One of the results of having your own business is that it educates you about how much it costs to make a product or offer a service. I’ve written about some of the issues that affect fine-jewelry manufacturing costs — and, as a result, retail prices — in my “Get Smart” series of posts. I…
education
Get Smart (About the Price of Gold)
Last month, when I wrote about how I was raising the prices of my jewelry because of the record-high price of gold, I promised that I would answer some frequently asked questions the next day, including the one that’s straight out of Dumbassville: “Why don’t you buy cheaper gold?” (Apparently people think I love overpaying!)…
No Cheap Tops for Me, But a Good Reminder About Rarity
At the end of last month, an article in the Wall Street Journal — by my former colleague Teri Agins — caught my eye. It was about the awesome tops she found at fast-fashion stores for under $30. Lately, I’m desperate for separates that aren’t black t-shirts, so I was inspired to venture into Forever…
Buy Gold and Your Investment Will Double Overnight. Promise!
A couple of weeks ago, I emailed a manufacturer about producing a pendant that I last made in 2009. I never got a reply, so when I went to visit him about an engagement ring I was working on, I asked, “What’s up with that pendant?” He turned green. He really did! Not solid, Kermit-the-frog,…
This Free Advice Is the Exception to the Rule
People frequently ask me for my No. 1 small-business tip, but who can say if they’ll be faced with the situations I’ve faced? The lesson that was the hardest for me to learn might be something other people never encounter. But since y’all want to know, I’m going to answer with a Pandora’s box of…
She Looks Like Bjorn Borg to Me
Yesterday, The Huffington Post ran my article about fashion writer Suzy Menkes’s use of the word “squaw.” The word appeared in a story about royal headpieces published in the New York Times’s T Magazine, and was used in reference to the late Princess Diana: “Then there is a cabochon emerald collar that the stately Queen…
OMG! Get Smart (About Quantity)
There are only five days left to pre-order my new OMG, LOLZ and NYC rings (with free shipping) via Kickstarter! CLICK HERE TO ORDER! The great thing about my rings is that they give you that cool knuckle-duster look without paralyzing your fingers. You can even type in them. I’m wearing the OMG set while…
One Sample Size Does Not Fit All. Deal With It.
Did you know the world revolved around voluptuous Mad Men star Christina Hendricks? Neither did I! Fortunately, I read New York Magazine’s The Cut blog, which alerted me to the fact via a story about Hendricks that ran in the The Daily Record of Scotland. The Record quoted her as saying: “People have been saying…
Why My Gold Jewelry Is a Total Steal
Towards the end of last month, the price of gold hit a new high of over $1,260 an ounce. I was going to explain the economic and political reasons for the increase and examine its implications but I had a vision of y’all searching your Poodle Reader for something more interesting … maybe the blog…
Get Smart (About Custom Work)
In yesterday’s post on my Freud cufflinks, I mentioned that a client who orders custom jewelry from me will get a lower price if I wind up adding the design to my line. I promised a long explanation of that and here it is. Remember my January post about manufacturing costs and how larger quantities…