Random Ruminations of a Beader

2007-07-23T08:44:00.000-07:00

Ancient Bead Bling

I have been following these stories with great interest:

Even the very first modern humans may have spruced themselves up with beaded bling.

Twelve shell beads discovered in a cave in eastern Morocco have been dated at more than 80,000 years old, making them one of the earliest examples of human culture. The beads are colored with red ochre and show signs of being strung together.

Similar beads have been found in other parts of Africa and the Middle East, suggesting the first Homo sapiens literally carried their penchant for baubles with them as they populated the world.

"If you draw a triangle covering the three furthest known locations of Homo sapiens between 75,000-120,000 years ago, that triangle stretches from South Africa to Morocco to Israel," said study co-author Chris Stringer of London's Natural History Museum.

2007-06-01T08:27:00.000-07:00

Some Resources to Market your Website

How to Attract Links and Increase Web Traffic

Online Marketing Blog

Download Squad: Social Software

2007-03-12T15:34:00.000-07:00

2007-02-15T12:51:00.000-08:00

Some Fellow Bloggers

Here are some interesting blogs focusing on arts and crafts:

Crafty Synergy - while "synergy" is not one of my favorite words (way overused in marketing-speak...), this is an interesting blog featuring informative interviews with crafters.
Indie Obsession - An amazingly diverse blog whose author presents "all the indie designer things that I love, but don't always have the money to buy".
Modish - "A stylish blog for indie shoppers".

Pamela
Love Beads Unlimited

2007-02-12T16:52:00.000-08:00

Tag - You are it!

Social bookmarking, or tagging is hot these days. The idea of having your favorite bookmarks online, where others can see them and explore them, has been around for a while. Recently, though, there has been a veritable flood of new tagging services. You can find a long (but probably incomplete) list here.
I have played around with some of the tagging sites (probably didn't put enough time in, though) and found them of little help. I prefer more targeted services such as StyleHive or Squidoo.

So much for now

Pamela
Love Beads Unlimited

2007-01-25T14:29:00.000-08:00

2007-01-11T06:25:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone.
I have started working more with lampwork beads and really like the look and feel of these bracelet. You can see them here and here.

Pamela
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-12-25T06:53:00.000-08:00

Hapy Holidays and a wonderful 2007 to all my readers!

What a year it has been .. and to top it all, you and me and every blogger ... and my cats became TIME "Persons of the Year";-)

See you in 2007

Pamela

Love Beads Unlimited

2006-12-13T09:55:00.000-08:00

Ebay Express not what Expected?

Not exactly a surprise...
PC World reports that the much ballyhooed eBay Express has fallen short of expectations:

"Merchants complain that eBay Express doesn't attract sufficient shoppers and generates an inconsequential volume of sales, although eBay says it is satisfied and remains committed to the site."

I love that last statement... of course eBay would never admit that it is not doing as well as planned:

"Still, based on the experiences of merchants interviewed, Express resembles a ghost town with tumbleweeds blowing through it rather than a busy shopping mall."

Pamela
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-12-09T14:17:00.000-08:00

- Displaying your Jewelry for Online Sale -

When you are selling your jewelry online, you have to put special effort into proper presentation, as customers only have the pictures to go by. One aspect of this is the way the pieces are physically displayed. I have seen online ads for quite expensive jewelry displayed on a carpet or bed spread - that is a real turn-off.

Here are some of your options:

Display jewelry in nature. Hanging earrings from a branch or placing a bracelet on a lily pad can have its charms, but the background colors can distract from the jewelry, and what do you do if the weather is not suitable for taking new photos?
Using glass. I sometimes see necklaces draped over glass bowls and bracelets over wine glasses. While this lets the colors of the jewelry stand out, there can be problems with reflected light, and it might be hard to imagine how a piece would look on your body.
Making your own display busts. I recently read an interesting article by someone who had constructed and painted her own display shapes, but I am afraid that takes a bit more painterly talent than many of us have.
Wearing the jewelry yourself. This is a tricky issue. On the one hand, it creates a very realistic picture, but on the other hand many people might shy away from jewelry that has been "worn by someone else".
Professional display pieces. I prefer this solution. Companies such as Fire Mountain and Jewelry Display offer numerous display busts, hand and feet, as well as earring displays. Watch out for the surface - I found that black velevet looks good, but attracts dust easily.

I just wish there were more colors out there - sometimes black or white don't work well. I have a blue display bust, and I might invest in a grey one.

Pamela
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-12-05T08:55:00.000-08:00

7 Reasons Why Squidoo Lenses Are Great

I am having fun with my Squidoo lens - and here is why:

Lenses are Free - Can you beat that?
Lenses are Better than Free - They can make money for you!
Lenses are Easy to Use - No programming knowledge required.
Lenses are Versatile - You can write about anything from Aardvarks to Zymurgy.
Lenses are Colorful - It is so easy to add graphics.
Lenses are Changing - There are constantly new modules available.
Lenses do not have to be Alone - You can start several ones.

Interested in trying this out? Just click on this link.

Pamela
Love Beads Unlimited - Unique Handcrafted Jewelry

2006-11-30T08:48:00.000-08:00

Online Resources for Marketing Your Arts and Crafts

If you have moved beyond the stage of a hobbyist and want to make at least some money with your creations, these resources might be helfpul for you:

Online Marketplaces:
eBay
Etsy
RubyLane
ArtbyUs

Discussion Boards:
Bead and Button: Ideas for marketing your work
Reasonable Insanity

Collections of Articles, Tips, etc.
Home Jewelry Buinsess Success Tips
About.com Arts and Crafts Business
Craft Business
The Artful Crafter

This should be enough to keep you busy for a while.

Best of luck!

Pamela
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-11-26T18:04:00.000-08:00

Had to think about this bracelet when I saw the leaves in the front yard - yes, even in Texas fall finally arrives.
Hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving.

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-11-13T06:25:00.000-08:00

- A Tried and True Classic -

The Beader's Companion (Loveland, CO: Interweave Press, ISBN 1-8883010-56-X) by Judith Durant and Jean Campbell is an indispensable tool for bead jewelry designers at the beginning and intermediate level. It is a small (7" x 5") paperback book with spiral binding that lies flat, so you can keep it on your work surface next to your beading projects. The pages flip upwards, so that the text is in landscape mode, leaving plenty of space for illustrations.

It is amazing what amount of useful information can be crammed into a mere 104 pages! The book starts out by describing various kinds of beads (with illustrations), as well as types of glass and finishes used for beads. This is followed by section on threads/cords and different types of needles. Particularly useful is a chart telling beaders what thread to use with which kind of bead. There are also extensive chapters on various stitches and crochet techniques (again illustrated with simple, but effective black-and-white drawings).

Further sections on finishings (clasps, hooks, ear wires, etc.), tools and basic wire techniques round out what almost amounts to a beading course in a book. Even after you mastered the different techniques described in this guide, you will be coming back to it for the various useful charts and tips, such as the bead-sizing chart.

Overall, The Beader's Companion is reasonably priced and represents one of the best investments a beginning beader can make. While it cannot substitute for an actual teacher, it offers a good general introduction. Other books and beading magazines will then take you further in teaching special techniques in greater depth.

