Congratulations to Beth Ward, the winner of our April Random Review Contest. Beth has won a $100 Cool Tools gift certificate for reviewing a set of SuperFlex polishers. Beth said “Love them! I tried these at a friend’s house, and knew I needed the whole set. They save so much time and give such a professional result!”

Beth was excited and told us a little about herself:

“I make jewelry of just about every type.  I’m learning to make glass beads, because I couldn’t find what I was looking for to go with my PMC focals. I’ve been selling my jewelry for the past few years, ever since my husband informed me I wouldn’t live long enough to wear all the things I’d made. Glass and PMC3 are my passion.

I found your company the same week I took my first metal clay class.  I’ve never taken another one, mainly because there is so much to learn on the Cool Tools site there was no need.  I find it a joy to write the reviews, because I love this company.  Everything I’ve ever ordered was above and beyond my expectations.

I don’t know how to tell you how excited I am about winning!  I’m not even sure how to spend it, other than I’m most excited because I get to spend time on your website shopping!  I love this site, and recommend it to everyone I meet who uses metal clay.  I always think there is nothing that could be done to improve my shopping experiences with you, and then I go back on and it’s all better than ever before!  Mardel does such a great job with the instructions, and the products have made my life so much easier.

Thanks so much for making it a joy in a tough economy to spend money!”

After every purchase at Cool Tools, you receive an email asking you to review the products you ordered. Your comments are listed on the product pages and offer future jewelry artists insight into quality, effectiveness, tips and tricks. You can also go to any product page and click “write a review”. Every month, we select one winner and give out a $100 gift certificate. The more products you review, the better your changes to win!

Keep reviewing products, and help us congratulate Beth this month!

Congratulations to Nanette Mickle, the winner of our March Survey Contest. Nanette has won a $100 gift certificate simply for offering us her thoughts.

Nanette was excited and told us a little about herself:

“I am a wife and mother of three with a passion for birds.  I have a Purple Martin (a type of swallow) colony in my back yard which I have nurtured for many years. Most of the housing was made by me including a wooden house and cavities made from natural gourds. I have a total 62 nesting cavities.

Three years ago, I decided to expand the purpose of my colony to include research on migration by using geolocators, a state of the art, light-reading device which fits like a backpack on an individual bird and can track it’s migration to Brazil and back. Hopefully, we can get insight into the steep decline of our insect-eating migratory birds. Some areas in the northeast have experienced a 70% population decline of some species in the last 20 years while other species are experiencing an ANNUAL population decline of 5-7%.

While many of my expenses are covered by grant money, there is still considerable out-of-pocket expense which is why I am (in the process of) starting my jewelry business ‘Birds with Backpacks’. All proceeds will go to research expenses.

I discovered your website several months ago and it is what gave me the inspiration to start my business.  Watching Mardel made me realize that even I could make beautiful jewelry.  Actually, that is my only complaint about the Cool Tools website.  Mardel makes it look too easy.  I have never seen her have to re-roll her clay so many times that it dries out and  then takes a week to re-hydrate!  I guess practice will make perfect and I am enjoying the learning process.

My favorite inspiration is nature and of course, birds. I love the flexibility PMC3 clay gives me to create individual artwork.  I also enjoy basic metalsmithing techniques such as  sawing sheet silver and soldering. So far, I have made a several pendants but as I learn and my skills and speed increase, I may even try making earrings. I am just kidding, the sky is the limit!

The Cool Tools website is one of my favorites. It is easy to navigate, the products are of high quality and the learning center is AWESOME.  Naturally when I was offered the opportunity to take a survey, I responded immediately.  I never imagined that I would actually win the $100 shopping spree!!  I am absolutely thrilled!  Hmmm, where to begin….

Cheers,

Nanette”

After every purchase, you receive an email asking you to fill out a survey telling us about your experience. Your thoughts give us insight into how we can improve, what new products you want, and any other suggestions you might have. When you fill out the survey, you get an entry into a drawing for a $100 Cool Tools gift certificate. A winner is selected every month!

Keep filling out our survey and help us congratulate Nanette this month!