getting into (double) trouble

It's been a while, hasn't it?  I apologize, but I've been busy!  After we returned from  our beach holiday, I dove right back into the major volunteer job that I had started in the late fall.  We finally wrapped that up at the end of June and it's been fun and family, family, family since then.  Now it's time to get back to work and to get our online store back up and running.  Lots of images to take and edit, joolz to be measured and info to be uploaded to the store software.  Soon....I promise.

But today was a bus man's holiday for me.  The annual outdoor Arts at the Gardens art and craft show, held on the grounds of Canandaigua's lovely Sonnenberg Mansion and Gardens, kicked off at 10:00am  this morning.  I was there at 9:50, ready to stroll and look and NOT buy anything.  I keep telling myself that I will never pay retail jewelry prices again.  That good intention went out the door at 10:05am, when I stopped to see what new creations Linda Lawrence had in her booth. By 10:10am, I owned this fun piece:

Colorful, whimsical, eye-catching, one-of-a-kind.....all the things I like in playful, glass bead jewelry.

And to make it a business-related transaction, I asked Linda how she liked using Square for her show credit card processing program.  (She loves it!).  Thanks, Linda - great necklace and a fair retail price.....even though I am  never paying retail again....

Until I got to Barbara and Rick Umbel's booth:

You'll remember from  my last blog post in March that I had met Barbara and Rick while on vacation, and fell in love with their shell and precious metal jewelry.  I reintroduced myself and fell in love with their work all over again, this time walking away with this aqua limpet and blue topaz pendant and multi-strand cable necklace:

You'll note that Barbara has changed the design of the piece a bit, so it's not exactly like the one I saw in Florida.  But it is smashing and I know I will wear it often.  And by the way, Barbara loves Square, too.

The show was beautifully organized by friendly, helpful volunteers and the lineup of artists was topnotch.  Even Mother Nature cooperated, with temps in the high 60"s and sunny skies.  I saw lots of friends and even was able to spend some time walking the show with my youngest brother and his wife, who are staying in the area for a while.  All in all, a very nice morning, despite the fact that I got in (double) retail-priced jewelry trouble!

my kind of shelling at the beach

Our annual vacation at the beach has been a delight so far. We've relaxed, eaten well, read numerous books, seen friends from near and far and are expecting our kids to start arriving tomorrow. But it's not always play and no work, as I'm always on the prowl to find new artists.


This morning was the Lions' Art and Craft Show, where several years ago I found the work of the very popular Joan Sample. Joan's button jewelry is owned by many, many JOOLZ customers; we hit a home run with that find.


We had another good find this morning: Barbara Umbel from Pawley's Island, SC. Barbara works with shells, sterling and 14K yellow gold to create beautilfully crafted, unique pieces.

This is a necklace where the center section can be separated from the chain and worn as a pin:

In talking with Barbara's husband, Rick, I learned that they are going to be exhibiting at Sonnenberg Gardens' Arts at the Gardens show in Canandaigua this coming August. This will be their first time at AATG and I know they will be well-received; Barbara's work is just stunning. Here's an aqua limpet shell slide that can also be worn as a pin:

Definitely my kind of shelling.

on the job!

Yes, we're on vacation, but I am on the job! Today was my annual trip to the Bonita Bay Promenade for the March Bonita Springs National Art Festival. As you can see from the above photo, the weather was perfect - low 70's, with blue skies and abundant sunshine. The crowds were also abundant - I had a hard time finding a parking space and I got there 5 minutes after the gates opened.


Security was out in force, but this guy was already sitting down on the job. Watching all the shoppers go by can be exhausting:

Actually, the security guard is a life-size polyester and resin sculpture! Pretty amazing.

Jewelry artist Jayne DeMarcay was again at the show. I love her work, but unfortunately, she only sells retail through art shows:




I did discover a husband and wife jewelry-making team from Springfield, Illinois who work with stones and laminated glass, creating interesting pendants and necklaces. We'll try to bring them in once we have some space available, perhaps in the summer.