2006-11-09T05:54:00.000-08:00

- Kit and Kaboodle -

Dear reader,
if you wondered what the gallery below was all about, that was from Kaboodle. Kaboodle? Yes, one of the new social tagging/marketing sites that seem to be springing up these days like mushrooms after rain.
What amazes me is how easy it is to post things. A click on a button, a few tags to enter, and there you are... Maybe eBay could learn something from these guys.

Pamela
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-11-08T13:20:00.000-08:00

lovebeads's Shopping

2006-11-02T11:06:00.000-08:00

- Talking about Beading -

Here are some interesting online venues for discussing all things bead-related:

Bead and Button Forum

Beadwork Forum at About.com

Beading Forum at Beadcharm.com

Rocknrocks Bead Forum

Beading Times Forum

Beading Forum.com.au

Reasonable Insanity

Enjoy!

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-10-31T10:00:00.000-08:00

- More on Web 2.0 -

I just published an article on Using Web 2.0 to Promote Your Jewelry Business on Rena Klingenberg's Home Jewelry Business Success Tips site.

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-10-25T09:08:00.000-07:00

- I Love Lapis.... Lazuli, that is -

I have always loved the deep, intensive blue of lapis lazuli. No wonder - people have been using this stone for about 7,000 years! I recently created a lapis lazuli and Bali silver necklace.
Besides the beautiful color, I was always fascinated by the name. Here is what Wikipedia says about its origins:

The first part of the name is the Latin lapis, meaning stone. The second part, lazuli, is the genitive form of the medieval Latin lazulum, which came from Arabic (al-)lazward, which came from Persian لاژورد lāzhward. This was originally a place-name, but soon came to mean blue because of its association with the stone. English azure, Spanish azul, Italian azzurro also derives from this source. Taken as a whole, lapis lazuli means stone of azure

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-10-18T16:16:00.000-07:00

- More on Ancient Beads -

I just love these articles, like this one from the New Scientist:

Archaeologists have discovered that 100,000-year-old shells found in Israel and Algeria were decorative beads. This suggests that modern human forms of behaviour, such as language, developed earlier than previously thought.

"Personal ornaments are a powerful tool of communication," says Francesco D’Errico at the Institute of the Prehistory and Geology of the Quaternary in Talence, France, one of the team that studied the beads. "They can indicate social or marital status, for example. But you need to have a complex system of language behind that. To me [these beads] are very powerful archaeological evidence that these people were able to speak like us."

Cyberbeader

http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-10-18T07:34:00.000-07:00

Get Your Own! | View Slideshow

Web 2.0 Déja Vu?

Is it just me, or doesn't his sound awfully familiar: geeks in their twenties sell their websites for gazillions, the stock market is reaching new heights, online companies without noticeable income are praised as the next hot thing...
I have looked around some of the social networking/marketing sites and am not that impressed. Yes, YouTube has funny videos, if you want to wade through hundreds of boring ones. Yes, there is Flickr, MySpace, Delicio, Kaboodle, TagWorld, Squidoo....

My question is: will the model of having hordes of eager participants create (or copy) content persist, or will many people get tired of this?

Also, will it really become the killer marketing channel? I would like to see some real statistics here.

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-09-29T10:51:00.000-07:00

- Of Beads and Squids -

I have been spending some time on Squidoo lately (check out my lens about beading and online marketing).
Now, did that sentence make any sense to you? No? Well, Squidoo (www.squidoo.com) is a site that lets people quickly develop their own webpages/blogs/online galleries which are called "lenses". You could start a lens about your hobby, your favorite author, your online store ... there seems to be almost no limit. Of course, there are the usual blatant multi-level marketing schemes, but overall this concept is interesting, and it's free!

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-09-06T10:25:00.000-07:00

Chariot Earrings

Fascinating find in Bulgaria:

A 2200-year-old treasure trove of gold jewellery has been unearthed from a Thracian burial mound on Bulgaria's Black Sea coast.

Daniela Agre said her team found dozens of tiny jewellery pieces in the tomb of a woman, most likely a Thracian priestess, near the resort of Sinemorets, about 500km southeast of the capital.

The discovery included two earrings crafted like miniature chariots, and parts of gold necklaces, one decorated with a sculpture of a bull's head.

Herald-Sun, September 6, 2006

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-09-03T07:50:00.000-07:00

Cloisonné Beads

I have always liked them. Recently, I got interested in learning more about the technique and found the following resources:

An article about the history of cloisonné beads by Sandra Paluzzi
The Art of Decorative Enameling
The Wikipedia entry of cloisonné
The Earliest Cloisonne Enamels from Cyprus by Dr. Panicos Michaelides - fascinating article on cloisonné artifacts from Cyprus that are over 3,000 years old.
Cloisonee Primer

Until later!

Cyberbeader

http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-08-28T05:16:00.000-07:00

44,000-year-old Neanderthal Jewelry

Well, didn't you always know that we beaders are in one of the oldest professions? An archeological excavation in France has found evidence for jewelry made by Neanderthal men:

Neanderthals were much more advanced than has been thought, according to a new examination of finds from a famous cave site that indicates that the creatures designed and made their own jewellery.

It had been assumed ornaments found with their bones were "borrowed" from ancestors of modern humans, or copied. This is now believed to have been a mistake. [...]

...finds belonged to Neanderthals who lived there 44,000 years ago. That would mean they were making decorated bone points and items of jewellery before modern humans arrived in Europe from Africa.

The Independent, online edition, August 28, 2006

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-08-22T12:44:00.000-07:00

Too Many Beads?

You probably have a few beads at home... or a few thousand, but the following might be just a bit too much:

Artist Liza Lou, of Topanga, California, USA, used 40 million glass beads to create a kitchen and garden first displayed at the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art in Kansas City. If the beads were strung out, they would stretch 611 km (380 miles) – the distance between Los Angeles and San Francisco.

http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/content_pages/record.asp?recordid=53840

Well, you can watch the video at the Guiness Book of World Records site... my reaction was "so what?"

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-07-29T07:04:00.000-07:00

Beads in San Francisco

I was recently in San Francisco and visited All Season Trading Company (888 Brannan Street). The store is in a large wholesaler's mart (so remember to bring your resale license and/or any other proofs that you are a business).

The building is quite impressive, with dozens and dozens of jewelry and import stores under one roof. It takes a while to find your way around. there are even some restaurants to sit down in if you get tired from shopping.

All Season is a smallish store stuffed with cheap plastic containers full of semi-precious beads, findings, carved jade pendants and much more. Prices are very good, and I found some things I had not been able to locate elsewhere. Give it a try when you are in the Bay area.

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-06-23T21:06:00.000-07:00

- Even More Ancient Beads -

An article in New Scientist pushes back the putative beginning of beadmaking to about 100,000 years ago:

"Archaeologists have discovered that 100,000-year-old shells found in Israel and Algeria were decorative beads. This suggests that modern human forms of behaviour, such as language, developed earlier than previously thought."

What is fascinating is that beadmaking is used here as an indication for the possible beginnings of human language and culture. Doesn't that make you proud?

