• Home /
  • About Us /
  • Blog /
  • Shop /
  • FAQ /
  • Newsletter & Contact

Handcrafted Jewellery Anne Carson Design

~ blog from Vancouver

Handcrafted Jewellery Anne Carson Design

Monthly Archives: September 2013

Pearls go to the film fest

28 Saturday Sep 2013

Posted by annecarsondesign in Seen Wearing ACD

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Laine Slater, Vancouver International Film Festival, White baroque pearls

ImageI love to see my necklaces swan off to parties, even if it’s without me. This rope of white baroque pearls hit the Vancouver International Film Festival last week on the long and lovely neck of Laine Slater, VIFF’s marketing director.

Laine’s husband Charles Campbell got a snap of them at the opening night gala, where I heard they all had too much fun.

VIFF kicked off with the Canadian premiere of Nebraska, the latest movie by Oscar winner Alexander Payne, who did Sideways. It’s getting great reviews, and I’m hoping to catch it before the festival closes Oct. 11.

Every year I look at the wealth of films you’ll never get to see in the local multiplex, and think, “Maybe I should just skip off work and spend two weeks at the movies?” Ah well, we can all dream. Here’s the program.

Advertisement

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Email
  • Print

Like this:

Like Loading...

Welcome

26 Thursday Sep 2013

Posted by annecarsondesign in New creations

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Anne Carson, handcrafted, jewellery, original, pearls, silver

_MG_34001Welcome to Anne Carson Design online. The virtual shop is new, although I’m not. I’ve been in business for more than nine years, but I am what my friends have jokingly referred to as, “the reluctant entrepreneur.”

Although I love designing jewellery, the evolution of my business has been slow because I’m not comfortable being a self-promoter. So my clientele has grown entirely by word of mouth and largely due to the kindness of my friends and their friends who wear my work and hand out my business cards.

RELUCTANT ENTREPRENEUR

I never planned to go into business. I just began designing necklaces because I could never find quite what I wanted in the marketplace. I wanted real stones, not glass or crystal. I prefer silver to gold. I’m influenced by vintage jewellery, particularly from the Edwardian era, but I don’t want to wear a costume. I wanted my jewellery to have a fresh, modern feel.

Eventually I decided to make my own. As the results got better, friends began requesting I make them pieces. Then their friends asked if I could make up another one like that in chocolate pearls? Or did I have anything in aquamarine? Or peridot?

They told me people tried to buy the jewellery right off their necks, which I didn’t quite believe until it happened to me. Eventually one pal decided to throw a party and invite her friends and colleagues to see some of my creations. That happy event became the main method for marketing my work. These days, I often fly to visit friends in other cities and call it a business trip because I show my work over wine and appies.

MEDIEVAL ARTISAN SYNDROME

About four years ago one of my bracelets found its way onto the arm of a morning TV fashionista and an investor approached me about expanding my business. She just shook her head when she heard about my sales techniques.

“It’s like you’re some medieval artisan dragging a cart from town to town,” she said. She was a skilled businesswoman and told me there were more efficient ways to do this. She proposed a plan that would involve offshore factories and wider profit margins, for jewellery of reduced quality.

I suddenly realized that she wanted to me to start making exactly the sort of necklace I had rejected more than a decade ago.

“But I make these for my friends,” I protested. “I make every necklace as if I were going to wear it myself.”

“You realize that friends-of-Anne is not actually a demographic,” she replied. “Well, at least not one that’s big enough to expand your business.”

And that’s when I realized I was never going to be any sort of mass producer. So I planned another party.

GEMS FOR MY FRIENDS

While my customers are not all my friends in the true sense of the word, they are women like me who wear a lot of classic clothes and want jewellery to give the outfit some interest. They don’t want to see carbon copies of what they’re wearing on everyone else in the office or at a party.

With that in mind, I make all the pieces myself because I need to see how the stones work together. That’s what my customers value about these pieces: they’re handcrafted with care, and with an eye to pleasing the wearer.

Which brings me to why I’ve launched a website. The same friends who pushed me to go into business in the first place, also convinced me that having an online shop was a matter of good customer service. Many of my pieces are limited designs and some are one-of-a-kind, so customers who couldn’t always make time for showings felt they were missing out. The website just makes it easier for people to find what they’re looking for.

LIMITED EDITION JEWELLERY

If you’re interested in hearing about the new pieces first, we have an occasional newsletter and you can sign up here. New pieces will make their public debut a week or two later in the “Featured Products” part of the shop. The necklaces, earrings, and bracelets currently in stock are found in the obvious categories. And I have a wing of the store devoted to my portfolio of previous designs, for anyone looking for inspiration.

The nature of designing with natural stones is that when they’re gone, they’re gone. But if you like something you see, or would like it in a different coloured gem, I can check with my suppliers and see if there’s something comparable that might work for you.

Thanks for visiting Anne Carson Design. I hope you enjoy browsing.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Email
  • Print

Like this:

Like Loading...

Recent Posts

  • In praise of versatile pearls
  • Theodora inspired by 1930s mannequin
  • Shop closed until October 2, 2019
  • Daring to be creative, while aging
  • Meet my new friend LeslieJane

Categories

  • amethysts
  • Amusements
  • Arts Umbrella
  • Audrey Hepburn Day
  • bracelets
  • Custom Designs
  • Downton Inspirations
  • earrings
  • Fashion for Grown-ups
  • Gift Guide
  • gifts
  • Good Causes
  • In the news
  • Inspirations
  • Inspirations from the Screen
  • MOTHERS DAY
  • New creations
  • Pearls
  • Screen Inspirations
  • Seen Wearing ACD
  • Shop Anne Carson
  • Shows
  • statement necklaces
  • theodora
  • Trunk show
  • Trunk shows
  • turquoise
  • Uncategorized
  • Vancouver Designers
  • Weddings
  • where to buy

Archives

  • August 2021
  • October 2019
  • August 2019
  • June 2019
  • March 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • April 2018
  • February 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • August 2017
  • April 2017
  • November 2016
  • May 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • January 2015
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013

Recent Comments

Earrings fit for a t… on Come for the earrings; go for…
Theodora is in charg… on Theodora in charge
annecarsondesign on Tomorrow’s heirlooms for…
PoshPedlar on Tomorrow’s heirlooms for…
Anne Carson Design 
Vancouver, BC, Canada
+1.604.619.9294


Learn about new items first! Sign up for our newsletter.

We respect privacy and will never sell your address.

Or you can follow us on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest.

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • Handcrafted Jewellery Anne Carson Design
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Handcrafted Jewellery Anne Carson Design
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...
 

    %d bloggers like this: