Three Silversmithing Torches

There are many torches to choose from for silversmithing, and even more if you are soldering other metals such as platinum.  The choice of torch used is largely a personal choice, but can also be based on budget, and of course the metal you are soldering.

There are two torches I currently use when making jewelry.  The Smith Acetylene Torch, and the Micro Torch.  The various steps while creating a piece will dictate which torch I'll use at any given moment.

My Smith Acetylene/Air Torch

The Cutest Thing Ever!!!

I want to crawl in there and kiss him/her goodnight!!!!

The Achilles Heel of Entrepreneurship

Ah, the sweet lure of entrepreneurship. What’s not to love? Working for yourself, setting the rules, forging your own path into the unknown, marketing, networking. Wait, marketing? Networking? You have to market yourself and network? How do I do that? How do I sell other people on my skills in such a way that will make them hire me over the next person? How do I build a network?

This is what I have been grappling with for the last few months – trying to figure out how to get my name and my services out there. There are freelance sites such Elance, oDesk, and Guru, but it’s worldwide competition and it’s hard to stand out and get the gigs the actually pay a decent rate. These are great resources, but I want to be able to work with local businesses who don’t already have someone with my skill set on staff – how do I find those people?

Which brings me to the marketing and the networking. Biznik is a great start for networking, and though I have been a member for some time, I have never utilized it the way I should and am confident that really digging my heels in and participating will reap positive benefits for myself and other Biznik members and visitors who may need my services.

There is also your local Chamber of Commerce, or here in Portland, Oregon, thePortland Business Alliance. The problem with this, however, is most entrepreneurs who are staring a business have a shoestring budget, if that, and membership with the Chamber or it’s equivalent is quite pricey – though I believe worth it if you have the money to spend. Then there is marketing, which is really difficult on a shoestring budget, but can be done. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and other social networking sites are an obvious choice. Craigslist is also a possibility, though precautions should be taken to ensure your safety when responding to prospects. Local newspapers sometimes do free press releases – though those would be more appropriate for an event to market your business. Which is another idea. If you have access to a community room, try hosting an informal meet and greet of small local businesses.

Partnering with other local business could also be a way to get your name out there. For example, small accounting firms often have clients who work for themselves. A partnership could mean they refer you to their clients or have your information on their website or at their place of business, and as your own business picks up, you return the favor by sending clients their way.

The trick I’m discovering is to be creative by thinking outside the accepted paradigm. I wouldn’t be doing this if I wasn’t confident in my abilities, so why is it so hard to carry out my marketing and networking ideas? Part of the answer lies with societal norms, upbringing, and your own personality. We are taught from any number of sources, that self-promotion is rude or self-indulgent. No one wants to hear how great you are, except that if someone is looking for your skill set, they actually do. To a point.

The other part of the answer is getting out of our own way to success. Some people are born with personality traits that make them a natural for self-promotion and marketing their product or service. They have learned to walk the fine line between coming off as obnoxious and coming off as confident. So how do we get out of our own way? I believe the best way is to just suck it up and go out there and do it. Show the world what we’re made of and how the solutions or products we offer will be a game-changer in their world.

I was talking to a local actor the other day who has near paralyzing stage fright. Before a performance, he has to do pushups and breathing exercises just to get out of his own mind and escape his insecurities and fear. Why would he bother, you ask? Because he loves acting, and he’s wonderful at it, so he pushes himself with every fiber of his being to walk out on that stage.

So my advice to myself and anyone else who has a fear of self-promotion – if the path you are leading makes your soul sing, then use every fiber of your being to walk out onto that stage. As Macbeth says in Act 5, “…Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player, that struts and frets his hour upon the stage, and then is heard no more…” There can be many scenes in a life, but each life has only one act – we must embrace our worth and share it with the world!

Upcoming Event!

"Just Say No To Captcha"

What follows is a link to a blog post by Every Day Products, about boycotting Captcha - it's a pain, and I'm sure really quite useless at this point!  If you have it, please consider disabling it - Thanks!

EVERY DAY PRODUCTS & MORE: Happy new year just say no to Captcha

The Importance of the Arts

The arts are a vital part of any society.  Go back through history and you will find an inordinate amount of examples of this from pottery to painting, theater to writing.  The global artistic history still breathes life into the arts today.  Artists are inspired by historical mentors such as Shakespeare, Degas, Michelangelo, Matisse, Hemingway, Byron, the list goes on and on.

Art helps to create vibrant communities.  Art provides an outlet for emotions otherwise unexpressed.  Art gives color where only shadows exist.

What follows is a video of the actor Kevin Spacey at the Nancy Hanks Lecture on Art and Public Policy - it's around 40 minutes long, but well worth the watch!

Happy New Year!!

To a healthy, and prosperous new year!!

It's been an interesting year for me to say the least.  This time last year I was employed, had just finished up my first holiday craft show, and was trying to get an arts center in Bellingham, WA off the ground with a friend of mine.  A year later, I'm living in an artist's community, in a new city, surrounded by new people, sites, and sounds of Portland, OR, unemployed, and trying to get my jewelry business off the ground, in addition to my new business venture as a freelance administrative professional.  Whew!  I've been in Portland now for three months and am finally allowing myself to just enjoy the journey.

So as we begin 2012, I leave you with a quote I found last year and posted in another blog I had been starting, and have decided that this is a great reminder to post every year, so without further ado:

"We spend January 1st walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives.....not looking for flaws, but for potential." Ellen Goodman


Have a fantastic year everyone!!  Follow your heart, live your dream, do what makes you happy, because, we only "pass through this world but once."


Cheers!