[kandice]

I always tell people who ask me about it that going into lampworking with the goal of making lots of money is not necessarily the best way to go. This is an art that takes a decent $$ investment (if you're to make it into a business and be safe about it), and a lot of time and energy. Eventually, if you have some amount of talent and an eye for what sells, you can make some money at it. However, that can take years of practice, and you also need to have decent marketing and business skills and not a small amount of luck and good timing. Most beadmakers I know of that make a decent living doing this also teach, write and travel to show their art. In my view, you need to be willing to sacrifice some years of not making much money at all to get to a place where you earn any kind of substantial money. Personally, after 13 years, I make enough money to add to a two-income household and keep doing what I love. I in no way would be able to support myself if I were doing this as my only source of income. And I have had really good luck with sales over the years. So take that for what it's worth.