Q. How did you get into the jewelry business?

A. My only child was needing me less and less as he aimed for attending college and as I'd been laid off years before from the customer service industry and had been mainly been focusing on being a mom, I knew I needed to find something fun that I could do on my part to add to the family income.

A friend of mine that was making jewelry as a hobby was chatting with me one day and I mentioned that a cheap pair of glass bead earrings I'd bought were cool but I wished I could find more styles and colors. She introduced me to lampwork beads and oh man, was I hooked!

Light flowing through glass had always thrilled me and I knew there was an artist buried deep within me. I began to buy beads thinking I'd take a jewelry making class and make a few pieces of jewelry for myself...ha! As I was taking my walk one day I said to God, "I love glass beads and want a bunch of them, but what am I going to do with them after I buy them?"

Next thing I knew the idea for a home based jewelry business was brewing in my little head!

Q. Where did the name “RockerJewlz” come from?

A. When I first began designing jewelry, I worked with big, chunky components but wondered who would wear such bold pieces, besides myself. I knew I wanted my name, Julie, in the business logo in some form, but there were so many Julies already doing that.

One day I saw a beautiful African American woman totally “decked out” in an amazing fringed denim outfit with high heels. From head to toe, she was perfectly coiffed and stood out from the crowd with just a little bit of “flash”. I knew SHE was the type of fashionista that would wear my jewelry. She looked like she belonged on stage in a slick rock band…a real rocker…wearing jewelry that rocks…designed by Julie…Jules…..jewels for rockers…..rocker jewelry….RockerJewlz!

Q. What is the basis for RockerJewlz jewelry design?

A. RockerJewlz jewelry is handmade by me, Julie Vallejo. I gather handmade glass beads by artisans around the world and combine them into jewelry that results in a uniquely handmade item that enhances your personal beauty and style.

Q. What materials do you use in your jewelry?

A. I take pride in providing top quality products by using the work of independent artisans who make each bead by hand, or work .925 sterling silver, Bali and Thai silver into beautiful works of art. Genuine Swarovski crystals are the only crystals I work with. Other accent pieces used are usually glass created in the Czech republic and occasionally design with lucite beads as well to add a vintage essence.

Q. What are “lampwork” glass beads?

A. Lampwork is a term used to describe glass beads made by melting glass with a torch and wrapping it around a metal rod. The term "lampwork" was used many, many years ago when Italians melted the glass over oil lamps.

I use only artisan hand made beads, not mass produced beads. Artisan made lampwork is normally more expensive, but is higher quality, and it's kiln-annealed so it won't break as easily.

Annealing is the process of slowly cooling beads in a temperature controlled kiln (oven) so that the glass molecules have a chance to slow down. This reduces stress in the glass, so that it becomes more stable and less breakable. I dropped a properly annealed bead one time, onto a tile floor and it bounced like a rubber ball over my head and it had no damage! Amazing!

Click here to link to some of the bead artist web sites.

Q. Where can I find RockerJewlz jewelry designs?

A. Mainly on this website. In retail shops, you can find RockerJewlz featured in the fabulous Midoma salon & gallery at 439 East 75th, New York, N.Y., 10021.

Q. Do you accept custom orders?

A. I LOVE working on custom orders! It’s a wonderful collaboration of creativity that results in a dream fulfilled for BOTH of us!

Be aware that these particular pieces are made when inspiration strikes, so it may be a week or more before the piece is ready for you to approve.

Once you select a color scheme, I can easily email you photos of the beads I have in the studio. You make your selection, we discuss the design, I assemble the piece and send you photos for approval.

Once payment is accepted, I ship your beautiful one of a kind design to you!

Q. Do you have a printed catalog?

A. No.

Q. Can you notify me when you have specials or new products?

A. Oh yes. Just email me and ask me to add you to my newsletter.

Q. Do you sell at fairs or shows?

A. Not currently.

Shipping

***If you require priority shipping, please let me know BEFORE ordering***

Shipping is a flat $2.00 for all orders in the U.S. & $3.00 for international.

I ship via First Class USPS in the U.S. and Canada. I ship within 3 days of receiving your payment. If you snail-mail payment, this will cause delivery of your order to take a few extra days. Please plan accordingly.

Insurance is available (U.S. only) and only when you pay with a credit card or via Paypal.
$1.65 for orders from $0.01 to $50
$2.05 from $50.01 to $100
$2.45 from $100.01 to $200

If you are paying for your order via PayPal, and would like insurance, email me your order and I will send an invoice. PayPal isn't set up to add insurance automatically.

Please note that anyone making an international purchase is responsible for their own duty fees or any other fees imposed by their home country when receiving packages. I will not mark "gift" on customs forms, and will not misrepresent the value of the items purchased.

I prefer PayPal and also accept credit cards: Visa, Mastercard, Discover and American Express, and U.S. Postal money orders in U.S. dollars. Paypal is preferred because it is so simple! It allows you to pay via your checking account or credit card. It is totally FREE for you as a buyer and takes only minutes to sign up at www.paypal.com. You’ll be surprised how many websites use this feature. It’s an eBay subsidiary.

Accepted credit cards are Visa, Mastercard, Discover and American Express. Credit card payments are processed through Mals-e-commerce, secure shopping cart software.
***Please don't email me with your credit card numbers, as it is not a secure method***.

Cashier’s Checks and money orders can be made out to “RockerJewlz” and mailed to:

Julie Vallejo
32046 Paloma Court
Union City, CA 94587

Shipments usually take 3-5 days in the US, 1-2 weeks internationally. For international shipping, please do allow 4-6 weeks. Please make sure the address you provide is correct and complete.

***NOTE: If the checkout cart is being uncooperative, please send me an email asking that I invoice you via Paypal. I'll save your jewelry and mark it as "sold".***

Q. Do you share my personal information?

A. Any information collected by RockerJewlz is only used for processing your orders and answering questions and feedback.

Your information will not be given, sold, or rented to any third party for any other purpose than processing your orders. The RockerJewlz Shopping Cart is hosted by www.mals-e.com and uses a secure server to process credit card information. Your email address will not be added to any list, unless you request it.

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