This one my most special write up in my history as a jewelry blogger entrepreneur.
In late November of 2005 I met a wonderful lady Marga Fripp. Who became one of my 1st mentors in helping me built the confidence I needed to pursue my career as a jewelry designer. I have heard about Empowered Women International from one of my 1st clients who was already a supporter or Empowered Women International. After my 1st meeting with Marga, she allowed me space to exhibit my 1st jewelry designs at their 1st front door retail space in their Alexandria office/shop then called A WOMAN STORY SHOP.
Then during Summer of 2006; I signed up for the Artist Entrepreneurship Training Program given by Marga Fripp and her team. During this training we would learn about marketing, how to present ourselves, how to speak in front of potential buyers and mainly how to built a professional portfolio. We were the 2nd group of artist entrepreneurs taking this training.
There I met the most amazing group of artists. Artists entrepreneurs coming from different countries from Afghanistan to Argentina, Peru, Hungary, Romania, United States, etc... And we all had something in common, a bright an creative mind & soul that needed guidance. Most of us with no relatives near us. With lots of dreams under our arms to fullfill. During our1st class we shared our personal story and each story brought tears to most of us.
I can still remember a refugee from Afghanistan who did beautiful portraits and created beautiful paintings with a very unique pattern, who looked like the new version of Picasso. Briefly I’ll tell you her story. She would teach art to women and the art center for women was taken all of a sudden and shut down because they could not do that, otherwise their life was in danger and they could get killed. I could not believe what I was listening. She was lucky to arrange her paperwork and come to the States as a refugee.I admire the endurance of this lady named Fatana.
EWINT artists were invited to speak & exhibit at Strathmore Mansion in Rockville – MD (picture above & below)
I also met the person I call my American sister, her name is Cheryl. She is an illustrator who created beautiful elder fairies and each of them with a story. I have also never heard of anything like this. We became so close, we would talk about work and personal issues. She would come to my studio and give me feedback on my new designs. She was great about it, too. Because her dad used to own a jewelry business in Providence, RI. So she understood the business very well because her father operated a family business for many years. And I had no clue BACK THEN, about how things work in the States in the jewelry business. Since then I have learned A LOT and I keep learning
She met a wonderful man, married and moved to Montana. Now she travels the world while continues working on a big project about the elder fairies. Can’t tell you much about it but I know it is going to be BIG. Things may take time but when you are focus and passionate about what you want in life, things will come your way.
Me and Cheryl remain friends and even though now she is Montana, we keep in touch.
She called me, yesterday, telling me she was in town for just few days. So I cancelled everything else I had for the rest of the afternoon so I could be with her. She is my older sister like she says and that is what you do for family. I also needed some quality time with my girlfriend. My American sister I met during the Artist Entrepreneurship Program.
The relationship we built with our classmates was incredible. Among immigrants I think we feel related cause in many ways we face similar experiences. We are far away from home, we miss our food, we miss our friends, we miss our family. Simply our culture. In the United States, we don’t even kiss each other to say hello…instead you shake hands. In some countries even men kiss each other, here in the States, it will probably be taken as a sex thread. Anyways…I am not going to talk about the many differences between countries.
This post is special because no matter how much time has passed and even though we have a busy live. I will always feel I can come back home and visit EWINT headquarters in Alexandria. They truly became my family. I don’t get to see Marga or the other girls as often as I would like to, but at least in special occasions we get together.
I can still remember also when Marga Fripp came to visit me when I gave birth. She knows my family lives in Peru, my in-laws in St. Louis (although they were around briefly when Tyler was born) she knew I needed support around myself, especially to make sure I would continue pursuing my dreams in my new home country and that I would continue with my jewelry business
What an honor! In late January 2012 I received and invitation from the Embassy of Peru to be part of Passport DC 2012
.
To be honest I have been waiting for this moment but as I always think when the time is right, things will come to you (of course sometime you have to knock doors, too). So I thought this MUST BE our time! To be considered one of the most notable Peruvian artists living in Washington DC and having the opportunity to share my jewelry designs with thousands of people at the Embassy of Peru during Passport DC, means a lot to Evelyn Brooks Designs. Perhaps I could also say that hard work is giving its rewards…FINALLY…huh?!
Who is Evelyn Brooks? I consider myself a young jewelry Hispanic American mompreneur who came to this country nine years ago to marry a wonderful man, with many dreams under my arm to fullfill. I also wanted to prove my parents that YES you could be a professional mompreneur, having a husband and child to take care of BUT if you balance your live style; YES YOU CAN HAVE IT ALL.
Just as many other immigrants who are business owners and who want to see their business growing especially in a different country than the one they were born, it isn’t easy. Being invited to participate in events like Passport DC is something to feel proud of. Thanks to the Embassy of Peru for considering my work to be part of Passport DC 2012 and for their continue support!
