Saturday, August 14, 2010


When dressing casually, fashion jewelry is always preferred than real jewelry. This consists of accessories like necklace made of glass beads or bracelets and earrings made of semi-precious stones rather than gold or silver. More affordable jewelry like glass jewelry is being worn by more and more women these days because they get to achieve the same great look but for much, much less.

Anybody can buy glass jewelry and glass beads accessories in all sorts places nowadays. You can adorn clothes with these kinds of jewelry that are also featured in a lot department stores. Even simple clothes can look more elegant and attractive with the right kind of accessories like a nice piece of necklace and a sparkly ring. With a wide variety of glass jewelry to choose from, you will surely get something that can match your outfit anytime, anywhere. Both women and young girls these days not just looking to wear any type of jewelry with their getups, but they tend to like the big and sparkly fashion jewelry, mostly made of glass beads, crystals and semi-precious stones.


One of the most in demand glass jewelry of the century are those made from furnace glass beads and fire polished glass beads. They come in various exquisite colors, sizes and shapes.
Furnace Glass beads are also known as Art Glass beads because they are hand-made by glass artists. They are also sometimes called Cane Glass since the patterns it has are similar to those of candy canes. While the fire polished glass beads are imported from Czech Republic, thus, its other name, Czech glass beads. They usually come in size 6x9mm and come in an array of fantastic colors.

Because these beads are very adorable, you can actually buy them in bulk and create your own fashion jewelry. This way, you not only get to wear the style that is uniquely yours, but you can also share your creations to your friends and loved ones. Or if you like, you can open up a small business selling fashion jewelry made of these glass beads.
Treat yourself and have fun with these colorful glass beads!
Tuesday, August 10, 2010


Designer Monique Lhuillier shot to stardom in the fashion industry when Britney Spears commissioned her to create her wedding dress. Since then, her gowns have been on the most coveted must haves of A-list celebrities as she is touted to be the next Vera Wang of our generation. What is so special about Monique Lhuillier’s gowns anyway? Why do celebrities keep wanting to wear her dresses?

One of this Filipino Designer’s top secrets is the use of crystals, glass beads, semi-precious stones and bead jewelry when it comes to designing and making her gowns. This delighted Britney Spears when her wedding gown was crafted with such precious materials. Soon enough, this was followed by other stints with other Hollywood celebrities and Monique Lhuillier’s name shone brighter than ever as a fashion designer. It’s really not that surprising since Monique’s family has been in the business of jewelry for a very long time.

Indeed, when materials such as glass beads and precious stones are used, be it in jewelry, in gowns, or in any other object, that object will exude a certain elegance and class that is hard to miss.

Going back to Monique’s gowns, because they are priced at such high costs, ranging from $2000 - $10,000, average people naturally couldn’t afford them. What you can do is have your gowns and dresses embellished with glass beads and precious stones by a regular dressmaker if you want them to exude the same elegance and beauty. Perhaps, you can do it yourself to save more while expressing your artistic ability on the matter of designing dresses.

The best beads to use for gowns would be glass beads, Swarovsky crystals and pearls. If you want your dress to look more expensive, you can use rhinestones and other semi-precious stones if you wish.

For less expensive materials that can exude the same exquisite taste, you may try embroidery, the use of ruffles and laces and combining minimalist themes with avant-garde couture.

Monday, August 9, 2010



Nature has a way of recycling non-biodegradable things. Take glass for instance. Glass bottles that are thrown into the sea, both by accident or on purpose, are eroded and smoothed over time due to the friction caused by crashing waves and sand. They turn into interesting shapes, colors and sizes which are then picked up by beach goers and are usually kept as mementos or as glass beads for jewelry making.

For those of you who love to collect glass beads or would like to start a collection now, here are some ideas and on what you do with the pieces. Remember, not all pieces of glass beads you see along the shore are suitable for making glass jewelry. You have to choose based on size, color and shape to ensure that your glass jewelry is not haphazardly done.

