Why we will be closed March 26 and 27

No one sees what goes on behind the scenes at the Satin Cord Store, but at any given time, you will see our employees working as hard and fast as they can to get your orders out.  They are consciencious, dedicated, reliable and we are lucky to have such a great team. 

Since we feel that our employees are worth much more than they are paid, we want to reward them.  We are using the award points on the company credit card to take them on a short cruise.  Now with the AIG bonus issues, this is definitely not the time to use the B(onus) word, but this reward is for each and every one of our employees, not just company officers.  And it isn’t costing the company (or customers or taxpayers) anything.  We are lucky enough to live in a town with a cruise port, so all we have to do is drive over and hop on the boat.   And our employees have agreed to get off the ship Monday morning and come straight back into work to start getting your orders out. 

This is the first time the Satin Cord Store has closed since we opened in 2005.  We have been open (and have taken customer calls) 365 days a year – even Christmas day.  We thought about putting up a notice saying something like ‘closed for inventory’ but we’re just going to admit it – we are grateful for our family of employees and want to do something nice for them. 

Against the protests of everyone else, I will take my laptop on board and respond to e-mails received during the time we are gone.  We will listen to voice mails as soon as we return and will respond as soon as possible. 

We will get back into the shop as soon as we can on Monday (sometime mid-morning) and will fill orders in the order in which they are received.  We appreciate your patience, and will run a sale when we get back to express our appreciation for you, our valued customers.

Please Please Please Buy Handmade!

Almost everyone who buys from our site makes stuff, and many of you sell what you make.  Some of you even make your living selling what you make.  That said – with the holiday season coming up, please consider supporting your fellow artists and buy handmade gifts whenever possible!

One good source – Etsy (www.etsy.com) ! For those of you unfamiliar with Etsy, for the artist, it is a quick and easy way to get a store up and running. Kind of an eBay, but limited to handmade goods or supplies for making such. Some people just have a few items up for sale, others make their living selling there. For the buyer – no auctions or bidding to have to keep up with – just a wealth of hand-made items that can be immediately purchased. A lot of sellers will even send gifts directly to the recipient for you.Some things that you might consider:  Cards – there are loads of cards out there – either handmade, or printed from original artwork. Buy Christmas card sets, or buy a bunch of birthday cards to keep on hand for when you need them. I gave one to my step-daughter for her birthday and she said, ‘Somebody made this! This is really cool!’. Soaps, lotions and lip balms – you can’t go wrong with these on hand to give out as gifts. Of course – Jewelry! Loads and Loads of it! If you know anyone with a Pandora, Troll, Biagi or similar bracelet, you can find lots of beads to fit the bracelets. Purses, totes, diaper bags, wallets, credit card holders, jewelry rolls and pouches, travel bags, makeup bags, ipod cases – the list here goes on and on! Artwork – from small inexpensive prints to original paintings. Ceramics, pottery, sculpture, mixed media! Really cute children’s clothes, hats, socks, toys. Pet or pet-lover items and gifts! Just to put in a little plug here, April does a really cute Naughty Cat card series at her Daisy and Friends Shop . If you have a cat, you’ll definitely relate! Music – from engraved guitar picks to original CDs. Food – wonderful baked goods! If anyone has an Etsy shop that you’d like to plug, just reply to this post with your Etsy store name. If I get a chace, I’ll blog some of the shops.

The Good News – People Are Still buying Jewelry

Hi everyone,

Like many of you, we sell jewelry at a number of art shows during the year.  Last weekend, we packed up and headed to Atlanta for our first show of the fall.  Considering the economy, we weren’t expecting great things.  However, to  our surprise, we had a very good show. 

As small business owners, and like everyone else, we’ve been watching the economy news with quite a bit of trepidation.  If you listen to enough news on TV, it will pretty much convince you that everyone in the country has run out of money and the economy has gone way down the tubes.  But lo and behold, there are still people out there with good jobs, who still have discretionary income. 

Granted, we have a wide price range in our jewelry booth, and most of the sales were items that were towards the lower end of the price spectrum, but there were people who bought 8 or 10 of the lower priced items. 

Cathy, one of our employees, theorizes that when things get really bad and people feel powerless to solve the problems that we are facing, they are still willing to spend $18 on a small jewelry item to make themselves feel better.  That, plus the fact that a lot of people were Christmas shopping, probably contributed to the fact that our show was every bit as good as any other show we have done over the past few years. 

So take heart – we know that many of you buy our products to make jewerly to sell.  The buyers are still out there, and people will always want jewerly, no matter what else is going on in the world.

Thelma

Hi everyone,

It is with great sadness that we report the loss of a dear team member, Thelma.  Thelma lost her battle with lung cancer at the end of May.  None of you ever talked to her by phone, but if you ever bought 10-yard coils of cord, Japanese cord, Chinese knotting cord, hand-dyed cord or packets of findings,  Thelma bagged them for you.  When we fill orders, we’re still pulling out bags that Thelma packed, and we miss her every time we see the familiar handwriting on the bags.  Thelma was 73 years old and worked up until 2 weeks before she passed away, helping to support a disabled son.  What we’ll miss the most is her cheerful smile and always upbeat attitude, even in the face of great pain.  She had a difficult life, but always focused on helping others.  She will always be an inspiration to us. 

Art Insomnia Beads – Meet our Friend Dawn

We would like you to meet our friend Dawn of Art Insomnia Beads. Dawn is a lampwork bead artist and is truly the ‘Queen of Raku’. She is an absolute master at coaxing color from Reichenbach 108 Iris Orange – affectionately known as ‘Raku’ by the lampwork community.

Dawn and I met in 2003 (eek – has it really been 5 years?) when we were both selling polymer clay beads on JustBeads.com, and have been internet buddies ever since. Several years ago she made the leap from polymer clay to lampwork and her lampwork beads became an immediate hit. Last year she was gracious enough to invite us down to her beautiful studio in Port St. Lucie, Florida to give us a lesson in beadmaking. Watching her effortlessly apply stringer was a humbling experience.

She sells her beads on eBay and has recently opened an Etsy store: ArtInsomniaBeads.etsy.com . Be sure to stop by and check it out!