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So the two weeks of running around and exhibiting our works are finally over. Here in the studio we are all tired from the interactions with random people, who swung by our exhibit. We really have to give it to those in the sales lines who have to do this on a daily basis, it is just amazing how they manage to cope with it. Nonetheless, we know that more people have seen our work so far and our name is slowly spreading, more so with the speed like a creeping plant as opposed to some viral pandemic. We did have many queries to where we had our shop/ boutique, and after much deliberation we have decided to convert part of our studio into a silver boutique cum gallery, for our art, sculpture and silver accessories. This we hope to achieve by the next few months, depending on the sales we are able to generate to fund this project.
We do however have slightly mixed emotions about this venture, as our studio though in an accessible place, is set in rather dodgy surroundings, with neighbors who have rather shady backgrounds and occupations. Nonetheless it is also this duality of location and surrounding that lends a character to our studio which we have began to love, much like the mangy mongrel that has been a loyal partner through the years. It is rather hard to analyze how successful this venture is going to be, but much like why we started to make silver accessories, it is driven by the heart as opposed to the brain.
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Another showing at the RED DOT MUSEUM, over the weekend. It was a great experience and the exposure was good. Unfortunately though the sales could not match up to the hype, so more hungry times ahead. Nonetheless it was a great experience as always, many new friends made and new ideas exchanged.
As for more current news, we have been invited to have another showing this coming weekend on Saturday 8th Dec 2007, at VIVO City, Singapore, at the PageOne bookstore. This we hope will be even better exposure for us as it will be the very first time we have been invited to show our work in a more commercial venue with a lot more human traffic, we would also be planning to do some live sculpting demonstrations for the public to further educate people into the processes that go into our craft.
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A whole year has passed, and the Christmas season is upon us again. It is amazing how time just flies, especially when we've been busy with our work. Anyway we are going to be doing one more show for the year end, and hopefully with a little bit of luck we can get some sales. Some of the products being shown have yet to be put up on this blog. So for any of you who have been religiously following the life and times of our little studio, and are able to pop by over this weekend for a look, we will definitely be happy to entertain any queries about our studio and our new products.
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The studio has been just a little bit quieter of late, and it feels rather strange. Precisionitis has to serve a 3 week stint in the Army, as this yearly requirement for Singaporean males. With the year end creeping up and people beginning to look for gifts in this most commercial of festive seasons, "Christmas," the pressure is definitely on to produce enough products to tempt the consumers, and hopefully make a little bit of money to welcome in the new year.
It is nice to know that most of the processes of jewellery casting have become a science for us now and we have definitely reduced the amount of time in reworking castings and also the reject rates are finally at an all time low. Not that we are boasting our skills as metal workers, but more as a rather reassuring thought that after more than a year of self education through trial and error we have definitely improved on our skills, as opposed to floundering around clueless to all the processes of jewellery making. Unfortunately for us, we do realize that there is still a bulk of processes involved in finishing castings to the high standard mirror finishes we like to achieve. These have proven to be rather time consuming processes and skills that we are still perfecting. Surface grinding in varying degrees of coarse abrasives, followed by multiple buffing compounds, have been rather painful processes that not only require a trained eye but also a ton of patience. These coupled with the fact that we are rather hungry for sales have made any tedious process ever more unbearable.
But speaking on the topic of the mirror surface radiance of jewellery, it has been rather disappointing of late when we do see images of silver jewellery in magazines and books that do not seem to achieve any high standard of finishing yet have price tags beyond exorbitant. It really does make us wonder how do these guys do it, and is it about the branding or about the product quality. We guess most of the time consumers rather buy into well established brands, for the status symbol more than for the appreciation of the end products. This is a rather saddening fact of life but we guess it is a part of life we will have to deal with. With enough time and perseverance we hope to also be better established, but the bottom line is to continue to have the high standards of craftsmanship. Would definitely be sad if we suddenly decide to make crap just to make a fast buck, but with our darned pig-headedness it is going to be highly impossible, just got to keep telling ourselves to remain strong and keep on looking ahead.
Well it is back to polishing again, making our shiny bits.
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