Item of the Week: Crocheted Orange Beaded Necklace

A unique design featuring layers of orange glass beads and stones strung together in a beautiful crocheted net. This beautiful hand-crocheted necklace features beautifully delicate strands of crocheted thread with white glass beads. The craftsmanship and quality is stunning as well as the way the glass beads are intertwined throughout this statement piece. The clasp and accents are silver in color.

The necklace approximately measures 15.5 inches in length.

MERCEDES TORRES
When asked to describe herself as an artist Mercedes stated “I am Ecuadorian with all my heart”. Mercedes is a talented jewelry, bag, and scarf artist from Ecuador. She has been with EWI for several years and is an unstoppable force of creation! Her signature line is her gorgeous hand crocheted, beaded necklaces and bracelets. Her passion is to create beautiful things to inspire and add to the lives of those touched by her art.

Purchase this beautiful necklace at our online store!

Member Spotlight: Hye Ryung Hwang, Outreach Intern

Hye Ryung Hwang recently completed her fall 2011 Outreach Internship with Empowered Women International.  Hye is from Korea and was studying through the Washington Center for her fall semester which gave her the opportunity to  intern full time with EWI.  During her internship she was instrumental in creating tagging and signage for EWI’s Micro-Enterprise products, assisting in maintaining all pr materials and took full management of PR packet production, conducted marketing research, wrote blog postings, aided in the recording and facilitation of the Center for Financial Empowerment, and marketing events.

Rena stated in reflection about her time as an intern with EWI:

Hye working on completing a sale order

“This fall semester, I interned at a non-profit organization, Empowered Women International. I was an outreach intern, working specifically in the field of Multi-Cultural Arts program and Micro Enterprise program. During my internship, I researched similar organizations, business strategies and marketing skills which could help women artists to promote their products. I also wrote blog posts, marketed events using social network services and on various websites. In addition to the above, I prepared events and created PR materials.

By doing these jobs, I achieved some goals that I wanted to achieve during my stay in the United States. I developed great research skills, and writing skills by writing blog posts. Also, I improved communication skills while working with various people. I learned how to work as a team and how to strengthen and make teamwork more effective. Overall, I learned the importance of responsibility by doing an internship at the unique organization.

Hye with Aida Dedajic and Sara Ahmed

The thing I liked about working as an outreach intern and at Empowered Women International was that I got chances to learn about business and hands on experience related to it. I major in international relations, and I do not have a lot of opportunities to know about business as the world now emphasize it a lot.  Also, the most important thing was that I actually had chances to meet women artists who are in difficult circumstances which made me more motivated and know why we should be civically engaged in our society. By working at a small non-profit organization, I learned about actual difficulties they are facing, and paid more attention to related issues which became great experience and asset for me that I gained this semester.

Rena continued, “This unique experience has changed my attitude and vision of the wider world. I learned a lot, not only about myself and my goals that I wanted to achieve, but also about diversity of the world through the experience as an intern at Empowered Women International.”

Hye Ryung Hwang is a junior at Korea University in Korea. She majors in English Literature and International Relations. Before working with EWI, Hye Ryung volunteered to help others in Korea and the Philippines, and she is very interested in human rights.

EWI would like to thank Hye for her dedication and commitment to Empowered Women International during her internship.  We wish her much success in her studies and in all her future endeavors!

EWI Artist Evelyn Brooks is Hiring!

Recognized & award winning jewelry designer and EWI graduate, Evelyn Brooks of Washington, DC, is looking for a jewelry sales assistant!

DESCRIPTION:

We are looking for someone who can multitask,  loves fashion design and has a talent for making crafts. Being a very proactive self starter with a lot of attention to detail. Someone friendly, outgoing, with a positive attitude and eager to see themselves growing with our company. Sales background will be a plus.

This is a part-time position, 1 to 3 days a week (8am-2pm). Preferably for someone who has their own transportation. Legal to work. This position is to work at the Bethesda Naval Hospital one week a month (1 – 3 days a week 8a-2p)

Send your resume to evelynmbrooks@comcast.net

Min to start $10 (plus commission)

Vist Ebrooks Designs to see more of her work, or visit our online store to view her beautiful Red Peruvian Huayruro Seed Jewelry!

Member Spotlight: Sara Ahmed, Micro-Enterprise Intern

Sara modeling necklace created by Mercedes Torres

Sara Ahmed recently completed her fall internship with Empowered Women International.  Sara was instrumental in enhancing EWI’s Micro-Enterprise Program, through photographing and listing artist products to our online shop, using her artistic skill to create eye-pleasing displays in EWI’s office store and at events, assisting in event planning and facilitation, conducting marketing research and recording sales.

