MPNnow:
Providing everything children deserve is never easy, but it’s part of mom’s job description. When things get tough, moms get tougher. Driven by an unconditional love, moms use creativity, talent and old-fashioned hard work to provide for their families.
Tuscarawas Township, Ohio, resident Kristen Ramsey dusted off her dreams to help support her family when her husband, James Ramsey, lost his job with the Ford Motor Co.
Over the last several months, James has been laid off, called back to work and laid off again. In the meantime, Kristen Ramsey is paying the bills by selling her handmade jewelry.
“I had taken classes on metal smithing a while ago, so I started selling my jewelry,” she said. “I have been selling a lot of my bracelets and doing a lot of rings lately.”
Turning her husband’s dusty, old workbench into a jewelry studio was one of the best ideas Kristen Ramsey ever had. It allows her to tap creativity and manage schedules. And the money she earns makes a big difference.
In addition to selling her jewelry at local art shows, Kristen Ramsey uses technology to give the business a boost.
“I would have had a much tougher time without the Internet and being able to spread the word that way,” Kristen Ramsey said, noting she uses Facebook to network and Etsy.com to sell her jewelry. “With the Internet you have the opportunities for (your business) to explode. … This kind of thing would not have happened for me 15 years ago.”
Customers around the nation have ordered her rings, bracelets and necklaces from www.earthyexpressions.etsy.com.
Logo from Earthy Expressions