Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Finds from Whole Bead and Rings & Things

Part of My Rings & Things Stash

I love going to bead shows!  It’s always a good chance to pick up the basics that I need.  Plus, you never know what you’re going to find that you can’t live without.  That was the case at the Whole Bead Show and the Rings & Things Bead Tour last weekend.

First, at Whole Bead, I came across 2 vendors that I was familiar with but had not encountered in person before: “The Bead Goes On” from Virginia Beach, VA http://www.beadgoeson.com/, and Sonoran Beads from Scottsdale, AZ:  http://shop.sonoranbeads.com/Default.asp?Redirected=Y.

Here’s what I snagged at Bead Goes On http://www.beadgoeson.com/:

An intricate “Beaded Bead”:

and some cool fiber rings:

And got these beautiful borosilicate glass beads at Sonoran Beads http://shop.sonoranbeads.com/Default.asp?Redirected=Y:

Rings & Things www.rings-things.com was fun, too.  I usually try to get there right when they open, and make a bee-line to the chain and findings section at the back, ’cause the things I want and need tend to disappear quickly.  I found exactly what I needed, then systematically moved from table to table, row to row searching for the unusual.  This time, I was particularly focused on large, organically shaped stones that I can wire wrap.  Here’s what I found:

Some beautiful, large Amethyst nuggets :

And Peruvian Blue Opal smaller nuggets:

I did buy more things there (see the pic at the top), but these two particularly struck me.  I will be posting jewelry made with these soon in my Etsy Shop www.sarascreations.etsy.com.

Beads, Beads, Beads!

Wow!  Three different bead shows in one week!  How lucky can a bead-a-holic girl get?  It’s spring break, which means I have a whole week off, AND there are 3 bead shows!  There’s just something about seeing the beads in person and feeling the coldness and texture.  A real sensual experience!  If you live in the Austin, TX area – check ’em out!

The first one is today and tomorrow (March 13-14).  It is “The Whole Bead Show”, held at the Palmer Event Center, in Austin (900 Barton Spring Rd.).  It’s $5.00 admission, but you can get $1.00 off if you go to their website and print a coupon:  www.wholebead.com This is for wholesale and retail buyers.  It’s usually a fairly small show, but I have found some interesting beads there before…

The second, is the “Rings & Things Bead Tour”, Sunday, March 14, ONLY, from 1:00-5:00 p.m., at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, in Austin (6121 I-35 N.).  The admission is free, but it is WHOLESALE ONLY (must have a tax ID#/resale # to enter).  This is a fabulous show.  Rings & Things is one of my favorite wholesale bead companies, based in Spokane, WA.  They have many things on the bead tour that are not in their catalog or in their online store www.rings-things.com, PLUS they offer an extra 15% discount ON TOP of the wholesale price.  They also bring along popular findings, cord, wire and tools for sale.  I always spend WAAAAY too much money at their annual bead tour!

And last, but certainly not least is the ever popular “International Gem & Jewelry Show” www.intergem.com, March 19-21, again, at the Palmer Event Center (see address above).  This one comes twice a year to Austin.  It’s not as large a show as when they go to Houston, but I always enjoy going, and ALWAYS come home with a new stash.

I’m hoping that while I’m off this week, I will have time to create some new and interesting jewelry with my finds from this week…  More to come…

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Ah, Valentine’s Day!  A day of love!  A day to celebrate the heart!  A day to enjoy staying home (it’s Sunday) and playing with beads (ONE of my loves)!

Although they’re not heart or valentine related, I pulled out some great beads that have been patiently waiting for me to do something with them since I bought them at the last International Gem and Jewelry Show.  I think it was October.

Here are some cool peace sign beads that make a great basic pair of earrings:

I think they’re ceramic, but I’m not sure.  I purposely broke one so I could see if it was stone or ceramic, but I still couldn’t tell for sure.  They are turquoise color all the way through, except where they the design is  cut out and the hole drilled.  There, it is brown.  I really need to remember to ask the vendors about the beads when I buy them, but they are always so busy!

Here’s some other beads that came from Inter-Gem.  Dyed Mother of Pearl cut outs:

I got the cut outs from one vendor and the round beads from another, but they match!

Both of these earrings can be found in my shop: www.sarascreations.etsy.com

Austin Bead Market Time!

The Austin Bead Market starts TOMORROW!

I always look forward to ANY bead show that comes through.  I can’t wait to get there and see and feel all of the beads.  There’s just something pleasing about being able to hold the strands and loose beads – their cool feel, the shapes, all of the gorgeous colors and patterns… so much better than ordering online.  And, you never know when you’re going to find something really cool – something you didn’t know you wanted or needed, but you just HAVE to have it!

Got a need to bead?  The Austin Bead Market has FREE admission and parking.  Here’s a link with all the details…   www.thebeadmarket.net