You are shopping for gemstones. Hmm, how about some turquoise? Your search leads you to many types of turquoise: Sleeping Beauty, African, Chinese, Viennese, Howlite, and Purple. What to choose? Time for some serious research. And what you will find can be a little confusing. African turquoise is really...

Well, BeadStylers, I am taking leave of you for just a little over a week. Tomorrow, I will be traveling to Italy with my alma mater’s wind symphony, a world-famous pianist, and a number of other alums and school staff. We will be touring Venice, Verona, Florence, and Rome both to see the sights and...

Last week was my first time attending the Bead&Button Show , and what an experience! It was fantastic to meet so many creative people and world-famous teachers and designers. And of course I had a blast shopping. On that note, I made a number of rookie mistakes that I thought I would pass on to any...

This weekend in my neighborhood is the Westside Artwalk. I am honored to be displaying some of my tagua bead jewelry at Four Corners of the World. The jewelry is made with beads similar to the tagua sliced used in the necklace on the March cover of BeadStyle . Four Corners of the World carries a variety...

I’ve been looking around lately at plastic beads and am intrigued by Lucite. It’s my understanding that Lucite was popularized in the 1930s by DuPont as an alternative to Bakelite. But unlike Bakelite, Lucite is remarkably lightweight and much less expensive. Beadin’ Path, beadinpath.com carries brightly...

TierraCast has launched its Solutions for Large Hole Beads line of jewelry findings. This new line is designed to work with handmade glass beads and other large hole beads. The findings are made of lead-free pewter plated with precious metals. Bead bars are designed for lampworked beads and come in four...

I recently stopped by my local Michaels craft store, only to find some heavy-duty reorganization going on in the bead aisle. Beads that used to be displayed at various locations around the store were finally coming together in one area. A little research found that this is not just a local trend. According...

We’ve been working fast and furious around here on a special issue called UNDER $25 . The issue will be coming out in May. UNDER $25 will have several projects that cost less than $25 to make, several projects that cost less than $20 to make, several under $15, and several under $5. It’s always fun to...

Shopping for the Under $25 special issue, we've been comparing notes on our purchases. We all love MIchaels, Jo-Ann, and Hobby Lobby, especially when we can use coupons. I also like Lima Beads because they sell half strands, which is a brilliant idea. I just ordered some faceted nuggets for a chunky...

This weekend, I went to Hobby Lobby for the first time. The closest store (in West Bend) is about half an hour away, which is why I haven't been there till now. I was on a search for supplies for our next special issue (the theme: jewelry under $25). Even though I got distracted by Hobby Lobby's...