Beaders Blog

If you were planning on starting your own retail jewelry mega-chain, it might be wise to reconsider. Sales of fine jewelry are off 34% compared to a year ago, and even diamond giant DeBeers is getting a little uneasy. The entire precious stone industry has taken a huge hit recently, but their loss is the independent crafters gain. Craft jewelry, once relegated to the jewelry boxes of girl scouts with crafts badges, is more popular than ever thanks to online sales at sites like Etsy, Amazon and eBay. According to a recent New York Times article about the craft boom, “On eBay, people bought 13,137 handmade crafts over the last 60 days for an average price of $8.21, and sales of handmade crafts climbed 34%, the company said.”

Jewelry crafters with a compulsion to stay on top of fashion trends and a dedication to thrift might feel more inclined to create their own versions of contemporary designs, others may use their crafting hobby as a means of supplementing their income. 
“My friends see the earrings I’m wearing and place orders with me to create more for them” says Lydia Ramos, from the Beadaholique shipping department.  No matter what your reasons, odds are someone is out there looking to buy a piece of your imagination.
Who wouldn’t want to make a few extra bucks doing something they love?

Hi everyone!  I’m Anna, Beadaholique’s first (and favorite, in my opinion,) employee.   I’ve watched this company grow from a shoebox of headpins and jump rings into the vibrant warehouse it is today.  I am a reluctant beader, not because I don’t love jewelry but because I have 5 thumbs on each hand.  The delicate intricacies of peyote stitch, wire looping, and beads smaller than 4mm are completely lost on me.

At the same time, it’s hard not to be inspired by all the goodies around me.  I write all the descriptions, so I get my hands on everything and not a day goes by when I don’t put aside a little goodie bag to buy for myself.  I’m attracted to bolder, larger beads.  I love the blown glass, the faceted briolettes, and especially all the chunky metal findings.  I will admit that I browse jewelry and craft sites for inspiration, and one term that keeps coming up when I explore a design I like is “steampunk”.

Despite this aggressive sounding moniker, steampunk is a style that incorporates the simpler times of the Victorian era with the excitement of industrial design.  As with most fringe movements, there is no one accepted definition of what steampunk is.  You know it when you see it, and it’s not for everyone.  It’s design with a dichotomy of looking to the past for futuristic ideas. Here is an example I found on Etsy:

But how do I take this big idea and scale it down to my own tastes and skill level?  I was able to pin down what I liked the most about the steampunk pieces I have seen on other sites:  the combining of several small items into a mixed media piece that is completely unique.  To get a real steampunk look, lots of metals can be mixed, preferably with antiqued finishes.  When we first got in the plated pewter frames, I didn’t want to put a simple photo inside, I wanted to get a few tiny watch gears, some small, flatter bali beads, and some black fabric.  Layering the items in steps gave the Art Gel time to set, making it look like everything was under glass.  Another idea I had was to take one of our antiqued chains in a longer length and hang several small metal items from some of the links.  I’m not talking delicate fairy charms here, I’m talking old bent brass screws, a small magnifying glass, small nuts and bolts, and even a heart made of stiffened black lace.

Today I’m wearing a cute necklace I made from amethysts and moonstone with a sweet flower pendant.  I’m not always in the dark, steampunk mood, but it’s a style that keeps me inspired, so I continue to embrace it.

Hello beaders! I’m Zack, the jolly Beadaholique customer service representative. Not only do I answer your questions, but those inquiries often inspire my own. And let me tell you, these are the really important questions. Burning questions. Case in point: A few fellow employees and I were discussing the value of my recent haircut. To say it was botched would be a gross understatement. Maybe the scissors were dull; maybe the barber’s lack of digits had some thing to do with it, but we all agreed that it wasn’t worth a lot. The most intriguing comment during the marathon roast was, “That trim wasn’t worth the beads that bought Manhattan.” I couldn’t take this kind of insult lying down, so I hit the books to find the straight dope.

As it turns out, in 1626, a group of Native Americans known as the Canarsee met with Peter Minuit, a representative of the Dutch West India company, to conduct a little business on the island we now call Manhattan. The story has it that Minuit traded sixty guilders, the equivalent of about 1.5lbs of silver, in beads, buttons, and mirrors to the band in exchange for the 20 square mile island. Now, a person could argue for years (383 to be exact) about who actually owned the island, the clash of cultures, and misunderstandings in general, but I’m interested in more important business– how many beads is the island worth today?

