Website changes

You'll see some changes on my website over the next few days - my friend Jay designed a new logo for me so I am redoing my website based around it! If that's not enough, my fabulous friend Kelley modeled for me in an impromptu photo shoot today, so now I'll have a few fun pictures of her showing off the jewelry! Awesome!

Stitch Awesomeness

My summary of Stitch:

Stitch rocked.
I sold a lot, which also rocked.
I won the grant, which rocked asteroid sized rocks.*more details below, it deserves a second chance to be written about*
I was interviewed for the Indie Craft Documentary after I won, which was kind of embarrassing because I was really tired and not very entertaining on-camera.
You can see the pics here.



*About the grant, quoting from the website: "Each year Stitch gives a portion of its proceeds to charity...We've loved being able to give money to charity each year and are happy to continue the trend again this year, with a twist! We decided to focus our attention on giving within our own independent design community and created the Stitch Craft & Art Indie Upstart Grant. Our community is busting at the seams with creative, inventive, smart peeps with the most amazing ideas...We want to help someone totally awesome with a kick-ass business idea get started (or continue to grow) their rad company. We are super excited about this grant, as it will further our efforts to build and connect our creative community. We will give the grant recipient a minimum of $1000 ... winners will also be invited to participate in Stitch 2007 and will be featured on the Austin Craft Mafia website."

Cool, huh?? When they announced the grant winner and called out "freshie & zero", my mouth dropped open! I was so surprised because after seeing all the awesome stuff at Stitch, I thought the chances of winning were pretty slim due to the stiff competition! I hugged Greg and said "Holy shit I just won $1000!!". I mean - HELLO - the Austin Craft Mafia - the mafia that started it all - awarded me a grant. That's SO awesome! I am soooo grateful and if you ladies are reading this, thank you again!!! I'll have to give Zero a big treat, too, since he's half the namesake and all. I also must reread my business plan that I submitted to see what in the world I said, including what I was planning to do with the money!

In addition to all the grant awesomeness, I have to list some fabulous jewelry artists that I saw at Stitch and would have bought tons if I didn't make jewelry myself:
My Olivette (fortunately we traded)
Gypsy Born Designs
Angel Court Jewels
Erica Weiner Jewelry (a direct link to my favorite necklace of hers)
Lisa Chandler
and cute purses & wallets by:
Sweet Tooth Bags
and cool manly belts by:
Steel Toe Studios



Oh yeah - when I told my mom about the grant, she cried, but she denies it.

The end.

Atlanta suckiness

bear with me - i'm on pain medication... so yesterday while I was setting up for Shecky's in Atlanta, I threw my back out while lifting a heavy box full of glass. when i say threw - i mean i instantly became immobile in the middle of a craft show inside a ballroom surrounded by strangers since i thought i could do this show without any help. i have never before had back problems and I have never EVER been in so much pain.

it happened when i lifted the box, felt a snap, and immediately collapsed on the ground and started crying because i didn't know what to do and i could not move an inch. here i was, alone in atlanta sprawled on the floor bawling my eyes out from the pain next to my booth that i had paid over $500 for that was not even set up yet. after 15 minutes of laying on the ground and crying (oh the mascara ran!) and swearing i would be fine in a minute, the show organizers called an ambulance to take me to the hospital. i called greg and begged him to come rescue me and my booth - ah my sweet night in shining armor...

so what was supposed to be a lovely, prosperous money making night turned into a hellish nightmare at the hospital four hours from home. my fabulous fiance left work immediately and drove to atlanta from nashville all the while i texted him from the ER since i couldn't reach the phone on the wall to actually talk to him. after the hospital was essentially no help the entire time i was there and even gave me medicine i told them i was allergic to, i finally hobbled into a taxi and got to the show over two hours late to find my display a disaster. fortunately i was too drugged up to care and my fabulous friend misha had come to help sell my jewelry, and for someone who had absolutely no idea what to do, she did pretty well. she was also kind enough to let me stay at her house an extra night while i tried to recover.

the drugs i am taking aren't even making a dent in the pain. they just seem to be giving me weird side effects. AND i can't even take the crap the hospital prescribed, because it makes me hurl, so i can't even get relief from strong drugs. augh!!! this sucks!!! not to mention that greg's parents are coming into town on saturday, so we have to come back asap so he can clean up his place! not to mention i have stitch next weekend! not to mention i work in a freaking art gallery which involves moving and hanging art constantly - wtf am i supposed to do there now???