Sara working with EWI graduate, Carla Weeks, on retail display.

Sara stated in reflection about her time as an intern:

“It was an honor to have learned and experienced from such extraordinary women at EWI who dedicate so much of their time helping other women try and make their dreams come true through their amazing artwork and business oriented ideas. As an Intern I met a diverse group of women who worked hard, never gave up on their visions and have been through so much intimidating situations that made them stronger for future upcoming opportunities. I must say Marga, Erin and Shannon are smart, strong, talented and so passionate about helping others succeed they made participating easy.”

Earrings photographed by Sara

Sara continued, “Word of advice to future interns would be spend as much time volunteering and helping out because your time ends quick and you want leave with more knowledge then you came in with.”

Sara earned her Associates Degree in Business Administration and is continuing her studies at Virginia Commonwealth University majoring in International Business and minoring in Fashion Merchandising.  She is passionate about  creativity, cultural diversity, women empowerment and entrepreneurship.

EWI would like to thank Sara for all of her hard work and dedication and wishes Sara much success in all her future endeavors!

Item of the Week: Handmade Fused Glass Plate Set

This beautiful dish set was created through the intricate method of fusing glass. To make a fused piece, requires that glass be selected, individually cut, pieced, glued and fired. Some pieces require multiple firings in a kiln. The artist has created an eye catching pattern in a vivid range of color, including blue, white and golden yellow. The smallest dish measures 4.5 x 4.5 inches, the medium is 5.5 x 3.7 inches and the largest measures 9.4 x 4.9 inches each with a .5 inch lip. These dishes will make a gorgeous statement in your home and can be used for display or for serving treats.

DEBORAH SCHRAN:
Deborah Schran is a graduate of EWI’s Training for Success Program. She started out as a painter and printmaker, and found that fused glass lended itself to similar interplays with light, color, design and creativity. She stated, “It is great fun to work in this medium – every time the kiln is opened, it is an exciting event”.

Enter Coupon Code: WEEKITEM in Coupon Code Box at Checkout and receive 10% off this item for this week only!

Purchase this beautiful set for your home or for a friend at our online store!

Member Spotlight: Elizabeth Wilson, Outreach Intern

Elizabeth Wilson, a student studying at Goucher college, served with Empowered Women International as an Outreach Intern during her winter break between semesters.  During Elizabeth’s internship she was instrumental in re-designing and updating our Artist Member directory on our blog, created a Graduate Portfolio containing the business plans of our Entrepreneur Training for Success graduates, and helped in our end of the year fundraising campaign. She organized and updated EWI’s youtube site, and aided in the maintenance of our online store by photographing, writing descriptions and listing products, and took wonderful initiative and created an intern manual to assist other future interns working with our organization.

     Elizabeth stated in reflection about her time with EWI that,

“As soon as I arrived, I was warned I would be thrown into the process of preparing for the graduation, but what I didn’t realize was that the contagious energy of my first week was not actually the result of a major upcoming event, but the constant state of activity at EWI. I was astonished at how much got accomplished every day by such a small staff, even after the ETS program ended for the year. My favorite part of being involved in the buzz of activity was the task of reorganizing and editing the various mediums of social networking that EWI uses to spread the word about events and new developments within the organization.

Collecting all of EWI’s videos on youtube.com was the perfect opportunity for me to watch several business plan pitches in order to get a general sense of the work graduates do in the Entrepreneur Training for Success program. Paying close attention to the presentations, I was able to string together certain components that all of the presentations had in common, such as an analysis of the threats and opportunities facing the new company. Even this basic knowledge of what goes into a business plan will be useful in the field of microfinance, where I hope to work one day.”

She continued, “Even though my time at EWI was brief, I will be walking away with a whole new perspective on the immigrant experience in the United States, as well as a series of new series of skills that can be transferred into practically any occupation.”

Many thanks Elizabeth for your hard work, dedication and the great energy. We wish you great success in all you do and a wonderful semester studying abroad in Belgium this Spring!

Apply for or learn more about EWI Internships here.

Item of the Week: Fluorite Teardrop Bracelet

Read more to Receive 10% off!

This bracelet is made of fluorite teardrops, small crystal beads, sterling silver rondelles and sterling silver round beads threaded on strong, nylon-coated stainless steel beading wire.

