Showing posts with label glass beads supplies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label glass beads supplies. Show all posts
Friday, July 2, 2010
Glass is kno
wn 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.
wn 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 23, 2010
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.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
On another blog post, I have shared with you general details about making jewelry using glass beads.On this particular post, I shall go into a bit more detail.Allow me to say first that making jewelry using glass beads brings out the creativity in anyone interested in this hobby or craft. Beads in general are celebrated in art communities worldwide and some pieces are highly treasured by collectors. So before you start your amazing artful journey into the world of jewelry glass beading, you have to first learn the essential beading supplies you will need:
Glass
Sodium lime is usually the choice of bead makers. It melts a lot quicker than any other type of raw material, does not need the extreme kind of heat that hard glass needs, and it has a bigger color palette. When choosing which kind of glass to buy, always use one kind. You cannot combine the two (hard and soft) because these two raw materials are not compatible with each other. They will just crack when mixed together.
Torch
I suggest that you get the Hot Head Torch. Although there are other kinds out there, this particular type is an excellent choice for any soft glass bead maker. It only costs less than $50, it burns at a temperature perfect for melting the soft glass, and can do without oxygen unlike other bench burners.
Bead Release and Mandrels
In making glass beads, a thin, steel pipe called mandrel is used in the middle where the glass is wound around it. This helps form the shape of the beads, allowing it to have the necessary hole in the middle, while bead release is the one that covers a part of the pipe so you can easily take out the beads when done.
MAPP Gas of Propylene
Use this gas to make your Hot Head Torch work. It is placed in a small bottle that you can screw to your torch. You can usually find this kind of gas at a supplier of lampwork glass beads, hardware store or welding shop.
Annealer or Vermiculite
The glass is heated for a certain period of time. Afterward, it has to go back to room temperature to avoid cracking later on. Using an annealer or kiln can best accomplish this task since it can hold extreme temperatures and control the anneal cycle, making the final product come out intact. If an annealer is too expensive for you, you can use vermiculite in the mean time. With vermiculite, you can put your work inside then just retrieve it after about 8 hours.
Didymium Glasses
These is the pair of glasses you wear to protect your eyes from the sodium glare brought about by heated glass.
Ventilation System
Make sure you work in an area that is properly ventilated to remove fumes which are harmful to your health.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
When we think of crafting beaded accessories, the first things that come to mind are necklaces and bracelets. But actually, beaded earrings are the easiest to do. Many people can along fine without wearing bracelets and necklaces, but if they go without earrings, they tend to feel naked. The thing is, when we think of earrings, we think of those expensive ones made of silver, gold and diamonds. But the truth is, you can create your own fancy-looking pair using your own glass beads supplies. You can even combine it with other beaded materials and create a design that is uniquely you!
The truth is, earrings don’t need to be fancy in order to look good and presentable to the public. You can look elegant and posh even without spending tons of money to get that particular chic look. All you have to do is either buy a beautifully crafted beaded earring or make one yourself using your own glass beads supplies.
Did you know that American Indians used to create beaded earrings for their women as well as very intricate and elaborate designs for their beaded jewelry, intended for different purposes? These designs included dream catchers, which are ritual items they place on cradles and other sleeping areas to drive away nightm
ares and bad dreams. A common gemstone that they use for their earrings are turquoise beads, which gives strength of conviction and character to whoever is wearing them.
Today, we can see this dream catcher design turned to earrings for women and not just as an accessory inside the bedroom. Some of us have also carried on this practice of creating their own earrings from their own glass beads supplies. Beaded earrings, because of the variety of beads available in the market, are easily very colorful, chic and elegant, with a touch of that vintage charm. If you’re seeking for a new look and a new feel for your sense of fashion, creating earrings and other accessories with the use of glass beads supplies is definitely the way to go.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
The rosary beads serve to be one of those ancient symbols and tools of Christianity. It was first made during the twelfth century when the blessed Virgin Mary was said to appear to Saint Dominic and made a promise that if Saint Dominic will spread the rosary’s devotions to people, peace would be found.When the rosary was first made, it contained 150 glass beads, which serve as a mirror to the set of psalms that the Bible contains. Anybody who doesn’t have regular access to this set of Psalms can just move along the string of rosary glass beads and pray. This benefits the blind and those people who have no means of learning how to read.
