The R&T Extra!   July 2008

Now Live! Our New Online Store

We know some of you have been hoping for a long time, and now your wait is over! Rings & Things' brand new online store is live! Not only does our new store provide an improved search function, it also offers these great features:

•    – real-time shipping estimates
•    – a wish list for saving products you want to buy later
•    – ability to view your previous online orders
•    – customer product reviews (yes, we accept the bad with the good)
•    – ability to add multiple products to your cart at one time
•    – a "view all" option in search results

Best yet, our product pages still have the same general organization, for an easier transition.

Please note that if you had an online-store account with us before July 1st (a username & password that saved your shipping and other info in our store), you will need to create a new one. This will give you access to the wish-list and online-order-lookup features, as well as saving you time when filling out your info for online orders.

As can always be expected with new technology, we suspect that a few details aren't yet perfectly ironed out, and we ask that you bear with us during this transition. Despite these inevitabilities, we're very excited about our improved store features. We hope you are too. Happy shopping!

36 Years & Going Strong: Anniversary Event

Our 35th anniversary event was such a great success, we've decided to celebrate our 36th year in business too! On Friday and Saturday August 15-16 at our Spokane, WA, warehouse, you'll get first dibs on exciting new autumn components, including the Spring/Summer 2009 Swarovski® crystal launch, our fall gemstone & pearl preview and hot new magnetic-clasp and other chokers. You'll also find great sale prices on overstocks and have one last chance to grab cash-&-carry BeadTour stock from our spring 2008 road shows. Plus, we have more checkout stations this year! Shopping Friday will give you the best selection. Saturday's calendar includes these fun activities:

• stamped copper-pendant necklace Make-It-&-Take-Its
• Art Clay™ Silver overlay paste demos
• intro to the Swarovski® launch (chat with our crystal buyer)

Want to visit from out of town, but scared of gasoline prices? Don't be! Not only can you receive hotel discounts for R&T customers that lighten your burden, but you can also combine our anniversary event with other area attractions & events that your whole family can enjoy.

This event is not only your chance to pick the best of our new stock, find great bargains, learn some new skills and have an extraordinary amount of fun, it's also a chance for you to talk with us in person about your wants, needs and concerns. Event hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. both Friday and Saturday. You can call in orders for catalog items on Wednesday, and we'll have them ready for you to pick up at the event. No returns or exchanges will be allowed during the event. Please bring a friend, but no pets, strollers or small children. Come help us celebrate—we look forward to seeing you!

"Quick Silver" Beads Hit Cover Page!

Every bead vendor wants to see their products on the cover of a major bead magazine, so we were thrilled when some of our Karen Hill Tribe fine silver beads made it to the cover of BeadStyle's July 2008 issue! The featured fine silver "nugget" beads consist of interesting irregular geometric shapes that Dee and Russ found on a buying trip in Thailand. Until now, the beads have been steady but slow sellers, so we've never kept deep stock on hand.

Despite the fact that we knew these beads would be mentioned in an article, we had no idea they would make it to the cover, and within a few days of publication we had completely sold out! Even before the magazine's release, we had reordered from our Thai supplier, but because these beads are handmade using traditional methods, production and delivery take weeks at best. Soon, hundreds of these beads were on back order. As soon as we saw what had happened, we found some similar Karen Hill Tribe beads in our cash-&-carry BeadTour stock to add to our website's magazine-feature listing. The alternate beads are flat rather than 3-D, but otherwise are very similar to the featured beads. We now have an example necklace using the flat beads (inspired by BeadStyle's "Quick Silver" design) on display in our online Design Gallery.

What else could go wrong with our fairy-tale "cover" story? Well, we hadn't reordered some of these beads in over a year—and some of you might have noticed what's been happening in the metal markets over the last few months. According to Kitco's silver market statistics, silver hovered between about $12 and $14 per ounce for most of 2007 (all prices are listed in USD). But by February 2008, silver had spiked to over $19 per ounce, and when we reordered our beads in June, it was still over $17 per ounce. As a result, some of the reordered beads' prices will necessarily jump in price to cover our costs. We knew folks with back orders were hoping for (expecting?) the old 2007 price. We adjusted prices for the new stock, so the increase is not as startling as the change in the raw silver market.