Meanwhile, I purchased a fun shadowbox collage for myself, entitled "Cowgirl Rules":

The RULES state that cowgirls

• tell the truth
• cry when they need to
• are true to their partners
• ride fast
• shoot straight

Love it!

here comes the judge

This past summer I was a judge at Sonnenberg's Arts at the Gardens, which you can read about here. Even before that event, I was also asked to be a judge at this weekend's Canandaigua Christkindl Market, benefitting the Granger Homestead. I told Suzanne, the show's director, that I wanted to see how the first Judgment Day went before committing to another. My time at Sonnenberg was fun and a good learning experience. I decided I would do it again in November and told Suzanne to put me on the roster.

Now in its 4th year, Christkindl Market takes over the front lawn of the historic Granger Homestead on Canandaigua's North Main Street. The Federal-style home of Postmaster General Gideon Granger is a beloved landmark and historic house and carriage museum. Monies raised at the event help to maintain and improve the house and its grounds.




Gigantic tents are erected on the front lawn and house over 100 craftsmen and food vendors. While the European Christkindl markets, upon which Canandaigua's event is fashioned, are out in the open, the local organizers decided it would be too much uncertainty and stress to hold a craft show outdoors in mid-November. The giant tents are heated and lighted and make for a very comfortable setting:

Many familiar faces were seen, including Linda Connor Cass, one of our favorite jewelers who has her work at JOOLZ. This is Linda's last big show before Baby #2 arrives in 8 weeks:

Another familiar face was Scott Mackey, who with his partner, Don Stevens, owns Wick-edly Sent Soap and Candle Company, located on Canandaigua's Main Street:

(photo by Don Stevens)

Canandaigua award-winning doll artist Nancy Wiley also won the Toys and Dolls award at Christkindl Market. Known internationally for her exquisite handcrafted dolls, Nancy has also written a book which features images of her dolls telling the story of Alice in Wonderland.

Our group of three judges, all involved in the arts in Canandaigua, was thrilled to be able to present the Best of Show award to Canandaigua goldsmith Eileen Quinn DelDuca. Her work is superb and the award is well-deserved:

It was a good day and lots of fun. Thanks to Suzanne for asking me to be part of the judging team and for the opportunity to meet and learn about so many delightful exhibitors. I went back on Sunday to do a little shopping and was able to get a few things from some vendors who caught my eye on Friday. That 1.5 pounds of fudge will be gone within a nanosecond!! Meanwhile, Suzanne sat for a minute to chat with me before I left and she's still smiling. She should be - it was a beautifully organized and produced show. Congratulations, dear friend!

"restaurant critic"

I've just returned from visiting the Memorial Art Gallery's annual Clothesline Show. Now trimmed down to about 400 artists from across New York State, this show draws lots and lots of visitors, many of whom return each year to check out their favorite artists and to discover new ones.

I've been attending this show for so many years I can't count them. But since I've opened JOOLZ, I go to troll for new jewelry artists and usually just waltz on by the other booths - painting, ceramics, glass, photography, wearable art, etc.

Today I ran into Penelope, who owns F. Oliver's in Canandaigua. She and some friends were in a jewelry booth, checking out all the yummy designs. She proclaimed me to be like a restaurant critic: I go into the jewelry booths anonymously, check out the goods and then make an internal decision as to whether or not I will identify myself. Unlike a true restaurant/food critic, I don't get to eat the product I am reviewing (darn!) and my likes and dislikes are not printed in some publication for others to read.

Visting many of the jewelry artists today, I was happy to be incognito until I revealed my JOOLZ connection...or not. That got me thinking about the many celebrities in this world who can't go anywhere without 99.9% of the people around them knowing who they are. Certainly many of those by-standers feel as if they "know" the celebrity, having read all about them in magazines or on the internet. What a constraining, claustrophobic lifestyle that must be. Thanks very much, but I'm happy to be an anonymous "restaurant critic."

judgment day

Several months ago I was asked to be one of 4 judges at the 2010 Arts at the Gardens outdoor arts and crafts show, held on the grounds of the lovely Sonnenberg Gardens and Mansion. Today was the day....

