Asking a favor...need opinion please

[sunsetpainter]

I've been dabbling in jewelry for a while and I'd like opinions on these earrings.  They are silver, nickle-free wires, not sterling, and aurora borealis beads, not precious stones.  I was thinking about listing them on Etsy but really have no idea of what to price them.  I don't wear jewelry myself, but I enjoy making it.  Also, how would I ship them so they don't get damaged?  Any constructive criticism is welcome.  Thanks!

[jellybeanscloset412]

I really like those. Unfortunately, I don't know pricing.
I just wanted to say I like them!

[deltas*delights]

I've tried selling jewelry on ebay with very little luck and I kind of jumped in with both feet. Hope you have better luck. I have no idea on pricing but I would pay up to $20 for them. I don't know how much help that is. Oh, and you didn't ask but I think you call those chandelier earrings.

[sunsetpainter]

Thanks delta. I looked up chandelier earrings on Etsy and so many of them are not hand made. They may be "hand beaded" but so many of them use purchased findings and just put some beads on them. I do all the wire work myself, except for the fish hooks (French wires) themselves. I haven't bought earrings on over 30 years and just don't know how to price them. And I was wondering if they really looked good enough to sell.

[kat]

Those look like a lot of work. Beautiful.

[Deleted]

I would see how cheap it is to buy some of the black earring stock that earrings come on in the store. If they are cheap I'd buy a 20 or 50 pack of them to get started and put the earrings on them, then wrap them in tissue with a bit of bubble wrap around them. Slip them into a little box or bubble envelope for shipping. If the earring stock/backing things are too expensive you could just cut some cardboard squares our even use some heavier poster board cut into a square with 2 holes punched in it to put the hooks through, then proceed with the same wrapping as above. If you have some of the little clear rubber stoppers to slip on the hooks to hold them once you put them through the cardboard that would be even better. I know you can buy those super cheap and probably pick them up at hobby lobby etc.

As for price I rarely wear earrings or anything anymore so not much help there. But those are absolutely nice enough to sell.

[frakinfashion]

Can't help on pricing. But I ship my jewelry nice and safely as peek says. Wrap in tissue, then in bubble wrap, then put in bubble lined, mailing envelope. The card is a nice idea if you want to brand them as yours. Otherwise, you don't really need it.

[zoesam]

I'd say $20-30? It's kind of a guess though, as I buy most of my jewelry at art shows & I don't do much beaded stuff. Shipping shouldn't be much of an issue, just some padding & a small bubble envelope. They are lovely, but aren't those AB beads s'posed to be iridescent? If so, I'd work on your photos a bit, as that is not really coming through at all. I just did a search on AB beads & I see they are iridescent & mostly I see them photographed on white. Maybe play with some indirect but bright light to get the iridescent sparkle to show or try a different color background.

I'm not saying your pics are bad, but they're not very sharp & you can't tell they're AB beads, which I think is critical since that's a highlight of the jewelry. I would make sure you're using your best macro setting to sharpen them & play with lighting & backgrounds until you get the iridescence to show, as they just look like flat clear, milky beads to me, not iridescent. Here's a pic from Terapeak on black that has a lot more detail & another one on off white. In both of these, you can really see the facets & iridescence. Do a google image search on AB beads & you'll see a lot of other examples.

d2ydh70d4b5xgv.cloudfront.net/images/c/2/art-deco-triple-strand-aurora-borealis-faceted-crystal-glass-beads-necklace-aa949a904baeb9e789415aa3f1c7de33.jpg

g01.a.alicdn.com/kf/HTB19FVYJFXXXXXbXpXXq6xXFXXXq/Free-Shipping-Fashion-Jewelry-7X10MM-Sky-blue-AB-font-b-Aurora-b-font-font-b-Borealis.jpg

I love the little spiral loops of wire (I think that's what they are, I can't tell for sure) at the bottom. Personally, when selling jewelry on Ebay, I like to put in a coin for size perspective. Not sure if it's as necessary on Etsy, but I'd look at others & see what they're doing. With tight photos like that, it's hard to tell the size...are those 1" or 3" long? Hard to tell & we know most buyers don't read.

Good luck, I hope you sell lots of them!!! I def wouldn't bother with Ebay & would only do them on Etsy.

ETA:  I didn't realize that would include the photos from my links.  Looks like you can click on them to see big photos, first is from terapeak, second from Alliexpress or something like that.  I just chose a couple at random to show you the level of detail.

[sunsetpainter]

Thanks zoe! Lot of good info. I will play around with the pics to show them off better. I just took those really quick to post here. Didn't think about a coin for size reference...good idea! Not sure what a macro setting is though.

[zoesam]

Aug 19, 2016 18:19:27 GMT sunsetpainter said:

Thanks zoe! Lot of good info. I will play around with the pics to show them off better. I just took those really quick to post here. Didn't think about a coin for size reference...good idea! Not sure what a macro setting is though.

The macro setting is the setting on ur camera for taking close-up photos, generally identified by a flower, whether it be a manual or digital ID depends on your camera & then you can also typically still zoom within your macro setting.

ETA: if you aren't using your macro setting, which I'm guessing you may not be based on the fuzziness I see, it really is a must for small items.  Take a look at the 'tag question' thread, as there's references in there as to how to use it too.

[sunsetpainter]

Thanks zoe! I have the "flower" setting on my camera, just never figured out what it was for.  I'll check out the other thread.

[denise15601]

Very pretty!

[val2525]

I see hand crafted, nickle free wire earrings at Dillards, usually starting at $19.99, minimum. Average I see would probably be $24.99 for AB beads.

[Deleted]

I don't know a thing about pricing earrings but that is beautiful work.

[sunsetpainter]

Sept 8, 2016 13:01:23 GMT @tpsvintage said:

I don't know a thing about pricing earrings but that is beautiful work.

Thank you!

[Deleted]

Your work is beautiful. You probably would do best to include "handmade artisan" in your titles and if on eBay the country of manufacture being used for US. Other KWs, possibly for IS that you make; boutique, US artist, bohemian, hanging, dangling, chandelier, beaded wire, French wire, etc.

Beaded wire chandelier earrings can ship either put in a bubble of thick bubble wrap on a card or in a jewelry box lined in bubble wrap atop the earrings then in the padded shipping bag. You can include the small silicone bell/donut backs/stoppers for those also. You can buy them in bulk for just a few dollars.

Best of luck, really nice work.

[val2525]

Sunset, do you plan to make any in colors? The colored AB beads are gorgeous.

[sunsetpainter]

Sept 9, 2016 13:44:01 GMT val2525 said:

Sunset, do you plan to make any in colors? The colored AB beads are gorgeous.

Yes to colors, in the near future.  I need to research what colors are popular since I don't wear jewelry myself.  Any suggestions?

I actually picked up some vintage/retro necklaces and bracelets with pretty glass beads at yard sales that I'm going to use.

[val2525]

I'd see what colors are coming up in fall collections and use those. For some reason, accessory colors always seem to run a season behind clothing colors.