If you happen to pick up glass beads that are of very similar shape and size, you use these pieces in making a pair of beautiful earrings. It’s pretty rare to get glass beads along the shore that look similar. Usually, one needs to buy the commercialized version of these beads to make sure that the earrings he or she makes are perfect.

Aside from earrings, you can turn these pieces of eroded glass into bracelets, pendants, necklaces, and anklets. Let your imagination run wild and don’t be scared to experiment.

Because beach glass is considered natural, they don’t come with holes in them where strings usually pass through for jewelry making. What you can do is to be a little bit more creative with the use of your wire. Using any kind of wire you want, wrap it around the beach glass in many different ways to come up with many different designs.

But basically, what you do is circle the wire to your beach glass several times to secure the loop. Place this loop wherever the top of the pendant should be. Use a hot glue to further secure the ends of the wire to keep your glass bead snug and won’t prick you when wearing the necklace.

From here, there are many other possibilities you can do for your beach glass beads. For bracelets, you can wire the glass beads in a similar fashion but put a loop on both ends so you can slide the glass beads into a chain. A simple lobster chain can then secure the whole bracelet. You can now make an array of beautiful glass jewelry using this simple wiring technique.


Friday, August 6, 2010



There are a lot of ways you can do to be green and eco-friendly in your ways. For beaders like me, you can all the available jewelry supplies and beading supplies you have to create more unique and intricate designs with your bead jewelry. One perfect example is to make glass beads out of used glass bottles you have at home. It sounds difficult, isn’t it? It actually is. So the next best thing would be to either donate or sell your glass bottles to jewelry companies that recycle glass and handcraft them into glass beads and glass jewelry. Pretty awesome, huh?


You can actually purchase handmade jewelry in many places – stores, craft shows, boutiques, department stores, warehouses and online sites that sell very affordable beads for making handmade bead jewelry. You can also recycle aluminum wire as part of your eco-friendly practice.

You can then wear your handmade glass jewelry at any occasion. Because of the many styles you can come up with, you can make one for each special occasion you can think of, or even just for everyday use. Recycled glass is usually in various shades of green and blue but you can also now see others in other colors.


Recycled glass beads take a lot of time to make as well as making handmade bead jewelry. But the time you invest in this activity will be all worth it the moment you see your finished product, especially when you get to wear it or offer it as a gift to someone you care about. Handcrafted glass jewelry conveys passion and deep love, something that many of us forget to feel these days.
When recycling glass and using glass beads in your jewelry making, you not only bring out the artist in you but you help save the planet too. Keep recycling glass and using glass beads in your beading projects. And most of all, spread the love for planet Earth. It’s the only one we’ve got.
Thursday, August 5, 2010

You are probably familiar with most types of glass beads now as I have discussed them with you before. But there are still some kinds I’d like to share to give you an idea which ones to get as gifts for people you cherish and for your personal use too.

Artistic Style

These are the handcrafted glass beads which come in a wide array of variety, designs, styles, prints and patterns. They are the most artistic of the bunch because of the colors they produce when light strikes them, the quality of their shimmer as they sparkle under the light. They are sometimes even mistaken for real gemstones. They come in various shapes, sizes and colors.

Fish Shaped


As its name suggests, these glass beads are shaped like a fish. Typically, they are made from high quality soft glass with a small hole in the middle where string can pass. They are available in different kinds of fish designs of various colors.

Alphabet Shaped

These are the letter glass beads that take the shape of the English alphabet. They are best for making any accessory more personalized than any other type of glass beads. They are usually meant for bracelets or as pendants in necklaces. People also sometimes choose to spell the complete first name of the person they are making the accessory for.

Heart Shaped



Ladies who are in love or those who feel a great deal of care for the people they love tend to purchase heart shaped beads to convey their love through the necklace or bracelet they are making. Heart shaped glass beads appeal to people’s emotions and as such, are considered as romantic glass beads. This kind is especially perfect when used as a gift during Valentine’s Day.