The good news for you amidst all this craziness is that the substitute beads from our cash-&-carry stock are both lighter weight and take up more room on your cord, due to their flat shapes. This means both that each bead is less expensive and that it takes fewer silver beads to create a "Quick Silver" type necklace with them.

More good news is that our shipment from Thailand has arrived! We now have some of the original Karen Hill Tribe beads (seen on BeadStyle's cover) as well as alternate styles available to ship for back orders and new orders. Getting our wish for a great article using some of our products has proven to be a mixed blessing. Nevertheless, we're still thrilled by our moment in the limelight, and we couldn't be happier about BeadStyle's editor exclaiming that our beads are "the coolest things" BeadStyle has seen in a while!

New Lead Laws Affect Children's Jewelry

While California remains the only state to enact laws regarding adult jewelry, it is no longer alone in enacting regulations on children's jewelry. Maryland, Massachusetts, Maine and Washington state have all recently passed legislation relating to lead content in children's jewelry. For more information about these new laws, plus links to governmental websites, check out the new lead-law discussion in the "General Discussion" section of our online Discussion Forum!

According to our customers, Rings & Things is the first and only supplier to provide safety information about jewelry products in an easy-to-find format, and we're glad to provide you with this info (we know these laws can get confusing)! Because Rings & Things' components are not intended for children's jewelry, we don't have plans to create additional product classifications. But, generally speaking, precious-metal components and components certified as "lead free" should comply with strict lead-by-weight restrictions. Wherever you live, and whatever types of jewelry you make, keep creating confidently and safely!

July's Free Jewelry Project

Gold, copper, carnelian, jade ... the colors in our "Phoenix Rising" necklace design work great for both summer and autumn palettes! Combine semi-precious stones with trend-setting metal finishes for a creation that will get your spirits rising above the summer heat.

To view this Designer Tip Sheet (a PDF file), you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader. You can download Adobe Acrobat for free here. Then, simply print the quick-loading or high resolution version of our "Phoenix Rising" necklace design today.

Plus, find summer-themed beads and charms for the beach, picnics, summer sports and more in our summer components. Use these charming parts to make zipper pulls, wine-glass charms and other fun practical objects as well as summer jewelry designs!

R&T's String of Events: July 2008 Calendar

Between road shows, purchasing trips and more, there's typically a lot going on at Rings & Things! Here's what's happening this month:

• As of July 1: Our new Showroom hours are 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. The first Tuesday of each month, the showroom is closed 10 a.m. – noon.
• Friday, July 4: Rings & Things is closed for U.S. Independence Day
• Wednesday, July 9: Summer Supplement prices are effective. Supplements should start reaching mailboxes this week. Exciting new items include anti-tarnish brass & plated-brass findings, notably new pendant caps and bails. Also, Swarovski® rivolis, margaritas and galactics; new filigree platings; and new ceramic, jet, copper and Venetian-style glass beads! If you don't receive your summer supplement by end of July, give us a call at 1 (800) 366-2156 and we'll add one to your next order.
• Friday through Sunday, July 25-27: Art Clay™ Silver Level-One Certification Class at our Spokane, WA, warehouse. Join our resident ACS Master Instructor Kurt Madison for a three-day intensive class to expand your skills and achieve Level-One Certification! More information will be available on our website soon. For upcoming details, including how to register, see our classes web page.

• Friday and Saturday, August 15-16: Join us at our Spokane, WA showroom & warehouse (directions), for our 36th Anniversary Event! Preview upcoming autumn '08 and spring '09 components, plus get great sale prices on overstocks. Saturday's calendar includes Art Clay Silver demos and a new metal-stamping Make-It-&-Take-It project! Coming from out of town? Find hotel discounts and other area attractions & events.
• Monday, September 1: Rings & Things will be closed for Labor Day.
• Sunday, September 7: Our Fall '08 BeadTour kicks off in Minneapolis, MN. Don't miss out on rare finds and great prices when we come to your area!

Thanks!

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