A big part of jewelry making lies in the moments before you actually start making jewelry. The creative, plan-making part of the process is when you decide what type of jewelry you want to make and which beads and other gems you want to use to make it. For some, this is the best part of the jewelry-making process, but for others, the incredible amount of choices in beading tools and supplies can feel overwhelming. Here’s a quick look at some factors that can help as you start considering which beads to choose for your upcoming jewelry pieces:
4 Things to Consider When Choosing Beads for Your Jewelry
The type of jewelry itself and its purpose. The first important thing to consider is what type of jewelry you want to make, for whom, and what event. For example, if you want to build up a friendship bracelet or a commemorative gift for a friend, then alphabet letter beads are a good type of bead to choose. But if you’re wanting to create something like a necklace for a more formal event like a wedding, then you should consider adding in Swarovski crystal beads.
Whether there are any concerns on materials. What type of beads you choose may depend upon certain material considerations. For example, if you are building a jewelry piece that you want to wear every day and in more active situations (such as jogging), you might choose a stronger type of material, such as stone beads. Unfortunately, not all beads are built for daily wear and tear. Glass beads and Swarovski crystal beads are better used in jewelry pieces that are not going to be worn daily.
If you are in need of certain colors or matching schemes. Some types of beads and jewelry materials will go with anything. For example, sterling silver beads are very versatile and can go well with just about any outfit. However, colored crystal beads and gold-filled beads may not be quite so adaptable. That said, these pieces can be the perfect color for some looks!
How big do you want your finished piece to be? Certain jewelry supplies like beads might be too small or too large for the desired look. For example, a small charm might be the perfect accent piece on a bracelet but could look cluttered if paired with others on a longer neckpiece. A lot of good jewelry making is about balancing your beads, charms, and other pieces.
Ready to Get Started? Visit Our Website Today
Now that you have a good idea of how to plan your next jewelry-making session, the next step is to order up your pieces and get started crafting! Check out our website at Crystal Findings for an easy and fast way to buy jewelry making supplies online.
Alphabet letter beads are fun and quirky beads, each of which features a different letter of the alphabet. Often, alphabet letter beads come as part of any basic beading tools and supplies kit as they are one of the most popular types of beads to get started beading with. Why? Because they are typically a part of the friendship bracelets that are so often the very first type of beading jewelry a young person will make.
Beaded Alphabet Bracelet & Necklace Gifting Ideas
The traditional friendship bracelets that bear each person’s name remain among the most popular beaded jewelry made with alphabet beads, but they certainly are not alone in this category. These types of beads can be used in a variety of out of the box creative jewelry ideas that make for excellent gift ideas, including:
Spiritual milestones. First communion, bar or bat mitzvahs, and more personal spiritual milestones are popular points of gift-giving, and what better gift than to fashion a bracelet that lists an important verse from a loved one’s preferred holy text?
Encouragement for life changes. Maybe your best friend got a new car or a cousin is planning a road trip across the country? These big changes bring about new opportunities and a small gift like a beaded bracelet with words of encouragement and inspiration is a fantastic token of your support.
Celebration of a new family addition. Beaded bracelets are often used to connect friends, but that isn’t the only type of relationship that has to be celebrated. Maybe a friend added a new pet to their life, or a sister is about to become a mother. A bracelet made with alphabet and stone beads listing the name of this new familial addition is a great celebratory gift.
Supplies to Make Beaded Alphabet Bracelets & Necklaces
Are you ready to get crafting? The first step is to make sure you have the right supplies. We recommend the following basics for your first alphabet beaded jewelry gift:
Alphabet beads
Decorative beads to place in combination with alphabet beads, such as stone beads or sterling silver beads
Elastic string or other type of cord to thread your beads on
Sharp jewelry scissors
Glue that dries fast and clear
All of these items can be bought at your neighborhood crafts supply store, but for the best deals and the best selection, you will want to buy jewelry making supplies online.
Visit Crystal Findings to Learn More
Here at Crystal Findings, we are passionate about not just getting our customers the best supply of affordable jewelry-making supplies, but also helping them learn more about what they can create and do with those supplies. Browse our blog for more jewelry-making tips and be sure to visit our online store for the best in online jewelry-making supplies!
We also welcome customers to visit our showroom in Philadelphia by calling in advance.
