You’re here for beads!? The good ones!
We buy ’em, sell ’em, make ’em… and teach ’em too!
Let’s start with the latest news!
- Steel Yourself … September 14, 2017
Oh, thou mighty bead-adorned warrior of creativity!
Gird thyself with chains of stainless steel – that thou might slay the mighty monster of mundanity!
Wrestle with the dragon of conformity – smight with fiercesome blows of awe-inspiring and blinding brilliance.
Declare yourself – oh mighty crafter – artisan to the gods – creativesmith and crafter
Coil thy neck and wrists in steel with the hue of gold – that the sun might weep with envy
Stand ye on the mountain tops – where the moon and the night sing duets in praise to the craft and creativity
and weave ye their song into your creations.
Thou art EPIC – a voice rising from the barren plains of mass production – crafting your own vision amidst the zombies of conformity
Long live those who pick up tools and craft with their hands visions of glory from humble grains of sand and flecks of metal.
Long live the artists and the artisans.
Long live the crafters.
Got Goth?
20 – 33% off
Get back to black! Sometimes the best accent is the one that disappears.
Pair gunmetal grey or black metal findings with beads of bright colours and your dark clothing – the rich colours will seem to float on the dark background as the dark metal disappears. To help you try this out – savings of 20% or more off – from now until the spooky end of October!
Swoon for Swarovski at 20% off
20% off Swarovski Beads and Pendants! And what the heck – Swarovski glass Pearls too! And the Flatbacks and Hotfix too!
As always – you can view all interesting new stuff on the website here.*
*Although – we’re guessing that nothing is quite so interesting as the very strange author of today’s post …
Skoal!
Our Class News
- ‘Tis the Season for Fall Shows!
The action at BeadFX doesn’t just happen in the store, on the web, or in classes – it happens at trade shows too!Fall is an active time of consumer trade shows – and all of the shows we participate in are open to the public. And because you can use beads and more in so many more application beyond jewellery, we go to shows that let us stretch the imagination of those who visit our booth!
This fall’s show sponsors include two well-known bead societies and two textile specialty shows. We hope you’ll drop by and say ‘Hi’!
Here are the shows that we will be participating in over the next few months:
Saturday, September 30
2017 Needle Arts Fair
10:00am – 4:00pm
Seniors Centre, 56 Francis Street, Kingston
Sponsored by the Cataraqui Guild of Needle Arts, the show features a wide selection of retailers and demonstrators. BeadFX will bring all the materials, seed beads and more to feature bead embroidery and textile surface embellishment.
Saturday, November 4
Fall Bead and Jewellery Fair
10:00am – 5:00pm
Central YMCA, 20 Grosvenor Street, 2nd Floor, Toronto
This one-day show is sponsored by the Toronto Bead Society and will feature suppliers of all jewellery media, demos, and artisan jewellery. BeadFX will be there with a variety of items including seed beads, cabochons and more.
Friday, November 10 and Saturday, November 11
A Celebration of Quilts XIII
10:00am – 7:00pm and 10:00am – 5:00pm, respectively
Toronto Botanical Garden, 777 Lawrence Avenue East, Toronto
This triennial show sponsored by the York Heritage Quilters Guild will feature a vendor marketplace, display and sale of quilts, quilt talks and a gift boutique. BeadFX will bring all the materials, seed beads and more to embellish quilts, create bead embroidery and other textile embellishment.
Saturday, November 11 and Sunday, November 12
Bead Show and Sale
10:00am – 5:00pm both days
Evergreen Seniors Community Centre, 683 Woolwich Street, Guelph
This two-day show is sponsored by the Grand River Bead Society and features a wide variety of vendors as well as demos and classes. BeadFX will have a range of products of interest to all kinds of beaders, wire workers and more.To find out more information about any of these shows, click on the show title.
Our Latest Inspiration
- InspirationFX: Baby Blue and Earrings
Baby Blue and Earrings
Designed by: Dwyn Tomlinson
The soft pinks and blues of the Powder Blue Impression Jasper strike me as very soothing and pretty. I went to town and make a whole suite of items from this lovely stone. (Check out previous weeks for more Inspirations)
My first thought was to combine gold-plated metal findings and beads with the Powder Blue Impression Jasper, but I found I did not care for the look. The bright copper metal beads and finding – that was another
story, however! The combination is gorgeous! The pinky tones of the bright copper p
erfectly complement the soft translucent aqua and contrasting opaque pinky color of this Impression Jasper.Bracelet – Baby Blue
By the time I got to this bracelet – I was using up left-over beads. Two remaining 12 mm and three 10 mm beads, alternating, with crimp bead spacers, strung on the beading cable (Econoflex or Softflex) with TWO
jumprings built into the end loop. Then I took the stretchy elastic, knotted it around the two jumprings, added 5 jump rings as a spacer (and to hide the knot), and strung the rest of the 8 mm beads until I had enough length, added five more jump rings, and tied off on the 2 jump rings at the other end of the 12 and 10 mm bead section. Again, the five jump ring set does a superb job of concealing
the knot.Earrings –
Down to just 2 beads left. A do-it-yourself head pin, involving some wire and a crimp bead, an 8 mm round, and a set of five jumprings, and a wrapped loop. A jumpring into the wrapped loop, and then, I used the wire to make some simple earring wires. You don’t have to be that hard core though – you can just buy bright copper earwires!
Go to our components list for this project and to buy what you need!
Need some help with some of the techniques? Check our tips page.
