Rings and Things

The season for sharing

December 22, 2009

I just wanted to take a minute to thank the nice people I work with. They set aside money from every paycheck in 2009, to be donated to charities in this giving season.

I also want to thank Rings & Things’ owners Russ and Dee. They matched our contributions dollar for dollar. It feels nice to be able to give twice as much to a good cause!

Every one of us can help

R&T has just sent out our employees’ donations for 2009.

Have a look at who we gave to (it’s a window into our soul):

ACLU Foundation
Alzheimer’s Association
Anna Ogden Hall
(“a warm, welcoming, home-like shelter offering a free, long-term, grace-based recovery program to women”)
CERF – Craft Emergency Relief Fund
Crosswalk
(“an emergency shelter, a school drop-out prevention program, and a group of lifesaving and life-changing programs dedicated to breaking the cycle of youth homelessness”)
Grameen Foundation
(“helps the world’s poorest, especially women, improve their lives and escape poverty through access to microfinance and technology”)
KSFC
(Spokane Public Radio)
KYRS
(“Thin Air Community Radio: a volunteer-powered, non-commercial, listener-supported, Low Power FM community radio station in Spokane, WA”)
Life Center Church
Los Hermanos
(“working in solidarity with students in Huisisilapa, El Salvador to insure that students can continue their education in their own community”)
Make-A-Wish Foundation
Planned Parenthood
Project Safe Place
(“a community collaboration program, operated by youth shelters or youth serving agencies make it possible for any youth to access help”)
Second Harvest Food Bank
SNAP
(“connecting and providing access to resources which create opportunities, with dignity, for low income people”)
Spokane Homeless Coalition
Spokanimal CARE
(“dedicated to the placement, protection and health of animals through legislation, education and programs”)
Spokesman-Review Christmas Fund
(“the money is used to open The Christmas Bureau for two weeks in December; it buys thousands of high-quality toys in January, when prices are low”)
Union Gospel Mission
(“since 1951, the Union Gospel Mission has been meeting the physical needs of people in crisis”)
Vanessa Behan Crisis Nursery
(“immediate refuge for children and support to strengthen families”)

Here’s wishing everyone a prosperous, generous and healthy holiday season and new year!

Win-win: barrette bonanza

December 21, 2009

“Thank you so much for carrying these REAL French barrettes — I really had to scour the internet to find them/you. The difference in quality is very noticeable. You have a new customer!”

— Lisa Twombly,
Twombly Designs

Real French barrettes!

Oui, Rings & Things brings you superior-quality genuine French barrette backs. Take care of your customers with these nickel-free findings. Each is made from a single piece of durable, hypo-allergenic metal.

And, just to make sure you have alternatives you’ll be happy to create with: Try our lower-priced, French-style barrette findings. They’re softer, and the spring in them can be removed and easily re-attached. That’s why this style is preferred by barrette makers when creating styles that involve wrapping the backs.

A garden on a French barrette

It’s a win-win!

I was hit by a car, or, what working for a hippie bead seller taught me about activism

December 18, 2009

* Update (Jan. 7, 2010): The Spokane Spokesman-Review has published a story about walkability and growth planning, illustrating its points with my accident.

Season’s greetings! This snowy, dark Tuesday afternoon, a couple of us were putting our coats on to go home. “Walk defensively!” a coworker joked. I did–and I was hit by a car.

I’m lucky enough to work for a hippie bead seller. Rings & Things encourages us employees to bike to work, walk, snowshoe, or use some other “commute trip reduction” alternative. I’ve learned a carbon ton about ways to show some love to our environment and our cities.

So my reaction to being run over is strangely positive…

I get my big chance to tell you about Complete Streets.

This is a movement of people with the utterly non-radical notion that “walking or cycling shouldn’t be a dangerous lifestyle choice.” From what I can see of their membership, locally they’re led by some pretty established and down-to-earth personalities in our local political scene. They work to make the city a place where you’d want to ride your bike, or walk around.

Amazing! What could this lead to?

