Skip to main content

Some local bead stores that readers want to shout about!


Joella says:
One of the ones I used is The Bead Bin in Madison WI.
Here’s the link to her site — just a gallery type of site – she doesn’t sell from it. And she has some pix of the store on there. The owner’s name is Chris. If you would like her email address please let me know.
She has excellent staff who are able and willing to help customers also.

Tonya Tucker Collins says:
First as a LBS thank you! We are a mother and daughter team plus my aunt (she just retired), located in Vallejo, Ca. We operate as a bead store+ (Beads in Pomeganate Seeds) and a craft studio (the Urban Crafter). Our websites are: http://www.pomegranateseeds.biz or http://www.theurbancrafter.com
We offer all the standered items softflex, wire, and beads! But what our new customers always comment on are…the seed bead selections(15/0 to 6/0), Pardo Clay, resin, unique beads, diffrent beads, lots of findings, Antique beads, glass beads, soldering tool, and great workshops… We also are growing and moving to support other crafts so mix media artist love us too. Plus we love what we do and believe we are here to support you!
Tonya
538 C Florida St
Vallejo, Ca 94590
707-557-3337

Patti Dengler says:
I love Creative Castle in Newbury Park, Southern California. There are a million wonderful beads and excellent classes with cutting edge instructors. What really shines about them is that the staff is kind, welcoming, knowledgeable and always willing to share information and help me with any “how to” questions. They give me good feedback and help me to be a better artist.

Joy @ TheLaughingMoonNYC.com says:
We have a ton of beads store in NYC to choose from, but I have my favorites. I prefer these stores because the folks who work there/own them are always so pleasant and helpful. It may come as a shock, but not everyone in NYC is pleasant. My top 5 favorite places are: Empress Designs is close to where I work. They have a decent selection of beads and finished jewelry and they always say, “Hello friend!” when I come in. Located at 20 West 46th St, New York, NY 10036, (212) 575-6378 http://www.empress-jewelry.com/. The second store that is always, always pleasant to go to is Suma Beads Gems & Pearls located at 66 West 37th Street New York, NY 10018-7401,(212) 904-1690. They do not have a website, but the woman who works there is a sweetheart and they always have pearls on sale. The store I go to because it is just a pretty store with good selection of gemstones and they have some nice sales is Genuine Ten Ten located at 1012 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10018 Phone: 212-221-1173 http://www.j-genuine.com/ For glass and quartz beads, I like Empire Bead: 1032 Avenue of the Americas New York, NY 10018-5493 (212) 768-8818. Fun 2 bead is great for artistic wire and their sale room! 1028 6th Avenue New York, NY 10018 (212) 302-3488 http://www.fun2bead.com/.

Shirley Moore says:
Hey Cyndi, I frequent a wonderful bead shop here in the Myrtle Beach area of South Carolina called Moonstone Beads. C.J. Peters is the owner. It is a wonderful place to go for beads, classes, inspiration, and exciting conversation about…beads! I have learned so much from this amazing group of ladies, especially Kira, her assistant. I have now become a volunteer with them, and have learned several new stitches. They are on Facebook, and their website is Moonstonebeads.com.

Sara Hardin says:
Here are a few places to find some really great LBS! Spotlight on archives…. http://www.softflexcompany.com/WSWrapper.jsp?mypage=Spotlight_ArchivesStore.html. With the ever bead industry in an even bigger ever changing world, I’m sure that any of these stores would have new and exciting things to talk about in a feature from you that was not covered in our Spotlight. Also, we have a bead store finder. Pop in a city, out comes a list of bead stores. :) http://www.softflexcompany.com/locator/index.php Bead stores are a heavy thread in the backbone that keeps quality alive and breathing in the beading industry. I’m so glad that you are supporting them by featuring them on your blog. :)

Jan Harrod says:
I visited Seattle recently, and my sister-in-law took me to the amazing Fusion Beads where we took a class on fusing silver, using hand-held butane torches. It was fabulous, and we both made enough loops to make a bracelet. The staff at Fusion was extremely pleasant and helpful, and they have an amazing selection of just about any kind of beads you can think of! Good sale prices too. http://www.fusionbeads.com 3830 Stone Way North, Seattle, WA 98103 (206) 782-4595

Here near the Nation’s Capital, Star’s Beads in Vienna VA is a lovely shop with excellent friendly, knowledgeable staff. They offer a variety of classes for beginners on up to experienced. I took a class there in fusing glass and made some gorgeous cabochons, as well as pieces I will use for pins and earrings. Their website is http://www.starsbeads.com They have a good selection, but the shop isn’t huge, so there are not lots of sizes of every kind of bead. 139A Church Street Northwest, Vienna, VA 22180-4508 (703) 938-7018




Comments

Our favorite bead store is in East Rochester, NY. It's called Let's Bead! They have the latest & greatest styles and are always getting in the highest quality beads available. They also have some of the most talented jewelry designers working there and teaching classes. Come check out their site its www.letsbead.com!

Thanks,
Kathie Nightingale
www.twodoxiesjewelry.com
www.twodoxiesjewelry.blogspot.com
Cyndi L said…
I *love* Rochester! I'll have to go see that shop the next time I visit :-)
jodi said…
I'd like to add Crystal Bead Bazaar in Pittsburgh, PA. Great owner and staff. Always helpful and supportive.
The site is www.crystalbeadbazaar.com

Thanks.

Jodi
Cyndi L said…
Thanks guys! I'm gathering up your suggestions for the next post :-)