Craft fair wrap up

What a fabulous three weeks it has been! ARIA INDUSTRIES hit up three craft fairs and now that the shop at aileen.etsy.com has been restocked, it's time to work on posting some new items. The number would have been fourteen, but six of those brand new pieces sold at the events!

Grace Locke, who won the $25 gift card draw at the South Arm Christmas Craft Fair stopped by at the event in Steveston and applied the value of her gift card to the Rosalline necklace. She was choosing between that and the Ilke earrings, but the bib necklace won her over in the end. And I can't forget to mention that the Steveston Christmas Craft Fair's winner is Leigh Betteridge!

Lovely lapis

Craft fair number two is done! I was in the basement of the gymnasium at the Dunbar Holiday Craft Fair this year and although I wondered whether the location would affect the amount of shoppers (compared to last year when I was on the main floor), I had no reason to worry. My first customer of the day was a gentleman who chose the Riordan earrings, which are so new that they have not even been posted to the shop. They feature three tiny grey sapphires and beautifully faceted lapis:


As usual, I held a draw for a $25 gift card toward any of my jewellery and the winner is Courteney Chu! I wonder what piece she will pick...

First of three

One of my favourite things about craft fairs is meeting the other crafters. It's fascinating to see how different other jewellers' work can be even though we are always lumped into the same category. And of course I also love seeing the non-jewellery offerings too. In fact, I picked up three items before the event even began today!

Some of my non-sales highlights include running into one of my brother's now-retired teacher from elementary school, learning about honey from my craft table neighbour, and talking about gemstones with someone who turned out to be my last customer of the day. Of course I also held my usual draw for a $25 gift card and the winner is Grace Locke!

Times three!

The winter craft fair season is almost upon us and this year, ARIA industries will be at three events! First up will be the South Arm Christmas Craft Fair on November 15th and then there will be a return to the Dunbar Holiday Craft Fair on November 22nd for the second year in a row. Last will be the Steveston Christmas Craft Fair on November 29th. There will be a gift card draw at each event, which means there will be three winners over the holidays! Put the dates in your calendar!

Ship happens (and you can find out where)

Exclusively for Canada- and US- based customers, I am pleased to offer an upgraded shipping option! While standard shipping is the most economical, its limitations may not work for everyone. For an extra $15, there will be a tracking number and the delivery can be expected within 7 business days.

Upgraded shipping is available for international customers too! The service standard is 10 days, but the exact time frame can vary depending on the destination. As the cost also varies, please contact me with your address and I will get a quote.

Here's what tracked shipping looks like in Etsy:

With this ring...

My best bud Yvonne tied the knot earlier this year, my cousin Andy did it recently, and my friend Jenn will be doing it in about a month. With weddings on my mind, it's no wonder my latest necklace looks like an engagement ring! The Marianne necklace features a handmade hammered ring with an extra large crystal quartz that is faceted like a round brilliant diamond. Flanking the center stone are five celestites on either side - these stones are naturally iridescent, which means they sparkle like crazy! And doesn't the necklace look fabulous with my chrysanthemum ring?

Save the dates!

The leaves are falling, the winds are blowing, and winter will be upon us soon, and this also means it's almost holiday craft fair season! ARIA INDUSTRIES will be attending three events in November so mark your calendars:

South Arm Christmas Craft Fair
Saturday, November 15, 2014
10:00am - 4:00pm
South Arm Community Centre
8880 Williams Road, Richmond
Bob McMath multipurpose room (A102)

Dunbar Holiday Craft Fair
Saturday, November 22, 2014
10:00am - 5:00pm
Dunbar Community Centre
4747 Dunbar Street, Vancouver
Basement

Steveston Christmas Craft Fair
Saturday, November 29, 2014
10:00am - 4:00pm
Steveston Community Centre
4111 Moncton Street, Richmond
Indoor tennis courts

Here's a visual reminder for the middle show:

A new workspace

The last two years have been full of change - I first moved to a different suburb of Vancouver, then changed careers, and then moved to downtown Vancouver. The last was a long time coming because I had to go through renos, buy new furniture, and do a lot of cleaning before the place was in good enough condition to live in. But I am all settled in and thinking of sparkly jewels again. So keep you eyes peeled on the shop for new items. In the meantime, here is a shot of my dining table, where I will be making a lof of jewellery:

Ice and lights

I'm back! I enjoyed my cruise aboard the Celebrity Century a lot more than expected and really miss the fantastic food (the crème brûlée was out of this world) and the fun shows (the dance contest was hilarious!). The three Alaskan ports we stopped at sold a lot of gemstone jewellery including diamonds, tanzanites, and mystic topazes. The last was dubbed northern lights topaz, which was a little strange for me since I know the real name, which isn't used for marketing to tourists. There was also another coated stone called glacier ice topaz and that name made me smile too. In any case, here is a snapshot of the Hubbard Glacier:

Ahoy mateys!

Guess who's about to go on a trip! Me! My cutiepie cousin is visiting Canada for the second time in two years and this time, my family is taking hers on a cruise to Alaska! Of course, this means nothing in my shop will ship while I am away, but to make up for the wait, here is a discount code... Just enter 2014ALASKANCRUISE when checking out and you will get 15% off everything in the store! Don't wait too long because the deal expires July 20th.