MAKE RECYCLED-GLASS WIND CHIMES
Using readily available glass bottles, a bottle cutter and a kiln to make glass wind chimes.
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PHOTOS BY DENNIS SIZEMORE
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Judy Sizemore reveals a cash-producing craft for the
ecology-minded
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Six years ago, when I was first trying to earn a living as a
potter in New England, I ran up against an almost insurmountable
problem: It seems many other talented people had also decided to
make careers in ceramics, and the competition was fierce! Indeed,
I spent more time selling my wares than making them . .
. and barely broke even at that! I soon started to wonder if my
secondhand electric kiln had been a good investment after
all.
Then, almost accidentally, I "discovered" a product so unusual
that I had absolutely no competition to contend with.
The success story began when a friend offered me a bottle cutter
for which she had no use. I almost turned her gift down, but
luckily I recalled reading about a craftsperson who
had—with the help of a kiln—made glass wind chimes
from bottles . . . so I decided to experiment.
A SURPRISING SUCCESS
It took a while to figure out the process, but I was soon able
to produce the melody-makers at an astonishingly rapid rate.
Better still, my raw material could be found littering any
roadside, beach, or picnic area . . . so I knew I'd be able to
offer my goods at attractively low prices.
The shiny, translucent, colorful chimes were beautiful, too .
. . and the clear, melodic ring they made as they struck each
other was delightful! I didn't know, however, whether a
market existed for the products. There was, of course,
only one way to find out: I made 50 of the pretty breeze bells in
various sizes ... priced them from $5.00 to $15 . . . and took
them to a fair. There, I put up a display and a sign that read
"Recycled Wind Chimes", and—though the festival was a
two-day event—I was sold out by the end of the
first day! It seems people were particularly attracted
by the fact that my handiwork was made from what would otherwise
have been unsightly trash.
Greatly encouraged, I made the rounds of local craft stores
and discovered that the chimes could also sell very well in the
wholesale market. Indeed, my product would just about market
itself!
At first, I had to work five days a week to bring in $100 in
profits (it took me four days to make the chimes and one day to
sell them). Now, however, I deal exclusively wholesale, and my
markets are so well established that I don't have to sell at all
... I just fill orders. Therefore, I have to work only four days
a week for my $100, which leaves plenty of time for other crafts,
including my pottery.
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