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-06-07T19:01:00.000-07:00

- Useful Bead Reference Sites -

Here are a number of sites that contain useful information for beaders:

Swarovski Crystal Beads - Finishes and Effects. Yes, they are for sale, but just looking at the colors and shapes can give you ideas.
Bead World Bead Facts. Handy charts and measurements.
Fire Mountain Gems Beading University. I must admit, the bad pun in "EncycloBEADia (TM)" made me cringe, but the site contains useful info, including a glossary, overview of basic techniques, gallery of designs, and more. Now, if I want puns that make me groan, I"d rather go to the O'Henry Pun-Off :-)

Cyberbeader

http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-05-29T19:07:00.000-07:00

A Blog about Modern Jewelry

I have come across a blog that promises to be interesting (and not just because the blogger wrote about me:-). The Modern Jewelry Blog covers a wide variety of jewelry-related topics, from Jessica Simpson's wedding ring (rather gaudy, to my taste) to amazing jewelry by architect Frank Gehry.
Welcome to the blogosphere! Keep up the good work.

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-05-04T10:55:00.000-07:00

- Bead Bloggers in Butter Battle -

Sorry, I was just in a Dr. Seuss mood ;-)
Here are some other interesting bead blogs:

http://www.artyzenworld.blogspot.com/

http://www.bbbeader.blogspot.com/

http://phyla-designs.blogspot.com/

http://blog.myspace.com/klynndesigns

http://spaces.msn.com/carolinesjewellery/PersonalSpace.aspx

Have fun reading!

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-04-20T09:07:00.000-07:00

- More Bead Quotes -

In case you don't know it yet, I like to collect not just beads (oh, yes) but also quotes about beads and have created a page on my website just for bead quotes.

Here are some new ones I have come across:

You are all separate beads strung together on that one thread, God.

Sri Sathya Sai Baba
Indian spiritual leader, b.1926

These heroes of finance are like beads on a string when one slips off, all the rest follow.

Henrik Ibsen
Norwegian playwright of the late 19th century,

2006-04-11T04:19:00.000-07:00

-Anklet, Anklets, Anklets -

Well summer has already arrived here in Austin, and I have been making anklets for a while. I wondered about when they originated and found the following on Wikipedia:

An anklet, or ankle bracelet, is an ornament worn around the ankle. Anklets historically have been worn for centuries by unmarried women in India, though in the United States both casual and more formal anklets became fashionable in the late twentieth century. While in western popular culture both younger men and women may wear casual leather anklets, they are more popular among women, and more formal anklets (silver, gold, beads) are confined to women's fashion.

[ ....]

A survey carried out recently in the UK determined that most anklets are worn on the right ankle. The statistics were: 87% right ankle and 13% left. Perhaps this is due to more people being right-handed.

There you have it - are you right-ankled or left-ankled? ;-)

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-03-25T16:32:00.000-08:00

- Bead History Resources -

Beads have fascinated people for thousands of years, and not surprisingly, there are a number of interesting websites on the history of beads:

Early Trade Beads from Mali. Fascinating photos, though the site still is incomplete.
The Bead Museum in Washington, DC. Haven't visited it yet, but it looks fascinating.
Trade Bead Collection at the Illinois State Museum
Native American beadwork
Beadmaking in Venice

Happy surfing!

Cyberbeader

2006-03-15T07:42:00.000-08:00

- eBay Millionaire's Secret? -

I came across this interesting piece of news today: (http://www.ketv.com/newsarchive/7968098/detail.html)

LINCOLN, Neb. -- A Lincoln man who wrote a book claiming he made
more than $8 million
a year is filing for bankruptcy for his company.

Brandon Dupsky is founder and CEO of Sell2All, which sold consigned
items on the Internet. He co-wrote "Insider Secrets of an e-Bay Millionaire."

I do not know the details of this case, but I have come across such books several times in bookstores and libraries. They were invariably a mixture of hype ("guaranteed to start a bidding frenzy!"), obvious generalities ("write clear descriptions") and vagueness ("I made thousands this way"). It was never clear, for instance, whether these "millionaires" talked about sales or after-tax (and after eBay fee) profits.

If you want to buy a book to teach you selling on eBay, I would recommend Marsha Collier's Starting an eBay Business for Dummies or Greg Holden's How to Do Everything with Your eBay Business, which I have reviewed here.

So much for today
Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-02-04T10:39:00.000-08:00

- A New Online Beading Simulator -

A while ago I wrote about the virtual bead board on the Firemountain gems website (and has some reservations about it). Now there is a similar online bead arrangement site at http://www.edesignz.com/jewelrybuilder.aspx.
What I like better about this one is that you do not have to log in, that the program reacts reltively fast, and that you can do one half of a bracelet or necklace and then let the program fill in the other half symmetrically.
On the other hand, there seem to be fewer objects than on the Firemountain bead board.

So much for today!

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-01-30T13:25:00.000-08:00

- The Other Players on the Online Auction World -

A newcomer to the world of online auctions might get the impression that there is nothing but eBay. While eBay is massive and constantly advertises the fact that you can find "it" on eBay, there are other services available. Whether you are just setting out as an online seller, want to switch sites, or diversify your sales channel, it might be worthwhile to look at alternatives.

You should be aware, though, that using eBay has its advantages. It is much larger than its competitors (see http://www.powersellersunite.com/auctionsitewatch.php), which translates into an enormous amount of traffic. And it is a recognized brand that spends a lot on marketing.

However, eBay also has some disadvantages. The fees for sellers are relatively high, many categories have fierce price competition, and there are recurring technical glitches and dubious "improvements" (such as giving sellers overly optimistic arrival dates during the holiday shipping season).

Where can you find alternatives? Here are some URLs to get you started:

http://auctionbytes.com/cab/pages/sitepricing

http://theauctionboard.com/onlineauctions.html

http://www.powersellersunite.com/about7.html

As you can see, there are numerous other sites out there. Before signing up with one (or several) of them, you should ask a few questions:

How long has the auction site been in business? Who stands behind it?

What is its fee structure, both for listing and final value fees?

Which forms of payment can you accept on this site?

What tools are available for sellers (such as bulk upload, templates, etc.) ?

Can I advertise my own website from there?

How much activity is there in your product category?

The last question is particularly important. A low-cost or even free auction site will be useless for you, if there is little traffic in your category. Even a completely free listing costs you the time you need to create it!

Once you have answered these questions, you may decide to go with one of the established competitors (yahoo.com, overstock.com), choose a smaller site (bluejay.com, ecrater.com) or go for a niche site that specializes in such items as pinball machines (pinballmachines.com) or bead jewelry (justbeads.com). Of course there is always the option of building your own web store to sell your items.

Pamela Bruce lives in Austin, TX. She is the owner of Love Beads Unlimited and sells the sterling silver and Swarovski crystal bead jewelry she designs and creates both in her eBay store (http://stores.ebay.com/LOVE-BEADS-UNLIMITED) and on her website at http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com, where you can also download the free e-book "A Consumer's Guide to Buying Bead Jewelry Online".