However, it should be noted that rosary beads were not always strung together. It used to be just stones kept in one’s pocket which get sorted as the individual prays. It was only much, much later that these beads were thought to be strung together for ease of use.
In the beginning, the “Hail Mary” was not really part of the prayer. It was only added to introduce Angel Gabrielle and they chose to do this before the “Our Father”.
Today we find that the Dominican rosary contains 59 beads. They are divided into ten sections which are called "decades". These beads are crafted with a larger bead used to say the 'Our Father' prayer followed by ten smaller beads used to say the 'Hail Mary'.
You can create your own rosaries too, using glass beads and other beaded materials.
Monday, June 7, 2010
When into bead making, it is not enough to just know how to do the job, you also need to have the passion and determination to make the hobby last long. Moreover, if you are indeed into bead making, consider also having these items for a lesser cost. You may not feel the total cost you have allotted for the supplies in just a few days but in the long run, you will eventually see whether you have saved yourself some cost or just made your hobby an expensive one.Glass beads supplies may not be limited to having some glass beads in different colors a
nd shapes and some strings. If you happen to like bead making and fixed on having it long term, you might as well complete your whole set of glass beads supplies. You need to have some tools and equipments like wire cutters, pliers, glass rods, mandrels and some other stuff. This may sound many to count and can generate greater cost, but how to make bead making more affordable?First, all you have to do is list down all the necessary tools and materials and filter these to what you regularly use. Will you be using the mandrels often or only in selected type of jewelries? This is helpful since you can only buy those tools that you often need and just borrow the others when you need them.
In addition, you can combine all projects having similar tools to use hence you can borrow them only for that day. Not only will it save you the cost of buying the tools, but also create an awarene
ss to other enthusiast that you are fond of bead making yourself thus you can create a group project or have a slumber party on bead making.As for the glass beads materials, you can buy these in bulk. Often, stores provide discounts to people buying in bulk orders. If you think about it, you can save a lot from the discount. Moreover, it can also save you the traveling cost as well as your own time and effort in going back and forth to the bead shop just to buy limited number of glass beads. You can buy bulk orders of the same sizes or have these in variety for better selection when doing your beaded accessories.
One hobby or job may be expensive no matter how simple it is if not planned accordingly. However, something as detailed as bead making may save you greater cost if you knew the technique on buying these glass beads for less.
Beading supplies are not only used for jewelry beads but are used as accents for other accessories as well. Take for instance scarves and shawls. They are soft pieces of fine cloth or garment that are primarily used to fight against cold, but lately have become pieces of fashion statement as well. And with the emergence of fashion in almost anything and everything that people wear, beading supplies are now being used to create stylish beaded scarves and shawls to make a getup more attractive and fabulous-looking .
There is a wide variety of scarves and shawls available in clothing stores and shops these days. But not everything uses beading supplies to make it more stylish. Those that do come with beads and gemstones definitely look more stunning than their regular-looking counterparts. Especially if the entire scarf it made of beads! They are more colorful and pretty which helped made them more popular in countries like Malaysia, China, India and Japan.
The most common beading supplies used for shawls and scarves are glass beads, gemst
one beads, semi-precious stone beads and metallic beads. These beads possess the right weight to make the shawls and scarves hang at the right angle, plus the fact that embellishments such as these kinds of beads make for a far more glamorous and classy looking shawl or scarf for the one who wears it.
These beading supplies are usually available in a wide array of brilliant colors in all kinds of finishes: smooth, brilliant, cuts, dull, pastel, and non glossy shades. A string of colorful glass beads for instance can bedazzle a shawl perfectly for matching it with any attire.
The developing interest and passion for beaded costumes in the west has also popularized these beaded scarves in the western regions. The western side of the world chooses lighter shades of fabrics as compared to the oriental countries. But events such as weddings with the bridesmaid's shawls are one of the occasions that beading supplies may be incorporated in a person’s dress. At the same time, beaded scarves and shawls may be considered both as casual or hard core party wear depending on the level and degree of decorative work.
