Featured Indie Junction Artist (May 29th, 2010)

My featured Indie Junction artist this week is Dee-Ann, from DeesAdornments.  If you love gorgeous handmade jewelry you will love her store!  Here's a little bit more about her...


Where are you from?
I once heard a comedian say that when you ask an American where they're from, you get a travelogue. I'm one of those people. I was born in New York City, raised in Florida, went to university in Pennsylvania, and now am a dual citizen living in beautiful BC, Canada. I essentially live right in the middle of where the 2010 Winter Olympics is being held.

When did you start to craft?
I joined the Girl Scouts the first year I could and was involved in that program all the way through the end of high school, so I've been doing one craft or another for most of my life.

As an adult, about 10 years ago I took up stained glass and then mosaics. I was quite into it, took classes, and sold some work, but I didn't like being banished into the garage to work on it ... we have dogs and I can't risk them getting hurt with broken glass, etc. I'm also one of those people who likes to flit from one task to another and I didn't find that those crafts worked well with that approach. I petered out eventually and stopped doing them, though I'd like to do more, if for no other reason than to use up the glass I have left.

Last year I realized that I really missed working with my hands and making beautiful things. I took a jewelry-making class at a local rec center and knew I'd found my new obsession.

How did you hear about Etsy and when did you join?
I think I had encountered Etsy before because of a friend or two selling there, but I didn't actually sign up for an account and open a shop until late last year. A friend of mine (http://tinahdee.etsy.com/) does quite well there and has been very generous with pointers and advice.

What kind of market is your work geared towards?
I'm still relatively new and am finding my style(s), so I don't have as firm an answer to this question as I should as a businessperson. I like to say that my work is geared toward a range of budgets, as I have plenty of pieces based around glass and plated metals, and I have a growing number of pieces made with a variety of stones.

I like variety and suspect that I'll end up aiming toward more than one market. Whether I'll ultimately have to split into multiple Etsy shops is something I'll deal with when the time comes. One of my goals is to sell locally, and right now I have my eye on three venues with three different demographics. One is a local farmer's market where I'll mostly take my less expensive items and experiment to see what people like and will buy there. Another is a local florist who carries jewelry and other items in her shop, and is interested in a more mid-range product, and the third is a local gallery that wants something higher end and cohesive as a collection.

As I look over other items I've made, I can see pieces that hit a visual note that I think I can build other collections around at various price points and aimed at different markets.

What types of crafts/artwork do you do?
Primarily jewelry. I've also made wine glass charms, and am taking a class next month that will probably expand what housewares I make.

What kinds of materials do you like to work with?
Glass, freshwater pearls, sterling silver, granite, serpentine, wire, chain, and many different types of stones.

What are your inspirations?
The collection I'm making for the gallery is based around the local concept of "Sea to Sky," which refers to the fact that we live along a highway that takes you from the coast of an estuary into the mountains of Whistler and beyond. In this collection I'm using granite as we're surrounded by so much of it, sea green serpentine to represent the sea, and sterling silver.

Often I just like to stare at the materials I have and choose something that catches my eye to build a piece around. I like to play with light, texture, color, and shape and push it at times to see what I can get away with.

What is some advice you could share with other crafters?
If you want to make sure you don't lose money (let alone make money), find a way to track how much it costs you to make an item. I use software called Bead Manager Pro to feed in my supplies, and then feed in what supplies I use in a particular piece, how much I want to make per hour, and how long the piece took to make. If I didn't, I'd really only be guessing what I should charge for something.

Where else can we find you?
* Shop: http://deesadornments.etsy.com/
* Blog: http://deesadornments.com/
* Facebook Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/deesadornments
* Twitter: http://twitter.com/deesadornments/