2006-01-25T05:58:00.000-08:00

- Is eBay Express IT? -

Well, eBay has gone ahead and announced another enhancement - eBay Express. This is what I have gathered from e-mails and the eBay website concerning the features of this upcoming service:

Everything on eBay Express will have a fixed price and will be available for immediate purchase - no more waiting for auctions to end (of course the Buy-It Now feature has also been available on eBay.com for quite a while).
There appear to be plans for some kind of shopping cart, making it easier for buyers to make multiple purchases from the same seller (nice, but why not offer that to regular eBay stores, too?).
There are a number of seller requirements: a feedback score of 100 or more, 98% positive or better, public feedback (as opposed to private), PayPal Premier or Business account, setting PayPal account to ship to unconfirmed addresses or make sale-by-sale decisions (a point that has caused some stir among sellers), and being based in the US (it seems that eBay Express will be offered only in the USA at first). Sellers also must state shipping costs, either flat, calculated or free, rather than forcing buyers to look for them in the item description or having to e-mail the seller.
eBay Express is supposed to be launched during the spring of 2006. Like the "IT" campaign, it seems to be another attempt by eBay to get away from the "cleaning out your garage and selling stuff on eBay" image and a challenge to conventional online rivals who have offered fixed prices and shopping carts for a long time. Also, let's first see, how well it works...

So much for today!
Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-01-21T08:00:00.000-08:00

- Online Shopping - How to Become an Online Bargain Hunter -

Admit it, it is much nicer to shop online than to drive to a crowded mall, where you might or might not find what you were looking for. More and more consumers have discovered how easy and conventient it is to do shop in the comfort of one's own home. Yet you may ask yourself what price you are paying - after all, many online stores charge shipping fees (or build them into the price). Are you paying too much for the convenience of online shopping?

The solution is to become a savvy online bargain hunter. Follow these rules to increase your chance of getting a great deal:

Stay informed of great deals These sites offer frequently updated information on online deals: http://www.techbargains.com, http://www.slickdeals.net, http://www.bensbargains.net, http://www.dealsofamerica.com, http://www.mybargainbuddy.com.

Always compare prices before you buy. Just because website "A" announces a sale doesn't mean that it offers the lowest price. Websites such as http://www.pricegrabber.com and http://www.pricescan.com will give you detailed pricing information.

Compare apples to apples. Price comparison sites sometimes lump used and new articles, retail and OEM versions together. Make sure you are actually comparing identical items.

Read store reviews. Sites such as pricegrabber.com and shopping.com also include reviews about the online store, so that you can avoid a store that might be cheaper but has lots of customer complaints.

Read the fine print before you order. What shipping fees does the store charge? Are there any "handling fees" (a rather sneaky trick when combined with "free" shipping)? What are the store's return policies?

Print out your order. After your confirmation page shows up, print out your order so that you have proof of what your ordered and at what price. Don't rely on finding the data later on the website - the site could change any moment.

Concentrate on larger items. Getting a pack of CD-RWs for $2 less than at your local computer store might be nice, but it is hardly worth your time. Spend your time looking for bargains on higher-priced items - computers, electronics, cameras, etc.

Be wary of rebates. It is great to get an article cheaply or free after rebate, but look carefully at the conditions (original receipts vs. copies, etc) and deadlines, and try to find out if the company in question has a good reputation about honoring rebates in a timely fashion.

Be patient. Frantic, last-minute shopping rarely leads to bargains. If you know that you will purchase an item in the near future, do some price comparisons, read revews, and wait for an online sale.

2006-01-19T15:45:00.000-08:00

- When Disaster Strikes -

If you are self-employed and work from home, you wear several hats, so to speak: you may be the marketing manager, accountant, receptionist or PR person. You are also your own technical support department and therefore responsible for safeguarding your data.

You should be clear about two things:

1. Sooner or later, disaster will strike. It does not have to be anything as dramatic as storm, fire or flood - an overheated motherboard, a malfunctioning hard drive or a computer virus can be enough.

2. The cost of backup hardware and media is trivial compared to the value of your data. Imagine that you lost your customer list, your product database or other crucial business data. How would your business continue?

Here are some tips for implementing a disaster recover strategy:

Buy an external hard drive. These hard drives, which connect to your computer via the USB 2.0 or FireWire port (check which port your computer has) have fallen dramatically in price. Some of them are about the size of a paperback and can be easily transported. Most come with a backup program that lets you schedule automatic backups for your data.

Put all crucial computer-related information in a folder. This includes the customer support numbers of hardware and software manufacturers, serial numbers, warranty documents and configuration information. The last thing you want to do is to hunt for these items while you are desperately trying to get your computer working again.

Back up data and store the media offsite. Having an external hard drive is great, but what would happen in the case of theft, flood or fire? You should regularly (let your calendar program remind you) back up important data on CD-Rs or DVD-Rs and store these elsewhere, such as at a friend’s house or in a safe deposit box at your bank. Do not forget to re-record, as backup media do not last indefinitely.

Back up data online. There are numerous companies that will store your data online for a fee, but it might even be enough to use a web-based e-mail service such as Gmail, Hotmail or Yahoo Mail, as these now offer very generous storage quotas. Just mail important files to yourself.

Have extra hardware. If your main computer fails, you can just move the external hard drive to your laptop and continue working. It might also be useful to keep an old computer around as a backup machine, as long as it still runs the programs you need to use. This way, you do not have to run out and buy a new computer right away, if your current one fails.

2006-01-17T08:13:00.000-08:00

The Beader's Companion

Pamela Bruce lives in Austin, TX. She has been beading since her teens. She is the owner of Love Beads Unlimited and sells the sterling silver and Swarovski crystal bead jewelry she designs and creates both in her eBay store (http://stores.ebay.com/LOVE-BEADS-UNLIMITED) and on her website at http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-01-15T18:15:00.000-08:00

Greg Holden How to Do Everything with your E-bay Business

I recently checked on amazon.com and found over 400 book titles devoted to buying and selling on eBay. These titles range from basic introductions (for "Dummies" or "Complete Idiots") to specialized books on selling antiques or collectibles. And of course there are numerous books promising huge profits without much effort.

Greg Holden's How to Do Everything with your E-bay Business (New York: McGrawHill/Osborne: 2003) occupies a special niche, as it is aimed at people who don't just occasionally sell a few things on eBay, but want to turn their eBay business into a steady, long-term venture.

Holden offers a basic introduction into signing up for eBay and creating listings, but goes beyond that. Chapters are interspersed with little stories of individuals who have been selling on eBay for years, which adds a nice personal touch.

The author also emphasizes that sellers should become extremely knowledgeable in their field (whatever it is) and do extensive research onthe items they usually sell. This is a healthy antidote to the frequent get-rich-quick schemes peddled by quite a few books on eBay.

Besides advice on opening an eBay store, Holden also provides information on how to use your own website for selling and/or promoting. All this is very useful, though the chapter on selling on sothebys.com is rather specialized and will not apply to many readers.

The layout of the book is clear and legible, with many relevant screenshots and photos, and the detailed index makes finding information easy.

Overall, How to Do Everything with your E-bay Business is a very useful introductory book for people who have more serious selling plans than just disposing of a few things lying around the house. I would recommend it it to prospective eBay store owners. While much of the same information can be found in eBay tutorials and particularly on the eBay discussion boards, reading this book will save you time and equip you with the basic knowledge you need to get started.

