What Happened Since May

Oh. My. God. Has it been that long since I posted any update about Mu-Yin Jewelry? Well, I guess that is the case. I hope you, my lovely readers / customers, have not forgotten bout me! Everything has been going well, and I have been doing fine. It's just that there have been so many things on my mind that I simply couldn't pick myself up to do a blog update. I have always liked writing long, thorough blog posts, which means it always takes hours for me to do each update, and this becomes difficult when I have too much on my mind. However, I have been (and will continue to be) updating photos and news about my designs on facebook, so if I do disappear again from my blog for whatever reason, I promise you'll still find me on facebook!

Now, if you have not read the post about my decision to change my business structure, it may be helpful to read it first before you continue with this post.

With the incorporation came a lot of paperwork, and I was very confused for a long time. I had some issues with the accountant who originally filed the paperwork for me, and had to switch accountant a few months ago.

I went back to Taiwan for three weeks in September, and also got a lot of new pearls and gemstones from my suppliers in Hong Kong. I have had a few requests on large pearls in the past few years and here they are, my new gorgeos finds --

I have listed a few large freshwater pearl earrings in my Etsy shop. The most notable ones are the12-14mm bright cherry red freshwater pearl earrings as shown in the picture at the top of this post. These hard to find pearls are pricey so I only bought a very small quantity. If you are wondering whether I will make rings with these pearls, the answer is yes! The prototype ring is already made. I just need to list it -- so many things to do, and so little time! See how big the pearl is....

My trip to Taiwan went very well. I made several business contacts, and was approached by a publisher friend about the possibility to write a book about my online jewelry business. I won't go into many details about it, as nothing is final yet, and the the book probably won't be written and published until a few years later. But know that there's a book cooking and the direction of my business may be changing in the next few years. My long term goal is to eventually have it published in English as well, since my main customer base is in the US.

My music business is still at the preparation stage and that's another reason why I had a hard time finding the balance in the past few months. I didn't want my jewelry business to be disrupted by my music business, as the latter probably won't bring in any income for a while. Piano practice takes A LOT of time and requires much discipline. It was something that I was very accustomed to while still at music school, but now that I have a full time jewelry business, time management becomes extremely important. I studied my practice pattern and concentration/energy level throughout the day for a while, and finally figured out a new daily routine a month ago which I have been following through religiously. Originally I thought I would have less time to work on my jewelry business with the daily piano practice, but on the contrary I have been working more and getting more things done, so everything is looking good.

There are a few more exciting plans for Mu-Yin Jewelry, but let's save them for future posts. The holidays are coming up and I need to get ready for those first.

And if you like classical music, be sure to check out my music website. All recordings on this website can be download for free while I work on my recording skills.

So I guess that will be it for today! I'm hoping to do AT LEAST one more post before X'mas about new designs. If you don't see me again before then, you know where to find me! 

Ying's 2nd Birthday

Today is my niece Ying's second birthday. The last time (also the only time) I met her in person, she was only 6 months old and just learning to sit by herself, and now she's all grown up, walking, runnning, and speaking three languages!

Like last year, my mother did a portrait of Ying (see picture above) and my dad did the calligraphy on the portrait with the words --

Year by year

Grow up happily, Ying.

If you take a look at last year's portrait, you'll see how much she's grown.

My gifts for Ying this year are a sundress and a reversible hat, and yup, I made both of them from scratch! They were my second clothing sewing projects. The first one was a year and half ago, when I made Ying her first pair of baby booties.

The sundress has adjustable straps so hopefully it will grow with her for a few years.

Love these cute sunflower buttons...

I'm pretty happy with the finishing details. :)

And here is the hat. I didn't have enough fabric of the same color, so I decided to do a little patchwork. One side has brown and pink --

and the other side has pink and purple --

The finishing details. The side seam --

and the top -

I didn't expect the hat to take more time to make than the dress, but it actually took a while for me to match and cut the fabrics.(If you are interested, both patterns came from the book Making Childrens' Clothes.) The pattern of the hat is for 3-5 year olds, so, again, I hope Ying can wear it for a while!

My mom is taking the gifts to my brother's place in a bit. I hope Ying has a great birthday party and enjoys the gifts from her auntie!

Rain

It has been a very dry and hot summer here in Summerville / Charleston. Our brand new grass that was just sodded last winter never really had a chance to grow before it dried up from the heat. Then, after over a month of drought, we finally had one day of good rain two weeks ago.

Then it became dry and hot again, until yesterday. I was at the grocery store when it happened. This time it rained harder -- the thunderstorm, the lightening, and the extremely loud sound of pouring rain  lasted over half an hour. I was ecstatic. The grass needs it, and I need it too. I feel as if my creativity has run dry for a long time (not related to weather) to the point that I am almost starting to wonder if I will ever be creative again.

