Join me on my journey.

One of my reasons for wanting to make the move to this career is my desire to see the world. I love to travel. The anticipation of new adventures, the chance to meet people outside my circle, the cultural differences that help me expand myself and the knowledge and inspiration I gather on each trip are all strong motivators for me.

So I was thrilled to head up to the gorgeous Whitefish, Montana this week and tackle quite a few items on that list. My main reason for going involved stopping in at some wonderful little boutiques downtown and showing them my new collection. I have always had a strong customer base in Montana, and really wanted to find the right stores to carry my items. But, in addition, I had a list of rocks shops, mines and miners I wanted to touch base with and see what stones I might be able to source for my next designs. The added bonus is the beautiful scenery and big skies that are plentiful up there.

Big thank you to my good friend Kelly, who hit the road with me, driving all over to find just the perfect stones. It was great to catch up on our lives and projects (she is launching her own business as well in a completely different field) as we covered the miles. One of the things about a good friend like that is having creative feedback from someone who truly has your best interests at heart. I hope each and every one of you has someone like that in your life!

It was also great having a friend along for an extra set of hands sifting through the bulk of stones we came across. I think the two of us sorted through in record time, pulling so many amazing pieces for hair sticks, pendants and rings. We even found a few stones whose projects are not set but will serve as inspiration for my next set of designs. Crystals in hand, it was time to get up the nerve to show off my current collection, and so we headed back into town.

As proud as I am of my designs, and as much confidence as I try and portray, it is still nerve-wracking to ask someone to look at my art and decide if it is good enough to be sold in their store. Luckily for me, both buyers I met with were encouraging, supportive and excited to see the pieces. I left the stores feeling on top of the world. Any chance for me to send my goods out into the world is invigorating and getting to meet and chat in person, see the beautiful environments where my designs will soon be living makes all the anxiety of putting myself out there seem unnecessary.

So my trip up north was a success in so many ways; building relationships, building confidence and building sales. Can’t really ask for more than that. I packed up my suitcase and said farewell to such a magnificent place with a bit of a heavy heart. But, I am happy to be back home to my husband and my little studio (and I have a trip up back up planned for November), and thrilled to have new inspiration and materials to see what may come.

***I want to dedicate this post to my Uncle Luck, who passed away far too young this past week. Nothing in life is guaranteed, we only have today to make our dreams a reality and to say and do what is in our hearts. He went watching a baseball game, a passion we shared. His passing is a strong motivation for me to make every minute count.***