I stared getting more curious about beads because a girl down the
street told me she used to sell ladies bead necklaces at spas in the
area and would get like $80 - $100 for a necklace. She said sometimes
the necklaces weren=92t all the great and a lot of the time the beads
she used were all plastic. This surprised me big time. I thought the
women would not buy necklaces if they were not made from expensive
materials. Or maybe people can=92t tell. For instance=85 lots of stone=
s
look pretty similar to turquoise and do you think people don=92t reall=
y
know the difference between more expensive stones? I didn=92t until I
recently started getting into jewelry making and researched different
stones. Will people buy anything that looks good? What this girl told
me fascinated me.
I wouldn’t believe everything you hear from people. For some unknown
reason, people like to exaggerate their success sometimes. It could
be that she is selling plastic beaded necklaces for $80-$100 as fast
as she can make them, but I wouldn’t put my money on that being an
accurate statement.
- Dee Dee
People will buy what looks good. My sister wears high quality,
expensive jewellery as a rule, but one of her favourite pieces is the
exception. For all she knows, the stones are glass and the metal is
gold-fill or plate. However, it does look very nice. I was told many
years ago that if you normally wear good quality jewellery, others
will always assume that whatever you wear is of the same quality.
However, I have noticed another element at work here. Amongst other
things, I make beaded bracelets from semi-precious stones and 9ct
gold. When the buyer wants say, a dark blue and gold bracelet, they
will buy blue goldstone or lapis-dyed howlite and gold-fill if the
bracelet is only intended for what might be termed short-term or
’fashion’ use. However, if the intention is to ‘keep’ the bracelet,
they will pay more for good quality lapis and 9ct gold. People also
get a certain satisfaction from knowing that the latter is the ‘real
thing’.
A lot of people really can’t tell the difference between expensive
stones and cheap stones/plastics. One of the problems I encounter in
selling is that prospective buyers do not understand why there is a
price differential between two bracelets that look very similar but
use different materials.
Maybe I’ve got it wrong, and I should be slapping the higher price
tag on everything.
Pat
I hate to say it, but… Actually it isn’t a bad thing. It is
what it is. A lot of people out there want a look and that is it.
They don’t even care about workmanship (until it becomes their
favorite piece and then breaks).
Leslie Anne Wright Macy
Maybe I've got it wrong, and I should be slapping the higher price tag on everything.
Don’t do it! Along will come a prospective customer who really can
tell the difference, and if your price tags are the same for
treasure and trash, your reputation will go down the drain.