The rain somehow assured me that it will. The rain seems to show me that's how nature runs its course -- it will rain after the drought, you just may have to be patient..

Tomorrow I'll be gone to Myrtle Beach for a long weekend to celebrate my birthday (technically I wouldn't call it "celebrate", since I hate birthdays because they remind me that I'm getting older, so  perhaps the correct term to use here would be to "escape" my birthday) with Mike and two other friends. Hopefully this will be the first step to getting my creativity back.

Quick and Fun (and no bake!) Dessert - Chocolate Coated Frozen Bananas

 

I recently discovered Magic Shell and quickly became addicted to it. Today I noticed some of the bananas I bought a while back were getting too ripe, but I wasn't in the mood to eat them, so I came up with this idea to make some frozen dessert for myself. It's so quick and easy and yummy I have to share the recipe!

The ingredients are very simple...

 

bananas - I used two, but you can always use more!

magic shell - if you prefer making your own, I also found a recipe for you here

nut toppings - walnuts, pecans, or almonds

And here are the steps...

1. lay a sheet of wax paper on a plate (this is to prevent bananas from sticking to the plate after they're frozen)

2. cut bananas into small chunks 

3. coat bananas with magic shell 

4. sprinkle nut toppings all over!

5. leave the bananas in the freezer for a few hours, until they're frozen, and then serve!

 This is a fun and easy recipe and will be great to make with kids. It's also a healthier alternative to ice cream. Hope you enjoy!

 

New Directions

Today is one of those rare days when I am overwhelmed with joy and new understanding for life. Everything has been going very well recently. I sold many custom birthstone necklaces and rings before Mother's Day; making them always make me happy, knowing my simple creations will be cherished for a long time. 

I also made my 6000th sale on Etsy a few days ago. This means in less than 4 years (I listed my first item on 7/4, 2007) I made over 6000 pieces of jewelry by hand from scratch, and shipped them to over 30 countries in the world. Wow. To this day each sale still feels like a tiny miracle -- how did these customers find me in the big ocean of internet, and what made them trust me enough to buy jewelry that they have never seen or touched in real life? Wow. I hope my jewelry doesn't disappoint in person!  

Another thing that makes me happy is the incorporation of my business.I have been thinking about doing this for the past two years or so, but after talking to my new accountant last month, I felt it was time. While the main reason to incorporate is to save on the heavy self-employment tax, another reason to incorporate is that I am ready to start another business in music, and this would make it easier for me to file my tax returns(instead of filing two returns for two separate businesses, I will only need to file one for the incorporation). The detailed directions of my music business is not decided yet, and I'm planning to go very slowly, so I think the main focus of my business will probably still be jewelry for the next year or two. After that, I will still continue to make jewelry, although with the focus of my business gradually transitioning to music.

In the past few weeks I met some local musicians. After spending every single day at home for the past three years (since I started making jewelry full time), it's actually quite refreshing to go out and meet strangers! I'll start to attend some more local events and also perform in the great Charleston area. I will keep you guys updated about my music business as well. :)

 

New Arrivals and Mother's Day Ordering Deadline

Sorry it took me such a long time! I finally got these two new custom mother's birthstone jewelry designs listed yesterday -- the Bridge family birthstone necklace (picture above) and a family birthstone charm bracelet (below).

As with my other family birthstone jewelry designs, both of these are made with natural gemstones of your choice. You also get to choose from three different chains for the charm bracelet.

Some other news include the new stock of solid 18k white gold and rose gold, as well as the hard to find 14k rose gold filled wire! They're not updated on my website or Etsy shop yet, but you can leave me a note at checkout or contact me if you are interested in jewelry designs made with any of the above wire, especially my safety pin earrings and forged hoop earrings.

Now, the ordering deadline for Mother's Day.

If you are not located in the US, the odering deadline has passed, unless you are willing to pay for international express mail shipping charge.

For domestic US customers, my current turnaround time is 3~5 business days. Shipping upgrade is available at checkout on my website. The last day to order mother's birthstone jewelry is 5/2 with express mail shipping to anywhere in the US.

IF you are located in Charleston or Summerville area and can pick up the jewelry at Four Green Fields Gallery,  the ordering deadline will be 5/4 (for pickup on 5/6 and 5/7).

Flowertown Festival Special!

Spring is officially here in Summerville, SC! I would love to meet more local customers face to face, especially those of you who have been following me on my blog, facebook and twitter. Stop by and see me at Flowertown Festival (booth G49, inside the Azalea Park) and receive 10% off your entire purchases!