The bracelet measures 8 inches long and will fit like a large-sized bracelet. It closes with a sterling silver handmade wire clasp.

KATALIN WITORSCH:
Kata is originally from Hungary. She holds a Master’s Degree in Fine Arts and Music from Janus Pannonius University in Pécs, where she sang in the internationally renowned Pécs University Chorus. Kata is also an accomplished pianist, has taught piano and music professionally, and was a marketing executive with Wella Hungary. She has been an EWI artist member since 2006 and is a graduate of the Career and Entrepreneur Center’s Training for Success program.

Enter Coupon Code: WEEKITEM in Coupon Code Box at Checkout and receive 10% off this item for this week only!

Purchase this beautiful bracelet today at our online store!

Thank you MDI Imaging & Mail!

Empowered Women International would like to send a great thank you to MDI Imaging & Mail for our new and improved mailing envelopes!

MDI Imaging & Mail is a full service direct mail production firm providing 4-color printing, comprenhesive data processing, high-speed laser/inkjet personalization, and an unending array of domestic & international mailing services. As a one-stop-shop, we will partner with you to handle your next mailing from its creative inception to the final point when it is tendered to the United States Postal Service or a foreign postal authority. MDI differentiates itself in the direct mail industry by specializing in the production ofexpedited direct mail and dimensional mail, while still offering a wide variety oftraditional direct mail formats to satisfy all of your mailing needs. Visit MDI Imaging & Mail’s website today to learn more!!

Africa Memory Game – Paulette Mpouma

We are so proud of Spring 2011 Entrepreneur Training for Success Graduate, Paulette Mpouma! Way to go, Paulette!

Getting the Most out of Social Media in 2012

Photo Courtesy of Microsoft Office: http://bit.ly/yO1DcC

Happy New Year and welcome to 2012! A new year means a new chance to review how you are reaching your clients and if you are really making the most out of your social media outlets. In a world saturated with Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Linked In, Google + and a whole number of other social media platforms, it can be easy to get overwhelmed or lost in the shuffle. Why not take some time at the beginning of the year to reassess what you currently are (or are not) doing to utilize social media as a vehicle of reaching new clients.

Here are five simple steps you could take in order to clean up your Internet presence this year:

1) Create: First and foremost, it is important to make sure that you and your business have and online presence. Think about how many people you could be reaching by simply creating a Facebook page or a blog.  Check out this link for a great, comprehensive list of 50 of the best social media platforms out there just waiting for you to become a member!

2) Consolidate: So, you’re already online. In fact, you’re on so many websites it’s easy to forget which password goes with which login. It’s easy to get excited and sign up for each and every single social networking site out there. Why not cut that list down to 3 or 4 outlets that you know you will be able to handle? Consider what function each site serves. Facebook is great to reach mass amounts of people with your upcoming events. Twitter is best at providing quick, short information, like links or a promotion. But you need a website, Etsy page, Facebook page, or blog to link up to. Etsy allows you to actually sell your products, and your blog allows you to go to share your story and build a following. Find out which sites work best for you and stick to just those.

3) Commit: Just like it’s easy to overpopulate your online presence, it’s just as easy to ignore it. We all go through dry spells in our personal social networking, and we can assume that our friends wont forget about us. Can the same thing be said about your clients? Perhaps, but why test it? Create a schedule for yourself for your social media publishing and work that schedule into your weekly work schedule. There are some really great sites out there that do just that. Check out Later Bro, which allows you to schedule your tweets.

4) Correspond: One of the major ways that you can get the most out of your social media presence is by actually interacting with your followers. It’s easy enough to post something once or twice a day, but that’s also a quick way to get lost in the fray. By corresponding with your follows you are giving them a reason, outside of your work, to come back and check your page. You could create a poll, have a contest, or host an online chat – there are many ways you can interact with your clients online.

5) Comment: Not all of the action you do online has to be on your own sites. A great way to get the word out about your own company is to comment on the blogs or respond to tweets that are related to your own business. An easy way to do this is to get up a Google Reader account. From here you can subscribe to blogs that are congruous to your own interests. Then, in your comments, you can respond to the blogger and leave a link mentioning your own blog, website, or other social media account.

Social media marketing is such a powerful way to promote your business, but it is still relatively new, so don’t be afraid to experiment! If you find that a particular platform isn’t producing the kind of results worthy of the time you’re putting into it – get rid of it! Just make sure to capture any information you can about your followers – and always make sure to let your followers know where else they can find you.

Photo Courtesy of Microsoft Office: http://bit.ly/xVXV4O