First, we have to do a little math. In 2005, the entirety of Central Park’s 843 acres was valued at $528,783,522,000. That means the 12,800 acres that make up the island are worth approximately $8 trillion. If we were to take a modern bead, say a bag of eight clear, eight millimeter Swarovski bicones retailing for $2.25, we would need nearly 18 trillion bags. Since there are eight beads per bag, we’re looking at 144 trillion individual beads. That’s enough beads to wrap around the Earth 28,000 times. If you were to line up each bead end to end, they would extend over 700 million miles. The last bead would almost reach the rings of the planet Saturn. That’s a lot of wampum!

So what can we draw from all of this? Even if we can’t agree on how the island was acquired or the actual current worth of Manhattan, there’s no denying beads make better jewelry than currency. Then again, now that my haircut is valued at around $8 trillion, its sharp angles and sudden bare patches almost seem worth it. Almost.

We’re excited to tell you that beadaholique.com has been selected as a winner of “TheFind100″ in the Crafts category! This is an annual award that recognizes the best 100 e-commerce specialty stores in 16 shopping categories.

We were thrilled when we received an email from Dave Cook, Senior Director of Marketing at The FInd who wrote in part…

“in a typical month visitors to TheFind click through to over 40,000 merchants. Even with this great diversity, our visitors were definitely favoring certain merchants over others in specific categories. Your site has been a consistent choice with our audience in your category, and we are thrilled to recognize you for your excellence in retail.”

…Thanks Dave~!

Chris
beadaholique

Each year the city of Tuscon is host to the ultimate city wide shop-till-you-drop gem shows.  There are no fewer than 4000 dealers and 50 shows taking place all over the city from January thru mid February.

Sarah and I just returned from a four day trip to the city.  Hardly enough time to do all but a small handful of shows, but a very worthwhile time nevertheless.

For those of you who have never attended any of the Tuscon shows I’m posting some photos that I took for you!  I couldn’t think of a better way to convey the sheer size and breadth of these events.  Although last year we more than doubled the number of items that Beadaholique offers, strolling the isles of the Tucson gem shows has inspired us to bring you more new and interesting products than ever before!

Have you ever looked admiringly through a shop window at a piece of handmade jewelry only to gasp as you glance at the price? Well, take another breath, because that pricey necklace was probably made with just a few dollars worth of components. So it’s not surprising that more and more people are now making their own custom designs to both wear and to sell. All you need are creativity, a little time, some supplies, and tools. For many beginners, it is this last item that is the stumbling block. But don’t let a little confusion about beading tools prevent you from starting on a very rewarding hobby. Who knows, soon other people may be gasping at your creation in a boutique window.

So, you’ve got an idea for a project, and you’ve found some really great beads and findings. What tools do you need? The answer to this question may depend on the nature of your project, but there are certain tools that will always be essential. Other tools are more specialized, and can be added to your kit as your skill level progresses or the need arises.

Pliers

These are without a doubt the single most important jewelry making tool. But we’re not talking about your household toolbox pliers. These are smaller specialized pliers that each perform a different function. An important thing to note is that almost all jewelry pliers have smooth work surfaces, unlike home improvement tools, that tend to have ‘teeth’ or serrated surfaces, to enhance the grip on metal nuts and bolts. Rough surfaces are the last thing you need when you are dealing with delicate wires and beads.

Chain Nose Pliers: The first beading tool that you should buy. Chain Nose Pliers have jaws that come to a small point. They are used to bend wire at angles, straighten wire, close jump rings, and hold beads and other pieces in place. It’s a good idea to have two pairs of these pliers (one for each hand) for maneuvering and manipulating wire into different forms. Or for versatility, try purchasing one regular chain nose pliers and one bent nose chain nose pliers.

Cutters

Most jewelry making projects will require cutting some kind of material (wire, cord, thread etc). For wire there are two basic types of cutters:

• Bevel: Leave an angled-cut edge that usually requires filing in order to properly finish.

Files

Use files to gently file roughness away from wire ends and beads. There are a variety of shapes of files, and they’re often sold together in packs that include all the ones you’ll need. If you make your own ear wires, these are indispensable for smoothing the sharp cut ends.

Tweezers

If you’re thinking of using thread to string pearls or gemstones and want to place knots in between, you’ll find that tweezers are the tool of choice.