11.13.06 - update - Well my back still hurts but at least I can move around now. Greg & I drove to Texas with a heating pad and a pillow supporting my back, which was nice. I'm now subconsciously scared of those glass boxes, though - i started shaking when I picked up just a single piece of glass during Stitch. Yucky.

happy emails and fall shows

I've just finished participating in the Webb School Show in Bell Buckle, TN and the Shrimp Festival in Gulf Shores, AL. I had some broiled shrimp, grilled shrimp, boiled spicy peel'n'eat shrimp, shrimp bisque, shrimp on a stick, fried shrimp, and stuffed shrimp (seriously I ate all of those in one week!). I felt like I gained ten pounds, but a polish sausage at the Webb School Show seems to have cleaned me right out again. Ewww...

Ah, anyway - here are some more customer testimonials! I literally got four awesome ones in one day - thanks guys!!

From: heather

To: beth

Sent: Tuesday, October 24, 2006 9:10 AM

Subject: a happy happy customer
Beth--I purchased a necklace from you during the 2006 Creative Arts Guild Festival and I LOVED IT!!! I recently purchased a pair of earrings from you and LOVE THEM! I have emailed your web site to ALL of my family and friends and have told them what a wonderful artist you are. Hope they give you lots of business and I WILL BE SHOPPING FOR CHRISTMAS and for years to come :) I LOVE YOUR JEWELRY!!! Heather

and another one...

Beth,

Thank you so much for the beautiful freshwater pearl necklaces for our 2007 FrivoliTIES fundraiser benefiting Family & Children’s Service! They are so fabulous and will definitely help us reach our goal of $140,000. It is such a treat to have something personal and handmade at an auction and we are privileged to display these necklaces.

Thank you for your thoughtfulness and generosity over the years. Our community is lucky to have you – I know you have been donating to local charity auctions and I appreciative that you always support the ones I am working on. Thanks! And Congrats on all the well-deserved recognition you are getting!

Sara

Sara M. Fried

Marketing and Special Events Manager

Family & Children's Service

Thanks again for everyone's support! I couldn't make jewelry if I didn't have happy customers!

gramps and granny

so... greggles and i "went out" for the first time all month by ourselves to kick back and relax a bit after our grueling month of work, reunions and craft shows. it started at jackson's with some wild and crazy wrap sandwiches and i had one bloody mary. the party's warming up.

then, back to my place for some shiner boch - not even the high alcohol content yazoo we usually drink. then, we really let loose - we both surfed the internet on our laptops on my patio until our batteries were dead. then, two beers a piece later, we were completely passed out on the couch watching "myth busters" on discovery channel at 9:15. we were both fighting to stay awake to watch one of the myth buster brothers jump into a big tank of water with a whirlpool funnel, just to see what happened. alas, we crawled up to bed at 9:45 and couldn't even manage to stay awake for ten more minutes to watch the whirlpool stunt. what can i say? we're just party animals, the two of us... did i mention we had a yard sale earlier in the day? rock stars, i tell you!!!

Move over, Nicole

Yes, I saw Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban at Starbucks back in June and that was pretty exciting but I've moved on to bigger and better Nashville celebrity sightings.

Tonight I was having dinner with my family for my mother's birthday at Mortons, and who was there but Steven Tyler. Steven effing Tyler!!! My brother pointed him out to me and I turned around, saw him, turned back around and said "holy shit!" to my mom!

Nicole Kidman is an icon, but Steven Tyler is a legend. He's kind of creepy looking, but I could not stop turning around and staring. My mom asked if we had ever seen "The Crying Game" before she realized he was not a man dressed in drag...