Friday, June 4, 2010
You are probably at that point where you have started creating your own glass beads jewelry collection and now you are thinking about selling some to your friends via online. One way you can do this is to be able to show them your creation even if you are just at the comforts of your own home and without having to go from house to house just to sell your beautiful collection. By putting them up online, you can reach more people who would be interested in getting your glass beads jewelry.So how do you show them your stuff? Yes, you guessed it right. By showing photos of your creation!
Most often than not, photos fail to excite the viewer’s senses or ignite an emotional reaction from them. Therefore, in creating your photo, you have to use different kinds of things to make your glass beads shine. This way, the people who see the photos of your creation will be impressed with what you’ve made and will evoke a feeling of wanting from them.
Here are simple some tips you can use when taking pictures of your glass beads accessories and jewelry. Because glass beads tend to be so small, special skills are needed to make them seem like real in photos.
Lighting possesses the greatest secret in taking photographs. They can help create a dramatic effect which can be achieved by the angle of the direct light towards the glass beads to help showcase the essential parts. Beads that reflect 100% of light are gemstones, diamonds and polished gold. As for glass beads, if you want to achieve a 3D effect, even if light mostly passes through them you would need a place where there is enough light, a pastel colored background and a nifty digital camera of DSLR. Use a tripod to make sure that your camera is well focused and not moving. If you have a good eye for light and detail, you even just use your
phone camera as long as you can keep your hand steady.Always remember that the basic points to good photography when it comes to glass beads are lighting, exposure and focus.
Now try it and see what your glass beads photography will look like!
Thursday, June 3, 2010
There are many kinds of beads that are used in making beaded jewelry and accessories. There are the plastic kind, the metal types, the natural kind like nuts and seeds, and there are the glass beads. Glass beads are usually the more expensive kind especially if they are the fire polished ones made from Czech republic.
Glass beads are usually in demand for jewelry making because they have become synonymous with the designer kind. Glass beads jewelry exude fashion, flair, and unique style. There are a wide array of glass beads jewelry to choose from which can suit any motif, theme or fashion design.
Take a look at some of the most popular types of decorative glass beads used in glass beads jewelry:
Frog Beads
Nature and animals are the typical inspiration of this type of glass beads. They are usually good for decorations but are perfect as glass beads jewelry too, such as pendants, rings and bracelets. The kinds of glasses used for frog beads are lamp-work, handmade, venetian, and furnace.
Flower Beads
These beads of course resemble the shape of various flowers like lily, ivy, acorns and sweet pea. As such, they are colorful, lively and pretty. Because of their striking beauty, they are usually made into necklaces and bracelets. But because these beads are usually delicate due to the shape of the petals, careful handling is required for this kind of glass beads.
Heart Beads
Round Beads
These round beads have that shimmering quality because of their round shape, just like those of pearls. They are used to embellish a variety of jewelry items, best for crafting elegant necklaces and bracelets. You can even combine these round beads to other kinds to create a unique glass beads jewelry. The final outcome would depend entirely on your own creativity and design.
Butterfly Beads
As the name suggests, they resemble beautifully shaped butterflies in all colors and styles. They are perfect to be used as pendants for necklaces and bracelets most of the time. By their very nature, they seem very enticing and endearing. Butterfly beads are typically crafted from Venetian, Czech, Chinese and Indian glasses.
These are just the most popular kinds of beads used in glass beads jewelry. Make sure that you include them in your beading supplies so can make your glass beads jewelry collection more chic, stylish and elegant.
Glass beads are usually in demand for jewelry making because they have become synonymous with the designer kind. Glass beads jewelry exude fashion, flair, and unique style. There are a wide array of glass beads jewelry to choose from which can suit any motif, theme or fashion design.
Take a look at some of the most popular types of decorative glass beads used in glass beads jewelry:
Frog Beads
Nature and animals are the typical inspiration of this type of glass beads. They are usually good for decorations but are perfect as glass beads jewelry too, such as pendants, rings and bracelets. The kinds of glasses used for frog beads are lamp-work, handmade, venetian, and furnace.