Pamela Bruce lives in Austin, TX. She has been beading since her teens. She is the owner of Love Beads Unlimited and sells the sterling silver and Swarovski crystal bead jewelry she designs and creates both in her eBay store (http://stores.ebay.com/LOVE-BEADS-UNLIMITED) and on her website at http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2006-01-14T07:49:00.000-08:00

- Back on the Blog -

Well, it has been a while, but I have not been idle during the hiatus. I have a web store now - please check it out at http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com.

I also wrote a series of articles for ezinearticles.com that I am going to reprint here. Number 1 is one about all-too-common pitfalls for ebay sellers:

Seven Surefire Ways to Make Your eBay Auctions Fail

By Pamela Bruce

I don't know how many books there are by now that propose to tell you how to succeed on eBay, how to make lots of money on eBay, or how to become a millionaire through eBay. Here are a few of my tips on how not to make money with an eBay auction:

1. Use irrelevant titles. I have actually seen eBay auctions with titles such as "This is nice". I am sure that many people are going to look for such a title! It is inconceivable that something like "Vintage garden sundial, copper, 1930s" might lead more potential buyers to your auction.

2. Use ALL CAPS, ALL THE TIME. Everyone likes the equivalent of being shouted at, and long texts in ALL CAPS are so easy to read, aren't they?

3. Show your educashion. Nothing attracts buyers like spelling errors and grammatical goofs. If you really want to impress customers, misspell the name of the item ("Dell latpop for sale").

4. Skimp on descriptions. Why should you tell the buyer the size, age or condition of the item? All those details would just confuse people...

5. Forget Feedback. I am certain that eBay buyers will just flock to your auction for a $3,000 diamond ring, even though you have zero feedback. Some people may slowly build up their feedback by buying and selling before offering expensive items, but who can be bothered?

6. Harsh words sell. Of course every buyer loves terms of sale that contain such phrases as "Absolutely no returns" or "Don't bother me with complaints"!

7. Oh, say can you see? Naturally, people love out-of-focus pictures of your items, particularly when photographed against the background of a dark shag carpet. Who cares about the details of that diamond ring - they are going to trust you, arent't they?

Pamela Bruce lives in Austin, TX. She is the owner of Love Beads Unlimited and sells the bead jewelry she creates at http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Pamela_Bruce

2005-12-03T12:13:00.000-08:00

- The Art of Beadwork -

Don't you love it when those boxes from Amazon start showing up on your doorstep? I recently ordered several book on beading, and my hands-down favorite is Valerie Hector's The Art of Beadwork: Historic Inspiration, Contemporary Design (ISBN 0-8320-0307-8).
The book looks at a number of ethnic and historical beadwork traditions, from Indonesia to Peru and from ancient Egypt to 20th-century Vienna and offers projects by contemporary bead artists based on each of these traditions.
I like the excellent photographs and illustrations. A fascinating book to rummage around in and get inspired by!

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-12-01T04:43:00.000-08:00

- Not Quite the Real Thing -

I have been playing around with the Virtual Beadbord at the Fire Mountain Gems website and must say, I am somewhat disappointed. In theory, it all sounds so great - select beads from the Fire Mountains catalog and arrange them on the virtual beadboard to try out new designs. No mess, no beads rolling on to the carpet, nothing to clean up. You can even calculate costs and order the beads and findings right there.
However, the whole thing reminds me of the garden.com website, back during the height of the dot.com boom. You had a virtual garden layout in which you could place various plants. I guess it is the lack of physical solidity, the flatness of the objects that made the virtual playground less than satisfactory.
In addition, the Fire Mountain beadboard was also at times very slow (though its companion, the Italian Charm Bracelet Designer worked without delays), and waiting for items to load does not exactly spark the creative process.
Nice try, but I would guess that most people prefer handling actual beads.

So much for today,
Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-11-29T04:34:00.000-08:00

- More on Google -

I heard about the new Froogle Local function a few days ago, but only had a chance to try it yesterday. According to this article in Betanews, it will be connected to Google Base, participation is free for retailers, and Google makes money by placing ads:

Google has plans to tie Google Base into its Froogle shopping search, which would allow users to scour a third-party database of product inventory. Such a service would take the guesswork out of finding what stores have the products a consumer wants, Google said.

Here is how it works: You go to http://froogle.google.com/ and type in the item and the location. Let's say, I want to find a Canon Powershot A520 digital camera in Austin, Texas. So I type in "canon powershot a520 austin" and hit the enter key. What do I get? A list of stores selling these cameras, with prices and locations, and a map of Austin where the stores are marked with little balloon icons. I can click on an icon in the list or on the maps to get driving directions.
Nifty idea, but so far there seems to be little content. I have found mostly items by the big electronics retailers. Results can also be somewhat off. A search for "rocking chair" returned a picture of a "Tuscan fire pit", and only by clicking on the picture did I see that it came with a "Tuscan rocking chair".
Overall, I have ounly found results provided by the big national retail chains, so the local aspect is not that pronounced. On the other hand, if retailers are responsible to provide Google with data, it is no surprise that small local merchants are not represented so far, as they do not have the time or staff for this.

Back to breakfast!
Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-11-28T05:31:00.000-08:00

- Afraid of Google? -

In the most recent issue of WIRED magazine, there is an article that asks the question "Who is afraid of Google?" Not surprisingly, the answer is "Everyone" - Cable providers, TV networks, eBay, Craigslist, monster.com, telcos, Apple, Microsoft, book publishers, etc., etc.
The fact that people now "google" an item of information (but nobody "yahoos" or "msn's") shows how clearly google has won the search engine wars. Flush with money from its IPO, google now can go in about any directions it chooses.
Yet where will it go? There are lots of possibilities. While many people use the main options on google's home page, there is much more wating in the wings. Here you can see options such as Book Search or Google Earth. Other sections, such as Google Video, are currently definitely no ready for prime time - who watches these jerky and blurry videos on mostly obscure topics?
Naturally, I do not know what the company will roll out next, but they certainly have enough potential to surprise the public and confound their competitors. Remember how much storage space free e-mail accounts offered, before GMail came around and challenged them?
Yet in spite of these potentially great technologies (wouldn't it be useful to replace inter-library loan with google, for instance), there is the danger that google will try to become the portal to everything for everyone. Think of Yahoo!, which combines areas where it shines (directory, e-mail) with lackluster offerings (auctions). Therefore, google should choose its areas of expansion very carefully. I would like to see them take on eBay to create more competition in the auction market, but google would have to get it right (including a payment system) from the very start.

Until next time...
Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-11-27T19:52:00.000-08:00

- Treasures on eBay -

Doesn't the title sound like on of those get-rich-quick-on-ebay books? However, I am not referring to first editions of Hawthorne's tales or genuine diamond necklaces that you can pick up for $9.99 -- no, the true treasures are to be found among the millions of users. Here are some examples:

If you just opened a store, Owen&Emma's eBay Stores Library is a treasure trove of information
Do you know what sells on eBay in certain categories? Look here.
Are you having problems taking good photos? Here is a great resource.
HTML coding? Store templates? If that is all alien to you, look here.
Need some tools to make your auctions more attractive? Look no further!
Account hijacking? A scary thought - but here is what you can do when it happens.
A great collection of useful links - from copyright issues to shipping methods.
Is this e-mail a spoof? Here are some great links that will help you decide.

I think eBay should be extremely grateful for these people who in many cases provide services one would expect the company to deliver...