Crystal Beads

These are the kinds of beads that are truly elegant and classic in nature. Crystal beads are those made of gemstones like diamonds, sapphires and rubies to name a few.There are still many other glass beads out there but these are the types that typically get sold in the market because of their design and style. You can choose which ones you need depending on the occasion or the purpose of your gift.

Monday, July 26, 2010
Women are unique beings in this world. No two women are the same in any aspect including physical appearance and preference. Even twins have a slight difference in their personalities and physical look. Therefore, every woman also deserves something exceptional and elegant as she is. What more can you give to a woman than a bead jewelry worth her uniqueness and grace.

Beads are like women. They come in the same general look and purpose but every detail is not exactly alike. Not a single bead is exactly the same as the other hence, the more elegant and valuable they are. For such a unique person is also a unique gift to give. Give a girlfriend, mother, wife, sister, friend or even some girl special like a bead jewelry to make her feel special. It can either have a single bead pendant or a fully covered beaded bracelet.

Glass beads jewelries are one of the most popular gifts to give a woman. These are crystals of many beautiful colors worthy of anyone’s praise. It is one-of-a-kind and has a priceless beauty. If you give a special woman in your life glass bead jewelry, she will feel like the most special person in the world to deserve such lovely gift.

There are many types of glass bead jewelry and many kinds of glass beads to use. If you are a bead maker yourself, try producing matchless designs only for a special woman. If not, there are many glass beads jewelry available in jewelry stores to choose from. You can even ask a bead maker friend to create a beautiful glass bead jewelry just for that special woman.

Make any woman be reminded of how special they are in this world through glass bead jewelry.
Friday, July 23, 2010


We have expressed time and again that when it comes to jewelry, you have endless options to choose from. There are gemstones, semi-precious stones, metal and more. Depending on the style and design you create, they can either look stunning and plain for you. But there’s one material that never goes out of style, will always look stunning and vibrant, without causing you an arm and a leg --- glass beads.

Glass jewelry offer certain shimmer and spark that further bring out its beauty and elegance. When worn to match an attire, they have the ability to make the wearer look stunning and more gorgeous than when not wearing one.


Here are some more reasons why it’s an advantage to have glass jewelry:

Though it is great to use real gemstones in jewelry making, with glass jewelry, you are nit limited by nature. You can go as eccentric and wild as your imagination wills it. With glass, you make make it look like anything you want. Glass jewelry is a lot more versatile and flexible which is why glass jewelry never go out of style.

Because glass can imitate real gemstones, they tend to become the more affordable alternative when one wants to seem like wearing expensive precious stones like diamonds, but is actually just wearing glass jewelry.

Glass jewelry is very versatile. They can be turned to bracelets, anklets, necklaces, earrings and other accessories for your getup. As such, they can reflect any personality you may have. Glass jewelry can be wild, classic, whimsical, exciting.. Whatever you need it to look, it can do that for you.

So, if you need a piece of jewelry that’s stunning and gorgeous, but don’t want to break the bank acquiring one, glass jewelry is what you need. They never go out of style and can bring out your unique personality and flair in fashion.

Friday, July 16, 2010
Wearing an ID to school or to work is not really the type of fashion accessory you want for yourself. The clip on IDs on your blouse can really lessen the overall fashion style you put on that morning. That is because IDs are made of inexpensive laminated paper that has your picture and school details. You will be lucky if you have IDs at school that are made of sturdy glass covers to compensate on the paper they use for the IDs.

To accentuate the look of your IDs, have a beaded lanyard instead of a clip on. That way, the beautiful colors of your beaded lanyard will easily blend to your outfit making your IDs not a distraction but an addition.

You may choose to buy beaded lanyard in many accessory shops and even craft stores. You can also create your own. Although it requires creative works from you, making your own lanyard are more affordable and can offer you wider designs than the limited styles of an on-display beaded lanyard.