Flower Beads
These beads of course resemble the shape of various flowers like lily, ivy, acorns and sweet pea. As such, they are colorful, lively and pretty. Because of their striking beauty, they are usually made into necklaces and bracelets. But because these beads are usually delicate due to the shape of the petals, careful handling is required for this kind of glass beads.
Heart Beads
As the name suggests, these beads are shaped into hearts of various textures, designs, colors, patterns and sizes. As such, these glass beads jewelry are mostly vibrant and are typically in demand during the Valentine season. Heart beads are usually made from furnace, dichotic, frosted, blown, and fused.
Round Beads
These round beads have that shimmering quality because of their round shape, just like those of pearls. They are used to embellish a variety of jewelry items, best for crafting elegant necklaces and bracelets. You can even combine these round beads to other kinds to create a unique glass beads jewelry. The final outcome would depend entirely on your own creativity and design.
Butterfly Beads
As the name suggests, they resemble beautifully shaped butterflies in all colors and styles. They are perfect to be used as pendants for necklaces and bracelets most of the time. By their very nature, they seem very enticing and endearing. Butterfly beads are typically crafted from Venetian, Czech, Chinese and Indian glasses.
These are just the most popular kinds of beads used in glass beads jewelry. Make sure that you include them in your beading supplies so can make your glass beads jewelry collection more chic, stylish and elegant.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Glass beads supplies are one of the first things that come to mind for someone who is into bead making, more so if you like making glass beads jewelry. Glass beads supplies can be bought in any bead shops, whether online or offline. They have become ubiquitous in the arena of glass jewelry making because of their superior quality and durability, the shimmer and brilliance they bring to the craft, and the variety of designs and colors to choose from.To start your venture into bead making, you start by having all your tools, equipment and glass beads supplies with you. If you’re just beginning to learn about bead making, it would help for you
to watch a video about it first so that you get to understand more the terms and procedures in bead making.The jewelry making tools you will need are: pliers, shaping tools, cutters, pin vises, torch, marvers, bed tray, and charts. You must try to familiarize yourself with each tool, know its functions and be comfortable in holding it since you will be doing a lot of hand maneuvering when making your beaded jewelry or accessory. As for the glass beads supplies, you will need: glass rods, mandrels, powdered enamels, vermiculite or fiber cloth, bead release, and different colored glass beads or semi-precious stones.
More often than not, you don’t even need to go out of the house to look for these things. You c
an do your shopping online as there are many sites offering these glass beads supplies at affordable prices, whether you purchase them in retail or wholesale packages. This way, you get to use your time more efficiently and conveniently, plus you can use the extra time you saved by watching videos on bead making.With today’s technological advances, you’d find it easy to learn something new every day, especially in terms of learning how to make your own glass bead jewelry. As long as you have completed your tools and glass beads supplies, and have watched some videos on bead making, then you’re all set to start with your new venture. Who knows? You might just discover a new trend or design, which can result to a brand new business for you.
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Something old, something new, something borrowed something blue- this is a catchphrase often spoken by nearly a bride. I guess this is a good thought since you have to utilize almost everything. Yet, one thing that is quite interesting in the slogan is something old. Would you want something old for yourself?
Oftentimes, we seek anything modern, updated and new in the market. Obviously, we wanted to be in the trend for the latest thing. We wanted to look, feel and possess anything fashionable. But did you know that these days one of the craze is having something vintage as an accessory and a decoration?
We find some antiques in a modern house or even an old fashion style on some folks but even frills used by people in the past are widely used by modern individuals. Jewelries nowadays can attest to that and one trinket that is so elegant even from the past until these present times is a jewelry made of glass beads. Glass beads can be traced back in the past often used to create beautiful and colorful ornaments.
Recently, these glass beads are in a variety of colors and forms for a wider selection. One can either acquire a ready made necklace or bracelet made of top quality glass beads from a local shop and even online or buy some glass beads supplies for making your own personalized set of glass bead frills. These classic beads have become a modern accent to many women.
Even in contemporary days, something timeless like glass beads can be a new fad. You can match a cute shirt and a funky set of short pants with some multicolored glass bead bracelets and a complementary necklace and head to an outdoor party. People will definitely make second glances on how chic you look that day.