Press Release - SS14 Launch

Jewellery designer Shen Wong launches her first official collection for SS14

Shen Wong, a Dublin based jewellery designer, set up her business in October 2013 and has already won the ‘Key To The City’ business competition, met the Lord Mayor of Dublin and been interviewed on Dublin City FM. Her Facebook page ‘Shen Wong Jewellery’ has attracted 500 fans and is growing daily.

Born in Hong Kong, Shen and her family moved to Ireland when she was 18 months old. Having grown up in Ireland, she often surprises the people she meets with her combination of Asian looks and Dublin accent. Shen graduated with an MA in PR and an MBS in Marketing. After working in the marketing industry for six years, Shen decided it was time to follow her passion for fashion accessories and set up her own online jewellery business.

The designers’ first collection features handmade jewellery using her own unique technique, which she calls ‘wired by Shen’. Using Swarovski pearls and crystals in her designs, she has developed a range of high quality yet affordable jewellery with prices starting at only €30.00. Shen makes every piece of her jewellery by hand at her home studio in Dublin. To complete the handmade experience for her customers, Shen packages her jewellery into hand folded origami jewellery boxes, offering a truly unique shopping and gifting experience.

This SS’14 Collection is Shen’s first complete collection. Her designs feature Swarovski pearls and through the use of a range of pearl colors, Shen’s unique wirework technique and combination of Swarovski crystals, the creative designer has injected a fun twist to the traditional pearl look.

Hand crafted jewellery by Shen Wong can be purchased online at:

www.ShenWong.com

Interview with Clothes.ie

My First Interview!


















This month I was invited to my first interview as Shen Wong Jewellery with Clothes.ie. This is very exciting as Clothes.ie are a Fashion website in Ireland that are really starting to take off!


How I Did It!

I simply reached out and tweeted Clothes.ie that I would like to feature on their website. To sweeten the deal I offered them an item from my product line for their readers as a competition prize. They responded positively and arranged the interview within a month.

If you are in a similar startup situation, I would advise you to start small and contact new or small fashion sites and bloggers to feature your products. It will help you gain a bit of experience and exposure before you move up to the likes of Vogue or So Sue Me!

Tip: Always ensure that the interviewer includes a link to your website and social media pages. Not only can it increase sales opportunities and connections, but it can improve your Google search rankings.

I hope you found this post helpful. Please leave a comment to share your thoughts and ideas.

Read my interview with Clothes.ie here.

7 Questions to Ask Before Quitting Your Job

The 7 Questions...
...I asked myself before I quit my job to set up my own business

This month I finally took the plunge and quit my day job so that I can focus 100% on launching my jewellery business.

Before I came to the decision of leaving my full time job, I had to ask myself 7 questions:

1. Have I stayed motivated in developing this business for at least 3 months?
2. Do others believe that I have the skills, and does the market has the need for my business?
3. Has at least 3 people purchased something from me?
4. Can I sustain 4 months without a salary and still pay my mortgage?
5. If the business failed to take off, will I be able to find a job within 4-6 months?
6. Will I regret it if I don't take this chance?
7. Will I be a happier person if I pursue this business?

After I confidently answered 'Yes' to all these questions, I knew that it was the right decision.

The most important question to me was number 7. To me happiness is the most important consideration as there are ways to work around everything else.

Is there anything you would add to this list?

New Shen Wong Classic Collection

Working on my new 'Classic' collection. Toning down the range of colours in my jewellery to appeal to a wider audience.

Loving the new collection. 

Let me know what you think? More crazy colours or the classical elegant look? Leave a comment to share your thoughts. 

Inspiring Sun

With the sun blazing my mood is at its best. The sun doesn't just give us life, but it makes us live life. Driving home from work today, I didn't feel just motivated, but invigorated and inspired. I want to throw myself into my new business, Shen Wong and be the maker of fun loving jewellery that people will come to love.

With all my researching into other jewellery businesses, trying to understand their language and the tone they use to communicate to their customers, I started to lose myself in my messaging. While research is important, I think that when it comes to writing for your business, be it in a blog or product description it is even more important to let your personality show.

