A Rising Tide Lifts All Boats
ARTLAB
Twenty years of tips and advice from the Urban Maille workbench: weaves, ring math, techniques, care and finishing, and the business side of making chainmaille jewelry.
Why Professionals Buy Our Rings
Note: The following information is meant for people who are in the business, or plan to be in the business, of making and selling...
Dealing with Design Theft at Shows
Today I was talking to Bill (who works here) and he was telling me about this show he did once (he's a blacksmith) at...
More On Pricing
I've had several questions lately on pricing and, while replying to one asking whether $175 is a good price for a bracelet, my answer...
Taking Care of the Baby
One of the unexpectedly interesting things we've discovered in running this business has to do with how extraordinarily flexible we have to be with...
Minding Your Business
Every small business person is intimately familiar with the concept of wearing many different hats. My business card could quite accurately and honestly list...
Waiting for the Seed to Fall
If you've ever read my interview with Rena, you know that Gary and I waited a long, l-o-n-g time for our perfect business idea...
Be True to Yourself / Your Vision
When you begin to think about starting a business, you have a vision of what it will be. That vision evolves and deepens as...
Begin As You Mean to Go On
We've covered why you might find it difficult to charge a fair price for your work and why you really need to get past...
Business - Profit = Hobby
Hobbies are great fun, excellent creative outlets and there's hardly anyone who wouldn't benefit from having one. If you're genuinely trying to build a...
Good Results Aren't Born of Bad Intentions
No matter what you choose to call it, karma exists. It's never wrong and it never misses. There is no avoiding it. What goes...
Something from the MailBag...
As you know, I like to share some of the questions and answers from our mail when I think it's something that might be...
Pricing Your Work
Figuring out how to price your jewelry is one of the most difficult aspects of going into business and I often get questions about...
