Jewelry making is a great way to make money, and one of the best things about it is that you can do it at home. Whether you are looking to earn just little bit of extra money each month, or eventually make it a full-time source of income, making jewelry can be a great way to earn money.
One of the best things about jewelry making is that it doesn’t take a big investment to get started. You can create inexpensive jewelry with low-cost materials or even use recycled materials to create completely unique jewelry.
Even though you don’t need a big investment to get started making jewelry at home, you do need to know how to get started.
To start your own jewelry business at home you will need a creative spark, so it’s also important to know how to nurture your own creativity, to take chances in that realm, and to not be afraid to be different and try new things.
If there is one thing that could be considered a “secret” to success, it’s being different from everyone else.
Making jewelry at home, or any craft or art, is a true labor of love. First and foremost you have to enjoy what you’re doing, you have to have a passion for it, you can’t just do it “for the money “because that will show through in your work. You have to do it because you want to do it, because you love it and enjoy it and because you want to share that with other people. If you go into it with this mindset, you are off to a good start.
What do you want to make?
This is the first question that you will need to answer. What is it that you want to make? You have to know what type of jewelry you want to make. Not sure where to start? Think about all the different types of jewelry that there are.
There’s very trendy jewelry whose styles are always changing. There is beaded jewelry that uses glass beads. There is beaded jewelry that uses semi precious stone beads and pearls. There is jewelry that is made from recycled components. There is jewelry that is mostly made with wire. There is mystical jewelry that is made from crystals and in which the stones are chosen by their metaphysical properties. There is jewelry for weddings and bridal parties. There is jewelry for teens and tweens. There is jewelry for men. There is jewelry made with natural components such as wood and shells. There is jewelry made from plastics, resin, and from handmade beads.
There is jewelry for just about any interest that you could think of, sports, pets, travel, nature, the list goes on and on. What kind of jewelry do you want to make? Make what interests you, but make sure that it will also interest other people, or you will not be able to sell it. You want to create something for some type of audience who will want to buy it, but at the same time, you want to enjoy making it too.
Tools
You can’t learn jewelry making without having some tools and jewelry supplies in front of you. This is a hands-on craft which requires you to go through some trial and error, creating and learning while you go. For the most extreme beginner, you will want to start with some very inexpensive components such as inexpensive wire and glass beads.
Save the precious metal wire (silver and gold) and fancy stuff such as crystal, stone and semi-precious beads until you’ve got your techniques down and your jewelry is looking very good and you feel confident in taking the step towards more expensive materials. Everyone starts this way, even the best designers started right where you are today! So don’t worry, just take it step-by-step and you will be fine.
Go to your craft store and ask a knowledgeable sales person to show you the most inexpensive craft wire and jewelry making components. Tell them you are just getting started and that you need the very basic beginner supplies for practice, and I’m sure they’ll be glad to help.
Hint: Instead of buying sterling silver wire, go to your local hardware store and buy a few feet of copper wire in a few different gauges. Use this wire for learning and practicing your jewelry making techniques.
Where to learn
If you have the opportunity to take a class in jewelry making with some very basic jewelry techniques, that’s a great place to start because you hopefully will have an instructor who will be able to offer you some one on one hands-on help and instruction. If not, no fear, you can teach yourself. All you need is some patience and ambition. You can find basic jewelry making books at most libraries, And YouTube offers tons of jewelry making videos.
Keeping track of what you spend
This is important. Right when you get started, you need to save all of your receipts and you need to have some kind of a notebook where you can jot down some very basic information to keep track of what you spend and how much things cost. This is important for two reasons. First, you will need all the receipts for your taxes, and second, knowing how much you spent on all of your beads and components (and even your tools) will help you price your jewelry when the time comes.
What’s next?
Once all of these things start to come together, you want to think of a name for your jewelry making business. You may also want to think about a simple logo, as well as the image you want to project for your jewelry making business, as well as what type of packaging you are going to use. At this point when you are getting ready to sell your jewelry, you are going to also want to order some business cards and packaging.
Time to sell!
Now is when the real adventure begins. It’s time to sell your jewelry. You need to sell at craft shows. You need to expose your jewelry to people at a live event so that you can see their reactions and you can get their feedback. It is so important to discover what people like and do not like about what you are making. That will help you so much.
