fiftieth wedding anniversary. We spent a glorious week filled with endless hours of sightseeing, biking, and strolling the streets of this charming, ancient town.
One afternoon, we happened upon a craft fair in one of the piazzas. I was immediately drawn to an artist who was creating goods from paper and cloth, one of which was a collection of necklaces with beads made from rolled fabric and paper. When I saw them, I immediately stopped in my tracks. There was an unmistakable energy coming off of those necklaces that was inexplicably exciting to me.
I immediately purchased a few for myself and bunches for my friends. In the days that followed, I kept speaking about my newfound treasures and sharing my elation with all of my family members, who at one point expressed their bewilderment as to why I was so taken with these necklaces.
“Aren’t they aaahhh-MAZ-ing?!” I would repeat over and over again.
A few weeks after I returned home to California, I was speaking about the necklaces with a good friend of mine who casually said, “You know Alexa, you could probably make them yourself.”
So I got curious. Then I got crafty.
I’m the mother of two boys, so I must admit, crafting had been on the back burner for many, many years. I’m a tomboy by nature, so raising young lads inspired me to learn to throw a football with a mean spiral. I even started taking karate lessons from the children’s Sensei. I’m more of jock now than when I was a teenager! Crafting was entirely off my radar.
I soon found myself cruising the aisles of Michael’s and heading to the dollar store in search of supplies to create my own paper bead and fabric necklaces. I bought elastic, five types of Mod Podge, scraps of paper, fabric cuts offs and more. Sunday afternoons were filled with messes on the kitchen table. There was no purpose to this play. It was fun for fun’s sake and I loved getting my hands dirty.
I glued wrapping paper, newspaper, and scraps of paper just laying around the house until I found just the right consistency for my liking. Sticky bliss.
Then came the second incident.
One night, I had the honor of spending the evening with an extraordinary group of women who were transitioning out of homelessness. I was a guest speaker at our local community center. That night I was sharing some insights about the power of positive thoughts and the energy of intention. I demonstrated how powerful a single positive thought can be on your entire body and how that energy can carry you through difficult times.
While I was standing in front of those brave women, I recognized how impossible their situations seemed to be—certainly in comparison to my own. I, by all rights, have had a very charmed life. There was a part of me that felt discussing the power of positive thoughts might be minimizing the reality that lay ahead of them. But I persisted.
I went on to explain how they can choose to focus their mind on a single object that inspires them—the sunset, a smile, a flower blooming—and that energy will help carry them through the moments of doubt and uncertainty that will inevitably arise. I encouraged them to visualize their future home and the security they so deserved. We spoke about faith. We spoke about personal power and the necessity of celebrating small wins along the way. The end result was an evening of laughter, connection, and hope.
The next morning in the shower, the two incidents came together as one and I received the download for Wishbeads.
I could see the product so clearly: a kit with all the supplies you need to create a bracelet with your wishes inside; like a vision board you wear on your wrist. By wearing the bracelet daily, you have a visual reminder to stay focused on what you want in life. Wishes. Beads. Put it together and you’ve got…Wishbeads. It was that simple.
My entrepreneurial mind immediately chimed in, Yeah, right. Like the name Wishbeads will be available. That’s so obvious, I’m sure it’s already taken.
I was still dripping wet when I ran to the computer and checked to see if, in fact, Wishbeads.com was available and—much to my amazement—it was. So was the trademark and all the social media handles.
Game on. Now it was time to make it happen.
Once the idea was hatched, it seemed inevitable that I would find a way to create this product. After all, this idea wouldn’t have come to me if I wasn’t somehow ready, willing, and able.
So I accepted the challenge.
Aaaand then I immediately felt overwhelmed and uncertain as to how to pull it off.
I thought to myself, I don’t know anything about making jewelry. I don’t know anything about manufacturing a product. I’ve never done anything like this before. And besides, what if nobody even likes this product? What if I invest tons of time into this Wishbeads project and then I only sell…like, two bracelets? What if this whole idea is completely stupid and I burn through my savings and my family is bankrupt and I will have wasted all my time, all my money, all my effort and have absolutely nothing to show for it?! How could I face my kids?!
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