cholula?

I am briefing myself on etsy policies, tips for sellers, how to prepare yourself for craft shows, etc. There is SO much in the business aspect of all of this it's overwhelming. I'm reading all of this and instantly worrying that I'm going to be that awful seller that people don't like dealing with. Not because I want to be, but I'm so busy that making it to the post office more than once a week won't be possible. Answering questions and emails can only be done at night, and that's only if it stays to a reasonable number. What if I can't stay on top of things?

I mean, hopefully this will lead to being one of TWO main jobs (instead of one of four, which it currently is...), but there will likely be a lot of time until that can happen.

Pricing has been on the back of my mind as well. I've been told to do cost of materials + an hourly wage I think I deserve. I don't really keep track of how much time I spend on each piece, especially with the waxes. I should probably start logging my hours, regardless, since that was part of my business plan for myself.

I kind of price based on the complexity of the piece, the stones that are in it, and somewhat randomly. I mean, by randomly I don't have a set formula I use. If something was more challenging but didn't take a lot of time do I price it cheaper? I've spent a lot of time looking online and at places like etsy...prices for sterling silver pieces are all over the place. I'm looking at a middle-ground, but perhaps a little on the higher end of that ground. I suppose if things aren't selling I'll need to re-evaluate and price accordingly. I do want my prices to be fair and affordable, but I don't want to cheapen all of the time and effort I've put into the pieces either.

If I end up sending out pieces to make molds from, the "copies" will obviously be priced cheaper than my one-of-a-kind work. The bulk of my interest lies in unique pieces, however, as when I finish I piece I generally want to be done with it and move onto the next thing. I do recognize that if I'm to make this the bulk of my income and try to get into galleries and such I need to have molds of at least some pieces.

I have been on a pendant kick lately, of which I need to take pictures of. I'm not so sure about the two I'm working on and they may end up getting hacked up and melted down to become something else. There are endless options with wax but it's really hard for me to think in terms of carving something out...rather than building something up. I worry about how the soft wax will ship so I've been hesitant in using that, though there are some ideas floating around.

Another thing I need to look into is PMC design. I've had my PMC kit for awhile though, just never used it. I always get kind of stuck when thinking about what to do with the stuff. It's also very intimidating to me...as I'm worried I'll play with the clay too much and it will get hard and I'll be forced to fire something ugly. I keep telling myself to start simple, but I think more important than that I have to have a very specific design before I begin.

Lastly - the title! I have been thinking about this for awhile, now, but I wasn't sure how it would work. Cholula is one of my horse's names, but I also think it would be a lovely name for my jewelry. I just got a "Go for it!" from someone who has been helping me out with the name issue (THANKS!) and that may have been the push I needed to settle on it.

I'm giving myself a few days to make the final decision, but Thursday will be the big day. The more I think of it the more I like Cholula.

I am trying to keep the length of these posts to a minimum, but it's hard when there's so much going on in these initial stages. Just try to bear with me.