The snow has melted and the days are getting longer; key signs that summer has finally come. And with that warmer weather comes new ways of dressing up and bringing out one’s favorite pieces. Looking for new ways to make your own sizzling summer pieces with your jewelry making supplies? Consider the following exciting summer jewelry ideas:
Four Sizzling Ideas for Creating Jewelry for Summer 2022
Bright and bold colors. When one thinks of summer, one of the first things that come to mind is the bright light of the sun. So much of what people enjoy most about this season happens outdoors, like swimming and backyard barbecues. As such, bright and bold colors are always a good choice for jewelry pieces. Think bright color beads and the inclusion of gold filled beads and findings which often boast their own bright sunny appearance.
Chunky and multi-layered bracelets. Chunky bracelets and those bracelets that feature multiple layers also make for fantastic summer pairings. The reason for this is because, during the summer, you often wear things that more expose your arms, such as spaghetti-strap sundresses and tank tops. Chunky and multi-layered bracelets offer a nice contrast to draw the eyes. You can keep things simple with alphabet letter beads interspaced with your favorite filling beads, such as bone or sterling silver beads.
Choker and short necklaces. Choker and short necklaces are ideal summer jewelry for the same reason that chunky and multi-layered bracelets are — they are going to really accent the more visible neck. A simple ring of pearl beads is a fantastic addition to just about any summer outfit, casual or more formal.
Ocean or beach-themed jewelry. Are you a person who loves pendants and adding in more structured pieces? Then, when you buy beading supplies online, look for things that can help you create more ocean or beach-themed pieces. Ocean and beach-themed pendants are great summer pieces because they remind us of the things we most want to do and experience during the season, in a similar way that evergreen tree and star pendants are perfect for winter jewelry. So good choices here might be starfish and turtle pendants that help keep that summer spirit in sharp focus.
Visit Crystal Findings for More Special Summer Pieces
We hope this quick look at four sizzling summer jewelry ideas has helped to inspire you and get you thinking about the next creative pieces you want to create, whether that’s for yourself, your friends, or even for sale. But before you start creating, you need supplies! Visit our online store to enjoy a broad array of online beading supplies and jewelry-making packages that will help you build those perfect pieces for yourself, for gifts, and for sale.
The fantastic thing about jewelry is that there are just so many options for one to choose from. Today’s jewelry comes in an abundance of shapes, sizes, styles, types, and, of course, materials, that for whatever look you want, you can rest assured their is a perfect piece for you. That said, while there is a variety of materials that jewelry comes made out of, nothing is more classic than gold or silver.
Here at Crystal Findings, gold filled and sterling silver beads continue to be one of our biggest sellers, undoubtedly because of just how classic this jewelry looks and feels. But which type of beads are right for your next custom piece? Let’s take a look at some tips for when you should choose gold filled beads and findings and silver options:
Buying Beads: When to Choose Gold or Silver
Consider your skin warmth and the look you want.
Traditionally, the choices between gold and silver depended upon the person wearing them. This is because jewelry has your skin as the backdrop, in other words, the skin is the canvas and the jewelry the paint. Choosing between gold filled beads versus silver beads is about looking at which material will look best against the backdrop of your body.
Generally speaking, those with cooler undertones (think pink to blue for fair skin and purple to red for darker skin tones) look best with silver, while those with warmer undertones (think yellowish in fair to light-medium skin tones and peachy to golden in deeper skin tones) look best with gold.
Consider your outfit.
Remember what we said about jewelry and backdrops as your skin is not the only thing that serves as a backdrop, so too does your outfit. This is especially true during the winter when you are apt to wear long-sleeved items as well as clothing that covers your shoulders and high necklines. For these times, you might still use that traditional guide of gold for warmer colors and silver for cooler colors, only now you are going to use your clothing as the guide.
The one caveat to the shade argument is that if you are wearing a full black outfit. For full black outfits, both silver and gold or gold-filled beads will create a very striking appearance. Meanwhile, for all-white outfits or tops, gold is preferred as silver often gets lost or looks muted in white.
Shop for Your Beads at Crystal Findings
When it comes to the best in available beading supplies online, no one has the selection as our online store at Crystal Findings. Browse our inventory today to find your jewelry-making supplies and start making your ideal gold-filled or silver beaded jewelry this week!
Necklaces are a timeless style of jewelry that transcends cultures and other such lines. You will find that examples of necklaces throughout just about every culture in every era of history on every habitable piece of land. And it’s not hard to understand why. Necklaces, whether made of carved bones or sterling silver beads or plated gold chains bring a certain elegance and distinction to the wearer. Thus, the question often isn’t whether to wear a necklace but rather what type and of what length to wear it.