If you plan to make your own, just grab your bead making supplies, a few beads of your choice and a nice place to work. What you need to do first is to plan on your design. How would you like your beaded lanyard to look like? What beads to use? A great idea is to use glass beads for your lanyard. These come in different types, colors and sizes to choose from. Glass beads can also create that shimmer you always want for your accessories.

If you stick on glass beads, you can choose from many types. There are fire polished glass beads, Opaque glass beads, furnace glass beads and cat eyes glass beads. After choosing your design and materials, measure the length of your lanyard. You can also tell the quantity of materials you need when you have your lanyard measurement.

You can now buy your beaded lanyard materials so that you can start on your beaded lanyard. Remember, create a glass bead pattern that will look good on your every outfit to school. Your beaded lanyard needs to match your school outfit to have a more stylish look. If one cannot fit all your outfit, create more different beaded lanyards for yourself.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Glass bead curtains are very popular in the earlier decades. The funky look of each glass bead curtain became a trend when everything else around is full of colors. Yet, these colorful curtains have been overshadowed by elegance and simplicity of modern designs. Hence, rare can you find these glass bead curtain as a great decoration inside every home.

However, glass bead curtains are more than just a funky window cover. It can be made into different decorations inside the house as of course a window cover, a divider and an added decoration. You can simply enhance the beauty of a glass bead curtain to more than just an addition to your windows.

Glass beads are great reflectors of light. When it comes to added lighting, we often think of more light bulbs or power generating electricity plug in. In other words, we should expect an increase in our electric bill. If you want to enhance lighting to your room, try using glass beads instead. That way, you can achieve added lighting, extra decoration and energy saving technique.

By using glass bead curtains, you can create a funky yet elegant design to your room. It does not need to be all crystals or full of colors. You can actually choose the different style of glass bead curtains according to their different color patterns and kind of glass beads used.

No more buying bulk furniture or perhaps try to built in huge room dividers. It may take up space and can be too costly. If you decide on a room divider, try using glass bead curtain instead. You can simply pass through these curtains if you need to and it can add color to your room. Moreover, it does not take up much space in your room.

Glass bead curtains can also become a great ornament to your existing curtains. Have a simple and inexpensive curtain on your windows, add the glass bead curtains and you can have a well-designed curtain in an instant. It cost less too compared to buying the readymade expensive curtains.

Exploring on the many other use of a simple house accessory such as a glass bead curtain can enhance more your overall house design as well as save you more cost in buying expensive decorations.
Monday, July 12, 2010
You might already know that beading is one of the top hobbies of many people today. It is so popular in fact that a lot of magazines are being published solely featuring everything about beading. Beading is not just a hobby and form of relaxation, but it can turn out to be a wonderful business as well.


There are many kinds of beading, two of which are seed beading and tapestry beading. With the latter, you can include many kinds of beads including glass beads to give your finished products various effects, shimmer, styles and designs. Glass beads can be bought in many bead and craft shops both online and offline. You will find that there are many options to choose from which will help you make the most unique and beautiful beaded creations you can think of.

When beading is incorporated in textile looms, a wide array of techniques is used to produce cloth. A bead loom equipment is used to make beautiful bead work, which is the most common equipment used by bead workers so they can easily make great masterpieces.

If you are interested in using bead looms, choose the rectangular one that has raised grooves and hooks. There are a lot of these things in the market and all you have to do is choose the best one. The wooden ones are more expensive than the other kinds but they are the ones that will last for a long time. Treat is as an investment an you will surely enjoy your bead work with the bead loom for a long, long time.

For beginners, start with an easy task. Use glass beads that are fairly bigger than most, like those in size 6 or 7. They’re easy to handle and you can still make wonderful designs. Just make sure that you get a needle that is smaller than the hole of your glass beads. This way, the needle can pass through each bead without a glitch.