Evelyn Brooks Designs will showcase her Nasca Collection inspired in the Nasca Lines and will continue promoting the famous Peruvian huayruros through this new jewelry collection. Don’t know what huayruros are? Huayruro seeds come from the rainforest of Peru. It is believed that huayruros bring good luck, positive energy and prosperity to whomever wears them. The Nazca Jewelry Collection is available in sterling silver and 18kt vermeil gold. Prices range from $38- $750
Want to know more about the Nasca Lines? Love Peruvian history? And have the time and money to travel. Explore my beautiful country Peru, DON’T WAIT! Did you know?…The famous city of Macchu Picchu located in Cuzco, is considered one of the 1000 best places to visit before you die.
Stop by my booth at the Embassy of Peru on May 5th and get a complimentary good luck charm!
Sincerely,
Hasta la proxima
Evelyn Brooks
You’ve hear of the show wife swap, right? Well..I am going to throw an idea out there for a new reality show …how about The Nanny Swap. What is it? Some of you are probably doing it already, but I am totally new to this, and I like to give some ideas to the mompreneurs out there who don’t know what else to do to continue working on a budget finding time for working while spending time with your kids.
One of my good friends told me why don’t you come one morning to my house and babysit my two kids while you also bring your son, so they can play while me and you work, of course one adult had to be in charge at a time. By doing so I could work two hours then we swap and my friend would work two hours…not bad huh!? Have you thought about it? Sometimes we also think is the nanny really doing her job? Are the kids34 watching TV all the time? Me and my friend both want the best for our kids, just as most mom’s out there. We will have them interacting more, socializing, reading, YES watching a bit of TV but most importantly running a lot to get them tired, so they get their 2 hrs. nap in the afternoon and we could continue working
This is my little one getting involve in my daily routine as a mompreneur
Our 1st 30 minutes, we talked about how our businesses are doing, how we are working our schedule to find time to work and focus on our different projects (all these while the kids were already running around). After that I got into her home office and worked for two hours, during that time my friend watched the kids, gave them snacks and so on. Then I came out and it was my nanny time. I played with the three of them and started to make lunch for all of us. Without even noticing it, it was almost time to go home and my little one looked like he needed a nap, too.
I found this to be very motivating and really exciting. I truly look forward to do our nanny swap day. We saved money on nanny services, we also had some quality girlfriend catch up and spend time with our kids. What a great day!
Photo courtesy www.business-opportunity.biz & www.positioningblogging.com
Do you have any suggestions? What are you doing to continue your mompreneur path? If there are any ideas you would like to share with me through my blog. Please do so…
Let your kid be involve in your mompreneur path, sometimes be flexible and make it a mommy and me playdate in your studio. You know all they want is just be with mommy
Hasta la proxima!
Evelyn Brooks
From April 2nd – 30th – Gallery Five is hosting a special jewelry trunk show featuring my work. I personally invite you to attend if you happen to be near Tequesta, FL. If not you can place your order through their 24/7 open shop online at www.gallery5.com
Let me share with you my history with GALLERY FIVE
After the Buyer’s Market of American Craft show last summer I was contacted by a lady named Paula Coben owner of Gallery Five in Tequesta, FL. She saw my work at the show and she wanted to carry Evelyn Brooks Designs. With this order we had received, my work would be exhibited and sold in FLORIDA.
At 1st I thought I have to search where is Tequesta, FL? because I have never heard of it. and also needed to learn more about Gallery Five.
Gallery Five opened in November of 1982 featuring fine crafts made by American Artists.
They are celebrating their 30th SEASON! and even with our rough economy they have being able to remain in business. They not only sell at their location but they are also open 24/7 through their online shop. So no excuse to buy from them at any time
You can also visit them by appointment and call them at 561 747 555 to make your appointment.
This is a family business and I truly admire that they have been able to work together for so many years. It reminds me of my family, too. We try to help each other at any moment although my relatives are all the way in Peru. Paula’s daughter Cathy takes care of the online community and we worked together to bring Evelyn Brooks Designs available through their website; so if you like to purchase any of my jewelry designs you can do order online at www.gallery5.com
Paula says: We are proud of the success of Gallery Five and pleased that the gallery features work of more than 150 American artists from 40 states, with no imports.
And, of course, we invite you to browse through all the virtual drawers of our website to see the hand-crafted wonders by creative artists that we find in travel around the U.S. in our search for fresh and original crafts.
We will continue to offer the best service possible, both in our showroom and in our online store. Our best advertising is our satisfied customers.
Paula and their team at Gallery Five would like to invite ALL to learn about their outstanding customer service. You can also become a fan of Gallery Five on Facebook.
