handmade sterling silver jewellery

My mom makes handmade jewelry out of sterling silver and natural stones, and most recently enamel. She is always receiving complements on her pieces, and has had one bracelet featured in a jewelry magazine, as well as a few pieces in galleries. But she wants to start selling them on a larger basis, how could she start doing that? Does anyone know where she can find a representative? Thanks!
hey, thank you so much for responding, your answers were very helpful!

Since your mom has never had a business before, I would strongly recommend that you both talk to a business counselor before you do anything especially spend money. You have to determine whether you'll start a web based business or one with a store front. I'd call the local office of SCORE (go to http://www.score.org and input your zip code to find the chapter nearest you), the advice is FREE.

The counselor at SCORE will most likely advise you to write a business plan which is very good advice because it will force you to dig out all of the start up details and the costs of starting a handmade jewelry business and force you to also understand all of the aspects of this business including the customers you'll concentrate on (your market ) and how you'll go after them.

You'll need to register the business with your state controller's office and make sure that you have any city and county licenses if any are needed where you live. All of this will come out in a business plan.

Try this link :
http://www.ychange.com/small-business-co nsulting-articles.html and read some of the articles especially the ones about a business plan and starting a business.
Good Luck

2007-10-26 12:52:53 by iamme210

thesilverart.com Handmade collection of sterling silver Celtic Jewelry by silversmith artist Blue Crockatt. Featuring rings, pendants, necklaces ...

all handmade by me, materials, price of, and time spent on vary greatly. also, there is transportation and display costs. an example of what i sell is : 16 inch onyx and black agate necklace with a teardrop mother of pearl pendant, 18 inch 3 strand turquoise colored seed beaded necklace with a handmade one of a kind 30mm sterling silver dolphin and hoop pendant. both took about 2.4 hours to make.

Normally, price is associated with quality, especially when it comes to handmade jewelry. You don't want to price your jewelry too low because people will think maybe something's wrong with it. Fast sell and good profit are almost like oxymorons when it comes to jewelry. A lot of time and money goes into making it, so don't underprice your jewelry. Of course, this means it might not sell as fast.

You can calculate both wholesale and retail price. Labor is the amount you want to pay yourself per hour. Depending on your experience it can be anywhere from $15 and up per hour. A common pricing formula is the following.

Wholesale price = (Materials X 2) + (labor X # of hours)
Retail price = wholesale price X 1.50(50% markup)

The markup over the wholesale price can be as high or as low as you want but 50% is pretty common. The display and transportation costs cannot be part of the price since those are business expenses. You have to markup your jewelry to the extent that the price will cover all your expenses plus leave you with a decent profit.

2007-06-20 11:44:10 by fairypikt

Apply silver polish to prevent oxidization.
All purpose jewelry - casual, formal and party wear
Bracelets Length: 7.75 inches, Weight: 12 Grams.

I'm talking about NICELY made handcrafted jewelry using sterling silver and semiprecious stones - NOT cheaply made items.
Compared to store bought jewelry of the same quality.

Thanks~

Personally, I wouldn't care. I would be flattered no matter what. It really is the thought that counts! :)

2008-11-08 17:16:28 by ♥ Jasmine ♥

All purpose jewelry - casual, formal and party wear
Bracelets Length: 7.75 inches. Weight : 7 grams.
Apply silver polish to prevent oxidization.

I make handmade jewelry - mostly beaded works (beadweaving with seed beads & crystals) which sometimes have sterling silver clasps.

I'd like to sell my jewelry but have a concern.

The thing is.....I smoke and am concerned of the jewelry smelling like smoke. (of course I don't smell anything because I am a smoker)

Any tips on how to remove cigarrette smoke smell out of my jewelry? (keep in mind they are beads, crystals, nylon thread,, and sometimes sterling silver clasps)

You can cover your items with coffee in a paper lined container. Both will absorb the odors.

If you sell your items you will need new and uncontaminated packaging items because many buyers are allergic or offended by smoke odors. Also, many people, like myself cannot inhale many perfumes or other odors. So odor free is the way to go.

Also use a little windex on the silver to take the nicotine off. It won't harm your thread or other beads.

2009-07-07 00:51:35 by Michelle A

I checked the help list on ebay but it really didn't answer much for me. It confused me. The way I see it, the only way to make any money off it is to up my prices so I don't loose too much to them. Is it worth it? Do I loose as much as I think I do? I want to set up a jewelry store because I do a lot of handmade jewelry with good stones sterling silver, etc, and I don't really want to up my prices because I'm not one to rip someone off. Can anyone help?

Every few months or a few times a year, ebay sends out an email for a free month of ebay store.

SO first off to open a store -- Pretty easy. Simple go to ebay and click the "help tab. Then type in "open store" in the help search and you will get some easy to follow instructions.

Prices -- To have a store it cost a monthly fee. The fees varies and I don't know the cost off hand.

Listing Fees and FAV with a store --- When you have a store these fees are lower compared to someone who doesn't have a store.

Things to consider ---
1) Stores are only worth it if your selling a few hundred items or more a month.
2) You should only consider opening a store if your feedback is very high and you have lots of business already.
3) Stores are only worth their cost unless your spending about $200 or more in listings fees.


I've tried both with and without a store. For me and my business, a store is not economical. The saving I would get from listing fees are not enough to cover the monthly expense of the store.

Sorry this is so wordy, I hope I helped.

2007-09-10 10:32:48 by Lauren P