I'm never one to hold back on giving an opinion, but today I would need to visit 100 artists, examine their booths and their work and make decisions about each:

• what was the level of creativity?


• how well did they use/handle the material?


• did they present their art well? how attractive was their booth?

10 Judges' Awards and a Best of Show Award were at stake - prestige and dollars were on the line. I hoped I was up to the task.

One of other judges and I traveled together, starting at one end of the show, while the other 2 judges worked their way toward us from the opposite end. We broke for lunch, graciously served to us on the veranda of the mansion, and chatted about what we had already seen - what we liked and what we didn't. Then it was back to work, ending about 3:30. We hunkered down again on the veranda, discussing each and every artist in the show. The four of us, having never worked as judges together before, were surprisingly cohesive in our comments, our likes and our dislikes. After 30 minutes of discussion, we had our award winners.

The show organizers were notified and the winners were announced at a lovely reception for the artists, judges and committee members, held on the veranda after the show had ended. There were smiles all around - the show was a success, the committee had done a fine job, the judges had made their decisions and the artists were pleased with their awards.

Judgment Day was over, and I, for one, was ready for a nice long rest!

baltimore beauties

It's been a nasty winter - cold, snowy and grey. It was time to leave town, head south and work on some serious R&R. But before vacation could begin, we needed to stop off in Baltimore for the American Craft Council show.

We last attended the show three years ago, right before we opened JOOLZ. We found some great artists at the show in 2007 and were pleased to learn that many of them would be at this year's show. While e-mail and phone communications are good, in-person is best. It was time to chat with the artists, see their new work and plan for some new pieces to be delivered before our grand reopening in April.

While I had the best of intentions to get photos of all our artists in their booths, I managed to take pix of only two of them. Here is glass and silver artist Kristin Perkins with Bill:

and Jane Bohan in her booth, surrounded by lots and lots of gorgeous gold joolz:

Apologies to all our other artists for forgetting I had the camera in my purse. But it was great to chat with them all and I am thrilled with the new pieces that will be arriving in the spring. JOOLZ is going to be Sparkle Central.

kerry bogert's new work is here!

Departing Arrival

Kerry Bogert's fans are coast to coast. They love her twisted wire and gorgeous handcrafted lampwork glass beads. And as of today, JOOLZ is delighted to have several new pieces in black and white, one of our customers' favorite color combos.

We arranged a meet with Kerry at the Memorial Art Gallery's 9th annual Fine Craft Show, where her glass bead jewelry was a standout. While I had already seen images of our new pieces, it was so much more fun to see them in person. There's extraordinary craftsmanship, a great design aesthetic and a bit of whimsie all rolled into fabulous statement joolz. You're gonna love 'em!

Unhinged

P.S. We have several more necklaces, bracelets and earrings...come see them all.

southwestern flair

"How do you find your artists?"


I must be asked that question by 80% of our new visitors. I tell them stories of finding artists while traveling, while attending big wholesale shows, while talking to the service manager at my car dealership, while chatting with friends who know someone who knows someone who makes jewelry. It goes on and on...


Most recently I found a new artist, Ad Lopez, while visiting my daughter in Denver. We went to the Junior League Holiday Mart this past Saturday and as luck would have it, we found Ad:

A retired educator and school principal, Ad now uses his artistic talent to create wonderfully colorful jewelry with a southwestern flair, showcasing his Hispanic and Native American heritage. His work has only been available to retail customers at shows throughout the Denver area, but now it is at JOOLZ. We are the first gallery to carry his work and we think our customers will love it. It's so stunning that a good friend wanted the piece I was wearing at dinner Monday evening - I had bought five necklaces but one stayed in Denver with her.

Here are some of the pieces we brought home with us. If they go quickly, and I think they will, daughter Katie is now our designated Ad Lopez buyer. We want to have that southwestern sunshine lighting up JOOLZ all the time...

Vibrant and understated - love 'em!

on the road again

JOOLZ was on the road again today...this time traveling to Cloverwood in Pittsford, a lovely complex for seniors. The Cloverwood staff books several outside speakers each week, bringing all kinds of different programs to the residents; many residents say it's like living on a cruise ship - there is something fun to do all day, every day.

