Contact

About Cicada Art Jewelry

 

Where is this jewelry store?

There is no store. This is a home-based business located in Denver, Colorado, U.S.A. Local friends and acquaintences sometimes buy from me in person, but this is largely a web-based business.

Purchases from this site support the smallest of small businesses, rather than going to sweatshops, big box stores, or corporations.

Where does all of this jewelry come from?

It was designed and made by hand by me, Jeanette M. Norman. I'm also the founder and one of the organizers of D.A.F.T. (Denver Atheists & Freethinkers). We have a site on GroupSpaces.com.

My materials come from all over the world, though mostly from Asia, Europe, and the United States. But all of the finished products are made right here in Denver, Colorado.

How can I reach the owner?

For customer queries you may use the Contact link on this site to email me. It's located below the RDF OutCampaign “A” link.
(Spam email will be sent with full headers to the FTC.)

I can also be reached through GroupSpaces, Meetup, and via the Cicada Art Jewelry page on Facebook.
(Spam will be reported if sent through those sites, as well.)

What is “Art Jewelry?”

Here are some definitions:

Fine Jewelry: Jewelry that is partly valued for its beauty, and party for the expense of its materials.

Fashion Jewelry: Made of less expensive materials, and is worn to match the colors or style of an outfit. Fashion jewelry is typically mass-produced and not terribly original.

Art Jewelry: Can be made of any materials, expensive or not, and is intended to be wearable artwork. It typically includes very expressive statement pieces, and its individuality highlights the individuality of the wearer. It is always hand-crafted and is typically either one-of-a-kind or done in limited runs of similar items.

The line between fashion jewelry and art jewelry can be a fine one because fashion can be elaborate and art can be basic, and either is an expression of personal style. And both varieties are commonly denigrated as “costume jewelry.” But the main difference is that art jewelry is artisan jewelry, individually made pieces that support handcraft as a value.

While I make every finished product I sell, I carry some pieces simple enough that they are more like fashion jewelry, as well as pieces with so much character that they are definitely in the art jewelry category. That allows me to offer more of a variety of prices and styles.

What payment methods do you take?

The site is set up with PayPal as its shopping cart. If you don't have money in a PayPal account, you can use PayPal to pay by credit card or debit card, or to pay through a checking account. For other questions about payment, use the Contact link.

What are your shipping prices and methods?

We have the PayPal shopping cart set up for USPS rates, rounded up to account for packaging. There is no “handling fee.” Arrangements can be made for other shipping methods (Contact link), though as with the usual shipping method they must be paid for in advance.

What is your return policy?

How long an item lasts is generally a function of how well it is cared for. But if the piece has some kind of defect (not damage due to poor care or accident) within 1 year of purchase, notify me. I will fix or replace the item if possible, or refund your money if the item can't be fixed or replaced. Refunds in this circumstance will include shipping in both directions.

If you get an item and the color doesn't match or some other “buyer's remorse” reason, send it back immediately (to me within 7 days, unless you can prove it was held up in the mail) and still in new and pristine condition, including the gift box it came in.

In this circumstance I will refund the price of the product, but not the price of shipping in either direction.

What did you say about a gift box?

Every piece that costs $20. or more will be sent with a gift box, to keep pieces clean and protected and provide a way to store them... and if you want, to use as a gift box.

What's the “atheist” stuff on the site all about?

I'm an atheist, and I believe in outspoken atheism. There are many incursions of religion into government in the United States, a lot of proselytizing and pressure to conform, and a priviliged position given to religion and to Christianity in particular when it comes to debate on many topics. It is time for those with a reality-based worldview to stick up for reason, to push for separation of church and state, and to have our views included in the “marketplace of ideas.”

That is one of the reasons I have Richard Dawkins's “OutCampaign A” symbol on the website (click on it if you don't know what it means), and why I make and sell atheist-themed items on the site. I use the term “atheist” to describe my rationalist world view because it's the most potent political term. But there are other terms that also apply to the way I see the world, or apply better to various aspects of my viewpoint. Those include “secular humanist.”

When people buy from me, they know that their money is not going to churches or to support right-wing political causes. Nor is their money going to big box stores, corporations, or jewelry designers who ship production of their name-brand items off to sweatshops.

What they are supporting is small business, local business, handcrafts, creativity, individualistic aesthetics and self-expression, and my memberships to such organizations as the Freedom From Religion Foundation.

Doesn't that position hurt your sales?

Probably. But as a small local handcrafter, I'm already in an extreme underdog position. So it's easier for me to go out on a limb than for most businesses with atheist owners.

Why the cicada logo?

Insects and other flying creatures have often been used as symbols of transcendance and metamorphosis. The butterfly is the most common such symbol, but I wanted to use one that was more unusual.

I started playing with beads, polymer clay, and other materials back in 1994, after finishing chemotherapy for Hodgkins' lymphoma. I had other personal tragedies and challenges going on at the time, as well. I was almost completely destroyed, having my brain fried out of my head and my life left in ruins. This business came out of my optimistic hope that I could eventually rebuild my mind and my life, and rise like the Phoenix from the flames.

One time when I was a child I was amazed to find a shed cicada skin in the grass, and then the newly emerged insect itself. I was so impressed that all those years later it stuck with me and I chose the cicada as my logo, and designed it on beading graph paper. (And I still have that cicada's shed exoskeleton.)

 

~Jeanette M. Norman