Welcome Pam, the owner of Pear Tree Jewelry!
"Over 10 years ago, when my kids were in elementary school, another mom friend and I decided to participate in the school's spring craft fair. My main product at that time was personalized children's jewelry. I also offered beaded earrings for the moms, which they would look over while waiting for me to do the personalization on their child's selected pieces. For a few years, I participated in several craft shows throughout the year, primarily spring and fall. Holiday seasons are always the hottest!
After a few years, I stepped back from crafting when our family began homeschooling. This became a wonderful nine-year journey that has resulted in many advantages for our kids. But it kept me really busy, and during that time there was little time for creating or selling jewelry!
(Photos Courtesy of Pear Tree Jewelry)
When my youngest headed off to college two years ago, the nest was finally empty. Odd at first, but it didn't take long before I realized that it was now Mom's Turn! I dug out some of my old beads and the bug soon returned. But I had also just graduated to my own "exhale" moment, and was enjoying the new balance in my life, and didn't want to sabotage it! I didn't want to over commit my time, and wasn't ready to go back to the craft show circuit.
Right around this time, a friend asked if I'd heard of Etsy. I checked it out one evening and ended up setting up shop right then and there.
The great thing about selling online is having the option of listing only items that I already have complete and ready to ship out. This allows me to create at my own pace. Over time, I opened shops in a few other online venues, (Artfire, 1000Markets, eBay and Zibbet) but have since pared back down to just two, with Etsy being my anchor. I've just recently created the Pear Tree Jewelry shop, to replace my original one, Front Porch Creations. Front Porch was the name of my original craft business, but it was time for a better suited name. On Etsy, this name had already been used, so I ended up compromising with a user id "FPC4You" - pretty awful! I've kept this shop open though, as it still has my feedback record. Etsy does not transfer that over to new shops.
(Photos Courtesy of Pear Tree Jewelry)
I have started to work in wire wrapping, and love it! I use sterling silver wire and components almost exclusively in my work, and currently have pendants in a variety of cabochons, and some even made up in large flat beads - whatever I find that strikes my fancy. I'm still relatively new at it, and still have a lot to learn, but I just love the amazing things that can be done with a simple piece of wire. I like working with natural gemstones and Swarovski crystal elements. I have also begun making my own French hook earwires. I find that they fit better than some of the manufactured ones, and I like the option of being able to adjust the diameter and length. With few exceptions, my pieces are all tumbled in stainless shot for a nice shine. This also sets up the wire. Though nearly all of my metal is sterling silver, I do currently have one bracelet design that incorporates a silver plated link. I tried it when developing this one particular design, and just loved the result. It came out so nice that I now plan to work it up in a few different colors!
Selling my jewelry online has worked beautifully for me, but I have also just very recently decided to dig out my canopy. I may join a few local craft events this fall. With jewelry, nothing beats touching, holding, feeling the weight of a piece, checking the quality and how earrings dangle, and holding pieces up before a mirror. Meanwhile, it's also great to spend time in the armchair, checking out what's new on Etsy with your feet up and a good movie on the tube! That's the beauty of Etsy!"
Here you can find Pear Tree Jewelry Products:
On Etsy:
On Zibbet
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