Sunday, 11 August 2013
Monday, 5 August 2013
Tuesday, 11 June 2013
Beadalon Stringing Wire
Beadalon, in the USA are, undoubtedly, the leading
manufacturer of flexible bead stringing wire.
Beadalon manufacture their own wire, strand and cable for stringing and have
done for the past 30 years, with a factory operating 24 hours a day.
The new wire products, produced in-house, include the first
Kink-free titanium wire, silver plated and 24 carat gold wire. These come in addition to the metallic and
satin coloured wires that Beadalon are renowned for.
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| 7 Strand Beadalon Gold 30ft |
Beadalon have the largest range of colours, wire
flexibities, spool lengths and diameters.
In 2009 Beadalon acquired Artistic Wire for wires
that are permanently coloured. These
include coloured copper wire, non-tarnish brass, non-tarnish silver and
non-tarnished silver plated for jewellery and crafts. The two products complement each other well
and are manufactured easily side by side.
How is a Beadalon
wire different?
A Beadalon stringing wire is composed of many tiny wires
twisted together and nylon coated. The
flexibility of the wire depends on the number of strands used, ie a larger
number of strands equals greater flexibility. There are three sizes, 49 strand, 19 strand and 7 strand, 49 strand being
the more flexible. Beadalon recommends
that if you are new to stringing, a 19 strand is ideal.
Design Tips for
Beadalon Wire
Use the largest diameter wire that will fit through the
smallest bead hole. Too small a diameter, then you risk abrasion of the wire. The wire should be comfortably snug.
Increase bead spacing –
this will help reduce abrasion. Bead bumpers are small squishable beads that can be used at either end or within the pattern, giving a tight look whilst giving the beads more space.
Choose a wire with the appropriate breaking strength
dependent on size and weight of the beads. Beadalon 49 is the most flexible wire, therefore ideal for jewellery that will go through a lot of wear and tear ie bracelets.
Choose the right type of flexibility for your particular
design and how you want it to look.
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| Beadalon Big Eye Beading Needles |
Use wire guardians to reduce abrasion at the clasps.
Find Beadalon on Facebook (7,508 likes).
For all your Beadalon requirements, visit the International Craft website
Thursday, 6 June 2013
Thursday, 23 May 2013
Jewellery Makers - Are you Selling on Etsy Yet?
Etsy.com is a vibrant community ecommerce website of 15
million buyers and craft related
businesses. If you are just
starting out, Etsy is an easy and cost effective way of introducing your brand
to a ready made and like-minded audience.
You can sell handmade, Vintage or supplies. To gain more experience, you can use the
online Labs and engage with other sellers.
The online community puts you in touch with other artists and
entrepreneurs, informing you of events near and far as well as the opportunity to gain valuable information from the more experienced.
This is a worldwide marketplace where you can choose your
region, language and currency. There are
no membership fees. A small fee is paid
for each item that is listed for up to 4 months. When the item is sold Etsy take a 3.5%
commission on the sale.
Your own profile allows you to show a shop banner, photos
and give your story to your potential customers. Etsy.com allows your business and creativity
to grow at your pace.
Of course, the Etsy way of selling allows for a lot more
flexibility in your working. You don’t
have to be tied to a traditional shop, you can work from home, fit your selling
around your childcare needs and work in the evenings if it is more suitable.
“I was instantly hooked on the idea that I could make a living doing
what I loved most while staying home with my newborn.” – Seven Ply
There is a rich collection of Blogs, featuring craft ideas,
selecting sellers to feature, inspiring writing from mentors in the craft
industry, party ideas and weddings to name a few.
Another valuable source of information and interest.
Etsy are prominent on Social Media, with nearly 2 million
followers on Twitter and 1 1/4 million likes on Facebook.
The website Etsy.com is modern and easy to navigate. When you click on a product you see a larger image,
full product description, delivery and payment options, how many other items
the company have in their store and a little synopsis of the company itself,
for example this bunny toy Etsy Product Page. There
is also a contact link, add to favourites and links to their social media. So, even if the customer does not want to buy
that item, there is an opportunity to browse that company’s products easily.
Etsy.com is a great site for weddings, including its own
Registry which you can manage, featuring unique gifts for that special day.
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| Craft Wire Jig Boards at International Craft |
International Craft provides all the tools and
supplies you need to create your own jewellery or craft business, Etsy.com is
the stepping stone you can move to next to make it a success.
Friday, 26 April 2013
Swarovski in Fashion, Art and Modern Culture
Swarovski crystals are such a versatile and essential part
of any craft persons’ materials.
Swarovski themselves have proved that their brand are at the forefront
of fashion, art and modern culture, from the clothes and accessories through to
stage and screen design. There are even
gigantic pieces of art, large enough for people to walk inside, made entirely
from the crystals. The beauty of light
catching the crystal and the colours it produces is intoxicating. International Craft appreciate the magic of these crystal beads and feature a range large enough to satisfy any craft designer.
Some of the more recent high profile events featuring
Swarovski include:-
Creatures of the Wind, New York Fashion Week, Winter
2012/2013
Designers Chris Peters and Shane Gabier use Swarovski
Elements as an extension of their designs.
The pastel colours within the jewellery complemented the clothes
perfectly. This is the third year the
designers have used Swarovski.
‘Oz- The Great and Powerful’ – Disney
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| Witch in 'Oz' (pic courtesy thehollywoodnews.com) |
Oz is a blockbusting
sequel to the 1930’s Wizard of Oz, where the focus this time is on the power of
the witch. The costume designer, Gary
Jones, uses thousands of Swarovski crystals within the costumes for ultimate
impact.
85th Academy Awards, 2013
Swarovski had a large part to play in this year’s
Oscars. The stage design featured a
sparkling curtain made from 80,000 Swarovski crystals, designed to catch the
lights, reflecting the old time glamour of Hollywood.