I had given a program about starting my business to a women's club in early June and it was suggested that the Cloverwood residents might also like to hear it. But this time we also packed up some of our joolz and the residents shopped after the PowerPoint presentation. The compliments on the program and the jewelry were much appreciated, and made all the hard work to take the store on the road well worth it....but boy, am I tired! And it's only Monday....

(Editor's note: I must have been REALLY tired when I wrote this entry. Upon rereading it this morning, I saw all kinds of grammatical goofs, which have now been edited. Sorry about that!)

fashion show fun

250 ladies attended the annual Thompson Hospital Guild fashion show this afternoon and most of them shopped at the boutiques beforehand. It's always a challenge to take care of that many customers in only an hour and a half, but Suzanne and Jill were there to help...and I couldn't have done it without them.

We even scattered gourmet peppermint lollipops around the display for some extra added enticement. Seemed to work!

Many of the joolz you see in these pix, taken before the opening bell, are no longer available and found new homes today. Thanks to everyone who attended and who made a stop at the JOOLZ display. We had fun and hope you did, too!

always on the prowl

Just because we're on vacation doesn't mean I'm not thinking about joolz. I'm ALWAYS thinking about joolz!

Yesterday my friend, Mary, and I traveled south to Bonita Springs to prowl through the art show at the Promenade. We arrived even before the opening bell, but they were taking $$, so we got in early. Nice to not have to fight the crowds.

The overall quality of work was quite high, with only a few artists whose work was a little below par. Of course I was mainly interested in the jewelry artists and remembered several from when I attended the show 2 years ago.

I absolutely fell in love with the work of Jayne DeMarcay from Louisiana. The daughter of a jeweler, Jayne apprenticed at her father's knee and began working with precious metals at the age of 15. Over the years she has developed a unique style reflecting her classical training coupled with a contemporary bent. I would love, love, love to have her work at JOOLZ, but she told me she only sells to retail customers at this point. She does a number of shows around the country and I'm sure has a wide following. Just wish I could convince her to send some of her joolz our way.

Here's a taste of what she does, all in 14K and sterling silver:

Small Scatter Slide

Grid Band

Hinged Links Geometric Bracelet

Cut Dome Slide

north of the border

Just back from a road trip to Toronto, about a 3.5 hour trip for us. We had absolutely no wait at the Lewiston Bridge crossing and zipped into the downtown area on Sunday, where we went to the Convention Centre to check out the "By Hand" show.

The show was quite small, compared to the "One of a Kind" shows we have attended twice in Toronto, but everything was handcrafted, so that was a plus. We met several jewelry artists whose work we liked, and picked up literature from them all. This was strictly a scouting trip and I told myself I wasn't ordering from anyone. We had a second show to attend and I wanted to see what was there before making any decisions.

But first we went up to the Westin at the airport, our hotel of choice for the night. We got a great deal - one night, free parking (normally $14/day) and right down the street from our second show. Imagine my surprise and delight when the front desk clerk told me I had been randomly selected as the General Manager's "Guest of the Day" for our stay. We were upgraded to a 3-room suite on the top floor - big king bedroom, huge flat screen TV, living room with couch, coffee table, 4 chairs, another giant TV and a dining room that seats 6. The bathroom was snazzy, with a double-headed shower fixture. At turn down, we were left chocolate-covered strawberries and a bottle of wine. All of this for $135 plus the various Canadian taxes. How fun is that???

After the shock of being tagged Queen for a Day, we went over to the Mode Accessories show, where our good friend and very popular JOOLZ artist, Lisa Ridout, was exhibiting. Lisa had encouraged us to attend and we were glad we did. It was important for me to experience the different types of wholesale shows, to learn what works for me and what doesn't.

Apart from Lisa and only a couple of other artists, the accessories show wasn't for me. It's big, spread out throughout the Doubletree Hotel, and features jewelry, handbags, hats, scarves. etc. Very little of the merchandise is handmade, most of it is imported, and the quality of a lot of it is very sketchy. Many of the booth staff people were either totally pushy or totally ignored the shoppers, chatting among themselves. Not a good presentation and not how I like to do business.

