From Finished Jewelry to Gallery Storefront

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Hello!
I've spent the last few days getting everything ready to send my new Winter 2017 collections off to a few galleries. As I was shooting photos, it struck me that most people likely don't know what an artist does between when a piece of handcrafted jewelry (or any other type of art) is finished and when it arrives at a gallery (or Etsy, Shopify, etc.). I'm going to take you on a quick tour of the work that I do after I finish a piece of jewelry, and give you a bit of insight into the "behind-the-scenes" life of an artist. Every maker will have a slightly different process, but I guarantee many of the steps are similar. So, if you ever balk at the price of a piece of artisan jewelry in a gallery or other venue, keep this in mind: When you buy a piece of art, you're recognizing and supporting the years of training and experience that goes into making that piece, not just the material and time spent on its creation. Enjoy!

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1. When I finish the body of work, I decide which pieces will go to each gallery. For me, this usually involves spreading my work out on my desk and placing them into piles.

2. I photograph my own work, so the next step is taking photos of each piece. First, I set up a backdrop and my professional lights. For general-use images, I use my phone to take the photos; for exhibition-worthy images, I use my DSLR.

3. Before I begin shooting, I polish each piece to make sure there's no tarnish or fingerprints on the metal. In person, those things wouldn't matter all that much, but a camera highlights everything. Good or bad. So, I take my handy polishing cloth or fine abrasive paper (depending on the metal finish), and give each piece a good scrubbing.

Lexie decided she needed to help me set up my poster-board backdrop. She's such a good helper.

4. Next, I set up each piece individually against my backdrop, and take multiple photos from multiple angles. Customers want to see many views of the piece before purchasing it, so I try and take photos from at least five different angles/perspectives of each piece. For this current round of deliveries, I had 20 new pieces, each needing approx. five photos. And, thanks to digital, I take multiple shots of each view of each piece. That's a lot of pictures!

Yes, Batman and Robin help with photography. And, to diffuse the light, I put a trash bag over the lamp...classy.

5. After I finish taking the photos, I upload them to my computer, and sift through hundreds of pictures to pick the best shots of each piece. I put these selections in a separate folder (to retain some semblance of organization), and then edit each one to give them a white background. For this batch, I narrowed it down to 139 images.

For general-use photos, I use Fotofuze.com to help me create a white background. I have a monthly subscription so I can create print-quality photos.

6. I keep a record of everything I make, so I input the information about each piece into my inventory-management software program. It's also great, in that it automatically calculates the price for me based on my predetermined pricing formula. For each piece of jewelry, I add the following information: Title, description, dimensions, quantity of each material used, labor, item #, and a photo or two. This software also helps me track which pieces are consigned at each gallery, so before I move on, I make sure to register each piece with the appropriate venue.

These trays are a lifesaver! They're perfect for organizing my jewelry.

7. Next up is inventory. For each gallery, I assign every piece an item number based on the galleries' particular naming conventions. Then, I rename the photos to match the list. I include the item number, title, materials, dimensions, photo, and shipping date of each piece on the inventory list. Before I pack the work, I print two copies (one for my records and one to include with the jewelry), and make sure the digital copy is in the same folder as the corresponding folders.

8. Finally, it's time to pack up the jewelry! I give each piece a final polish, wrap it in tarnish-resistant paper, and place it in a plastic bag labeled with its item number. Then, I put all the pieces for each gallery in a larger bag, and add my inventory list. And I breathe a sigh of relief.  :-) All that's left to do is package each bundle securely, ready the shipping labels, and head to the post office to insure each package and send them off to their new temporary homes. It's a journey!

It may not look like much, but these three bags contain an entire body of work!

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My Winter 2017 collection is available at:
Equinox Jewelry Gallery (San Antonio, TX)
3rd Ward Jewelry (Milwaukee, WI)
Paoli Road Mercantile (Paoli, WI)
My shop (coming soon!)