Hi everybody!
There have been a lot of BIG and FAST changes for me in the past 10 days! Etsy deactivated 2 of my handmade beaded bracelet designs and 1 matching earring without any explanation why. I appealed the deactivations, and even though I provided receipts as proof that I sourced every component of them (right down to the string I strung them on!) and that they are my original designs, Etsy denied my 3 appeals. The next day, Friday, August 7, I received an email that Etsy was permanently closing my shop in 28 due to the “recent violations of Etsy’s creativity standards”. (???) I appealed that decision of theirs also, which was denied with the words “This is a final decision and will not be reconsidered”. Not only can’t I sell on Etsy, but they are not letting me buy on Etsy once they close my shop (I think it’s so I can’t tell other sellers what they did to me/my shop)!!
As you can imagine, I was thrown into panic mode! All my customers who I genuinely care about and who trust me - how do I let them know what happened and why my shop is gone from Etsy? So I spent 3 solid days going through my personal database customer-by-customer, looking up their email addresses on their Etsy orders and recording them in my database, planning to write a good bye letter.
But then the next wave of panic struck! All the pieces I have my funds tied up in so that I had something to fit everybody’s taste and style! All that I brought in so that my customers could enjoy affordable genuine gemstone jewelry! And the opal pendants I had made from opals I hunted for hours to find the best quality or most unique stones for my opal customers! All the earring backs and accessories and the thousands of gemstone beads I have - what do I do with it all?! I was overwhelmed, but I knew I wanted to keep connected with my customers and to continue doing what I love!
And THEN! My husband (the one of us who isn’t ruled by his emotions!) bought 3 website domains to protect my business name (he spelled the first 2 incorrectly, one with “jewelery” and one with “knottted”! 🙄 And lastly he bought this correct one, handknottedjewelry.com)! He looked into other selling platforms and formed a plan. Building off it, I formed an LLC for Hand Knotted Jewelry and listed several products on Poshmark (but please don’t buy there unless you have the extra money, as they take two times out of every sale what Etsy did so I really have to mark things up there! You’ll always get the best pricing here). As the final step, my husband got my website started up here yesterday (8/16), powered by Shopify! And thus, I am officially in business for myself! BIG and FAST changes are scary, and going into business for myself is uncertain! But I trust that God knows what’s He’s doing and that if this is the course laid before me, it’s a course He will bless and protect!
Now I have to get this shop stocked with not only everything that I had on Etsy, but also many new pieces that you’ll see for the first time here, (like 6ctw Ashoka-cut Moissanite studs in Argentium - stones that are hand-faceted and amazingly beautiful)! So please bear with me as I get set up here! In the meantime you can still order anything you saw on Etsy and wanted, as I can set up private orders if I don’t have what you want listed yet, and I am still happy to take custom orders!
If you’d like to reach me personally, you can email heather@handknottedjewelry.com or text me if you have my cell number (I’ll see and respond to emails sooner).
And without further ado, I welcome you to OUR new home! I’m so pleased you’ve found me here and invite you back aboard the Hand Knotted Jewelry adventure! It took a little detour, but nothing has changed respective of my commitment to meet your jewelry wants and needs, to provide you with the same high level of customer service you’ve come to expect from me and to do it with pure joy and dedication!
With much love,
Heather