Hasta la proxima…
Can’t wait to share with you how we made it all the way to Boston & New York! stay tunned…
Dear friends, I am writing this email from the Boston Gift Show. I wish I could have read suggestions on how to travel as a jewelry entrepreneur on a budget; especially when you are doing those so called wholesale shows.
We are ALL living though times in is economy and we certainly have to watch every penny we spend, right?. And especially if you are doing a show far away from home. In this case I had to consider not only the booth fee, electricity, gas & parking but I also had to include airfare, hotel & meals and transportation.
So I search my hotel on Priceline and I also made a few calls/emails to my friend who work at different hotels to see if I could get a friends & family discount but their rates were higher than the one I found. In this opportunity the Boston Gift Show had special hotel rates if you booked directly with them, so I found a fairly decent hotel 6 miles away from the Convention Center for about $80, pretty descent huh?!
Don’t forget that when you travel you need to arrange pick up/drop off from the airport, too. Thank GOD I have SO MANY friends & family spread all over so luckily there is always someone living wherever I go. Although in the beginning I was thinking I don’t have anybody in Boston and it ended up that one of my good friends from high school lives only 15 minutes from the airport. We probably haven’t seen each other since high school but once we saw us it was like the time never passed and we reconnected very easily.
She picked me up from the airport and took me back to the airport. That saved me like $40 each way. The Best Western Adams INN in Quincy Massachusetts where I stayed, offered complimentary breakfast and complimentary shuttle service to and from the Boston Convention Center. Right there I saved $35 cab ride for each they of the show, and it was a four day show. So you can imagine how much I would have spend in just cab rides.
Anyways, another advice if you are trying to eat at the convention center – NEVER DO IT – How can you save money and help in this economy charging $3.50 for a bottle of coke or $3.25 for a cup of tea or coffee!!!? I think that is outrageous. The 1st day of the show I had to pay but then I saw my neighbors who brought chips, nuts, crackers, cookies, sandwiches for launch so they did not have to buy lunch. So lesson learned next time I plan on coming ready, right?
I look forward to come back to The Boston Gift Show in 2013
Hasta la proxima!
Evelyn Brooks
Evelyn Brooks Designs began showcasing at wholesale shows about two years ago. And little by little I have discover that a jewelry entrepreneur in order to bring its brand to other markets you have to travel and showcase your products to different markets. The 1st show was in Baltimore and then Philadelphia through the Buyer’s Market of American Craft. We are in the process to apply to the Atlanta and the New York Summer shows, too. But in the meantime I began my research about the well known Boston Gift Show. It only happens once a year in Boston(of course)and it opens the opportunity for your products to be seeing by buyers predominantly from Canada, Upstate New York and New England. Which in all honesty is a total new market for us.
I first call the organizer Erica Davidson and after a few questions, she asked me that she needed to see my work and if I had a website. I said: of course. After she looked at my website she said I have never seeing anything like this before. That was an honor cause trust me getting in to these wholesale shows it isn’t easy. The rest was paperwork and getting my final approval. I recently booked my tickets with JetBlue and did not even know they had lots of flights from DC to Boston so that allows me to leave to Boston the day before the show, set up on-time and come back home the day it ends on March 23rd at around 8p…isn’t that great?
So I can be with my little one to say good night, and my big one (hubby), too.
Let me share this with you, too. I booked my hotel through the Boston Gift Show site. They have a corporate rate with great prices for exhibitors and I will pay less than if I get a friends & family discount which I always try to get through my hotel friends & family contacts.
I am truly excited to be part of the Boston Gift Show! I have never being to Boston but since I love traveling I am not afraid of going to a new city, meeting some new faces and showcasing my jewelry designs to a whole new market, I know it will be another jewelry adventure where I will gain experience regardless if we have a good or bad show.
Hopefully next thing you know is that we hit the Canada market
Send me all your good energy for that to happen
I will continue posting about the show during & after the show
Hasta la proxima,
Evelyn Brooks
I just got back from showcasing my latest collection at the Buyer’s Market of American Craft (BMAC) this past weekend at the Philadelphia Convention Center.
I don’t think about who is showcasing what, or for how much, or how the boot is decorated. Instead, I look forward to being surrounded by SO MANY artisans in a variety of craft mediums. There are candle makers, glass makers,furniture, metal smiths who fabricate their own pieces, others who love casting pieces, jewelers showcasing their latest creations, and much, much more.
Every time I go back, I try to walk around and see how each of us is unique in our work. The creativity put into each jewelry piece is breath taking, so I feel I am nurturing my brain just by looking. and when I come home I just want to continue creating. Although what I have to do is fill in the orders I got and deliver on time my purchase orders.
I know that getting accepted into the BMAC showcase is extremely competitive, but that’s exactly why it is so well renowned in the industry. This year they celebrated their 30th anniversary. Top galleries and museums from all over the United States come to the shop to stock their shelves for the coming season and they know that they will not leave the show disappointed.
