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(Below photo:New Bedford's Mayor Scott Lang,Louise and Trollbeads CEO Peter Aagaard.)

Sometimes when you are so close to something you can’t see it clearly until enough time goes by. Last weekend we hosted Trollbeads Fest! 2011, our second Fest. If you have planned a large event or a wedding you know what I am talking about. Months before the event the planning begins and hotel rooms are blocked off and the various caterers are scheduled. Then you start ordering the favors. The closer you get the more consumed you become by the event and you begin hearing from the guests frequently and the excitement grows. By a week or two before the event you start to lose sleep and the lists in your head that you check off from 2AM to 4AM drift off into a haze of pre-dawn dreams. During the event you notice something is not in place... but you know you had it on “the list” or did I? I must have dreamt that. There may not have been many things that were missed or things that anyone else noticed were missing but I noticed and that’s the important thing. So you go through the motions hoping everyone is enjoying themselves, learning and meeting new people all around Trollbeads and hoping no one is noticing that the list of your dreams was never been checked off. I am still coming down to earth so I will use the post-Fest comments made by the attendees. It's these comments that have convinced me everything went well after all. The first commentary is from Sandra McCann, a great collector who also came to last year’s fest. Thank you Sandra.

"I thought Louise and her crew did an exceptional job again this year! I enjoyed every moment of it and it's probably because I went out to dinner on Friday night after the Gallery Reception. Catching up with old friends and making new friends was definitely one of the highlights for me!!! I agree with Mary Anna about an appointed time for the famous "WRIST SHOT" photo! They seem to me a MUST when any Trollies get together and at FEST, the more the merrier!!! Also, Laura's suggestion of NAME TAGS. Most of us "know" each other from our avatar, not our name. A NAME TAG with our avatar on it would be GREAT!!! I absolutely LOVED the Aarggard's involvement in this years FEST! Having Peter there REALLY made it a BIG DEAL!!! It just shows how involved the family is in the whole business and as collectors, we can actually MEET them... truly a MUST!!! Having Kim Buck there was FANTASTIC! His passion for design really shows in all that he creates!!! The slide presentation by him was just AMAZING! Now I completely understand why my DOUBLE HEART bead comes apart when I take it off my bracelet.... makes me love it and HIM even more!!! And of course there was Eske Storm!!! I don't think I have ever met a more charming man who truly was such a GOOD SPORT! He was such a delight, really. Having the designers involved in FEST, in my opinion, was one of the highlights for me as a collector. To be able to talk to them really makes the beads come to LIFE!!! Having Sarah there to make the glass beads was great too!!! The idea that I think was the BEST was the LE Trollbeads Fest Bead!!! That idea, Louise was just OUTSTANDING!!! Not only was it a BEAUTIFUL bead but the fact that all who attended got the same bead and can remember what a fabulous time they had at FEST.... amazing!!! So I would suggest the same thing again for next year..... this really brings us all together in a very unique way. The dinner was just outstanding!!! I didn't go to the dinner last year and I've been kicking myself ever since because of that decision! So this year I decided I HAVE TO GO! It brings the whole FEST to a conclusion. Mary Anna's singing was just GREAT! I loved her fun songs and that she had printed out the words so we could all sing along... that really, for me, was one of the highlights of the dinner.I loved the GIFT BAG!!! I think I told you but in my house we actually FIGHT over the different mugs you've given me over the years! First the beautiful engraved TROLLBEADS GALLERY glass mug, then the engraved TBG tall mug and then last years Travel Coffee Mug.... truly we fight over it because it doesn't leak! LOL When I saw the reusable COLD TRAVEL CUP, I was in complete heaven!!! But seriously, soooooo very generous with the Gift Bag!!! Thank you!!! I loved every moment of it and would love for you to do another one next year, Louise. I know that there is a tremendous amount of work that goes into such an event but if you truly knew how happy you've made all of us by creating an event that we can get together IRL and talk about what has brought us all together (TROLLBEADS!) and laugh (boy did we do A LOT of that!!!)..... you should be soooooo very proud! THANK YOU!!!!! xo

 From left to right:Carole, Soren, Kim Murray (our star event helper) Louise,Penni and Peter Aagaard.

Our brick and mortar store, Rogers Gallery (as opposed to TrollbeadsGallery.com) hosted our second event with a genuine Trollbeads designer and who also happens to be one of my very favorite designers, Soren Nielsen. Yes, he is as kind and gentle as he appears in his pictures.

The event itself was wonderful in the sense that the people who attended were not as much excited about the product this time but more by meeting the artist who helped create Trollbeads and to them that was the whole purpose for attending.  I feel as though I have succeeded in expressing the very essence of the spirit behind the company and this spirit is all about the artists and about the art they create.  Everyone was so excited to meet Soren and to see him work with his wax and flame that they stood in layers trying to see every step and technique.

After a while at “the bench”  Soren graciously invited the more adventuresome souls to try their hand at the wax and helped them get a feel for the technique and each one created something they could take home and have made into a bead.  Before Soren left late that afternoon he created a charm by using a pod he found in front of the gallery.  We have two special Stewartia trees and each year their blossums develop into beautiful pods and as much as I have appreciated the pods each year I never would have thought to make anything of them.  Imagine seeing the world from Soren's eyes, he must go throught life imagining everything as a bead. I am now anxious to have it made into a silver charm I can have dangle from my bracelet.