So much for now...

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-11-26T10:03:00.000-08:00

-Beads of Wisdom -

Here are a few quotes from the famous and not so famous regarding beads:

I learned that you should feel when writing, not like Lord Byron on a mountain top, but like child stringing beads in kindergarten, - happy, absorbed and quietly putting one bead on after another.
Brenda Ueland

Life is a train of moods like a string of beads; and as we pass through them they prove to be many colored lenses, which paint the world their own hue, and each shows us only what lies in its own focus.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Method is more important than strength, when you wish to control your enemies. By dropping golden beads near a snake, a crow once managed To have a passer-by kill the snake for the beads.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

[O]ur forebears are deserving of tribute for one indisputable reason, if for no other: without them we should not be here. Let us recognize that we are not the ultimate triumph but rather we are beads on a string. Let us behave with decency to the beads that were strung before us and hope modestly that the beads that come after us will not hold us of no account simply because we are dead.
Robertson Davies

America is a place where Jewish merchants sell Zen love beads to agnostics for Christmas.
John Burton Brimer

Have a great weekend!
Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-11-24T18:21:00.000-08:00

- Beading Words -

Doesn't it sometimes happen to you that you know exactly what the doohickey looks like, but you cannot think of the word for it? Well, it happens to me, and here are some useful online resources for finding the right term for that beading whatchamacallit:

Beading Glossary - Nice photos, but still incomplete.
Fire Mountain Gems Glossary - these guys would certainly know their stuff. Some illustrations would have helped, though.
Illustrated Glossary of Bead Terms - useful resource!
Snazzy Cat Glossary - Not really a glossary, but rather an illustrated catalog.
Japanese Beading Terms - helps you understand Japanese catalogs and books
Bead Addict glossary
Common Beading Terms

Bye for now!
Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-11-22T07:30:00.000-08:00

Scam, Scam, Wonderful Scam

Is it just me, or is the scam desnity of the internet increasing? We are all used by now to the plaintive letters from widows of African dictators or high government officials looking for a trustworthy soul to help them get a few dozen million dollars out of their country, for a sufficient renumeration, of course.
Then there are the internet lotteries you won (even though you never entered them) and the utterly unknown relatives who died and left you millions. We can consider these classic scams part of the fabric of the internet, unfortunately.
However, the scammers are getting more sophisticated. Recently, there was a scam in which a bishop (sometimes a "prince", or even a "prince bishop") supposedly from Ghana wrote interpreters, asking for their services, as he was visiting the US, and his wife only spoke (insert language interpreter works with). This is how the scam then would proceed: Bishop sends forged check, bishop decides to stay only half the planned time, bishop asks interpreter to wire refund.
This indicates that the scammers are focusing on narrower targets and their stories are becoming somewhat more believable. Of course, eBay sellers are also a target. I have witnessed the following scam: Seller wants buyer to send item plus check for $500 to friends who are getting married in county X. Seller will be wired the money and paid $200 extra for his troubles, all he has to do is send item and check for $500 to friends right away...
Well, the scammers are not standing still and are changing their methods, so we have to keep informed. There are useful websites here, here and here.

Stay safe, and have great Thanksgiving!
Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-11-19T10:33:00.000-08:00

- The End of Newspapers? -

When Google launched the beta of Google Base (see previous posting), the German magazine Der Spiegel predicted the end of classified ads and the final decline of daily newspapers. Of course they were not the first one to predict that -- John Dvorak, for instance, said in Newspapers and Movies -- Both Fading Fast that "craigslist has probably sunk the business, with free classified advertising that is far more useful and functional than anything delivered by any newspaper. There was a lot of money made by the classifieds. That money is gone. Nobody knows how the newspapers can recover."
What we are witnessing is race for these new markets. Ebay launched Kijiji earlier this year, a free classified ad service available in many countries (except for the US). Of course craigslist has been adding international sites for a while, but Kijiji seems to be improving on it. For example, when I recently looked up Kijiji München (note that Kijiji is localized in many venues, whereas craiglist is in English), it offered 1,818 for sale/wanted ads, compared to a meagre 86 on craigslist Munich, while Paris had over 10,000 ads on Kijiji and only 528 on craigslist.
Newspapers have been trying out their own web-based classified, but my local paper certainly hasn't done it right. I tried to run an ad there the other day, but gave up on it as the process was so cumbersome compared to craigslist.
The proliferation of free classifieds on the web has its drawbacks to. Craigslist, for instance, routinely adds warnings about fraud and scam to responses from potential buyers. As with e-mail, once the cost of scams tends towards zero, their number will rise.
Whether Google base will turn out to be the big newspaper killer remains to be seen, but the general trend does not look good for the dailies.

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-11-18T05:11:00.000-08:00

- Google Base -

That was fast. After a few weeks of rumors and speculation, Google Base went live yesterday. In case you missed all the announcements, Google Base is a new service (still in beta stage) that offers "a place where you can add all types of information that we'll host and make searchable online", as the GB homepage puts it. It also lets people offer things for sale, thus making it a potential competitor if not for eBay, then at least for Craigslist.
I fiddled around with the upload format and haven't quit ironed out the kinks yet. On the other hand, GB won't be flooded by people looking for things to buy anytime soon, as it does not appear on the main search bar.
While GB leaves me somehwat less than overwhelmed so far, the Google homepage has an interesting new look. Click on "Personalized Home" and you can add components to your Google homepage. There are the usual suspects, such as News, Weather and Sports, but it is the option "Create a Section" that makes this really interesting. You can simply enter a feed URL in the box and click on Go. Just for fun, I added the RSS feed of my eBay store, and now I can always see what is available in it;-)
A more practical use would be to add a feed from your favorite store, news site or blog. And that is the beauty of the new Google homepage - while other portals such as My Yahoo! give you a selection of components to choose from, you can build your own portal here.

Back to breakfast! Until next time...

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-11-17T06:40:00.000-08:00

Look for those Extra 1-Cent Stamps!

Just a short note today. The dreaded moment is here. The US Postal Service has announced new postal rates which will go into effect January 8.
The cost of mailing a first-class letter will rise from 37 to 39 cents, and a 1-lb Priority Mail package will now cost $ 4.05 instead of $3.85.
Not too bad, after all. I think I will be able to absorb the increased rates in my flat-rate shipping and handling fee. Maybe I will look for a cheaper source of packing material.
Now I just hope the postal service will continue to ship you free Priority Mail boxes, as that makes Priority Mail very attractive for mailing small items.
I would stay away from the eBay-branded boxes if you want to establish your own brand image. Why not use the plain boxes and have some nice address labels printed? VistaPrint has some great designs, though you might want to sign up for their e-mail newsletter first and wait for some of their frequent sales.

So, let's get ready for the busy holiday season!

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-11-16T10:59:00.000-08:00

Bead Stores - Offline and Online

I was recently in Seattle and visited a bead store in the downtown area. What a disappointment! While the prices were reasonable, the store looked dingy, had a confusing layout and poorly labeled items. It also did not make good use available space. That experience made me long for my favorite local store, Nomadic Notions right here in Austin. It offers a huge range of beads and findings, is well organized, and the staff is knowledgeable and friendly.
There is something to be said for looking at and handling the actual merchandise, but price and selection also make a good argument for mail-order and internet stores. My copy of the hefty Fire Mountain Gems catalog is well-thumbed by now, and the company's website offers an enormous wealth of everything a beader needs.
Of course eBay also has been a great source of beads and particularly of findings for me. My favorite sellers are Buzzinbeads and Value Beads.
Finally, jewelry has to be displayed properly when you photograph it, and I found Gems on Display to be a good source for display busts and easels - if they could only offer necklace displays in more colors!