Every time I go back, I get to see other artists I have been neighbors with and we get to share our experiences and what we go through, we talk about the challenges we face and we help each other with decoration tips, exchange suppliers info and more…and I call this HEALTHY COMPETITION.
This has been my 3rd year showcasing at the BMAC and I’ve heard sometimes you have to wait three years to see that your investment to showcase at the BMAC is all worth it. To be honest we have been lucky to sell every year we have showcase since our 1st show, BUT we did not see our return right away it took months because once one gallery/boutique receives my pieces then they have to sell them and I have to say luckily again we have received many re-orders. So my time at the BMAC was TOTALLY worth it.
This year has also been different, perhaps it could be that my booth stands out because everything is in red and black, could be because we had a great location , could be cause I was giving away the huayruro good luck charms, or simply because some people has seen me been back every year so is not like I will disappear all of a sudden…right?…MAYBE but let me tell you… This has been by far the best show we have ever had.
Presenting my Nazca Collection at the Buyer’s Market of American Craft.
I took orders from galleries and boutiques in New York, Wisconsin, Michigan, Arkansas, Pittsburg, Delaware and Washington DC.
I will continue sharing my experience in getting into new markets like the ones I just mentioned to you. Now let me recuperate and get ready to showcase for the 1st time at The Boston Gift Show. March 23-27th
Hasta la proxima
When I first started to create my jewelry pieces, I was taking pictures of my own jewelry pictures (who doesn’t start like that, huh!?), but I am not a professional photographer. I’ve tried for so many times to do my own pictures and I took many pictures but could never give them the right white background or the right black grayish background plus you could see the shadows, light reflection etc., etc.….I took quick photography classes, did some internet research on how to photograph your jewelry and still was not getting that perfect professionally looking picture.
In the beginning…I couldn’t afford to pay for a professional photo session of my jewelry pieces. So I post and add on the famous craigslist and got me freelance photographers that were looking to gain expertise in product photography and who wanted to add experience to their resumes.
These were my 1st pictures taken by me a not professional jewelry photographer…not so good right?
Then it was time to launch my men’s Moschik catalog and I was not going to invest so much time in creating a whole new jewelry collection with poor pictures and poor presentation. Two of the most amazing relationships were born. My catalog designer Alvaro Luna & my professional photographer Rui Barros. I personally find that there has to be good energy, positive attitude and willingness to work with your business partners (that is how I call them). Just as me they want the final product to speak highly of their work. I believe I can sense energy VERY well and I was not afraid when my dear friend Alvaro was taking the responsibility to re-design my image/logo/designing my catalog everything till he handed me my Moschik Men’s catalog.
I also knew it was going to take some time. It was not going to happen in a couple days…although I wanted see the final product ASAP.
One of the first things Alvaro asked me was you need a professional head shot…I was thinking OMG another expense to the creation of my men’s catalog. BUT I can still remember what he said to me: I refuse to create the catalog with a picture that you have cropped from some wedding and put it in this professional jewelry catalog. He said go to Rui Barros Photography. He will do your headshot.
This was my 1st professional headshots as a jewelry designer
Then our photo-shoot for the catalog took us a whole day at The Park @ 14th in Washington DC, models came on time, photographer and Alvaro took care of styling models & the photo-shoot. We ended exhausted but with amazing photos to be used in our Moschik Men’s Catalog.
What to order my catalog? (click here)
I have been working with Rui for quite sometime now. I’d say at least five years. We have shot my jewelry pieces at his studio in Arlington, VA. It usually takes us a whole day. Every time I come in he has some new tool to shoot faster and have higher quality pictures, better lighting or the latest new gadget in professional photography. Another important thing to mention is that you have to communicate well how you like your product to look like, if you want to highlight some areas more than others, etc., etc.…My advise as a jewelry entrepreneur is do some research before you call someone to do your professional product photo-shoot. I have done so much research about it that now I feel confident to share my ins and outs about shooting jewelry pieces.
Rui is so dedicated to what he does, that I totally trust his work and I know no matter what my pieces are going to have a professional look. The look I need as a professional jewelry designer.
My Nazca Jewelry collection has recently being photo-shoot again by Rui, take a sneak pick at it
If you are trying to take your jewelry business to the next level and want to bring it to high end boutiques, museums, fine art fairs and so on…don’t waist your time trying to make it yourself. It is more beneficial to invest your time in what you know best. In my case I rather use my time designing more beautiful jewelry pieces. In Spanish there is a phrase that says: AL CESAR LO QUE ES DEL CESAR = GIVE UNTO CESAR’S WHAT’S CESAR
Hasta pronto
Evelyn Brooks
