Newest Items: More Hexagons and Lily Designs

It seems that it's time for a somewhat overdue blog entry on some of my new items that have come out and are coming out soon.  It's always tough to stay on top of making new items, pricing them out carefully, adding in options, photos, and publishing them on the blog.....

To read more please visit our website at: https://www.cecileraleydesigns.com/blogs/cecile-raley-designs/newest-items-more-hexagons-and-lily-designs

How to Price Custom Earring Projects: Collections & Price Lists

I have been working on this all month and I am still not done, but given the insane number of custom orders I get, it is high time that I release some price lists.  As many of you know, quotes can take time.  Here are some reasons.

1. Metal weights differ.  E.g. 14 K gold is 1.3 times as heavy as silver.  So even if I have a casting of an item, if it is not the metal the customer wants I have to look up a conversion table and do the math.

2. Diamond sizes, number, and quality really matter.  If I use 15 1.2mm diamonds, GH/VS, that is a totally different price from using 20 1.3mm EF/VS.  Multiplication takes time, so if the customer asks for one diamond size but then another to save, there many combinations and quotes I can make.  But each takes time so I need to narrow it down or simply ask for a budget.

3. If I don’t actually have the item (i.e. it has to be made from scratch) I have to ESTIMATE.  Yes, I can calculate the metal weight from a CAD file but if no CAD file has been made because the customer has not yet commissioned it – and hence I have to paid to have it made – then I need to guess.  And I am going to guess in my favor so I don’t lose money.  Also, the number of 1.2 mm diamonds needed to surround a 9x7mm center is different from the number of .8mm diamonds needed to surround a 6mm round.  So if the customer doesn’t know what they want and ask for 6 quotes, I can get tied down for 2 hours, and I don’t usually have that kind of time.  I make it if I can, or I just eyeball it. (So if I get frustrated with you, that's why, lol.)

This probably explains why when you go to a jewelry store to get something made you are quoted a high price.  Not only does the jeweler have to cover himself or herself, but also, they have to get paid for the time it takes to get the quotes right and make you happy.  And assuming that many people want estimates and then walk away, more time has to be calculated for the paying customers.

That said, what can you do to save time and do your own math?  Work from existing ideas and get a price list.  From me.  So let me do just that.  Of course each price list also takes time, but here is one with just my silver items, working off of the basics.

Scroll Earrings 5mm

Channel Wire Earring with Extra Diamond

Petal Earrings for 3mm Stone

Hexagon Stud for 3mm Stone

This is my price list for earrings, the most common studs and danglies,  Prices are including setting and polishing but NOT INCLUDING STONES.

Type	Stone Shape	Stone Size	Setting	14 Karat Gold	Sterling or Argentium
Scroll Stud	Round	4mm	4 prong	$150.00	$50.00
Scroll Stud	Round	5mm	4 prong	$170.00	$55.00
Scroll Stud	Round	5mm	6 prong	$190.00	$55.00
Scroll Stud	Round	6mm	4 prong	$200.00	$55.00
Scroll Stud	Round	6mm	6 prong	$230.00	$60.00
Hexagon Stud	Round	3mm	Pave	$180.00	$50.00
Hexagon Stud	Round	4mm	Pave	$240.00	$55.00
Hexagon Stud	Round	5mm	Pave	$240.00	$60.00
Hexagon Stud	Round	6mm	Pave	$300.00	$70.00
Martini Bezel Stud	Round	3mm	Bezel	$130.00	$30.00
Martini Bezel Stud	Round	3.5mm	Bezel	$140.00	NA
Martini Bezel Stud	Round	4mm	Bezel	$150.00	$30.00
Martini Bezel Stud	Round	5mm	Bezel	$180.00	$30.00
Martini Bezel Stud	Round	6mm	Bezel	$240.00	NA
Trillion Prong Petal	Trillion	5mm	Trillion Prong	$250.00	$90.00
Small Flower Stud	Round		Pave	$350.00	NA
Large Flower Stud	Round		Pave	$520.00	NA
Small Flower Dangle With Kite Connector	Round		Pave	$600.00	NA
Kite Dangle	Round	3mm	Pave	$345.00	$70.00
Kite Dangle	Round	4mm	Pave	$420.00	$80.00
Kite Dangle	Round	5mm	Pave	$420.00	$80.00
Petal Dangle	Round	3mm	Pave	$160.00	$70.00
Channel Wire Dangle	Pear or Oval	Any	Channel Wire Earrings	$440.00	NA

Hexagon Danglies with French Hooks

4 Flower Dangly with Petal Accent and Leverbacks

Large Petal Studs

3mm Petal Danglies with Hexagon and Diamond Accent

If I May Say So Myself: What I Would Buy from My Shop

With my semi-annual 15% sale coming up on July 13^th, I thought I’d assemble a shortlist of my own favorite items, and why I’d recommend those for purchase.  I’m going to try to limit myself to three pieces from each of my favorite sections.

Of course my own favorite shop sections are the gems, and my favorite stones these days are mint garnet and Mahenge spinel.  But there are other, less appreciated gems that I think would make good investments:

1.  The Mahenge ruby pear shape: the pocket from which that came was small, and while mining in Mahenge has been going on for over 10 years, no ruby had ever been found there.  The gem is a total novelty (there were a few more pieces but they all wandered off to another person who has a stake in the mine and they went overseas, so none came to the U.S market).  The quality stands up to good to fine quality rubies from elsewhere, the inclusions are to be expected, but because of them the little guy turned out not to be so photogenic.  Still, the investment grade is extremely high.  And he is much more beautiful in person: Mahenge Ruby

2.  The neon green Tsavorite oval: again, the best out of the bunch, the color is on the border of the blueish neon mint – a hair darker than the finest mints, so it was “upgraded” to Tsavorite.  The gem is extraordinarily bright for a Tsav: Neon Tsavorite

3.  The color change garnet: mining has slowed and fewer and fewer pieces are available: Color Change Garnet

Other recommendations are anything certified unheated sapphire, and the magenta red cushion spinel since that color is totally finished.

From my ring section, I would pick:

1.  The Mandarin Garnet and Burma Spinel cocktail ring.  It makes such a statement, it is beautifully set, the Mandarin is strongly saturated, and I used my best Burma spinels – I used so many that I almost killed my parcel, and that is a parcel I had waited for for 2 years! Cocktail Ring

2.  The Art Deco style ring with Mahenge Spinel and Mint garnet.  The gems are unusual, the color combo amazing.  I kind of feel that that ring style has been under-appreciated.  I wear it all the time, I love that I can combine different colors and millgrain patterns.  I know everyone wants a big center stone in their ring, but this style is so very versatile. Art Deco Ring

3.  The Victorian inspired scalloped ring with the strongly colored pink tourmaline and Mahenge spinels.  I love both the design and the colors.  The tourmaline is a very nice piece.  The ring is substantial yet very comfy to wear – it doesn’t stick out very high and yet makes a statement.  I gave it a test drive and got quite a few compliments. Scalloped Ring

The other rings I personally like are the ones with the petal designs.  Any the five stone hexagon/octagon ring.

Pendants:

1. My own personal favorite is the aqua gotham pendant in rose gold.  I almost didn't list that one.  The aqua is stunning (several people thought it was a blue topaz because the coloring is so good).  And the hand engraving can be enjoyed with the naked eye but also holds up under the loupe.  Since that is the original piece (before casting) you are getting a real little work of art. Gotham Pendant

2. Design wise my favorite is the three hex pendant, and another one with two kite danglies that I am going to list this coming week (rose gold with Burmese spinels).  Again, I love that I can do different color combos. Hexagon Pendant

3. I personally also really love the pillow pendant that I listed, and I like that particular style.  I love edgy, squarish looks, lots of colors, and antique designs with a modern twist. Pillow Pendant

And again, I love the petal styles, but mostly the ones with the larger center. 