Start practicing and don’t be afraid to experiment with different designs. You will find out that creating glass beads designs is fairly easier to do when you have a bead loom to assist you. The more you get used to the idea of a bead loom, the better you will be at producing wonderful styles. You can then incorporate these designs with your glass beads jewelry and eventually set up your own shop where you can showcase and sell your masterpieces. Start now!

Friday, July 9, 2010
Glass beads are great materials when creating some jewelry. Many necklaces, bracelets and earrings are made with elegant glass beads of many colors. The great thing about glass beads is its versatility to be formed in many shapes and sizes. You can make glass beads with many different colors like blue, green, pink and even a clear glass. You can even form these beads according to your desired shapes and designs like oval, triangles and even intricate shapes like flowers, stars and animal shapes.

The look of every glass bead seems too complicated to do. However, with the appropriate tools and the right knowledge, you will be able to create your own glass beads. In making these elegant beads, you need to have some wires, threads, needles, mandrels, torch, cutters, pliers, vermiculite, kiln wash, some shaping tools and of course different color for your glass beads.

There are many ways to create glass beads considering the many advance technology these days. But, the simplest and most popular technique in creating glass beads is lampworking. This is a very easy process and even you can do it. All you need to do is use a gas-fueled torch to melt glass rods. Then, wrap these hot glasses in a heated mandrel, which forms the base of the bead. Kiln process comes next after the bead is done. To make sure that the beads will not crack, annealing it will do the work.

There is no definite length of time in the lamp work method. It depends on how you do it right and the kind of glass beads you are working on. Once your beads are clean and smooth, they are ready to be made into gorgeous jewelries.

There are many different types of glass beads and each are created in different ways to give them their own distinction and unique beauty. All these offer you wider selection for your glass beads jewelries and can enhance every design you make out of these different glass beads.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
If this is the first time you’re delving into the art of making bead jewelry, how exciting it must be then for you! I remember the first time I learned to make my own creations and it felt so wonderful. After all these years, I still find beading very relaxing and fulfilling. I’m sure you will too.

The usual concern most beaders have when it comes to making bead jewelry is what kind of beads to use. While there are a variety of beads to choose from, it is important to know what your goals is. What is it that you plan to achieve with the bead jewelry you’re making? Would you want to create an elegant necklace to match a cocktail dress? Are you into casual bracelets good for everyday wear? Would you like to make some pairs of earrings that will highlight your face? Knowing what your end goal is will help you choose which beads to buy for your project.

In terms of getting the best of both worlds, glass beads are usually favored by beaders when making both formal and casual designs. Because of the way they spark, glass beads are beautiful enough to pass as real gemstones and are therefore nice to wear when wearing dresses and other more formal attires. Moreover, glass beads are affordable enough to be worn every day to match any of your casual getups. With the many colors and kinds glass beads have, you can create as many simple and casual designs as you like to match every daily outfit you have.
The following are the kinds of glass beads perfect for both formal and casual wear. Try them and see what kinds of designs you can come up with:


Fiberoptic Cats Eye Beads
This type has fantastic shapes and striking sheen and luster. Depending on how light passes through each of the fiberoptic cats eye beads, a beautiful shimmer is made when the shade changes from dark to light and back. This type of beads is not just perfect for bead jewelry but can also be used for other artsy projects like scrapbooking.


Furnace Glass Beads
This kind of beads is pretty special because it is hand-made by glass artists. It is also called cane glass because its usual patterns are same with candy canes. Furnace glass beads have exciting shapes, colors and sizes. You will definitely have fun using them for your bead jewelry project.


Mixed Glass Beads
For The Love of Beads has a variety of glass beads. From Indian Fancy beads, to Chinese Opaque beads, to the popular Czech Glass beads. They also have light-flickering foil lined beads plus two-tone "AB" beads, matte flower beads as well as painted pieces. They will surely make all your bead jewelry creations look like they’re done by professionals. With the use of mixed glass beads, you can even start a small business and sell your wonderful creations.

