A While-You-Wait
Jewelry Making Party

© by Lorri Ely; all rights reserved

Have you ever hosted a jewelry making party where you create custom jewelry for clients right at the party? It can be a huge success. Here are a few tips and guidelines you'll want to follow.

I came upon this jewelry making party idea almost by accident. My friend asked me to host a jewelry party at her home, and as usual I took along all of my favorite jewelry to sell, plus my tablecloths and jewelry displays to set the stage for a successful party.

Don't miss Lorri's complete guide to home jewelry parties: Read Rena's review

Wow! Little did I know that this would open a whole new opportunity for jewelry parties. Here's what happened:

The guests came in and started "ooh-ing" and "ahh-ing" over my pre-made jewelry, looking at pieces and trying them on.

I rang up a couple of sales. But then, my beads were discovered!

A woman found some beads she liked and inquired "Can you make something for me with these?"

I said, "Well, of course," then immediately proceeded to make her a bracelet and matching earrings while she observed the design process in action.

Everyone immediately got excited and started picking out their favorite beads so I could make their jewelry.

The next thing you know, I spent the entire night making custom jewelry, and also took orders for items that could not be completed right then.

I was asked to book additional jewelry making parties, as several women now wanted to have one of these exciting parties at their house. My party was definitely popular - but to be honest, I'm not sure my first one was profitable, and I definitely learned some things from my mistakes that I can share with you.

Here are some tips to make your jewelry making party a success:

Before a jewelry making party, do the work up front to make sure you have recorded the cost of each bead and component, and determined a fair price to charge. Or, simply calculate a flat rate for basic findings and components, and then add the price of the beads.

For example, you might charge a $5 flat rate per silver bracelet to cover your wire, crimp beads, and clasp, and then add a "per bead" charge to that.

It is really important that you do this homework before the party because you won't have time once you are there, and it is all too easy to want to please someone and just give them the beads without thinking about your costs.

After all, you do want to make a profit from all of your hard work, and if you give away the genuine tourmaline beads for the same price as your less expensive glass beads, you probably just took a loss!

If you are using bead boxes with bins, use a piece of tape and write the bead/component price on some tape and stick it inside each compartment. Don't forget to bring along a calculator and pad of paper to your jewelry making party so you can write up the cost of the jewelry components just to make sure you know what to charge.

Of course, you will add something additional to the component costs for your own time and design talent! This mark-up is entirely up to you; just make sure you think it through before the party so you won't feel pressured to give your jewelry away at cost.

Find a good bead box or a tool box that is easy to transport. Organize all of your beads by color, and make sure your components are also categorized so they are easy to find and work with. You don't want to appear sloppy and disorganized at the party, and sorting beads by color makes the entire design process so much easier.

A few weeks before your jewelry making party, you might want to take stock of your inventory so you can order a good supply of basics, like ear wires, clasps, and crimp beads, to have on hand for the party. Of course, bring along your jewelry pliers and cutters, measuring tape or bead board, and basic jewelry making materials.

Talk to the party hostess to make sure you have arranged a table, good lighting, and a trashcan. Don't forget to protect the table with a tablecloth or bead cloth.

Always bring along a supply of business cards and your appointment book. Pass out business cards to everyone at the party so they will be able to contact you when they want to buy more jewelry or schedule their own jewelry making party.

The appointment book will enable you to schedule more parties while people are still excited, and may save you having to call back and do more sales work to book them later.

Some days, it is easier to come up with jewelry design ideas than others. Bring some of your favorite best-selling designs along, so you can use those as your base designs to customize for clients.

For additional ideas and inspiration, bring along the latest fashion magazines with jewelry photos, or make your own photo idea book ahead of time. While I would never directly copy someone else's design, you can certainly get ideas and sell more jewelry when you provide some inspiration and photos for people to look at.

For custom orders, make up an order form in your word processing software ahead of time and bring several printed copies to the party. It shows professionalism and adds confidence when you come prepared to take orders. Get the client's name and contact information, write a description of the custom jewelry order, and indicate the price and delivery time.

I hope you find these ideas are helpful and that you go on to host your own successful jewelry making parties!

Lorri is also a jewelry designer, and she shares her jewelry ideas and instructions on her website, Making Jewelry.

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