Business is producing a product, selling that product, and earning dollars for your services. If you are not comfortable in asking a customer for money to pay for a product, you are not ready to become a business person.

If you are not ready to build a business then continue as a hobbyist or an employee. This is not meant as a let down; every person has a niche to fill in our world. Happiness is doing what you like to do.

For those who what to be self-employed and wish to build a home business in jewelry making you need to preplan, plan, and keep planning for the life of the business.

Building a business is very similar to raising a child.

1. The preplan: The decision to have a child.
2. The planning; your child is born and needs to be guided during the growth years which means planning education, health care, social relationships, and so on.
3. Keep planning: As a child matures your plans keep changing to meet new current and future needs, e.g. college education, first car, first apartment, wedding, and so on.

Are you ready to go into the jewelry business?

Building a successful business takes time. It becomes your lifestyle. A home based business of jewelry making is an excellent choice. Making jewelry does not require a lot of space. It is a pleasant business because you are constantly surrounded by beauty.

Creativity is your baby. There are so many facets to making jewelry you will never get bored. As your creative baby matures through the years there will be many types of jewelry making to keep your interested in your profession. You can choose to specialize or you can generalize.

I prefer specializing at this time because I make beaded jewelry part time. When I tire of my specialty or there is no longer a market for my jewelry designs, I will turn to another technique and meet new challenges.

You may choose to design and assemble two or three different types of jewelry at a time and work part time or full time in your jewelry business. Full time business people will be more successful having much diversity in their jewelry line than specializing in one, unless your specialty is very exceptional.

Do not hesitate to start your business today as your jewelry skills and your business management and practices will improve in the activity of working your business.

You will discover that business people are the movers and shakers of progress. The business world is constantly changing to meet the demands of the public. That is why operating a business is exciting. Are you ready to leave your footprints in the sand?

Many parents are proud when their baby walks down the marital aisle as it marks the day their baby has grown up and is ready to stand on their own two feet and meet the demands of living a fulfilling life. Parents very proud knowing their children will be successful and worthwhile to society.

One day you will look back on your business and review the many accomplishments and contributions of what your business life has provided for self, family, and community. You will feel very proud.

Cutting out stencils is the extra step of a cut-and-paint stencil design. Cut-and-paint stencils require you to actually cut out the openings (islands) where paint is applied. However, for the extra work, they provide some great advantages.

A cut-and-paint stencil design is usually printed on paper and so it can be reduced or enlarged to fit almost any project size. This is a big deal. If you like a Plastic Pre-Cut Stencil and it comes in two sizes -small at 2′ and large at 4′- and the area you have for an image is 1′ then the plastic stencil will not work for you. Take a cut-and-paint design to a copy machine and resize it to whatever your project area requires. Flexibility is great!

Also, cut-and-paint stencils are less expensive. You are not paying for the manufacture, warehousing and shipping of a product. If you can find downloadable stencil designs you can have your stencil immediately and no delay to your project. Just download the design and print out on your printer.

So far I referred to cutting out stencils on paper, but you have other options. You can purchase sheets of materials like acetate, mylar, wax paper, stencil film or clear overlays. These options allow you to create a permanent stencil that will be resistant to the penetration of oil, dyes, and water-base paints and ink. Simply trace your design onto the stencil film and cut.

You will find many options for materials useful in stencil making. They can be found at your local craft supply store, on line and office supply stores. You’ll find it sold in letter size sheets or rolls for larger stencils. You may even find some clear sheets that will work in your printer or copy machine. When you are looking for a good film for making stencils, you want a material that will accept ink or marker so that you can trace onto it. Look for a matte finish. Also, a matter finish is best for the finished stencil because it will not encourage paint to seep under the edges.

Well on to the one disadvantage: Cutting the stencil.

If your paper stencils are in a book, I would recommend making a copy of each stencil overlay for the project you have chosen. By using the copies, your book and originals are preserved for future use. Don’t forget that you can reduce or enlarge the size to fit the area you want to place the picture when you make copies.

Using a craft-knife cut out the objects on the stencil. Make sure your blade is sharp at all times. Dull blades may cause a paper stencil to tear or not go completely through plastic sheeting. The goal is to cut along each line only once with a firm, smooth motion. With your free hand, hold the stencil firmly and rotate the stencil so that you are always cutting with your wrist at a comfortable angle. This will help you maintain control over the blade and not veer off course.

When cutting past a thin bridge area carefully use a firm finger to hold down the paper. Try to keep your fingers well away from where you are cutting. If you are working with a multi-layer stencil don’t forget to cut out the registration holes in each of the four corners, which will be used for the alignment of the stencil overlays.

As for recommendations on craft knives, I prefer an X-Acto knife with a #11 triangular blade. But an OLFA knife with the snap off blade refills is a fine option too. Again, just make sure the blade is sharp. Of course, be very careful when working with a blade and protect your fingers. Always be alert.

Well, I am sure that once you get the hang of cutting out stencils you will find the many advantages well worth the extra work. Happy Stenciling!