With these varieties to choose from, you will continuously be inspired to make as many designs as you can think of. Thanks to the popularity of glass beads, you will never run out of options to use. Enjoy your bead jewelry project and keep on beading!

Friday, July 2, 2010
Glass is known to be a great reflector of light. Once light touches the surface of a glass bead, it tends to bounce and scatter across the area. That is why things that are made of glass look so bright and crystal like.

If you want added lighting to your room or to a particular area in your house, why using glass beads instead? It not only provides bright and scattered lighting, but also an alternative way to save some cost in electricity.

To achieve this, you may want to create something functional and stylish for more benefits. One good example is a glass chandelier. We all know that chandeliers are elegant addition to our house. It is sometimes the first thing that our guests set their eyes into. The main function of a chandelier is to provide light in an elegant way. It consists mostly of many bulbs for enhanced lighting around the room.

However, more bulbs in use mean more electricity cost piling up. To save energy, why not try to design a chandelier designed mostly with glass beads to allow the light to scatter around. This way, all you need is a single bulb and some glass beads supply to achieve your glass beads chandelier. Actually, there are a few chandeliers sold these days designed with glass beads. Since, you would rather save costs effectively, a DIY project will somehow help you attain your goal.

Another example is glass-beaded curtains. This is common to rooms with a lot of fashion sense. In addition, this is quite popular and mostly seen in a girl’s room. Anyway, a glass-beaded curtain is a string of glass beads arranged and combined in a long line to form a curtain like appearance. This is another good ornament to a room full of wild colors and unique design. Furthermore, it serves as a good curtain design to the window and a stylish divider of particular areas in the room. But, it also has that reflector ability to scatter lights around the room and giving it more lighting.

There are many ideas on how to enhance your lighting but do it in a more affordable way. By trying to learn how to utilize natural reflectors such as glass beads, you can come up with creative and functional ideas on how to reach your purpose.

Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Glass beads are unique beads that have captured the fervor and loyalty of many bead makers. Their shimmer effect combined with their sleek surface creates an extraordinary beauty beyond compare. Hence, most of the beaded jewelries produced by crafters are made of glass beads or with a mix of these fine beads.

Starting on a new project with glass beads, it is sometimes an uncertainty as to what colors to use for the project. Expert beaders may find these easy due to much experience with glass beads. However, for the newbie in bead making, glass bead colors adds beauty and option for your project and not a pressure for you to choose the perfect color. To work in a breeze with these glass bead colors, you must keep in mind a few tips.

Glass bead color comes in variety of tint such as the pink, blue, red, green and black. Further, these colors have different color intensity. Although this can seem confusing, remember to enjoy your work always.
Try playing with different color patterns and color combination. You can arrange the blue colored glass beads according to its intensity and make it a pattern for your necklace. Alternatively, you can have five different dark colors and create a pattern out of this.In addition, when choosing the appropriate colors for your glass bead supply, visualize first what you want for a design in your project. By imagining the overall look of your finished project, you can clearly see the different colors associating your design. Then, you can simply choose the color of your glass beads.

But, you must also bear in mind that your design is what limits your choice. Although this can be a great pattern in choosing your glass bead colors, it is just simply to lead you to an organized project making. You can always do a few changes in your design when you see another great glass bead color you desire.

The only thing you must always consider when doing your glass bead jewelry of any other beaded jewelry is have fun. Bead making is not a stressful activity nor is it strict and always by the rules. It is fun, spontaneous activity that lets you run your creative minds and create a boundless masterpiece of genuine art. You may feel a little lost or doing it wrong, but you can always go back and do it again, no added pressure.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Glass beads are gorgeous, versatile and can be used for a variety of craft projects. One of the best glass beads for jewelry making tend to use patterns that are unique, easy to create, and beautiful to wear. Getting involved with a project like beading jewelry can open up one’s creativity, to accessorize an apparel and for the home as well, like creating curtains and other fashionable clothes embellishments.

