Sharma Designs - Behind the Scenes of a Handmade Jewelry Business

Only a Week until Christmas??!!

I guess I have been in denial. I was thinking I had like 2 weeks until Christmas. This morning I realized that I had barely over a week. I still haven't finished my Christmas shopping. I have a lot of jewelry to make as presents for friends and family. Hmmm. When will I fit that in? We have had family here all week too so I have been occupied with that. I have also had a slew of orders this week. Apparently I am not the only one who is slacking on their Christmas shopping.

So all of this to say that I may not be posting very often in the next week or so. On my to do list is Christmas shopping, getting a tree, making jewelry, planning my daughters first birthday (Jan 7th), setting my business goals for the coming year, making new jewelry for the site (which is BARE)and hanging out with family. I am also dying to see "Memoirs of a Geisha" so I have to fit that in somewhere.

This is my favorite time of year and I want to make sure I sit back and enjoy it. Last year I was very very pregnant and wasn't enjoying much. This year I get to share Bella's first Christmas with her. She is in love with all Christmas lights. I hear "What's that?" 2 million times a day. It's pretty much her favorite phrase and she says it as she points with her chubby little finger. Very cute. She is also walking now. Yikes. It also seems that she has her mother's will of iron. I definitely have my hands full.

I hope you all have a Merry Christmas. Here are some of Bella's Christmas pictures:

Posted in Getting Personal_

What a Weekend!

Wow. It was one busy weekend. I had such a good time. Bazaar Bizarre was on Sunday. I drove down Saturday morning to L.A. I was supposed to leave at 8:00am but found out late the night before that I had a screw in my tire. I had to get it fixed before I could possibly leave. So I got a late start but made good time.

Saturday my bf, Carrie Miller and I shopped and had dinner. That was a real treat for me as I usually have a munchkin with me while I shop. I also haven't seen Carrie in ages so it was good to catch up.

Sunday was the show. It was such a fun show to do. The people shopping were so cool and it was fun to see the variety of people. Great people watching opportunity. It was also fun to be across from the Hella Good girls. It was hard not to spend all of my heard earned money on other people's stuff. They had tons of cute baby clothes stuff.

Here is a pic from Bazaar Bizarre. That's me on the right and my friend Carrie Miller on the left:

Monday I met Carrie Sommer for lunch before I left. That was such a treat. Carrie and I email and have bought things from each other but have never met in person. She is such a doll. and gorgeous! I had such a good time chatting with her in person for once. I think we would be great friends if we lived close to each other. It's always fun to talk with someone who understands you.

Well that's about it for me. Hope you had a great weekend!!

Posted in Show Talk_

More New Stuff

I had a private jewelry party today and sold a ton off jewelry. If you are ever interested in hosting a home party in San Jose or the Orange County area please contact me. I offer 10% commission for the party to be used towards Sharma Designs jewelry. My hosts usually score a bunch of pieces. When my jewelry is in front of you and you can try it on I hear it is hard to resist.

Here are some of the new pieces that I have left:

Teal Shell Coin Handmade Earrings

Hollow Wood Rectangle Handmade Necklace

Sky Blue Jasper Handmade Necklace

Black Bold Mosaic Handmade Necklace

Posted in Jewelry Previews_

New Jewelry

Smoky Hollow Shell Handmade Necklace

Funky Green Adventurine Handmade Necklace

Black Stone Teardrop Handmade Necklace

Sold

Orange Glass Flower Handmade Necklace
Posted in Jewelry Previews_

Bazaar Bizarre

If you live in the LA area please come out and see me at the Bazaar Bizarre show. I hear it is one crazy event. Tons of people and tons of things to buy. Here are the details: Sunday December 11th, 1-9pm Shrine Auditorium Expo Center 700 W. 32nd Street in Los Angeles

Admission will be $1. What a deal huh?

Posted in Show Talk_

Update: Shop for a Good Cause.

**There are only 3 days left to score these beauties at a fraction of the price. The current bid is $45. Make them yours!!

Sharma Designs donated 2 necklaces to the Jewish Family and Children's Services. They are available in an online auction until December 5th. Right now the bid is only $25 for the 2 necklaces. That is a great deal and it's for a good cause.

So check it out here and place your bid!

Posted in Business Babble_

The Bliss Show

Last night was a fun show. Women were walking around with wine and little plates of cheese and fancy chips. There was good music which wasn't so loud you had to scream at your customers. There were 3 rooms and it wasn't too crowded. The customers, vendors, and the ladies who ran the show were super nice. It was just altogether a good show.

The only bad thing was that A) It was pouring down rain. One of my customers even said she had no electricity at her house. Doesn't make you want to adventure out much. B). It was 80% jewelry people. That's not a good thing for me our other shoppers.

Still it was fun. Of course I had to go and pull a loser move and forget my cash box. I realized right when we got there. I had the 5's and 10's I had gotten from the bank earlier but no 1's. The show was about 45 min (1.5 hrs in traffic) from my house. I couldn't go get it. My friend Jen, who was helping me, kindly volunteered to run get me some ones...in the pouring rain. She got lost. At the time the show was starting she was pulling off to ask for directions. She made it in good time though and was back before too long. Poor Jen. The best part? I never even had a cash transaction!!

I also met and chatted with the nice couple from Two Space. They have really cool stuff. They will be at Bazaar Bizarre too. There website isn't up yet but when it is you should definitely check out their wares.

Oh...and one more thing. You may have noticed that the Charming Choker section isn't on the site. The necklaces are still there I have just put them in other sections. People were thinking that the necklaces were actually tight chokers (which they aren't) and I felt it was confusing. Hopefully it will be better this way.

Posted in Show Talk_