 "Engineer by Day, Sadistic Jeweler By Night" Personal Info
Well, sometimes it is hard to get started telling a story; so let me try to muddle through this as best I can... First thing you need to know is that I am self-taught. How it StartedIt all began in the summer of 1988. I was in college and hanging out with some interesting people. One of these people had an unusual pentacle in Sterling Silver... Well, I just adored the design and the symbology, and I had to have one. I asked my acquaintance where I could procure such a marvelous creation. My heart sank when she told me that the piece was a custom creation one of her friends did during a jewelry course. Her friend was now no longer making jewelry. (Crap!) Well, knowing what I was looking for, I spent the next several months looking for a creation to rival the piece I had gawked at. All my searching was in vain, and I was tired of looking. I made the conscious decision to make something for myself. (Damit!) I did a little local searching and found a shop a couple of towns away that was willing to sell me some sheet silver, for what I now know was a ridiculous price. After the silver I picked up a cheap jeweler's cooping saw, some blades, a Dremel kit will all kinds of attachments, and a small vise. As far as I could tell, I was all set to begin making a masterpiece.
With glowing visions of perfection, I went to work on my creation. Struggling this way and that, I learned the feel of the metal, and I liked it. My creation began to take shape. Mere hours after beginning, the basic form was done. Not quite perfect, but hey, I was pleased. Next came adding the details, like inscriptions and symbols, and finally polishing. The whole thing only took a day. I was all smiles.
The next day I stopped by a local jeweler and bought myself a Silver chain. I wore that pendent every day for about 5 years, till I finally laid it to rest in a box of personal sacred artifacts. I still look at it once in a while to remind me of how and where I started.
Slap in the FaceWell, now I had a taste for Silver. My hands wanted to do more. I spent a few weeks seeking guidance, but no one was really willing to help. I soon discovered just how close-mouthed the jewelry industry is to outsiders. Everything is a secret. It left me scratching my head. I went back to the jeweler (Ted) I had bought the chain from and asked him if he would show me how to do some basic stone setting. His advise to me was "Read a Book" (Slap!). So, I took his advise and began to experiment with ideas from a book. Working with only rudimentary equipment, I was having a hard time doing some of the things described. It was about this time that I decided to invest in my first real torch and try my hand at silver brazing and welding. I also hooked up with an older gentleman I met at a gem show who was getting rid of some of his jewelry equipment and gemstones. I bought a makeshift buffer and some of the other used supplies and was happy that I did, it made my life a bit easier. Around this time (1989), I also decided to make my hobby into a business; more for the purpose of being able to buy materials and supplies at wholesale prices. (Wholesale jewelry suppliers won't sell to you unless you are in the jewelry business and can prove it.)
After a few weeks I went back to see Ted, to show him what I had been up to. I guess Ted was impressed, because he asked me to come down in my spare time and watch while he worked. I anxiously showed up every day I had free to watch how his hands moved with the metal. Granted, he mostly worked in gold, but it was the principal and the style I was after. Three months later Ted asked me to work a bench in his shop doing repairs and custom silver pieces. I quickly learned how to make and repair settings for Diamonds, Emeralds, and Rubies. I made my share of wedding rings and custom pieces and was paid per-piece. The money was not great, but at least I was enjoying the work. I stayed with Ted for about a year
Mouth Ripped from the TeatWell, the time came for me to move from the local branch of college to the main branch. I now would be 50 miles away and no way to continue my apprenticeship with Ted. So, my jewelry took a backburner to school (which was probably a good thing). Of course, I did set up a small welding bench in my dorm room (serious fire code violation). At least I was sure that my room mate would not be telling anyone. He was so affected by seeing my collection of books on the Occult and Pagan Lifestyle, that he slept there one night and I never saw him again (Wicked Grin!). Sure there is more to that story, but hey...you don't want to hear about that (LOL...Don't you just love the color of Crimson in the Moonlight?). About this same time, late '89 or early '90, I began traveling to Pagan gatherings in NY and MA. I began bringing some of my jewelry creations with me. Unfortunately, all my creations were mundane, and while I sold a few pieces here and there, I had not found my niche. Also, to my surprise, I quickly learned that the bulk of the Pagan population that had the time to come out to the festivals were either poor or tight-pursed; I could never figure out which. Pieces that I had slaved over for hours were looked at as expensive at $20. Loosing money is not what I was looking to do. The pagan events kept up for a couple of years while I was in school; but they gave way to the Pensic War, which is a very large Medieval event that is held in PA once a year. My sales seemed to be a bit better there, so I kept going back for a few years. Then once I began a full time job in '95, I no longer really had the time to indulge in the festivals (But I tried). I think my last one was in '96 or '97. (Yes, I miss them)
Following the Horny Dick ToadLifestyle choices, gotta love'em. Again in the early 90's, while I was looking for places to sell my creations, I was invited to vend at the Fetish Flea market in Boston, MA (a BDSM Lifestyle Event). Hummm.... Leather, Whips, Chains, and Jewelry? Well, needless to say, I had nothing in my inventory that seamed to fit the picture; so my first show I went with what I was used to making. I had some sales, and walked away with a small profit, which was more than I was used to. While at the Flea, I had a lot of people inquiring about my abilities to make this or that. They were glad to see a jeweler who was willing to listen to their needs without looking at them funny. Well, the questions did not lead to a lot of orders, but they did get me thinking, that perhaps this was the niche market I had been looking for. I decided to give it a shot. The next Fetish Flea I returned with all my normal stuff, and one new item geared for my new clientele....Finger Claws...Specifically made for scratching flesh. They were an instant hit. The first show I sold 5 full sets on the spot, and had orders of another 3 sets. This was no small deal to me, each set was running $100. I walked away smiling. For the next couple of years I attended the Fetish Flea. Each time with greater success. I had also made a few custom orders for people, but had not really thought of adding other items to my inventory. The people seem to be satisfied / satiated with the claws. But, then it happened, the Flea changed venues and the number of vendors was doubled. Well, that seemed to be just the right combination for disaster. I walked away from the Flea with $300 less in my pocket than when I started. That was that, I decided I had better things to do than bust my butt just to loose money again. Obviously, I don't like being burned. I decided to throw all my attention into getting my Website up and running. Also, I had my FT job to look forward to..(whoopee). Oh Alice, Where Did You Go?Now, while my claws were a big hit at the show, they did very little business online. In fact, my sales were almost non-existant once I went online. I needed something new, something that would bring in the people, something no-one had seen before. At the shows, one of the most popular questions was about making permanent collars. At the time, I had no good ideas as to how to accomplish it. Most attachemnt methods were either too cumbersome, too labor intensive, or just not practical. I needed an idea for an effective locking system. I spent days scratching my head, till one fine evening when I was working late at my day job, it dawned on me... "Why can't I make something that uses commercially available screws?".. With that in mind, the development began. A couple of days later I had the first version of the Screw-Down Collar. Little did I know that this new product would become the backbone of my small business.
To be continued.... |
