Repairing Old Jewelry

Ok Ok... I know I said I was going to write about steam punk. That will have to be put off for another week. I realized I had a lot of pictures about fixing old stuff.

Recently my mother, my boss and my old boss came to me with items they needed fixed for one reason or another.

The first one was a Lia Sophia multi-strand necklace. One of the strands had broken and the chain on the back had fallen off. The strand was easy enough to fix since it was just bending the wire back into place. And to fix the back all I needed was a small bit of simple antiqued brass chain and it was done. :) A Bazillion dollar necklace fixed in no time.

The next two are both from Mom. She likes to buy bracelets made out of elastic but after a while the elastic loses its stretch. The first one is green stone, I think serpentine with white elastic thread.

It didn't really photograph well because of the white thread. But here is the after picture. Mom asked for the lobster claw clasp. I really don't like them very much, they are too hard to clasp by yourself. I like the toggle clasp much better, they are elegant looking and easier to clasp.

Here is a myth! "Toggle clasps fall off easier" That is false if the bracelet fits properly it won't come off. Only when you have a bracelet that is too big for a wrist will it come undone.

The next one you can see really stretched. This one is a mother of pearl or abalone two holed bracelet. It had black elastic thread instead of the floss.

With this bracelet I used the lobster claw again and beading wire. I was very pleased at how it turned out.

The last one was a broken necklace from my boss. The one I spoke about in my last blog post. They were magnetic beads, and at first I tried to lay it out on my bead board, but they skittered all over the place. So I gave up on planning out the necklace and used what was still strung as my guide. The bead had been strung on nylon thread. (No wonder it had broken. The beads were heavy to start out with and you add that the necklace was too small for his neck AND the fact it was on nylon thread it was going to break its a wonder it lasted as long as it did!)
Dave asked that I add about 1/2 inch to it so it wouldn't be so tight. I added two magnetic round barrel beads on either side. After putting it back together only one tiny bead was missing. I used thin beading wire again along with a new magnetic clasp for the necklace.

All in all I was very pleased with how it turned out. What is great is I see him wearing it every day, which is wonderful!!! Make me feel happy.

Here is a note on my pricing. If I am fixing items that are simple restringing. Then I usually charge about 5 dollars. If it needs rework or new bead a little more depending on supplies. And if I am busy and something is given to me that needs fixed right away then it is a bit more. (About 10 dollars, especially if I have to put something aside to work on their item.)

Ok so next week... Steampunk.... maybe. :D

Catching up... slowly...

Well I've slowly been catching up on my blog posts.

I've been feeling better too. I've had some real highs but some really low lows too. But it has been getting better.

In February I put together a fund raiser for Operation Feed. (It had a silent auction in it along with Bake sale and Bake Offs) It was a huge undertaking but I really enjoy doing stuff like that.

I hadn't made anything since December for mom. So this was my chance to start making stuff again. I ended up making two bird houses and a ID badge lanyard.
Also my boss came to me and asked me to fix one of his necklaces. It was one he had worn and it had broken. His wife and kids noticed he hadn't worn it in a while so when they were in Florida they bought him a new one. It was at least two inches too small and very dainty. My boss is 6 feet 8 inches tall and nothing about him is dainty. :D As soon as I finish it I will get before and after pictures up.

I think this is enough for now... Next edition: Steam Punk!

Ok... I've been a horrible blogger...

But I am going to try and get this started again. I went through a slight depression, that I feel I am just now beginning to get over.

Here is one blog post that I had written up but just didn't have the energy to type up and post:
This was to be posted in January... So when you read. (Think January!)

It's been quite roller coaster few months I ended up having three craft fairs, I picked up the third craft fair from a friend at Nationwide it was only two days after the Nationwide one.

The first craft fair was in Dublin, it was a Nationwide craft fair most of it was in a lobby but there was one small section that was in a conference room on the second floor. (Guess where I was! - You guessed it. On the second floor.) There was 5 other people up there. One jewelry, one towel, one OSU knick knack table, a diaper cake lady and peanut brittle seller... And me.

It was a two day event, I had to work both days but my table was right next to a port so I was able to work just fine. The table was 25 dollars and I was able to make back the 25 dollars on the first day. On the second day was moderate sales, the OSU lady didn't even come back.

-- A moment to explain my theory on my crafts: I price everything cheap, earring 3 dollars, bracelets 5-7 dollars, necklace 10-15 sometimes more. My theory on pricing is, times are tough, I have a good job outside of crafting and I enjoy creating and selling my jewelry, so I keep the price low so people can buy. There was another lady at one of the craft fairs, her jewelry was on par with mine, but she used fancy beads. I looked at one of her necklaces it was 110 dollars! Others were 50 to 75 dollars. That is just *crazy*! To sum it up, keep prices low no need to over charge just because I can. Times are tough, price the jewelry to sell. (And it is great to see people faces when you tell them the price. "Really!? That is great!")

For the next two craft shows really proved my theory! The next show was downtown and the table was 40 dollars. I was across the table from Stapleton Woodworking, the table next to me was OSU stuff and records that were melted into bowls. >.> <.< Odd I know. As soon as the craft fair started I was busy. People were coming right to me skipping the lady next to me. At one point she came over and asked "Just what is it that you are selling that people are clammoring over?!" I was selling earring as fast as I could make them. I remember at one point durring the day, I was surrounded by people and some were handing me money and I had no idea why. LOL.

The last fair was a show at St. Joseph's montasory school, it was a winter fair. Besides having a headache the whole day, it was very sucessful day! The kids thought my earring were the perfect gift for members of their family and the price was right too.

Here is before and after totals of my inventory:

Before
Necklace 65
Bracelets 76

After
Necklace 26
Bracelets 25

And an unknown amount of earrings!

I promise I will be better at updating my blog this year. :)