Needles

There are two basic types: Flexible: These generally have a large eye that is threaded, then flattened in order to pass through a bead hole. And they’re flexible in order to pass through tight or curved spaces. These are considered to be disposable after a single use. Rigid: Like sewing needle but much thinner in order to fit through the tiny holes of smaller beads.

Adhesives

Many beading projects call for a dab of glue. Sometimes at the end of a cord to help secure a clasp that is being crimped, sometimes to glue a knot. Use it sparingly, but definitely use it.

Measuring and Design Beading Board

	A Beading Board is a great way to layout your designs without having beads wandering all over your table and without having to so much as cut a thread. Again, there are choices. Large, small. Some have covers that make them handy for travel.

Honorable Mention

• Bead Scoop: Always extremely useful when tidying and measuring your beads and pouring them into bags and containers.
• Wire Whacker: You’ve made some pretty nifty ear wires but there kind of, well, soft and bendy. Here’s the solution.
• Hammer: When pliers won’t do the trick you may just need to hammer your metal. This also will harden it making your jewelry more durable. I suggest a hammer with one flat side and one ball shaped or peen side.
• Bench Block: A rectangular block, often steel-topped or made entirely of steel, that’s used to protect your work surface from hammering.

Instructional Materials

There are tons. If you’re just getting started, here’s one of the perennial favorites of beginners books: Basics Of Bead Stringing -Essential Beading

One final thought. If you haven’t yet acquired tools for jewelry making, or need to replace a few worn out ones, a tool kit can be an economical alternative. With a kit you can purchase the essential tools you want at a discount and many tool kits come with a nifty case included.

by Chris Bellomo

The end of January found Sarah and I at the Ebay Ecommerce Forum in Washington D.C. It was a busy week and we’re still processing lots of news and information given to us there. The final day of our trip found us with a few extra hours before heading to the airport and so we took a short stroll down Seventh street to the Bead Museum.

The Museum is operated by The Bead Society of Greater Washington, who developed the Bead Museum as a center for the collection, study and exhibition of beads and related ornaments. It’s a wonderful place, albeit small by D.C. museum standards. Nevertheless, the society has managed to include some wonderful gemstone specimens, a surprisingly large library, a separate work area for classes, as well a retail area which displays the work of some talented local artisans.

By far my personal favorite, however, was “A Bead Timeline of History”. It was worth the visit for this exhibition alone. In a series of display cases, groups of ancient beads are displayed in the context of a historical timeline. The materials and styles of the beads change as civilizations rise and fall, from the first shell beads found in Syria, dating back to 12-10,000 B.C., through the centuries, right up to the present day, where the museum showcases some beautiful modern work by lampwork bead designers. The exhibition is further broken out by geographical area. And so you can see, for instance, Etruscan beads from 800 B.C and their influence on contemporary Chinese beads as the beads were carried over the long silk route to China.

Like most museums in Washington there is no admission fee, but since the Bead Museum receives no government funding and relies on donations, any small offering before you leave is much appreciated.

You can read more about the museum and the Bead Society of Greater Washington by going to their site at:

http://www.beadmuseumdc.org/index.html

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Chris Bellomo

Hi Beadaholics! My name is Theresa. I work in Inventory and Order Fulfillment here at Beadaholique. When I started the job, I had never made a piece of jewelry in my life! Slowly but inevitably, I got sucked in by all the cool beads that passed through my hands every day. I started small, with simple pieces for my boyfriend and myself. But now, I think I can truthfully say, I am a Jewelry Designer to the Stars! When you think of ‘N Sync what comes to mind? Well how about one of the biggest pop selling bands in America. Sold out world tours in minutes. Millions of albums sold in a week’s time. Now if you are like me you still know why the names Justin, Joey, Lance, Chris and JC all sound good together. Also like me you probably had a favorite, you know — the one you would post on your wall and tell all your friends how oh so dreamy he was and that you were going to marry him someday.

Don’t worry, beaders, this is heading towards beading, just read on.

The ‘N Sync fanatic days have died down, but that doen’t mean that every fan has gone and replaced her favorite ‘N Sync member. My favorite member has always been Lance Bass–you know, the cutie with the baby face. Super fan that I am, I recently had one of the best moments of my life when I was able to design a special necklace and give it to Lance myself.