I don't sleep enough

But who does, really? So... to sum up my summer...
*became a carnie, am now craft show veteran
*got engaged
*planned a wedding in between craft shows (still planning)
*worked just about nonstop betweeen the gallery and the jewelry
*got braces for 3rd time; this time, must wear retainer...
*turned 28
*two days after birthday, car broken into, radio stolen
*instead of getting desired present of bumper for birthday, request a new radio instead. bumper still has embarassing hole in it, surely affecting my aerodynamic agility in driving and possibly lowering gas mileage
*tried to go part time at the gallery but one lady "retired", bosslady is out with sick sister, and new girl we hired to cover them quit in about a week; my loyalty is exploited for their benefit
*bob, our 82 yr old accountant at work, fell today and broke his hip
*framer who worked for the gallery for over 20 years was fired last week (ding dong the witch is dead)
*too busy to do consignment any more, have legitimate wholesale catalog
*total fear in the back of my mind as I have no idea how jewelry income is affecting my taxes..
*also freaking out b/c must drive to Austin, Texas... very excited about show, not excited about 13 hour drive to get there
*watched a rousing game of adult kick ball yesterday, stayed on sidelines and cheered everyone on

Happier news...

I am now in INDULGE in Spaces at the HWY 70/100 split. Yay! The owner seems genuinely nice and not fake nice like the other shady store owner I recently dealt with. I have always loved her store, so I'm excited to be in there.

I also got into STITCH in Austin, TX!!!! This is so exciting and I am thrilled to be involved in this craft show.

I also just redid my website (again). I just jazzed it up and streamlined it a bit. I'm still working on "buy me" buttons so that I can sell through my website and not just through etsy. I also added a WHOLESALE CATALOG if anyone knows of any retailers who need some cool jewelry in their store... hint hint...

Atelier @ Loveless Cafe

Awesome. I took my jewelry out to the beautiful jewelry store (Atelier) in the motel shops at the Loveless Cafe today and instead of consignment, she actually bought a bunch! Yay! And she's so nice and helpful and she seems to know a LOT about jewelry, gemstones, and other important things I should know about too. Now I'm going to cross my fingers that she sells it like crazy and needs more in a couple of months.

Goofing off

Greg and I ate at Carrabba's tonight. We haven't seen each other a whole lot lately because he's been working so much - this was the first time since Sunday we had dinner together. So of course I had to take our classic arms length photos as we watched all the crazy bad drivers and cruisers in the Green Hills Mall parking lot. (funny - before the new wing opened I don't seem to remember people cruising the mall parking lot blasting their sub woofers...) I should take as many photos as possible before I get my braces on in a couple of weeks. Yikes!

Greg proposed!

I got engaged!!! My sweet awesome boyfriend, I mean fiance, got down on one knee and proposed to me last Saturday!!!

His birthday was on Sunday, but I got back in town from the beach on Saturday, and we were to have a birthday weekend. I, unfortunately, drank too much on my last night at the beach and was a little hungover on Saturday. We were supposed to ride our bikes at Radnor Lake that afternoon. After eating and napping (he actually fell asleep, knowing he was going to propose in a few hours!), I was still feeling yucky, so I told him I was not up to riding bikes. He suggested we go hiking instead, and feeling bad about not riding bikes, I of course agreed.

So we went to Radnor Lake, and for some reason, he brings along this backpack, which scared me. I bugged him about it, because I was afraid we were going on some extreme hike up in the mountains. I asked him "What kind of hike are we going on!?" He said the backpack was so he didn't have to carry water in his hand (but of course he was concealing the ring box). Then he gets a trail map, which seemed odd to me, so I teased him about it and called him Carl (our very good friend who likes to plan everything out) but it really wasn't that out of character for him. I had never gone hiking with Greg and I should have known he liked to know where he was going, unlike me who just takes off and figures it out as I go along. But he was studying the map to figure out a nice "proposal spot" since he had only scoped out the bike trail, and not the walking trail. I don't think the map was much help, so he had to wing it. Of course I'm oblivious to all of this. Off we went.

