Magazine Review: VintageStyle Jewelry magazine
February 11, 2008 by Cyndi Lavin
Filed under Antique & Vintage Jewelry, Beading, Book & Magazine Reviews, Kalmbach Projects
From using seed beads to create a delicate Victorian style to recombining vintage components to create a new classic with a twist, VintageStyle Jewelry magazine is delightful from cover to cover. This new special issue by Kalmbach Publishing, the folks who bring you Bead & Button, has everything you could ask for. More than 25 projects with step-by-step instructions, a pull-out chart on the history of vintage styles, advice on sources for great components and beads, and tips on care and repair of your collection! Seriously, it is full of ideas that you’ll want to try.
***Free Magazine Alert***Free Magazine Alert***
Kalmbach Publishing gave me a couple of extra copies to make available to YOU!! Isn’t that great? We’ve got another free giveaway going here, starting today and ending next Monday at noon, EST. What shall we do this time? I know, leave a comment with the name of your favorite source for beads or components! Please make it a source for vintage style materials if possible, and definitely leave the URL if it’s a place that has a website. If someone already took your idea, that’s ok, you can use it too. Just go a little further and let us know why you like them! Next week I will randomly pick two winners 
I LOVE Fire Mountain Gems and Brightlings Beads. My next “new” favorite is Rio Grande. I just signed up with them and received their catalogs. I will certainly be ordering!
I use Fire Mountain Gems all the time. Recently I have been exploring some of the locally owned businesses that have web sites. It’s always fun to find a handmade one-of-a-kind piece.
My favorite is ALSO Fire Mountain Gems! Why do I like them? Well….for one thing, they don’t make you pay for the catalog. (Unlike some of the other big suppliers!) Their customer service is fabulous. They always throw in a little something extra in the orders. And they feature their entire staff in their catalogs. They make you feel like you are dealing with a small, service-oriented group of people instead of a large company. Plus their prices are some of the best around. No, I don’t work for them [grin], I’m just an enthusiastic customer.
I haven’t found a store selling anything vintage here in Toronto. It’s hard enough to find a store with a good selection, but it seems the best here is Arton Beads. I spend hundreds every time I walk in there, even though I’ve started bringing a list of the things I need with me. I’m just so tempted by everything I see.
Lately I find myself doing quite a bit of online shopping and most of those spots are in the States. There are so many suppliers in the U.S., I’d be in my glory living there (or in the poorhouse). Unicorne Beads has some nice variety of types of beads and very nice looking.
I am afraid that my favorite place(s) for finding beads and assorted beading etcetera are the local Thrift stores. On many occasions I have discovered old necklaces and earrings that were considered junk to the folks that sort the donations out… if the necklace is broke on not all there, all the better for me!, and the prices are VERY reasonable.
Don’t be afraid to say that, Sharon! Those are my favorite places too
The only trouble with them for me is that part of my job is to design projects for other people, and it’s really hard for me to tell them to just go to their local junk spot and see what they find… LOL!!
I have probably bought beads from all the sources mentioned above but a couple of my favorites are Eclectic Etc Beads for their personalized customer service and the Tootsie Rolls they always put in with your order(www.eebeads.com), INM Crystal for Swarovski crystal, Integrity Pearls – Who new a 16″ strand of pearls could cost less than $10.00!
Fire Mountain is a terrific source, and I’ve gotten some nice gemstone beads from rocknrocks.com. I’ve found a lot of really great stuff from various eBay dealers, especially “ooak” items. And I love to prowl the bead aisles of craft stores like Michael’s, JoAnn’s and Hobby Lobby — I always find something in their weekly specials that I can’t live without!
My love for vintage jewelry began in Ohio with my grandma’s collection. Today, I’m in Oklahoma and needless to say there aren’t a lot of bead shops. So, I scour all the Thrift shops and garage sales I can for my supplies!
I have purchased beads at Firemountain, and they do have an awesome variety of everything imaginable. My only problem is that I really like to find really unique beads, more than half the reason I bead is because of the history of beads, and the delight that I get when I find truly unique treasures. I feel as a pirate may have felt upon opening a treasure chest.
I go to the biggest local bead store in town – Black Elk Beads and Stones – they have everything! They apparently have a website at: http://www.blackelkbeads.com/ but it appears they are under construction – they have a Yahoo group at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/blackelkleather/ For vintage things I have also found better luck at Thrift stores. I found a lot of old plastic crackle beads and other faceted plastics with those cool old clasps. They are way cheaper than shopping “retro” or “vintage” retail stores.
Love the items in this internet store. I also find lots of vintage beads at garage sales.
Whoa – just found a line of beads at Michael’s called Lost & Found (a Blue Moon product). They make antiqued metal links and antique-like crystals with bead caps already mounted on headpins. I bought some oval links and mixed it with orange-red beads for a great look that looks right out of the 1920s.
Artbeads.com and Fusionbeads.com are my 2 favorite sites for findings, crystals and supplies. Great prices and free shipping to boot!