving out time for other things is tough, because I feel like I should be devoting all available time to jewelry.  Meanwhile, my house looks like a bomb went off in it.  (Yes, I subscribe to flylady.net – oh well)

I don’t mean to complain.  I think I’ll just find the time to learn how to tat, instead of worrying about what’s not getting done.

Shameless Plug Alert:  I recently added this cameo bracelet to my Studio.  It is the adult-size version of the baby bracelets I posted about a month ago.  Please click the link to Wiresculptress ArtFire Studio over there on the right to visit my Studio now.