We spotted many squirrels and deer, but I can't remember if they were before or after we stopped at a lake lookout deck. Greg got his camera out and took some photos. I was looking out at the lake - the view was something like this....

...but it wasn't quite sunset. Greg got down on the ground and reached into his bag to put his camera up, and I turned around and saw the ring box. He was on one knee. He said "You know what would make this birthday even better?" and I kind of froze. I think he said "If you would marry me". I was like "What??? Is this really happening?" He was all red, his eyes were teary, and he was shaking. He joked about not knowing if he could say this without crying but then his tearyness got better. He said something sweet about loving me and wanting to spend the rest of his life with me, but I was really in such shock I don't know what he said. It was probably good stuff, though. Then he opened the box and I was again in total shock - the ring was SO BEAUTIFUL!!! It was just what I wanted and he took it out of the box and started to put it on my finger and then said "Wait - will you marry me??" and I said "YES!!" and he put it on my finger and we kissed and hugged. Then of course we talked forever and he told me we had dinner reservations at Watermark for that evening. Swanky!

Crazy stuff, huh!? I'll be Mrs. Freshie Lawrence. I'm so happy - Greg is so awesome and sweet and funny and we are going to have so much fun together!!!

howdy

I came all the way from Nashville to Florida to escape the lovely weather we were having to enjoy a tropical storm. I also came a long way for an official Toby Keith cowboy hat (I left my cheap straw cowboy beach hat at home)....

florida.... I mean Atlanta

I'm in Amelia Island Florida. There may or may not be a hurricane/tropical storm coming my way. I tend to be on the may not storm side of the fence, but we'll see. I'm in the hotel lobby using my computer b/c our condo doesn't have internet access unless I dial up on my parents aol account which as we all know is painfully slow. There is some convention here and the lounge is full of random business men.


I however have my indie craft experience shirt on and am looking, quite cool. Ha, ha. Uh... where was I going with this? I don't know - I've been drinking. OH yeah - the Ice show in Atlanta!

It was cool. My booth looked cute and fun, if you ask me...

I was happy with my placement, but I could have used one more light on my booth... I liked the acid jazz band in the middle, if they had just turned it down a little bit... I don't understand what the guy next to me was selling... overall I sold a lot, bought some cute stuff, watched my friends fall apart as the time went on, then watched them mostly get it back together, and had fun! The worst part was when we were packing up and the final band started to play - it was loud and bad rock and they scared us half to death with the first note b/c it was SO LOUD!!! I stuffed some paper towel in my ears and we broke down my booth as fast as we could. Unfortunately, the groovy grass I used around the tables totally fell apart and I'm bummed b/c it was so cute! I felt even worse b/c there were little plastic flowers strewn all over the room I was in, making it look kind of trashy. I need to email the company about that...

yay yay yay!!!

Woo hoo!!!

So... all of my friends that have ever visited the Lovelace Cafe have told me I must get my jewelry in the jewelry store out there. And I think "Yes, I know but..." because there is always that "but". To quote Pee Wee Herman: "Everyone I know has a big but. C'mon, Simone, let's talk about your big but." Anyway, my big but is that I don't really have time to keep up with the stores I have, let alone a new one, mainly because I'm still working full time.

Well, today the owner of the store came in the gallery and I helped her. I knew she owned that store the minute she commented on my necklace. She came in right before closing and I was like "NO! Don't come back another time - I'll stay late for you!" and at the end of helping her with her framing (17 minutes past closing, by golly), I talked about her awesome store and how I'd love to be in it and she said she'd love to have me. YAY!!!! So one more store is just one more reason to work at the gallery less, right??? :) My big buts are going to have to confront me head on to really make that happen I guess.

So that's it - I'm really excited b/c it's an awesome store and she was really nice. Yay!

my new blog

Okay so live journal was too confusing for me for some reason, so I'm trying this site instead. Yay! I'm sitting in my home office listening to the Beastie Boys and very happy because I'm about to get my hair highlighted. Woo hoo! So... welcome to my blog and hopefully I'll have more interesting posts in the future.