How did I feel? Wow, how do I even begin to explain how if felt for me to have Soren under my roof and in my gallery?  How can I put it into words?  Let alone Soren, but to have his brother in law, Peter Aagaard at the same time was just as exciting. You have to understand I have been absolutely fascinated by this incredible family for years now and before they came to distribute the line in the U.S. themselves earlier this year, I never thought the time would come where I would actually have them in my gallery with me. First Isobel and now Soren and Peter. I was nervous and excited at the same time.

With each incounter with the family and with the designers I come to learn more about the creative process and about the company itself.

Soren and Peter, we all give you our thanks for the very enjoyable day.

I thought Friday night would be a perfect time to have a totally uninformative blog on Trollbeads.  It's been my mission to share information of all things Trollbeads and to spread the artistic and creative history...but not tonight.  Tonight I am going to be very self indulgent and talk about myself and my life with Trollbeads. That was your warning to either stop reading or laugh along with me.

I've recently had a few interactions with professional people who are involved in marketing, event coordinating, and social media. They have asked me how I am able to juggle everything I do on the internet with Trollbeads. The only answer I can give is that I live Trollbeads morning, noon, night and even the middle of the night. Some of you can attest to this as the hours of my email answers are downright embarrassing.  The problem is this is not the answer these professionals are looking for.  They want a concrete answer from me.  Imagine the conversation, if you will.  On one hand you have a marketing expert who really wants to know a qualitative or quantitative answers from me because they view me as being a social marketing success. "How many hours to you do you spend writing your blog?" Or "what percentage of conversions do you have on your Facebook page?"  I should also say that they are probably wondering how I've managed it at all at my age. I will admit the to you thing one thing I can qualify and that is it's a  good thing these interviews have been held over the phone so they can't see me processing bead photos in Photoshop or see me checking my in-box as the conversation continues. I think I know what they want to hear but the only answer I can honestly give them can't explain it in their terms.  I have no secrets, I have no schedule, I have no hidden staff of internet search engine assistants, I have no degree in marketing, I have no superior knowledge of the trends in social marketing and I am not paying for Google ads.

What I do have is a life that is 90% embedded in Trollbeads, just like the news teams on the battle front. The other 10% is for my family, my friends...who have thinned out STE (Since my Trollbeads Era) and for my two orphan stores (did I mention I have 3 Facebook pages?).*

How could I ever explain to these sharp marketers that all this perceived "marketing success" I have... has all been the result of a totally all consuming, totally obsessive and totally authentic love affair I am having with Trollbeads.

Cheers, Louise

P.S.

*the numbers don't lie...help the orphans and "like" them.

1.) Trollbeads Gallery Facebook       9000+ likes

2.) Rogers Gallery Facebook           200+ likes

3.) Surroundings Home Facebook   100+ likes

At the end of this past February the distributorship of Trollbeads in the United States changed.  The new distributor is Trollbeads-United States a company based in Princeton, NJ completely owned and managed by the parent company, Trollbeads Headquarters and the Aagaard family.  The past month has been a busy one for the Aagaards and Trollbeads-United States from setting up their ordering and shipping processes and hiring management and support staff.   Many of the U.S. Trollbeads stores have been eagerly waiting to see the changes implemented and to find out what the changes will mean to both retailers and to our customers.  While the drama is still unfolding I can tell you, as a retailer, the changes worth noting are all positive.

One change that is most notable is the availability of Unique Beads and the quality of the Unique Beads.  The original U.S. distributor offered the Unique beads only to the premier dealers and limited them to a certain number each month.  Unique Trollebeads are now available to the retailers wanting to offer them and their quanitities are not limited. The beads themselves are altogether different and in time this change of style will create a time frame for collectors to judge the date of these beads.  To accelerate the sales and clear the stores of the old style Unique beads, Trollbeads-United States has allowed it’s dealers to run a special price event for the month of April.  Both our website, TrollbeadsGallery.com and Rogers Gallery,our actual store, is offering 3 Unique beads for $75.00.   There are many "old" familiar styles going away and they will be missed so check out your local stores and the websites and get them now before they are gone!  A sample set from Trollbeads Gallery is shown on the left.

Replacing the old beads will be the beads we have become familiar with through the European sites but are now available to the U.S. dealers.  The new Unique Trollbeads are extraordinary and are works of art showing more detail and more degrees of difficulty to create.  Isabel Aagaard, who is working in Princeton on a temporary basis, just visited Rogers Gallery during our Special Event* and she spoke about the new Unique beads explaining how some of the designs are executed which of course left us all wanting for more! Our attendees listened with focused attention as Isabel, who is the owners’ daughter, explained how she creates Unique glass beads. Isobel was also the designer for the “Origami” Trollbead.  This leads me to one more important change in the United States.

Based on availability, Trollbeads designers will be visiting the U.S. stores during Special Events and will be sharing how glass beads are made, to the extent of eventually having them make glass beads at the event.  Demystifying this process will only serve to support our love of these beads and will make collectors want more.  I know I do.  We plan on having the glass bead artists at Trollbeads Fest! 2011, in September.

Now in its second month of operation, Trollbeads-United States has shown us the promise of a great future for Trollbeads here in the United States and this discussion will be continuing in another blog soon!

 *Shown above at Rogers Gallery is Isabel Aagaard, Louise Rogers and Kristine (from Denmark Trollbeads).