So, let me know your favorite sources of beading supplies!

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-11-15T05:59:00.000-08:00

-Creating "Art" from eBay-

Well, I had heard of this person before - somebody who sold everthing in his house on eBay and wrote about the experience. Now this genius is back, and according to this article, he has literally recycled the idea.
It seems that the Everson Museum of Art is presenting an art exhibit that "displays the priority of belongings in a socioeconomic experiment. The showcase includes items such as a waffle maker, clothing, taco shells and Star Wars bed sheets." The artist has traced the erstwhile buyers of his stuff and asked them to loan him these items for the museum exhibit.
Am I overwhelmed by the sheer artistic genius of this? Not really. What concerns me is the tendency of newspaper stories about eBay to fall into three groups:
a) a rewrite of an eBay press release
b) a report about scam and fraud on eBay (true, but without any statistics that would put it in perspective)
c) a story about someone selling a (fill in the blank) oddity and making big bucks
Don't you get the impression that most journalist are absolutely clueless about the topic? Maybe they should start publishing their eBay feedback with their byline...

Enough ranting for today, until next time!

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-11-13T05:44:00.000-08:00

- Murder and Beads -

I just finished reading Bead on Trouble by Barbara Burnett Smith, a mystery novel set among beaders, and in Central Texas, no less.
First of all, let me say how amazed I was at the fragmentation of the mystery novel market. Of course I was aware of standard genres, such as the police procedural or the English whodunit, as well as mystery series with regional connections. I had even come across mystery series with themes such as book collecting (John Dunning's Booked to Die is an excellent read for bibliophiles) or running a teashop.
These days however, there appear to be mysteries for beaders, potters and scrapbookers as well -- can you imagine the problems for bookstore owners ("Where do you keep the mysteries about juvenile herb gardeners?")
Despite these somewhat dubious trends, Bead on Trouble is entertaining in itself. The protagonist, Kitzi Camden, is an ex-politician turned corporate trainer and part-time beader. When she attends a beading camp in the Texas Hill Country, mayhem ensues. There is an old flame, a potential new love interest, fierce competition for a lucrative contract from an art catalog, and murder... May Feather, a talented beader is found dead in a creek.
Of course it does not help that Kitzi discovered earlier that the victim was having an affair with the husband of Kitzi's best friend Beth...

Nice reading, and the author keeps stringing you along (sorry, could not resist the pun), so that the ending is surprising. The best part is the witty dialogs.

So much for today!

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-11-10T19:07:00.000-08:00

- Great Free Resources for Your Online Business -

Here are a few free resources that I found to be useful for selling on eBay and other online auction sites:

The Postal Service! Surprisingly, its website (www.usps.com, not .gov, as one might expect) contains quite a few goodies, from online postage to custom forms in PDF format, and even free shipping boxes (if you use Priority Mail). The small boxes are great for sending lightweight items, such as bead jewelry, they are sturdy, can be dropped in a mailbox once postage has been affixed, and of course the price is hard to beat.
Auction Shark (http://www.auctionshark.com/). If you sell on eBay, you probably already know how to look up completed auctions to get an idea of market prices for specific items. However, you can broaden your search by having Auction Shark searching (current) auctions on eBay, Amazon, Yahoo and Overstock auctions.
Irfanview (http://www.irfanview.com/). Need to improve the photos you took (see my entry on photographing bead jewelry below)? Irfanview is a nifty free program that contains many photo-editing functions.
Scrolling gallery (http://www.isdntek.com/tagbot/xsell.htm). This freeware tool lets you enter your eBay auction numbers (or photo URLs) and descriptions on a website and then generates the code for a scrolling marquee that shows thumbnail pictures of your items. Just paste it into your About Me page on eBay or into your website, and presto!
A free HTML editor. If you want to create a basic website, but are not too HTML-savvy, you might consider Netscape Composer, which is part of older versions of the free Netscape package (http://browser.netscape.com/ns8/download/archive.jsp). It has a simple interface, lets you create tables, insert photos, and more. This does not compare to high-end packages like Dreamweaver, but it will get a simple job done.
An online thesaurus (http://www.m-w.com/). If you run out of words when writing your pithy, terse or loquacious auction description, take a look at this site. That might help you vary your descriptions a bit.

Until later.
Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-11-08T20:20:00.000-08:00

- Scanning Bead Jewelry -

As I mentioned in an earlier posting, taking pictures of bead jewelry is not always easy. You have to watch for the proper lighting, keep small objects in focus and chose the correct background that highlights the object without distorting its colors or detracting from it.

Earrings pose a particular problem, as cameras might have a difficult time focusing on such small targets. I was wrestling with a difficult photo of earrings one day, when I came across the suggestion of using a scanner. I tried it it, and the results were great - very detailed images that preserved even the tiniest features.

Besides earrings, bracelets and necklaces can also be scanned, though depending on dimensions, you might only want to focus on specific details, such as the claspp or a focal bead. The only limitations I have found is that objects should not be too three-dimensional, as that can be tricky for some scanners.

Another issue is the background - sometimes the white plastic of the scanner lid just won't do. In this case, a simple sheet of construction paper (go for pastel colors) might be the solution.

What scanner should you get? There are reviews of scanners here. I personally like multifunction devices that also serve as printers and copiers (saves on desk space) and have had good experience with the very inexpensive Hewlett-Packard PSC 1315.

So, go ahead and scan!

Until next time...

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-11-04T08:29:00.000-08:00

Selling Bead Jewelry on eBay

I am not an “old eBayer” who has used this online mega-mall for years, so I have nothing to say about its pioneering days. Right now, eBay is obviously the 600-pound gorilla of the online auction world, dwarfing all its competitors.

There are some good reasons for this. The sign-up process for new users is relatively easy, there are lots of online tutorials, and of course there is the advantage of sheer size (which eBay plays up in its recent rather odd “It” advertising campaign), both for buyers looking for items and for sellers trying to find potential customers.

Yet considering that eBay is the market leader and has been in business for a decade, there are strange shortcomings, too. The PayPal system has its glitches, sometimes photos do not display in auctions, there are days when everything slows down to a crawl, and I even received a Dutch error message once when trying to access an eBay function. Considering that eBay does not have to find the merchandise, take photos, write descriptions, package and ship the merchandise, but rather just provides the virtual infrastructure for the sales, there should be far fewer glitches by now. Recently, store owners could not even access their sales reports for several weeks!

Are there alternatives? Amazon Marketplace has a brisk sale in used books, but is not too strong in other areas. Overstock.com has started its own auctions, and Yahoo Auctions recently allowed people to sell for free. Yet when you look through these auctions, you notice that (at least in my area) they appear to be smaller and less active. A while ago, I scrolled through one thousand auctions for bead jewelry and found only a handful of items that had a bid, and not a single one with multiple bids.