At this link on YouTube you can see Derek McLane explain the reasoning
behind the huge Swarovski presence at the Oscars.
London Fashion Week, September 2012
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| Philip Treacy designs feat. Swarovski Elements (pic courtesy iamcatwalk.com) |
Designer Philip Treacy, renowned for his hat designs,
uses African influence and the clothes of Michael Jackson to create a stunning
show at London Fashion Week. Swarovski
Elements gave the finishing touches in the form of hats and gloves (remember
Michael Jackson’s famous glove?) along
with African style jewelled accessories.
These are just some of the ways in which designers have used the Swarovski crystal to take their creations to a new level and for the craft person the design opportunities are endless.
For more on the Swarovski crystal beads at International Craft, click here.
Thursday, 18 April 2013
What are Freshwater Pearls?
Freshwater Pearls are created using fresh water mussels who
live in a non-saline water found in lakes, rivers and ponds. The pearls are produced mainly in China using
a farming technique. Japan and the US
can produce them too, but on a much smaller scale and pollution has played an
unfortunate part in the demise of the industry in these areas.
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| Freshwater Pearl Beads (white/cream) |
When produced on a large scale Freshwater Pearls have to be
referred to as ‘fresh water cultured pearls’ as stipulated by the US Federal
Trade Commission.
China is believed to have harvested pearls from as early as
the 13th Century and now produces 1500 tons of the freshwater
pearls with the Hyriopsis cumingii mussel and several hybrids. Outside of Asia, a pearl farm in Tennassee
was able to cultivate the freshwater pearls.
However this became unsustainable and is now a tourist attraction.
The farming technique is a process involving the grafting of
a donor mussel carried out by a technician, this can be carried out up to 50
times per shell. The Chinese prefer to
use the triangle shell which is the Hyriopsis as although the volume of pearls
are lower, they are considered of better quality. The molluscs are returned to the fresh water
where they are tended for 2 – 6 years.
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| Technicians using the traditional farming technique (pic courtesy of Wikipedia) |
More information on the freshwater pearl industry can be
found on the forum of Pearl-Guide.com, 'Innovation continues in Chinese Freshwater Pearl Culture'.
How are they processed?
At a first-stage factory the harvested pearls are cleaned and sorted by size and shape. At the processing factory they are
pre-treated in a warm and cold chemical solution and bleached. If the pearls have a strong colour, they do
not get bleached. The pearls are then
drilled and polished with a wax and cornmeal mixture. To keep the pearls in good condition for
onwards sale they are placed onto temporary strands and matched into hanks (a
composition of 5 – 10 temporary strands).
What is their appeal?
Freshwater Pearls appear in a wide variety of natural
colours and shapes. They are less
expensive than the salt water variety and are popular with young people and
designers because of this. They are
solid and durable, giving a longer life with more resistance to chipping, wear
and tear.
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| Freshwater Pearls (silver/grey) |
For a wide variety of freshwater pearls at International Craft and more information, CLICK HERE
Saturday, 30 March 2013
International Craft is on Pinterest.com
What is Pinterest?
Pinterest is a virtual pin
board, a display of images from your favourite web pages of topics and themes
that interest you. Similar to the notice
board you may have had in your room as a teenager, a place where you can put
images of all your favourite things. It
allows you to share your pin boards with like minded people. It is different from other social sites, it
does not rely on ‘chatter’ or regular posts to keep it interesting. It is not high maintenance.
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| Jewellery Trends |
Pinterest is an ideal forum
for jewellery and craft people. There
are easy to follow step-by-step guides using images, places to share tips and
ideas to inspire and a vast array of texture and colour to browse. It is likened to a glossy style magazine,
tailored for you. To see one of the craft search pages, CLICK HERE
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| Part of the 'How To Make Jewellery' Board |
How does it work?
These are the basics:-
A Pin – A pin starts with an
image or video that you can add. This
could be from your website, a useful link back.
These ‘pins’ can be repined.
A Board – This is where you
organise your pins by topic, ie you could have a board for necklace
making. These can be secret or public
and you can invite other people to pin on your boards.
A Follow – When you follow
someone, your Pinterest home feed will show their pins. You can follow all that person’s boards or
just the ones that interest you.
Pin It Bookmarklet – This
lets you pin things you see on websites and blogs, using a symbol in the corner
of the web page.
Home Feed – This is a
collection of pins from pinners and boards you follow. It is updated every time
someone you follow adds a pin.
Some Interesting Marketing Facts from WordStream
about Pinterest
- Pinterest is dominated by female users – a whopping 90%
- 21% of users purchase an item found on a pinboard
- The most popular categories are Home (17%), Arts & Crafts (12%), Style/Fashion (12%) and Food (10%).
The way images are presented
can spark a person’s thought process, ‘How can I make that?’ Be sure to show the tools they need so they
see it is possible for them to do it themselves.
When posting in the DIY
Craft section of Pinterest you can be sure that the majority of people who pin
are there because they are specifically trying to make something.
Use step-by-step tutorials
with clear links to draw in your customer and direct them to landing pages on
your site to keep the flow.
The benefits of following International Craft on Pinterest is that we cover many aspects of jewellery and craft ideas, such as How to Make Jewellery, a noticeboard giving close up images with instructions you can take away with you to follow down to the last detail or inspire you to try making a product using your own creativity. There's the board showing jewellery trends, lovely illustrations of what's hot now, Craft Ideas that anyone can have a go at and a board on Jewellery Display, great tips for the beginner or new ideas for the professional. Feel free to repin to build up your own catalogue of ideas and tips.
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| International Craft's Notice Boards |
To join Pinterest and see
the International Craft Board, CLICK HERE
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