After the show we took Lisa to dinner at Olio, a very nice restaurant featuring Mediterranean-flavored selections. Even tho we had a late reservation, our server was pleasant and attentive, and we all enjoyed our dinners. We finally said goodbye to Lisa around 11:45pm and returned to our lovely suite. Poor Lisa had worked the show all day, had to drive home, fall into bed and get up again this morning and do it all over again. We, meanwhile, slept in, left around 10am, stopped on the way home for hot chocolate, tea and muffins and had another quick border crossing.

All in all, a good trip north of the border - an unexpectedly luxurious hotel experience, freezing (13 degrees) but snow-free weather, easy border crossings, a good learning experience at the shows...and best of all, a nice visit with Lisa.

it's mine and i love it!

It's been a crazy weekend - summer weather Friday and Saturday, Art Walk in downtown Canandaigua, Christkindl Market (100 craft vendors) at the Granger Homestead and the Fine Craft Show at the Memorial Art Gallery in Rochester.

The weather turned today, so I made the executive decision to keep the shop closed and drove up to Rochester to check out the Fine Craft Show.

One of the first people I saw there was Charlotte Herrera, whose idea it was several years ago to hold a juried show of fine crafts as a new MAG fundraiser. Char and I have become good friends and she was a wonderful source for me when I first thought about opening a jewelry gallery. And then I became a source for her, when I introduced her to Kerry Bogert, one of our first and most favorite artists at JOOLZ.

Kerry makes lampwork glass beads and incorporates them into unusual and exciting pieces of jewelry, often using sterling silver wire and other embellishments. She's done trunk shows at JOOLZ and has brought her torch with her, demonstrating for our customers her technique for making beads.

And this year, for the very first time, Kerry is one of the 40 artists participating in the MAG Fine Craft Show. I just had to make time to go visit her there. Not only is Kerry exhibiting her work, but she is also doing a demonstration of bead making today...and she was featured in this morning's Democrat and Chronicle. Here's a shot of her in her booth at the show:

Kerry's sister, Bonnie, was helping her out during the show, but disappeared when the camera came out!

Of course I couldn't walk away empty-handed, and was thrilled to snag a piece I had seen earlier on Kerry's blog, her "Strength in Numbers" necklace:

And it's not part of our JOOLZ inventory - it's mine and I love it!

fashion show fabulocity

One of my all time favorite stores for classic but updated clothing is Jane Morgan's Little House in Aurora, NY. Located in a charming little village on the shores of Cayuga Lake, JMLH is a shopper's paradise. The owner, Randi Zabriskie, has an eye for style like no other. She knows what's in, what's out, what's coming and what to avoid. She throws out little fashion tips such as "showing your wrists makes your hips look smaller!!"

For several years Randi has taken her clothing on the road, producing fabulous fashion shows at a few different venues. Today the show was at a women's club in Rochester and Randi wanted to accessorize a few of her outfits with joolz from JOOLZ. I drove over to Aurora on Sunday with a selection of joolz and let her take her pick - sterling silver ribbon earrings by Reiko Ishiyama, a white cotton ball neck collar by Abra Gorby and a peach-colored keshi pearl and sunstone necklace by Gretchen Gray. It was such fun to watch Randi match the joolz to the outfits - like the pairing of a good wine with a gourmet meal. She really knows her inventory and her models - both were a perfect match for the chosen joolz and the show was a resounding success. Thanks for the collaboration, Randi. I hope we can do it again sometime.

welcome to JOOLZ, tahmi!

In April, my daughter Kate and I attended the ACRE (American Craft Retailers Expo) show in Las Vegas. We saw several artists whose work is already at JOOLZ and discovered others whom we thought would fit in nicely. One of those was Tahmi DeSchepper of Fairfield, Iowa.

Tahmi (pronounced Tammy) handcrafts silver and other metals into links forming bracelets, earrings and necklaces. Her work is classic but updated, just like a lot of our customers. She's also designed a great clasp that goes on easily and stays closed while wearing the jewelry. No need to call for help while getting dressed and no worries about losing the joolz when you're out and about.