If there could be a contender in the auction arena, it might be Google, and recently there were some stories about Google testing an online sales service. So far, there has been no confirmation of this, though, and eBay still remains the king of auction sites.

2005-11-01T15:19:00.000-08:00

- Photographing Bead Jewelry (on a Budget) -

When I think back and look at the first photos I took to use in my eBay ads, I can only shudder: they were rather blurry, looked flat and did not show true colors. While I am by no means an expert photographer, I have learned a lot since then, and I would like to share some tips and tricks on how to take good photos of jewelry without having to spend a fortune.
Here is what you will need:

A digital camera
Rechargeable batteries
A tripod
2-3 worklights with 100 W bulbs
A translucent plastic storage box to set up as a "stage", in which the object is placed
Several pieces of silky cloth as backdrops
Display stands, busts etc.

You do not need to get a top-of-the-line digital camera with 5 Megapixels or more, but you should definitely get a digital rather than a conventional camera for the amount of money ( vs. cost of developing film) and time it will save you. The picture above was actually taken with a 1.3 Megapixel Canon Powershot A10 that I picked up for $139 several years ago. Recharagable batteries (my camera uses the NiMH type) are a must, as digital camera go through batteries quickly, and you could easily spend a lot of money on batteries otherwise. You should also invest in a decent tripod, as it will make your work easier and your photos less blurred.
The plastic box setup, with worklights shining from the side provides softened shadows, without your having to spend serious money on a cloud cube or similar equipment quite yet. Do not use your camera's flash (it tends to make small objects appear flat), and set the white balance to the type of lighting you are using (see your camera's manual). Some cloth (particularly the kind used for linings) in a nice neutral color makes for a good background.
Here are some further resources on photographing jewely:

If yo have small objects, such as earrings, sometimes the best solution is not to photograph them at all, but use a scanner - but that would be the topic for another blog entry.

So much for today!

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-11-01T06:40:00.000-08:00

- The Lure and Lore of Gems -

When you work with gems, you occasionally come across fascinating stories. Did you know that jade, according to a Chinese myth, was created from the bones of a giant bird? Or that the tradition of birthstones is supposed to be derived from the 12 stones set in the breastplate of Aaron, as described in in Exodus 28, 15-30?
Gem names, too, have interesting origins. The name Amethyst, for instance, comes from the Greek word for "not drunken", as the stone was thought to guard against inebriation. Turquoise comes from the French word for "Turkish stone", as these gems were probably imported from there at one time.

Here is a list of online resources about the history and legends associated with gemstones:

Until next time,

Cyberbeader

http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-10-31T06:44:00.000-08:00

- Auri Sacra Fames -

The New York Times recently published a three-part series of articles on the "cost of gold" in terms of social and environmental damage. Personally, I much prefer silver jewelry, but the accursed hunger for gold, as the Roman poet Virgil put it, is deeply entrenched in our culture, making us move tons of rock for a few ounces of the yellowish, malleable metal.
Do you remember the fairy tale Rumpelstiltskin? Because of her father's boasting, the hapless girl has to spin straw into gold, create value out of worthless matter, which she can only accomplish with the help of the impish Rumpelstiltskin. Other fairy tales and legends abound with golden crowns, golden rings (would Frodo have carried a silver ring all that way to Mordor?) and entire hoards of the stuff, which occasionally have been found, while others still might await discovery, such as the legendary hoard of the Nibelungs.
Gold is permanent, and while some gets lost, much is melted down and reshaped over the ages. Thus what you are wearing around your finger, your wrist or your neck might be newly mined, or it could once have been an English Angel, Roman solidus, or the jewelry of an Egyptian lady. Interesting idea, isn't it...

So much for today. Please visit my blog again, and also take a look at www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

Cyberbeader

2005-10-30T11:15:00.000-08:00

- Dilbert and the Mink Coat -

I remember an old Dilbert cartoon, in which Dilbert talks to someone during lunch at a restaurant. Dilbert gives his credit card to a waitress, she disappears, Dilbert rants about the dangers of using the internet, then the waitress comes back and returns Dilbert's credit card - but now she is wearing a mink coat.
With apologies to waitresses worldwide, this cartoon has a valid point. While identity theft on the internet is real and all too common, there is plenty of the old-fashioned offline variety going on. I know what I am talking about, as someone recently stole my identity, most likely from the files of a state agency (police investigations are still ongoing, so I cannot be more specific).
Even though you may be protected from direct financial damage, identity theft will cost you. I spent so many hours making phone calls, filling out affidavits, having them notarized, making more phone calls ... it is a nightmare, and it will cost you a lot of time.
Here are some resources that I found useful and wanted to share with you:

The FTC offers substantial resources, including a downloadable booklet in PDF format
Department of Justice site on identity theft
Identity Theft Resource Center (includes pages in Spanish)
Privacy Rights Clearinghouse resources
Social Security Administration site on identity theft, particularly concerning misuse of your SSN.
The Wikipedia article on identity theft/identity fraud

So, use reasonable caution and stay safe!

Until next time

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

2005-10-30T09:43:00.000-08:00

- Welcome to Cyberbeader's blog! -

I finally combined two of my long-term interests: creating bead jewelry and using the Internet. I have been beading ever since I was a teen, and sold bead jewelry at a street market in the early 1990s. Now I launched my own website (well, actually, it was my SO - he knows much more about the nuts and bolts and gears of the net than I do), as well as an eBay store. Above is an example of my current work - a bracelet of shells, freshwater pearls and sterling silver.

Recently, I have been thinking how much the WWW has changed our lives. A little over a decade ago, it would have been impossible for me to start this type of business - I would have had to buy mailing lists, advertise in magazines, etc. - all at a much greater cost. Now I can potentially reach millions of customers. I also no longer have to be out in the heat of a Central Texas summer, or argue with a city bureaucrat about what exatly I may or may not sell at a particular street market.
The World Wide Web has certainly been a tool of empowerment, allowing many people to open virtual stores at a fraction of the cost of a brick-and-mortar business, while being able to stay at home.
I remember when the WWW was small and rudimentary, and Yahoo had a weekly list of newly added sites... on a nice grey background. I even remember the first commercial spam that appeared in numerous usenet groups and caused an enormous angry reaction. How innocent these days seem now.
Nowadays, I receive a steady stream of scam e-mails asking me to send items to various overseas countries, offering me much more money than I requested (one particularly absurd scammer even offered $1,200 for a $25 bracelet, so she could give it as a gift to "her Lord Reverend"). This is the dark side of the net - scams, phishing, spam and all the other terms we had not even imagined a decade ago. This is also why quite a number of people I know are actually afraid of going online, and particularly of buying anything. Of course the savvy internet user can avoid these pitfalls, but many newbies will get discouraged by them.

Well, we will have to take the good with the bad, and overall it is still a fascinating time to live and work in.
I hope you enjoy these random ruminations, and will come back for more of my musings, on life, work and the net.

Cyberbeader
http://www.lovebeadsunlimited.com

Random Ruminations of a Beader

7 Reasons Why Squidoo Lenses Are Great

PamelaLove Beads Unlimited - Unique Handcrafted Jewelry

Pamela
Love Beads Unlimited - Unique Handcrafted Jewelry