My ethos and the joy of clocks

As the name 'Rebejoo' comes from 'recycled and bijou', it's clear that at the heart of my jewellery-making is a recycling and re-use ethos - which means I have to be selective about what materials are utilised. There are a few areas where recycling isn't possible such as the gas needed to fuel a blow-torch - however, pretty much everything else can be sourced in such as way as to minimise the overall use of resources. This is important in our finite and limited world, and is all about being mindful. So, the metal I use all comes from items that would otherwise be thrown away, and as far as possible I use vintage tools which are often better quality anyway...

Some of the bits and pieces destined to become jewellery are things I already have (an excellent way to de-clutter!), some are 'found objects', and others are unwanted items given to me by kindly friends (who tend to get a pendant in return - more de-cluttering). The latter are great because sometimes, just sometimes, they include the holy grail of steampunk design - clocks! Broken and unwanted clocks are great - they are full of wonderful cogs and springs, and just the act of dismantling them is deeply satisfying - in fact almost every bit of an old (i.e. pre-plastic) clock is useful for something. And you can spin them like little brass tops - very therapeutic.

Not everything will become jewellery - some of these spiffy bits and pieces will - eventually - be mobiles, or parts of sculptures, or maybe something else as my ideas for Rebejoo evolve. As these ideas are driven partly by what materials I have (because I'm not buying new metal) I never quite know what I'm going to make, and that's one of the joys of doing what I do, not to mention ensuring every piece is unique. So, the bits are sorted - watch this (or the facebook) space to see what they turn into...

Building the business

It's still early days for Rebejoo, but things are progressing. Sales are slowly but steadily coming in, I've got a maybe-commission on the horizon and new ideas keep popping into my head and out through my hammer. So, that's all looking good, but making shiny objects isn't all there is to it...

Brass, copper & EPNS 'Tricolor' pendant - a recent creation.

First of all, I need to make sure that people other than friends and family know about Rebejoo - hence this blog and the facebook page (which is intended as the main selling portal until I decide to set up a website and/or go down the Etsy route). Paypal is now set up, the first mail order has been paid for and sent, and later today I'm going to design and print some business cards and other stationery. The facebook listings have been split into '£10 and under', '£10-25' and '£25 and over' - plus those that have been sold to loving new homes!

The next consideration is craft fairs - shall I do them, and if so how much should I be willing to pay for a pitch, how often (they are often on Saturdays when I'm busy elsewhere) and where? My current feeling is to focus on getting pendants into galleries like the Art House and Southampton City Gallery first, and then worry about fairs - however, if I want Christmas sales I need to sort this out soon as December fairs are booking. I normally don't acknowledge the existence of Christmas/Yule before Dec 1st, so this will be a bit of a departure... Still, I have my first display board built and laden with goodies - next I need to add a 'Rebejoo' header to it (made of recycled steel, naturally), plus a business card holder. Oh, and shall I focus solely on pendants or start working on other types of jewellery? Probably the latter, but maybe not just yet... 'tis very exciting!

Display board laden with pretties.