Beading Jewelry

Creating beautiful pieces of necklaces, bracelets, earrings and other accessories is usually the most common use for glass beads. They are inexpensive and with a little bit of practice, very easy to do.


Beaded Curtains or Lamp Hangings

Like what was mentioned, glass beads can be used for embellishing and creating other beautiful things. Two of the things you can do with glass beads are beaded curtains and lamp hangings. Any ordinary piece of fabric can look more vibrant and exciting by adding these colorful glass beads. A once boring-looking curtain will now become a work of art and can become a subject of conversation when you have guests at home. Like making beaded jewelry, beading your curtains and lamp hangings are also fairly easy to do.


Beading Fashion

If your needing a new look or new sets of clothes but you don’t want to break the bank by buying new ones, you can embellish your blouses, dresses, skirts and pants with glass beads instead! You will instantly look fabulous and the clothes you’re wearing will automatically look brand new. Even top fashion designers are doing this so why can’t you? You can always look for exciting patterns online and with a little sewing knowledge; you’re off to a brand new you. There is nothing more beautiful than being uniquely you. And glass beads can definitely help you in that department.
When we speak of something ancient and old, we often do not give full attention to it (well, except for antique enthusiasts and history aficionado) We sometimes think that what is more valuable are those that provide full function and design in our modern and advanced lives. Hence, whatever is in the past is buried in the past.

However, did you know that the ancient and old things you might ignore have great value to people in the past using them? Let us take for example ancient glass beads. When speaking of ancient glass beads, we just say, those are just regular glass beads. However, in the past, these mere things these days are worth so much that even a life is equivalent to its value.Glassmaking originated in the Palestine area but was developed in Egypt. These people considered glassmaking as a magical invention. They devote their time and effort in creating and enhancing these special things. In early Egypt, slaves are tortured and being suffered to work. These slaves endured work in Egypt like glassmaking and they even shed blood on it.Eventually, different colors and kinds of glass beads were created and used as a good material for furniture and architectures. Later, these ancient glass beads were formed into colorful and valuable jewelries that are used for trading. A single life of an African slave is equivalent to a few shiny glass beads. These were also used by the Americans to entice and gain the trust of the indigenous people they found in their explorations.

Many years have passed and these ancient glass beads scattered all over the world. Hence, the value of such beads increases as these typically belongs to some of the old rich in the world. As the world approaches the modern technology era and many devices and tools were invented to produce imitations and artificial things, beads in many forms become numerous and thus even ordinary people can now own and enjoy the pleasure of a beautiful ancient glass bead.

Looking back, we can see how people have valued these ancient glass beads. Many lives were at risk in its origin and production. With just a single ancient glass bead, we can see lives suffering to produce these and lives that were sold to own these. A bead lost these days may only worth a few pennies and can easily be replaced in an instant, but a single ancient glass bead in the past is worth a single life and a symbol of slavery and bloodshed hard work and suffering.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Do you own a piece of Roman glass jewelry? Do you know how to take care of it or are you just letting it sit there on your jewelry box? For those who are interested to find out how to better care for your Roman glass jewelry, you’ve come to the right spot.

What is Roman Glass?

This is characterized by the luminous colors which you can see within the glass with your naked eye. Most common colors are purples, aqua, blues, and pinks. It was first created in the first centuries during the Roman Empire, when glass-making techniques were revolutionized by the introduction of glass blowing. The glass created before had bluish-aqua tint to it and was used mainly for bowls and vessels in all shapes and sizes.

Caring for Roman Glass Jewelry

If you happen to own a piece, like in a form of cufflinks, or a historic-glass-on-a-chain, or a pair of stunning earrings, here are a few crucial guidelines to caring for your Jewelry:

  • Do not get it wet with water. Always remove any jewelry before you take a shower.
  • No swimming with jewelry on
  • Don’t let it come in contact with any kind of hair and body spray as well as perfume.
  • Don’t lket it come in contact with lotion and cream.
  • Don’t touch it as much as possible.

