www.glassandbeads.com
THE ESSENCE
Our bead store is not like any I have seen.
Many things come to mind: the quiet of 10 people, young and old, designing jewelry, the depth of the bead experience, sharing knowledge with the newcomers, answering the questions and reading more about the ancient beads I just bought from a trader passing through with beautiful jewels, a new story, that opens a new world for me.
My idea for the store was to sell fine crystal, American made art glass, and glass beads. 20 years ago, we all believed the first use of glass was to make beads and so having a bead room fit in perfectly. It also added a hands on creative element to the store. Since day one, hands on, in store instruction, construction, has been our focus. And from the start customers wanted more variety, so we added. Today we sell Swarovski beads, prisms, gemstones, trade beads, Czech beads, Japanese seed beads, metal charms and spacers, all the finding components, stringing supplies, books, and magazines. We focus on high quality at a great price and we do not charge for instruction. We also do outdoor demos in the pocket park adjacent to our store. Sunday in the Park we call it. Customers come to sell their latest designs, bead makers come to demo and my husband and I make glass beads.
Staying on the cutting edge of design and fashion we have just added a Crystal Embellishment Department that includes Swarovski hot fix, sew ons, beads and prisms. This new department focuses on the use of crystal in home decor and the fiber arts. Embellishing quilts, fabric dolls, clothing, and the home.
The bead room also has a demonstration room with scheduled demonstrations of Swarovski Fancy Stone gluing techniques and soldering of Swarovski Components to make CRYSTALIZED Jewelry. After watching the demos, customers can try their hand using these new skills. We also offer plating services for finished soldered Swarovski Components.