A few days ago, October 31, 2007, I was at work listening to the radio and much to my surprise Lance was on a local Los Angeles station talking about his new book that had just been published. He announced that he would be holding a book signing at Barnes and Noble on 11-01-07. Now being that I was at work I did not freak out because (1) I didn’t want to scare my co-workers and (2) I didn’t want to lose focus on filling your orders! As I worked that day I came up with the idea of maybe making him a kick butt necklace since I work around a bunch of great beads anyway. I went home that night still thinking about what to make for Lance. I knew he had really great green blue eyes so I figured I would do something with Turquoise to really bring those colors out. So by the time I went to bed I knew almost exactly what I was going to make.

11-01-07, yep the big day. All day my mind was on nothing other than “ok, let’s get this necklace made and hope I can give it to him”. That day went endlessly on and on, or maybe it was just all in my mind. I called Barnes and Noble about six times that day to find out the time of the signing and the number of people that would be admitted, only to be told something different each time I called. Now I started to have doubts that I would be able to even go, because I doubted I would make it to the signing in time.

Hoping against hope, I gathered all the materials I needed for the necklace from the Beadaholique warehouse and at 4 PM I headed home as fast as I could. As soon as I got in my apartment I cleared my coffee table and went to work. I finished the necklace with about an hour to get to Barnes and Noble for the signing. Only problem was, L.A. traffic is so bad that you can’t get far in an hour–it’s a nightmare. But I somehow made it there just under the wire to get in line for the signing. I was number 120 in line so that gave me a bit of time to calm down and relax before the big moment. With every scream I heard up ahead, and the closer I got, my nerves hit me again. Finally I was only one person behind to meet the guy that had lived on my walls for years. I approached the table to give Lance the necklace! I half-expected one of his assistants to take it on his behalf, but he was super gracious, and more than happy to receive my gift himself. After his first words and big smile I was at ease and was able to talk to him coherently. He asked me about a few of the stones and what they were (don’t worry Beadaholiques, I will tell you soon!). After a quick chat with him I asked him would he put the necklace on? What a great guy, he even posed for a picture wearing the necklace, all before asking me “Hey are you a designer now?” Wait, hmmm, DOES that make me a designer? He thanked me and gave me a big hug for the gift. I got my book and walked away a very happy young lady.

Want to make your own Lance Bass necklace for all your friends this year? Are your wondering whether this would be a great gift? Well I’m here to tell you HECK YEAH it would. Here is how you can make your own:

Materials:

• Soft Flex Beading Wire (.019 inch)
• Crimp Beads 2 x2mm
• Turquoise Jasper Cubes 5-6mm
• Pyrite Cubes 6mm (Out of Stock)
• Silver Plated Round Beads 5mm Large Hole
• Round Wood Beads Brown 6-6.5mm /16 Inch Strand
• Real Silver Plated Barrel Clasps 4 x 8mm (alternative - straight lobster claw clasp, 10mm)
• Red Carnelian Claw Tooth Pendant

Tools:

• Side Wire Cutters (Nippers)
• Regular Crimping Pliers
• Flat Nose Pliers
• Beading Board

1. Cut the length of Soft Flex wire. Cut it the length of the finished necklace, plus about 2 inches. You can make this necklace as long or as short as you desire. For Lances necklace I went for more of a choker style for guys, which would be 15.5 to 16 inches finished length. If you want a longer length for guy, you might want to go up to 20 inches finished length.
2. Next attach one side of the barrel clasp to the beading wire, securing with crimp bead. Trim some of the excess Soft Flex, leaving about half an inch ‘tail’ to conceal inside the first couple of beads.
3. Now it’s time for your beads. The pattern I chose to use as seen in the picture is a very simple one. I used two wood beads on each side of the clasp, then two turquoise jasper beads, then two silver rounds, one pyrite cube, and two silver rounds. The pattern stays pretty consistent with two turquoise beads next, one silver bead, one pyrite cube, one silver ball and back to two turquoise cubes. Follow this pattern until you get to the point where you want to attach the carnelian claw tooth pendant. On each side of this I used one silver round bead. Once you have the pendant on and centered finish out the necklace with the same pattern as above.

I hope this project turns out to be as fun for you as it was for me.
Happy beading to all.

PS: If you’re still wondering “OK, who’s ‘N Sync?”–you’re on a computer, right? Go Google the name, fall in love with these guys and make yourself a cool necklace worn by none other than the man himself, Lance Bass. Yep the cutie with the baby face!!!!!

Have Fun!
Teresa : )

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One of the more frequent questions that our customer service people are asked has to do with the difference between gold filled and gold plated items. And along those lines the related question of “And what is vermeil anyway?” often arises about that same time.