If you're wondering what’s all this fuss about, the simple answer would be: to keep your Roman glass jewelry shining and glistening for the next 2000 years.

Like we said before, the glass – which is made up of organic matter - continues to react with its environment. Just as other elements affect the glass in the past, they may still continue to do so in the present. When cleaning your jewelry, just polish the gold and silver parts with a clean cloth and avoid the glass. The best thing to do is to give the jewel to a specialized jeweler and have him clean it for you.

To sum it all up, the best way to take care of your Roman glass jewelry is to always handle it with care, because believe it or not, you're handling a piece of ancient history.

Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Your watch may be one of the most important accessories you may have now. It is very useful in telling time even when you are out on the streets and can even be a cool frill in your wrist. But, you can boost your watch façade by changing your watchbands with some string glass beads. It will not only make your wrist trendy looking with different colors but also sparkle with glass beads.

Watches often come with simple and classic bands. Some even are limited to plain colors of white, black, green, blue and red. But, these days, a fashionable look is a lot famous compared to plain ones and a wider selection of different colors are usually sought after by many people than ones with limited choices.

In stores lately, one may notice some watch band designs having a mix of more than three colors. Few of these watch bands are made of rubber and others are even made of other materials aside from pure gold, silver and leather. There are already many different designs and materials used in making watch bands.

Like many accessories, a watch can also be flexible in terms of its function. You can transform your watch into a bracelet you can use as a frill in your wrist and with any outfit you wear by making your watchband into a glass beaded watchband.

To have this kind of jewelry, you can either buy a customized watch or create your own watchband. In order to make your own watchband, you need to have some glass beads of different and your desired colors, a watch face, some jewelry wires, other desired materials for your watchband and your bead making supplies. You may have the option to have bigger glass beads or smaller glass beads, as well as the choice whether you will mix them with other kinds of beads or purely made of glass beads.

Before starting on your glass beaded watchbands, think first of a cool design and finalize it. Make sure that you have all the materials to make your work continuous. After you have all the materials and the design, you can start on your beaded watchband. It is similar to making your beaded bracelets or jewelries. Just make some glass bead strings and attach your finished glass beads strings to your watch face. If the strings are now attached to the watch face, make sure to have a clasp to be able to open or close your watchband when wanting to use it.

Creating your own accessories in many different designs and methods is very fun and fulfilling especially if done by yourself. You can simply have it the way you want it to be, save cost from buying a ready made one and be proud of how creative you can be.
Are you starting a glass beads jewelry making project but you’re not too decided which of the colors to choose? It can be quite overwhelming because of the many choices you have. The colors are so varied you will sometimes feel like just getting them all. But take note that even with just a few of the basic beading colors, you can already make magnificent pieces.

Begin with the end in mind.

For beginners, it's easy to get lost in the details of beading. You have to know how to take a step back when picking up the colors for your jewelry project. Consider the emotions that you would like to convey, and the clothes you want to match them up with. If you are looking to make an elegant and classy impression, choose the rich, dark, and warm colors of glass beads for additional impact. If you’d like to convey a more playful spirit, consider more bright colors to let your personality shine through.

Let bead patterns become your guide.

Patterns are there to help you in your jewelry bead making project. But be flexible enough to follow your instinct should the pattern prove to be boring for you. Patterns are just there to help you out and show you the way. They are not exactly rules that you have to strictly follow.

You can always turn back the clock on color.

One of the best things when it comes to making your own glass beads jewelry is that you can never go wrong. Whatever colors and shapes and designs you make, they will always come out creative and beautiful. You can always correct a style when you’re not feeling happy with it, until you achieve that piece of design you feel happy with. Always trust your judgment and enjoy the process.