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Costume Jewelry Collectors International or CJCI
– the new organization to bring together, support, and unite the existing regional conventions and groups.
Costume Jewelry Collectors Int’l will continue the traditions of a large network of jewelry collectors we have come to know and love, including a quarterly color magazine-style newsletter and a bi-annual convention. Embracing a new era means going even further to serve our jewelry collecting friends by providing an online community to keep in touch in between gatherings, meet new friends, share news, and learn from one another – essentially to Study, Share, Sell and Style with Jewelry!
How did CJCI come about?
Like many of their jewelry-collecting friends, Melinda Lewis and Pamela Wiggins were saddened when they learned of Lucille Tempesta’s retirement in the last issue of VFCJ’s newsletter. They completely understood Lucille’s decision to move on, but they were left with a void knowing an organization they had been a part of for so many years ceased to exist.
While Pamela thought she couldn’t possibly fit a task like coordinating a large jewelry organization into her already busy schedule, she was planning on hosting another mini-convention for collectors in 2010. She ran the thought by Lucille and was told it was a great idea, even though VFCJ wouldn’t be in the background cheering her on this time around. About the same time, Melinda also contacted Lucille about continuing the magazine. While Lucille wasn’t interested in passing the VFCJ torch, she did encourage Melinda to think about developing her own publication.
As Melinda mulled the idea over, she thought back to several casual conversations she and Pamela had during the last VFCJ convention about their respective future plans. Was it possible that they could collaborate to form a new organization to publish a magazine and host a bi-annual convention, keeping tradition alive?
After a lengthy phone conversation and consulting with their significant others, Melinda and Pamela agreed they could indeed pool their talents and went to work on the task immediately. Melinda employed her skills to quickly put together the group’s Web presence, and Pamela called on her public relations background to begin getting word out about the new club. Within a month of that first conversation about CJCI, they already had more than 200 members join them in their new venture, which includes a thriving online community comprised of enthusiastic collectors.
As they continue to welcome new members into CJCI daily, their first magazine will be published in the spring of 2010 using Melinda’s design and organizational skills and Pamela’s experience in the communications industry as a strong footing for a quality publication. And, of course, they have those significant others, Mark Lewis and Jay Siegel, working right alongside them to assist in any way they can.
How can you join CJCI?
Please visit our website at http://www.costumejewelrycollect.com/membership.htm to purchase a subscription to CJCI magazine and receive your invitation to participate in the online group.
How can you assist CJCI?
If you are inspired to contribute an article to CJCI’s magazine, email Melinda at melinda @ collectingcostumejewelry.com or Pamela at pam @ costumejewelrycollectors.com with your ideas. Even if you don’t have a desire to write but have a great idea for a feature, let us know.
Is it OK to share news about CJCI with others?
Absolutely! We encourage you to share information about CJCI with others you know who may be interested in joining our network of jewelry collecting friends. Please refer them to our membership page at http://www.costumejewelrycollect.com/membership.htm (rather than our social networking site on Ning).
Do you take donations toward publishing expenses?
While we appreciate the gestures of generosity offered by our jewelry friends, Melinda and Pam are operating Costume Jewelry Collectors Int’l without accepting donations toward publishing costs at this time. They feel yearly membership/subscription fees will cover the cost of printing and delivering CJCI’s quarterly publication and the organization’s yearly membership directory as well as providing an online platform for members.
Need assistance with something else?
There’s a good chance we’ve covered it on our FAQ/Help page: http://www.costumejewelrycollectors.com/faq.htm