Earrings (I’ll group these together):

1. The sapphire dangly earrings with the four petal flowers.  A superb setting job, and the fat pears on the bottom are totally unique (untreated as well).  One of a kind. Sapphire Dangly Earrings

2. The gotham earrings.  Love the style, love the color, love love love the engraving.  I’m on a kick lately, I wish every single item of mine was engraved.  Poor Alex (alexhandengraving.com), he’s going to get a lot of my stuff, and he is a very busy guy.  Smaller engraved pendant and engraved Gotham ring are coming soon. Gotham Earrings

3. The little mint studs (and the mint danglies).  I have to say, if you’re not buying these up you are asleep at the wheel.  The little calibrated mints are specialty cuts, they were done with some leftover rough and I am already running out of my parcel.  People bought them like mad, both from me and my supplier (he was supposed to save me some from his parcels but he came back from the first show, where he didn’t even put them out, and they were bought upon request).  One more parcel is being cut, then that may be it.  I am first bidder on it (mint addict that I am) but I can’t promise anything.  I’ve been waiting for 2mm sizes for 2 months already!  The thing is that the tiny sizes are super wasteful to cut out of the material, so nobody likes to do it.  The color is juicy.

Mint Garnet Danglies

Mint Garnet Hexagon Studs

What is your favorite item and why?  Put your comment below, I'd love to know.   

Custom Orders Revisited

Last year my gemstone category outsold every other category I have on Etsy. So I have upped my gem offerings, as you no doubt have noticed. As a result, I have gotten a lot more custom order requests. This is loads of fun, but way more time consuming - plus many quotes don't go anywhere. This is because on the customer's part, there is the experience of sticker shock. What makes custom work so ridiculously expensive?  

 Well, the average labor cost for jewelry work in my area is about $50 per hour. And if i don't do the work myself - I often don't because I don't have the time or the expertise - then that's not money I make. My earnings are Incorporated into my markup formula. That's why so many jewelers manufacture overseas. But I like supporting local artisanship and I don't like not having any control over what happens with my designs and my gems. Nor would my customers like it.

Some pieces I make take perhaps an hour. Soldering just a bail is only a few minutes. But there are labor minimums. Which can be reflected in a per piece price. Making a five stone ring can take 3 hours if done from scratch. The channel wire pieces that are so popular in my shop take about an hour. 

Made For Tracy: Three Hex Bezels Soldered Together Plus Bail

This is why, whenever possible, I use stock settings that I have developed, and occasionally I buy supply parts like pre-finished settings or shanks. Stud earrings for instance come ready made as most etsy sellers that carry studs will tell you.

Another expensive item can be CAD -computer aided design work. This is also billed at $50 per hour. Now, when I commission CAD work, my goal is to cast several pieces and sell all of them. That distributes the cost. But when I make a custom design for one person, the customer has to pay it all. Plus 3-d printing and mold and casting labor.

Made For Julie, Using Channel Wire and Petal Settings

Adding all that up, a custom design might cost a few hundred dollars before any materials and before markup. 

So let's discuss markup. What is that for, and why is it 2-2.5 x cost for wholesale and double that for retail?

Take my case. I do Etsy 30 hrs a week minimum and that's not making any jewelry. 

I also pay my assistant for 1-2 full days. Not making jewelry. What do we do? Photos, listings, convos (oodles and oodles of convos), quotes, bookkeeping, shipping. That's the work at home, 20 hrs minimum.

Then we buy supplies, pick up castings, place orders, wait for pre polish, take the pieces home, inspect, fit the gems, pack each order for setting, go to the jeweler that helps me (or the engraver, or the wax carver), pick up and drop off from setting, inspect again, drop off for electro plating, or final polish, or get rhodium done. Inspect again. That's 2 full days each week with lots of waiting at suppliers when it's busy, or waiting to have a bill done, go over each item. I work on 20-30 items each week. So it's a ton of running around, the convo system always going off in my iPhone. 

Made for Lynne, Channel Wire and Hex Bezel

Let me throw in one more piece of the puzzle: pieces that don't sell and new items you want to produce. That costs money. Production and development that's called. It's so you can grow. But you can't grow unless you have extra profit worked into your formula. 

Long story short, if something you want done costs $20 in materials and $50 in labor, then you might pay $150 at my shop and $300 in the store if its made here. And if I don't charge that, I fold. It's that simple. And that expensive. 

Made for Julia, Hex Bezels and Rose Gold Chain