People might drive less, with lots of healthy results.
There might be more people enjoying the downtown area, instead of speeding through it.
More people might feel safe downtown, knowing they’re not just scenery.
There might be more activities downtown.
Businesses might re-occupy the classic old buildings in the downtown area.
Downtown might be pleasant again…

That’s how it used to be; I remember. Guess we’re talking about a downright conservative idea 🙂

So, think about it. I was run over. My boss was hit. One of my coworkers was hit in a crosswalk. All downtown, all on the way to work. I could list more that I know of, but you get it. It’s not that we’re a bunch of uncoordinated nutcases–we’re just out there walking & biking. And we’ve learned one thing:

All we want for Christmas is change! Think about making your downtown safe for walkers & bicyclists. Check out what Mark Fenton says about these kinds of things; he’s a PBS TV host who’s thought a lot about it. Thanks, and happy holidays!

Bead words: d'naglie

December 15, 2009

Rings & Things makes a unique contribution to the bead world. This time, it’s a newly invented word. We hope you’ll find plenty of use for “d’naglie“.

Example of a d’naglie

d’naglie (noun), alt. spelling d’nagly plural d’naglies : a pendant or bead that has an unusually animated personality, especially a free-hanging clip-on charm, often one that is somewhat goofy-looking. Example: “I made this charm bracelet in 3 minutes with the new rubber ducky d’naglies from Rings & Things.” Etymology: thought to come from a deliberate mangling of “dangly” 🙂

Got another bead word that’s just begging to be defined? Let me know!

What are 'findings'?

December 11, 2009

Since I recently tried to put into words “what is a bead,” I thought I’d try this one also: What are findings?

Hmmm, in just a few words I’d say findings are:

Jewelry-making parts…
The components used to make jewelry…
Everything in your jewelry except the beads & string!

FINDINGS

“Findings” is a phrase that we jewelry-making types use, a lot, for the specialized parts you need for making jewelry out of cord & beads. We can narrow this definition down and illustrate it by thinking about the kinds of jewelry that findings get used in:

Necklace findings — pretty much the parts you bring in to make your pendant or beads stay in the necklace! (I.e. bails, more than anything.) Clasps are necklace findings too; among the approximately 50 skidillion varieties are pearl clasps, lobster clasps, toggle clasps, and bayonet clasps.
Bracelet findings — like necklaces, you’re essentially looking at clasps here, if it’s the kind of bracelet where you hook the ends together. Don’t forget leather bracelets, where cuff ends, like the awesome Tafurious line, “snap” it all together!
Earring findings — there are basically 2 types — those for pierced ears (so mainly ear wires, posts, and ear threads), and the ones that are for non-pierced ears (solutions like ear clips and ear cuffs).
Other random findings — because there are so many jeweled things to be created, there are lots more kinds of specialized findings. I can think of: belt-buckle backs, cuff links, key rings, beadable writing pens, suspender clips, (finger) ring findings, and beadable cigarette-lighter covers off the top of my head.

Want to learn more about findings? Dive into Rings & Things for wholesale-priced findings! Remember, you can always phone us with questions for your order; it’s 1-800-366-2156.

Craft business tip — BYO booth power

December 8, 2009

I found a powerful idea at Rena Klingenberg’s Jewelry Display Ideas blog: Ever had a booth that was too far from electricity when you exhibited at craft fairs? Bring your own power, for lights & credit-card processing!

How to BYO? Virginia Vivier’s article there has two great suggestions, with solid details given:

Portable battery

Battery power

Rechargeable 12-volt battery setup — powers the whole booth!
Laptop credit-card processing — use freely downloaded software
Cellphone credit-card processing — get a wireless merchant account

Flexible solar clip light

Solar power

Rechargeable clip lights — LED technology makes these efficient and long-lasting
Solar cellphone charger — self-explanatory

Images here are from Vivier’s excellent article!

We asked you — what's a "disco ball bead"?

December 4, 2009

We asked you on Facebook and Twitter: “Beader’s verbal inkblot test – When I say ‘disco ball bead’, what do you picture?“

I’ll spill the beads 🙂 right up front – – here’s what brought the question up:

Disco ball beads!?