Different length necklaces have had different eras of popularity. For example, chokers and collars were extremely popular during the 15th and 16th centuries as well as during the 1920s era and for a brief period in the late 1990s to early 2000s. But while popularity of different lengths will always ebb and flow, there are some key things a person might look for to determine specifically which length necklace they should wear or make with their beading supplies.
How to Pick the Right Necklace Lengths for Every Neckline: The 6 Popular Lengths
The best way to know how to pick or make the right necklace length with your gold filled beads and findings is to better understand the six popular necklace lengths.
Collar. The collar length necklace is the shortest diameter necklace, only 13 to 15 inches around, and is always worn snugly around the neck, well above the collarbones. This necklace is best paired with clothing where the neck is readily exposed, like scoop necks, off-the-shoulders, and V-necks.
Choker. The choker lies against the base of the neck, often just barely touching the collarbones if at all. The diameter for this length necklace is between 14 and 16 inches. Chokers look fantastic with just about any outfit, but this is a necklace you will want to have a longer or slender-looking neck for. Chokers on short necks accentuate the neck’s shortness, creating a stubby appearnce.
Princess. Princess lengths fit right on the collarbone with a length of 17 to 18 inches. This is considered an ideal, fail-proof necklace length that will go with anything and look well on anyone — making it a good choice for those just getting started with making their own pieces with jewelry making supplies.
Matinee. The matinee sits between the collarbone and bust with a length between 20 and 24 inches. Matinee necklaces are ideal for pairing with plunging and sweetheart necklines.
Opera. Opera necklaces are a hard one to pair. These are 28 to 36 inches necklaces that lie just below the bust. They are best worn layered and with evening wear and one to two color outfits.
Rope. This is the longest of the necklaces with a length of 36 to 51 inches. It’s much more versatile than the opera necklace as it can be wrapped over and look excellent with both casual and formal wear.
Visit CrystalFindings to Start Making Your Necklaces
Whether you’re in love with chokers or opera necklaces, our large inventory of online beading tools and supplies offer an easy way to get started crafting the beautiful pieces you’re imagining. Visit us today to get started.
Here at Crystal Findings, we specialize in selling the widest selection of beading supplies online. We offer beads in every size and just about every style and material that you can think of because our team is passionate about helping others follow their dreams or love of making their own jewelry. That said, sometimes you don’t have time to make your own pieces for an event or special occasion in which you want to give a piece as a gift. Or maybe you’re just getting started and you want to see how final products might look and feel. For those situations, our unique Ready Made Necklace collection is perfect.
Our unique ready-made beaded necklaces were all made from jewelry components we ourselves sell. This includes necklaces made of our gold-filled beads and findings as well as pendants and chains. Let’s take a look and you can decide for yourself whether one of these pieces calls out to you, or inspires you to start shopping for the pieces with which we made them:
#12026 14K Gold Filled Necklace With Swarovski Leaf Pendant. This gorgeous piece features round and tubular gold-filled beads that are interspaced with crystalline beads. This is a necklace that would look fantastic paired with a darker jacket or dress. The highlight is a stunning Swarovski leaf pendant that dazzles when light strikes it just so.
#12041 – Gold Filled Necklace With Swarovski Crystal – Jet & Rose. This is a wonderful patterned necklace that features both gold-filled beads and our special Swarovski crystal beads. At the front of the necklace, the crystal beads are interspersed to give a more alluring look. We particularly love how the 5mm Swarvoski light rose crystal beads pair with the jet black ones here. The ready-made necklace comes in a variety of sizes so that you can choose to go small for a more choker style necklace or go for the largest 20-inch version for a piece that will hang well below your collar bones.
#12044 – Gold Filled Necklace With Star & Swarovski Crystal Beads. This special ready-made necklace is perfect when you want something that is simple but has a standout appearance. This necklace features our star beads that have gold stars imprinted on synthetic frosty beads along with the gold-filled beads. We find that these beads are often in high demand before American-related holidays like the Fourth of July and Labor Day. So if you’re looking to don this starry necklace (or want to make your own) for a big event related to these styles of holidays, make sure you order well in advance!
View Our Store Today to Get Started
Our team is proud of our ready-made necklace collection, but we also know that most of our customers prefer to make their own. So make sure to check our jewelry-making supplies online if the above gave you inspiration so you can copy and create your own fantastic beaded looks!