Let’s tackle the plated variety first. Gold plated jewelry has a very fine layer of the precious metal electromagnetically bonded to it. The thickness of gold (or silver if silver plated) is generally only a few microns thick, so care must be taken not to polish too vigorously or the plating will wear more quickly. 18 or 22 kt gold is typically used. BTW, the metal underneath the plating is a base metal that must be able to conduct electricity for the bonding process to work. At Beadaholique we use only brass or stainless steel as these metals contain no nickel which many folks are allergic to. That was easy!

Moving up in quality a step we have gold filled. Gold filled is made by fusing a layer of carat gold to a suitable supporting metal (or alloy) using equipment that carefully controls pressure, heat, and time. Electroplating is not part of this process. The bond produced is a permanent one and the thickness of the gold is a hundred times or more thicker than that of gold plate. In fact a gold filled item must contain a fifth (1/20th) of its weight in gold and will have a quality mark that will identify its carat. For example, 14 carat Gold Filled will be marked as 14/20, meaning that the outer 1/20th of the piece is 14kt gold. 18/20 means the outer 1/20th is 18kt, etc.
Like solid gold, filled jewelry is tarnish-resistant and safe for most people with sensitive skin. It will not flake or peel and can be treasured for years.

And now for our finale, vermeil. (pronounced vur-may)

Vermeil is produced by coating sterling silver with carat gold. A base metal is never used. Sometimes referred to as gilded silver, vermeil is made using the process of electrolysis — electricity and an acid bath — to attach the gold to sterling. To be considered vermeil, the gold must also be at least 10-carat and be at least 1.5 micrometers thick. This layer of gold is thicker than that applied using the electroplating process and will far outwear a gold plated item.

There you have it. Hopefully no one was hurt and everybody had a good time!

Chris

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Many times on the web, especially on auction sites, we see beads described as ‘crystal’ that we would call ‘glass’. The biggest category that gets mis-described this way is Czech Fire Polish beads. They are glass, not crystal, as we detail below.

Regular glass is mainly made of Silicon Dioxide (SiO2), with the addition of other ingredients, such as sodium carbonate (Na2CO3), calcium oxide (CaO), magnesium oxide (MgO) and Aluminim Oxide. The resulting glass contains about 70 to 72 percent silica by weight and is called a soda-lime glass. Soda-lime glasses account for about 90 percent of manufactured glass.

In general, man made ‘crystal’ is a glass that has had one or more of certain minerals added to a standard glass formulation to make the product more brilliant. Lead is the mineral of choice here, as lead oxide added to the molten glass gives lead crystal a much higher index of refraction than normal glass, and consequently much greater “sparkle”. The presence of lead also makes the glass softer and easier to cut.

As far as we know Swarovski crystal beads have the highest lead content of any bead that can be called crystal. The design of the cuts is also important, just as in cutting gemstones. At Swarovski, the angles of the facets are set up to maximize refraction and reflection of light, thus making their products as brilliant as possible. One thing you may have noticed is that the more facets on a cut bead (of any kind, crystal or gemstone), the higher the price. However, the more facets, the more brilliant and pretty the bead, so you get what you pay for.

The Czechoslovakian companies, such as Preciosa, make quite nice crystal beads, but they do have a lower lead content, and less modern cuts. Thus, they are not quite as brilliant as Swarovski products. Also, the Czech companies are not as aggressive in constantly creating new cuts, colors and finishes, as Swarovski has been for the last few years.

Czech glass beads, as opposed to Czech crystal beads, are just glass, with no special mineral additives. They are lighter, and are often molded or ‘pressed’ into creative shapes. Czech Fire Polish beads are glass beads (NOT crystal) that are cut into faceted shapes. However, the cuts are imprecise, and there is no mechanical polishing done. Instead the roughly cut glass beads are heated in special ovens. The surfaces and cut edges melt a little in the heat and smooth out nicely. The beads are then removed before they melt down entirely (we have seen some half-melted ones, just little bubbled lumps, it was amusing). Special coatings are applied after this stage.

A word about Chinese “crystal” beads. Humph. We have our doubts. They are super light weight, which alone indicates an absence of significant mineral additives. Their faceting is minimal, so this adds to their lack of brilliance. Yes, they are inexpensive and colorful. They are excellent for projects for young people. Are they really ‘crystal’ glass, or just regular glass? Who knows? Accept them for what they really are, and you won’t be disappointed.

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