My own tone can be quite silly, but I think that's ok. Once I express myself passionately in my words, it will come across as genuine to the reader. At least that is what I think now. Tomorrow I am going to rewrite all my personal and product descriptions to convey my own crazy, quirky and silly self.

Don't get me wrong, that type of language works well for the likes of Tiffanys etc. but I need to differentiate myself. Anyway, I want to have fun along my journey, and it's simply too much work trying to talk like someone else. 

If you like this post then please leave a comment. I would live to hear your thoughts. 

Just a pic of me showing off my bracelets.

by Shen Wong

Pennys Autumn/Winter 2013

While we may have only had a week or two of Summer here in Ireland, some good has come of it. With the way the weather has been going we are ready to wrap up a little more and what perfect timing it is for Pennys to launch their Autumn/Winter 2013 collection!

I am loving their new season selection of jackets. They are so simple, yet elegant. Can't wait to buy them! Once I have them in my possession, I can work on creating some new accessories to match. I think the Fuscia jacket below could particularly benefit from an arm party of bedazzling Swarovski pearls and crystal bracelets.

Once I have the jacket and jewellery to match, I will be posting up pictures.

Where I first heard it: IrishMirror.ie

Welcome and Thank You

На все мои русские читатели, добро пожаловать и спасибо!

すべての私の日本の読者には、歓迎していただきありがとうございます！

Om al mijn Nederlandse lezers, welkom en bedankt!

An alle meine deutschen Leser, herzlich willkommen und danke!

--------------------------------

I just wanted to thank all my international readers out there. It was so interesting to find out that many of my readers are from Russia, Japan, the Netherlands and Germany.

Please keep reading, and I promise that I will get better! I am attending the Dublin City Network Enterprise for Women where there will be a talk about BLOGGING! I am sure that I will learn loads. Looking forward to it.

If you understood the message above, I would love for you to leave a comment in either English, or your own language. But even if you didn't understand the messages, I would still be delighted if you left a comment, it would let me know that real people are reading this ^_^

Written by Shen Wong

Arm Party Style

Arm party is the latest accessory style now. For those of you that don't know, an arm party is basically when you wear/stack/layer several to many wrist accessories, including bangles, watches etc.

My latest series of bracelets are perfect for stacking. I discovered this by chance. As I completed each bracelet, I added them straight on my wrist to test out, making 100% sure that there are no wires sticking out (test results prove that they are perfect :) ). As I started adding more on, I realised that the more you wear, the better they looked.

Crystal and pearl bracelets are perfect for stacking, especially when using a range of bead sizes and colors.

If you intend to wear as many as I am in the photos or more, make to sure get them in slightly differing length sizes as you want them to fit from the top of your wrist down, rather than all overlapping at one point on your wrist. If your buying from me, just let me know your intentions and I will adjust the sizes accordingly.

Now you know how to get a party started on your arm, go mad! Happy accessorizing!

by Shen Wong

4th of July Inspirations

With the big 4th of July American celebrations coming, I was inspired two create two pieces with the colors of the American flag. To ensure that the pieces can be worn on other occasions, I also used a range of other colors that go well. All the colors of the rainbow have been included and then some more!

Just to make them extra eye catching they are both double layered. This was a particularly time consuming collection as I added wire wrapped detail to each piece of crystal and pearl. I was up until 4 am in the morning finishing the necklace! But it was worth it.

I would love to know what you think.

by Shen Wong

Packing it all up - Handmade jewellery boxes

For jewellery, the packaging is it's first impression. If you receive jewelry delivered in a plastic wrapped, ripped envelope, it can completely ruin the whole experience and make everything inside feel cheap. Jewellery is supposed to make you feel good about yourself, from the outside in and it all starts with beautiful packaging!

Preparing something that will make my customers smile before they even see their jewellery is what I have been thinking about and working on for a while now. After a few days of working with different materials, folding and cutting away, I think I finally have it. Simple hand folded origami jewellery boxes and ribbon tied, hand cut 'Thank You' labels. There is a LOT of work involved with doing everything by hand, especially when you use heavy paper but I think the end result is worth it.

I am absolutely delighted with my boxes and cards. Now just patiently awaiting my first customer. Hopefully I won't have to wait too long.

