Quite often, things never go as planned. I never planned to take a hiatus from web design and launch a jewelry business this year and make it happen in 2 months.
I started 2014 redesigning Time Inc’s website with some very talented folks. Then carrying out the Pittsburgh Food Bank’s redesign while working on a product. Unfortunately, the product development dismantled itself and I turned to my hobby of making jewelry to get me through this rough patch.
I found out about an apprenticeship program in Pittsburgh where I could learn new technology to either find a new job or become an entrepreneur. I knew I wanted to make jewelry and sell it. I wasn’t entirely sure how TechShop could help me do that, but I knew that being surrounded by other people that want to learn, having to be accountable, and having to show up and share progress would keep me honest and give me motivation. Luckily, I was accepted and the insanity ensued.
Entering the world of manufacturing was a bit of a cold shower. Previously, I could command+Z myself out of mistakes and make changes to my canvas in seconds. Making a mistake with a physical material, especially metal, made me realize that I really needed to take the time to plan out my projects – measurements, materials and tolerances all needed more attention to detail.
I based my business timeline to coincide with the Makership’s 90 day program. I set out to launch a website and Etsy store in two months and hoped to be able to sell a few items as the holidays rolled around. September 2 was my first day with the Makership and I launched my site and Etsy store November 7th. So what happened in those two months?
- learned how to use the laser cutter
- learned how to use the water jet machine
- learned how to sandblast and powder coat metal
- attended Makership soft skill classes and meetings
- attempted to learn the metal lathe
- researched and invested in tools and materials
- prototyped jewelry products
- photographed all products
- developed my brand and logo
- created packaging
- created marketing materials
- setup social media accounts on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram
- wrote content for frostfinery.com and my Etsy store
- figured out store and shipping policies for the Etsy store
- filed Frost Finery as a business with the state of Pennsylvania and the IRS
- designed my website (which Brad implemented in 4 days)
With every single one of these bullet points there were tons of sub-priorities that had to be checked off in order to complete each task. In addition to doing all of this, I was also simultaneously making 200 flyers, 48 wooden earrings, 12 brass cuffs, 3 wedding bands and 1 custom silver bangle before I officially launched. Oh, and we bought a house and moved. There were lots of mistakes, trials and errors and sleep depravation along the way. It helped that whenever I was stuck or panicking I either read #girlboss, Bassam Tarazi’s blog or looked up whatever my problem was on the internet to realize that I can solve any issue that comes up. None of this is rocket science, just hard work. One of my favorite quotes that has come out of Sophia Amoruso’s girl boss dialogue is “Never hope for it more than you work for it!”
I’m happy to report that all the hard work is totally worth it. I’ve pulled 16 hour days working in film and advertising and felt absolutely drained. This is different. There’s something invigorating about knowing that whenever I put in a long day I’m building out my vision, not someone else’s. I can make it a reality and I own it. What I’m even happier to share is how much support I received from friends, family, other participants in the Makership program and strangers on social media. Someone asked me the week right before my site launch if I’d be ready and interested in participating in any of the artist holiday markets. I honestly hadn’t even thought of it. I was leaning on the web because that’s what I knew. So, less than a month after the launch I was accepted to participate in two holiday events to sell my jewelry, which then spiraled into another list of to-do’s in figuring out:
- how am I going to display my jewelry?
- should I use Square, Boku or Etsy’s card reader?
- how much inventory is enough?
- will I have the same packaging at the fairs as I do online?
The day Brad and I were loading the display supplies into a pop-up space downtown I nearly had a panic attack. As I looked at everyone’s booth, I felt that my display was too plain, too small and that I didn’t have nearly enough inventory. What really sent me over was being directed to my space which was in a small back room, separated from the rest of the holiday market. My friends showed up to help me setup, show their support and help me calm down. I took a big breathe and told myself that no matter what happened, today was a learning experience and I needed to put on a happy, friendly face and do the best I could and be proud of what I had made. Luckily, Zeke’s coffee was next to me which really helped and I was the only jewelry booth in that back room. I ended up selling so many things on the first day that I had to stay up all night and make more jewelry to sell on the second day. I also got a ton of great feedback from people about how they would like more options in the length of chains, bigger sizes for the bracelets and most of all how they loved my display because it was simple and it matched my brand.
I just mailed the last of my holiday orders out and I’m exhausted, but happy. Next, I’ll need to take care of all the non-metal business work, expenses, taxes….[insert impending list of doom here]. For now, it’s been awesome revisiting my original goals and documenting all the crazy awesomeness that has happened! 2014 has been a year of unexpected turns, but I couldn’t be happier about Frost Finery and continuing to build. I’ve got goals for 2015 which include:
- blogging more about my process and how I make things
- talking to stores locally about wholesale jewelry
- making my shipping process more efficient
- learning more about stone setting (specifically faceted stones)
- posting regularly on social media
- creating better agendas for the jewelry meet up at TechShop
Last but not least a few stats to close out the holidays and 2014:
- 50 general orders
- 5 custom orders
- 1 custom whole sale business order
- 3,500+ etsy site views
- 1,600+ website views
- 44% of visitors are viewing on a 320 x 560 px mobile device
- Druzy stud and steel earring jackets are the most viewed item
- shipped to 3 countries, US, Canada and Norway
- reached 225 likes on the Frost Finery Facebook page
About 10 years ago at a New Years Party, someone went around asking everyone at the party what their New Years Resolution was. In my ridiculous drunken state I said, “to be happy.” Since reading Bassam’s post on “The Ulimate Guide on getting anything done” I would have to change my answer now to – chasing fulfillment. I love this quote from Bassam:
“If your goal is to “be happy” that is like trying to “never suffer”. Chase fulfillment instead. Fulfillment is loaded with exploration, questions, doubts, answers, tears and happiness. You see, happiness is just a part of a life fulfilled. Living the life you were meant to live doesn’t mean that it is a bed of roses, it means that you challenged yourself and tried to be a better version of yourself everyday.
So cheers to chasing fulfillment in 2015, challenging ourselves and becoming a better version of ourselves.