We learned that JOOLZ is the 100th gallery to carry Tahmi's work - quite an honor to be included in that group. Welcome to JOOLZ, Tahmi!

on the road

Taking JOOLZ on the road is not as easy as it looks.


Last year we were invited to take JOOLZ on the road to the Thompson Hospital Guild boutiques, a gathering of local shops and artists that set up their wares prior to the annual fundraising fashion show. The decision to participate had to be made just a few months after we opened, when I needed to devote all my time and energy to the shop. I had to say no.


This year I said yes...but I honestly didn't realize how much of my time and energy this would take!

I needed to:

• contact my credit card processing company to determine the best way to process offline charges.


• talk with my insurance guy to find out about "away" coverage.


• get sales receipt books and have stamps made with the shop name/address and return policy - and then I needed to stamp all those carbonless receipts.


• plan the decor of the tables where we would be displaying our joolz....

Black and white was a logical choice, as the store's interior is all B&W. I purchased several yards of white fabric covered with different-sized black polka dots. The look on the face of the clerk at Jo-Ann's was never to be forgotten, as she haltingly asked..."and just what kind of clothing are you going to make with THIS?"

Then I bought white and black foam boards and cut them to different sizes. They would become my display surface for the joolz and would lie atop the polka dots. Finally, I purchased two tall, revolving earring display racks.

I had the equipment. Next I needed to figure out how much inventory to take with me; I had been told there would be 300 guests. I tried to come up with a good mix of joolz - different styles, materials and prices. I think I probably took too much, but better too much than too little.

I also needed some help at the show. Suzanne, my assistant at the shop, would need to stay there to hold the fort while I was away, so I asked two friends to help me out during the selling time. I truly could not have done the show without them.

The big day finally arrived and my husband and I took everything to the event location, thankfully only a few minutes from our home. I set up the tables and started arranging the joolz. My friends and the guests arrived and the next hour and a half flew by.

The joolz were well-received and the shoppers were happy. So was I. At the end of the day, all the time and effort had been worth it, although I haven't been that tired in a very, very, very long time.

My friends, Suzanne (in the back with the headband) and Barb (wearing black and white on the right) were a great help.

how do you find your artists?

"How do you find your artists?" I hear that one 4 or 5 times a day. My answer is that I go to shows, I search the internet, I hear about them from customers and now that I have been in the business for a while, I am contacted by artists who have heard of me and of JOOLZ. And sometimes I hear about them in the most unexpected ways...

Several months before I opened the shop, I was chatting with a guy at my Buffalo-area car dealership while waiting to get my car serviced. He told me about a wonderful show that is held in Toronto each November. The One of a Kind Show, a retail show that begins on our Thanksgiving and runs for 11 days, features 800+ artists from all over Canada. Handcrafted jewelry is a big part of the show, but there are many other fine crafts too. It was at that show in November 2006 that I met several of the Canadian artists that are now part of the JOOLZ family.

One of those artists is Anat Basanta, an Israeli artist who lives in Vancouver. Anat has a flair for design and has had a successful career as a sculptor who specializes in Judaica. One of her most successful jewelry designs is her Never-Ending Necklace, so named because the original design was made to go over the head and has no clasp. She makes this design in several lengths, incorporating sterling silver mesh, freshwater pearls and gold-filled tubes. The pearls are usually worn on one side or the other, giving an asymmetrical look to the necklace.

And now there is even a "short" Never-Ending Necklace which is perfect for an open-necked blouse and does have an adjustable-length clasp on it. We currently have several of the Never-Endings in stock, including a short version.


New to Anat's line is her Trillium Necklace with pearls. (She also does this necklace with aquamarines and we hope to have that one in the future). The Trillium necklace, seen below, also features freshwater pearls, tiny gold-filled tubes strung over wire and sterling silver flowers. The beautifully spare design makes a powerful statement and can be worn from day into evening.

When you're in the shop and you ask me how I found this artist, I'll tell you about the guy at the car dealership and how I never know how or when I'm going to find an artist who just clicks with my customers. Anat has definitely clicked.