Hi there my dear reader! Do you know the many variations of glass bead used for arts and crafts?
Come explore with me in this article as we learn 5 Glass Bead Types For Jewelry Making.
Who knows you can find your next best glass beads for wire wrapping and other projects.
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5 Glass Bead Types For Jewelry Making
1. Czech Glass Beads
Czech glass beads are well known for its earthy tone and beautiful pressed patterns that is inspired by nature.
Melanie from OnlineBeads on Etsy put together this wonderful mix of Czech flower glass beads that features different bead sizes with pleasing color combination and metal spacer beads.
MarleyFoxBoutique made this bracelet with multicolor faceted Czech glass beads that features large turquoise pressed birds and flowers Czech glass beads.
Besides that, Czech glass beads can also be made into necklace.
Deborah from BeeutifyHer used a mixture of large Czech decorative glass beads as the centerpiece of her necklace that gives a “collected over time” look.
If you want to take a deep dive into the world of Czech glass beads, you can check out the 30 minutes detailed ArtbeadsVideos YouTube video below.
They listed out a wide range of beads and their functions such as decorative bead shapes, multi-hole and specialized beads, dimensional bead types, specialty shapes and finishes and other miscellaneous beads.
2. Lampwork Glass Beads
Lampwork glass beads originates from Murano, a small island located within the lagoons of Venice, Italy.
Hence, they are also known as Murano glass beads or Venetian glass beads.
Lampwork glass beads are easily recognizable for their vibrant color and charming design as shown in the collection by Queenofbigideas below.
Usually the design features floral, pattern, small sculpture and a combination of both.
Here we have a handmade glass marble beads made by Melanie Moertel that features a playful candy color combination swirl which reminds me of a bingtanghulu.
This cute Halloween theme lampwork ghost bead is skillfully made by the talented Julie.
LuckyLapki demonstrates how she made a red raspberry sculpture with lampworking technique step by step which is very satisfying to watch.
Lastly, if you prefer a matte finish on your lampwork glass beads, you can tumble etch them as done by UK beadmaker Laura Sparling.
3. Millefiori Glass Beads
Millefiori glass bead is a branch from lampworking that focuses more on creating “millions of flowers” as shared by TheFancyFarmgirls below.
Deborah Sims is kind to provide us her work in progress video on YouTube where we get to see how she created a Calla Lilies glass bead from scratch.
Besides the typical round shape, Popkova Maria made this large cylindrical Milliefiori glass bead that features clear glass thick with flower blossom.
4. Sea Glass Beads
These blue glass beads sourced by MiniCandyDesign came from sea glass.
They undergo years of weathering and rolling in the sea to have the icy frosted look.
Willow and Twigg shows us how they expertly drill holes into small pieces of sea glass using Thermo-loc as support.
It is always fascinating to me how artisan produce the beautiful sea glass beads that we wear on our jewelry.
faceted glass beads
5. Recycled Glass Beads
If you don’t have the time to go for sea glass hunting, then you can make your own cultured sea glass using a tumbler etching machine and recycled glass pieces as shared by Kay from GemBeadSales below.
Broken Plates uses architectural glass waste to make contemporary geometrical shaped recycled glass bead with specialized machines and tools which produces an amazing result as shown in the their video below.
For a more accessible home project, Rio reposted a tutorial video that guides you step by step in the process of making a cultured sea glass with an empty bottle and tumbler etching machine.