Credit Due: Learn how to make these lovely boxes on Pintrest. Thank you JasminBlancBoutique! Click here to view tutorial.

by Shen Wong

The Great Gatsby Inspiration

I have gone crazy for the Ziegfield Collection from Tiffany & Co as inspired by The Great Gatsby.

Using the primary black and white colors from the collection, not to mention the stunning white pearls, I decided to create my own version using Swarovski Elements.

Laying out the materials for some ideas.

First bracelet of my Great Gatsby Collection.

Simple elegant earrings.

I will be adding these to my Etsy Shop during the weekend. Just need to get some great pictures and redo the bracelet. I think the crystal drop will look better hanging from the center of the bracelet. Thinking about how I should arrange the necklace for the collection.

Comments are always welcome, especially in my 'inspiration' posts.

Pearly Gatsby Trend Alert!

It's official, The Great Gatsby is driving us into the high end jewellery stores! Jewellers like Sheils and Tiffany & Co. are enjoying higher than expected sales with the launch of the blockbuster.

Tiffany & Co. launched it's stunning Zigfield Collection back in April. Inspired by the movie the collection is based on Tiffany designs from the 1920s. The jewelry collection heavily features pearls which is characteristic of the era.

I must admit as soon as I saw this stunning collection in Brown Thomas, I couldn't resist and bought myself a pair of earrings for €450!

Jump right on board the fashion trend train and get yourself some pearls. Nothing will make you feel more feminine and elegant than wearing a full set of pearls. For something a bit more modern, yet still classy, check out my Etsy shop. Pearls are the focus of all my pieces.

Watch this space, I will be working on my own Gatsby inspired collection soon.

Ziegfield Collection Pearl Earrings

Still of Carey Mulligan in The Great Gatsby

by Shen Wong

Product Photography

One of the most important elements of making your jewellery attractive to buyers is good photography. After doing a lot of research online, I found one of the best affordable SLR cameras for jewellery is the Nikon D3000. So straight off to Argos I went to pick one up for myself. I am not the type to procrastinate when it come to shopping!

On top of getting a good camera, there are also a lot of techniques and other equipment required, including a product tent, daylight lamps, micro lens etc. In time I will build up to getting a full product studio, in the meanwhile I will just have to make do with a good camera, homemade light box and good sunlight. A light box is important when photographing jewellery as it eliminates harsh shadows. But to counteract the dimmed filtered light, it is necessary to have a strong light source. Sunlight with lack of angle flexibility just doesn't quite cut it.

There is a great tutorial on how to make your own product light box. I know mine is not the same, but I have actually purchased a cheap one on eBay, just waiting for it to arrive. To view product light box tutorial by Jeffery Bail on the Digital Photography School blog, click here. It's so good, I just had to share.

Here is my first photo studio. Photos are not to the Tiffany standard, but that will have to come in time when there is income for new equipment!

To keep up to date with my progress and my jewellery inspiration posts:
- Like me on Facebook
- Follow me on Twitter
- Follow me on Pintrest
- Follow me on Instagram
- Subscribe to my Blog

Please do comment if you have anything nice to say :)
I value all your support.

by Shen Wong

Summer Inspiration

Summer has arrived in Ireland! If you are not from the area it can be hard to understand what a big deal it is here. About two years ago we only had a week of Summer so when the sun is out, it is a big deal! This is why I had to dedicate a collection to Summer.

The sun is blazing into the studio as I flick through all my beads wondering what to use. I settle on some yellow flower crystals; then some white, blue and purple pearls. The colors remind me of buttercups, garden, sun and sea.

I want each bead to dangle separately from a chain, reminiscent of sun beams bouncing off glass bottles while BBQing outdoors. To give a relaxed feel I twist each bead onto the pin in a non uniform way, after all summer is about chilling.

To complete the piece I added a rhinestone encrusted letter charm. It's nice to add a bit of personalisation to a charm bracelet. Voila! It is completed.

I have just added a pair of earrings to this collection. A necklace will be completed soon also.

SUMMER COLLECTION 

Details:
- Size Medium, 18.5 cm long
- 6 Swarovski pearls, 8 mm
- 2 Swarovski flower crystals, 8 mm
- Rhinestone initial charm in silver tone (not Swarovski made or silver plated)

by Shen Wong