Who are we? How did we get here? Where are we going?
These could be the first questions after a rowdy night out, but they're not. It's a good place to start in explaining who we are and what we're about.
Firstly, who are we? We is mostly me, Damian, but I get help from my wife, daughter and son. I have always made things, from Lego as a kid through to carving balsa wood right through to today, as a full time bench jeweller. In case you don't know what I mean by a bench jeweller, I'm one of the practical guys that sits at a workbench making and repairing jewellery.
My wife works in an office job but has great ideas for me to work on. My daughter is an artist and budding photographer who has a great "minds eye". My son is a musician........but also a great problem solver. Together we make up the main team.
I say "main" team as I class every supplier we deal with as being part of that extended team. If the wheels don't turn smoothly, I/we can't do what we do, which is help you do what you do.
How did we get here?
This happened in two ways. The first being that my workshop is pretty well equipped. There's always more I would like to add, but it's still pretty good. I love the feeling that I can sit at my bench and make almost anything I want in precious metals. I have always had the aim to help others and pause before saying no, hoping it's a yes. When I was approached by a young jewellery maker asking for help making round discs, I was able to tell them that I had a full set of disc cutters and it was no problem. I started making silver and gold discs for her. Eventually I started selling them to others as well, an Etsy shop started, then this website.
The second part came from the fact that I also string pearls and beads for the trade and public. I found a great supplier who made soft, flexible, coloured silks, Gudebrod, so I started to import and sell on their products from the US. Unfortunately they are no longer and I greatly miss there products. I was tired of many UK suppliers of SoftFlex being out of stock of what I needed, so I started to import Softflex as well. I was asked about fittings, charms and beads to go on these great cables, so I approached TierraCast (who are sadly winding up as I write this) and started selling there items as well.
In my "day job" I often make specialist tools and templates, so I added a few to the site. They usually sell out as soon as they are listed, which must be a good sign.
Where are we Going?
I know what we would like is to add an even greater variety and range of products, and services. Possibly even manufacturing items that can no longer be sourced, such as equivalents to TierraCast and Gudebrod. We would like to expand what we can offer to jewellers, maybe even get more of a production of tools going. But it all comes down to you, our loyal customers. What do you need? What can we do for you?
The long term goal is to expand the workshop, increase variety, add some warehousing and even have a retail showroom!
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