A lot of you gave entertaining answers, so I wanted to share some & ask you for more…

Julie Whalen – A multi-faceted crystal bead?
Julie Morgan – something that is faceted that catches light and sparkles (lol…will it rotate?)
Licia Milhofer – micro faceted rock crystal quartz, 12mm 🙂
Rebecca Coday – that song “I’m alive” as sung by the alien who later gets smashed by the disco ball falling on his head!
Chrisana Birdsall – sparkly twinkly big shiny!
Russ Troll Bead – You guys just gave me a great idea – Rings & Things needs to sell teeny tiny earring-size motors that will make your disco ball beads spin ☺
Julie Hutchins – The little sterling silver faceted round beads – look just like a disco ball!
Rebecca Coday – make a disco ball of the disco ball beads!
Verena Greene-Christ – “Disco Ball Bead”… a beaded Bead, totally in blig-bling-silver on a necklace. Oh my, what an idea! Can YOU picture that?
Maria Ramirez – lots of 4mm white bicolor swarosvki crystals shaped into a heart that shines like a disco ball in the sun!!
Joella Miller – A multifaceted stone that really shimmers and reflects the light.

It was great to hear so many of your ideas about disco ball beads! Take a spin on the disco ’round with R&T’s full selection of ‘chessboard crystal‘ colors…

…And tell us what you see in your designing mind when you hear the words ‘disco ball bead’!

What is a bead?

December 3, 2009

Strange question, huh? But if you think about it, how do you know if something’s a bead? I tried defining ‘beads’:

A bead is a small solid item with a hole through it, intended for stringing on a cord or string. That’s a start… Just below, I’ll free-associate about the main characteristics of beads, as I see them.

Beads

Beads have pretty much two types of shapes:

On one hand, you’ve got geometrical beads. (And really, isn’t round the totally classic bead shape?)
On the other hand, I’d say you have representational beads. (Ones that are shaped like some other object–moons, birds, angels…)

How bead hole sizes measure up

Beads have hole sizes that range from really narrow (think of pearls & seed beads) to very large (sometimes even taking up most of the bead, like with pony beads). Hand-in-hand with this is the choice of stringing materials, ranging all the way from super-slender silk thread to really stout leather cord for large-hole beads.

The materials beads are made from are almost unlimited. I say beads can only be made from solids, though. (I’ve never seen one made from a liquid, a gas or a plasma! But I imagine somebody really good at physics is going to prove me wrong.) The way I think of it, beads are made from 3 kinds of materials…

The most ancient beads I’ve heard of were made from seashells and eggshells, about 100,000 years ago. This makes them apparently the oldest form of jewelry. Other natural materials get made into beads, too. I can think of bone, horn, wood, plant stems, seeds, nuts, and dried sap, not to mention organic stuff that’s become a fossil (like amber and jet). These would be considered to be gemstones…
…Which is a word that usually means inorganic bead material. Not just inorganic, but with…let me pause to breathe here…a pleasingly regular crystalline structure. So the word ‘gemstone’ basically means tough stuff from the earth instead of from living organisms. Examples of gemstones often made into beads include turquoise, jet, amethyst, jasper, and rhyolite, etc. etc. etc.
A third category of bead materials is artificial stuff. Not everything is organic or inorganic! Lots of materials are created through a manufacturing process: plastics, metals (which bead people have a habit of dividing into base-metal versus precious). Glass has got to be the most common artificial bead material, of course. Think of how many types there are… blown glass, fused glass, powder glass, crystal (Swarovski makes about a million kinds), lampwork glass, and on and on.

Where do beads come from?

Countries of origin: beads run quite a geographical range, which I kind of think reflects the role they’ve played in prehistory & history. Africa is where the oldest beads came from. A bit more recent would be pre-Columbian stuff from the Americas. Very old historic beads come from the Middle East and Mediterranean regions. In more modern times, Murano island, in Venice, supplied mass quantities of “trade” beads to be used in Africa and other ‘colonial’ regions. The bead-making industry spread through Europe (you know about Czech and Austrian glass beads), Japan (where
most seed beads are made), the U.S., and Israel (where a lot of silver beads are made).

References for bead information include a number of print sources as well as certain reputable websites. Two of the main bead book and magazine publishers that come to my mind are Interweave and Kalmbach.

Have you ever stopped & thought, “What is a bead?” Share your take on this question below!