These small pieces of art on stones, metal, glass available in different shapes and sizes have always been ice on the cake when it comes to jewelry. From toon movies to ancient story series GOT to the latest movies a smooth touch of beads on the character’s attire has always attracted us. Many a time, people also try to copy their favorite stars by wearing different types of beads bracelets, pendants, etc after they get impressed by it after they saw it in any movie or drama.
Let us take a moment to understand what actually beads are, their history, and use before we jump into the ocean of types of beads and get perplexed.
What are beads?
Beads are usually small round, beautiful pieces of glass, plastic, wood, and many other materials that are available in various shapes and textures. Beads generally have a piercing through the small pieces in which string can be put to make beautiful jewelry out of it or even used on dresses to glorify its beauty.
If you think that beads have become famous in a while and is used in recent time than you are wrong. Even thousand of years ago, for hand-crafted pendants, bracelets beads were taken in use. Beads are available in various sizes it can be pretty tiny or a big, chunky piece too.
It may happen that you have spotted various kinds of ornaments on people but get confused that what kind of accessory is this and what are they made of. There are varieties when it comes to beads. these can be classified on various criteria:
- Material
- Origin
- surface(smooth/faceted)
- Shape
- Production process
Let us talk about the types of beads.
- Glass beads: – Glass beads fall in the criteria of material-based beads type, these are crystal clear and can be cut in various shapes to fulfill the requirements of the customers.
- Semi-precious beads: – It is mainly known as gemstone beads, includes natural gemstone, manmade material, or enhanced gemstone. These are available in different shapes and sizes that provide you multiple options to choose the best one for yourself.
- TOHO beads: – It falls in the criteria of origin when we talk about TOHO beads, a native of Japan. They are small, similar, and of a regular shape that makes them a perfect choice for precise projects. TOHO beads are made of glass and are available in various colors with durability.
- Wooden beads: – Wooden beads are one of the most loved beads among every age group as it gives an earthy natural touch to your accessories. These are basically used for wooden bracelets or yoga necklaces and a lot more.
- Ceramic beads: – Accessories designed by ceramic beads can be considered as the most stylish ones, as they are very unique and a combination of different sized beads in various colors gives the jewelry an execute appearance.
- Crystal beads: – As the name tells these are made out of glass and holds a great shine. These are available in a wide range while at a cheaper price, commonly used for a special piece of jewelry, tiaras, and wedding dresses on a large scale.
- Bulge beads: – These beads are more interesting than beautiful. You can get them in various lengths and in a tubular shape, mainly made in the Czech Republic. Bulge beads because of their shape are used widely on clothes, dresses. They serve the best part in sophisticated dresses.
- Faceted beads: – The beads with many flattened edges make it look like a cut gemstone. It is done in such mesmerizing manner that small edges perfectly reflect the light, but they are made of amber, stone, or glass.