help with code necklaces

I’m looking for some advice.

For going on four years, I’ve been making necklaces, bracelets, and earrings with semi-precious stones, crystals, pearls, and sterling silver. They sell very well at the 12-15 craft shows my wife and I do each year, only so-so at the Kress Emporium, and very poorly on Etsy (two sales in three months).

Last December, my wife and I were supposed to bring small and hopefully cute or funny presents to exchange at a Christmas party for guardian ad litem volunteers. Seemingly out of the blue, I had this thought: I used 4 mm stone tubes as the “dashes,” 4 mm faceted crystals as the “dots,” and spelled out a message in Morse code that read, “Elvis has left the building.” It was a hit. I made up two more for my last craft show of the year, including a Cleopatra quote from Shakespeare’s “Antony and Cleopatra” that read: “O happy horse to bear the weight of Antony.” They sold out right away. A number of friends asked me to make up custom messages for them. I figured I was on to something and filed for copyright protection.

Last Saturday, my eldest daughter had a craft show at her boys’ school in Johnson City, N.Y. It seemed like a good chance to test the market, so I sent her 20 of the Morse code necklaces. Unfortunately, the school is only five miles from the immigrant assistance center where 13 people were murdered on Friday and only one mile from the killer’s home. Folks were hardly in the mood for a craft fair, and then a spring blizzard hit Saturday morning. No sales.

The only one I’ve sold from my Etsy store -- Sandymush -- was a Lennon quote: “I get by with a little help from my friends.” So if the Morse code necklaces turn out to be a dumb idea, I’ll go on to other things. If you think they have possibilities, what can I do?