Seed beads are uniformly shaped, spheroidal
beadA bead is a small, decorative object that is pierced for threading or stringing. Beads range in size from under a millimeter to over a centimeter or sometimes several centimeters in diameter....
s ranging in size from under a
millimetreThe millimetre is a unit of length in the metric system, equal to one thousandth of a metre, which is the current SI base unit of length.Equal to 1000 micrometres.Equal to 1000000 nanometres....
to several millimetres. "Seed Bead" is a generic term for any small bead. Usually rounded in shape, seed beads are most commonly used for loom and off-loom
bead weavingBead weaving using seed beads can be done either on a loom or using one of a number of off-loom stitches.-On-loom beadweaving:thumb|355px|An old bead loom. 1. Roller. 2. Roller end. 3. Spacers. 4. Spacers....
. They may be used for simple stringing, or as spacers between other beads in jewelry. Larger seed beads are used in various fiber crafts for embellishment, or
crochetCrochet is a process of creating fabric from yarn or thread using a crochet hook. The word is derived from the Middle French word croc or croche, meaning hook. Crocheting, similar to knitting, consists of pulling loops of yarn through other loops...
with fiber or soft, flexible wire.
Before World War II, there was a thriving bead industry centered in eastern Europe, especially in Czechoslovakia, which was then known as Bohemia, although Germany, Italy and France were also noted producers of glass beads.
Seed beads are uniformly shaped, spheroidal
beadA bead is a small, decorative object that is pierced for threading or stringing. Beads range in size from under a millimeter to over a centimeter or sometimes several centimeters in diameter....
s ranging in size from under a
millimetreThe millimetre is a unit of length in the metric system, equal to one thousandth of a metre, which is the current SI base unit of length.Equal to 1000 micrometres.Equal to 1000000 nanometres....
to several millimetres. "Seed Bead" is a generic term for any small bead. Usually rounded in shape, seed beads are most commonly used for loom and off-loom
bead weavingBead weaving using seed beads can be done either on a loom or using one of a number of off-loom stitches.-On-loom beadweaving:thumb|355px|An old bead loom. 1. Roller. 2. Roller end. 3. Spacers. 4. Spacers....
. They may be used for simple stringing, or as spacers between other beads in jewelry. Larger seed beads are used in various fiber crafts for embellishment, or
crochetCrochet is a process of creating fabric from yarn or thread using a crochet hook. The word is derived from the Middle French word croc or croche, meaning hook. Crocheting, similar to knitting, consists of pulling loops of yarn through other loops...
with fiber or soft, flexible wire.
National origin
Before World War II, there was a thriving bead industry centered in eastern Europe, especially in Czechoslovakia, which was then known as Bohemia, although Germany, Italy and France were also noted producers of glass beads. Most of these beads were made of glass, but some were made of metal, usually aluminum or steel, and often cut in what is known as "three-cut" faceting; these are popularly known as steel cuts. Many of the old factories were converted or destroyed during World War II. After the fall of the Iron Curtain, treasure troves of old beads made their way to Western markets. These "vintage" beads are highly prized, and are now harder to find.
Most contemporary high-quality seed beeds are made in
Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
or the
Czech RepublicThe Czech Republic is a country in Central Europe that is sometimes considered to be Eastern European. The country borders Poland to the northeast, Germany to the west and northwest, Austria to the south and Slovakia to the east. The capital and largest city is Prague...
. Japanese seed beads are generally more uniform in size, shape, and finish as well as having larger holes than Czech seed beads of the same size, but the Japanese make fewer styles.
Some seed beads produced in France are available in historic "old-time" colors and are popular for use in repairing or replicating antiquities.
Lesser quality seed beads are produced in India, in People's Republic of China (PRC) and in Taiwan. Beads from these countries are less uniform in shape, hole size and finish. Dyed seed beads may transfer the dye to clothing or skin. Other seed beads have an external coating that will rub away to reveal a completely different color underneath.
Generally, less expensive beads are more susceptible to the ravages of time no matter their country of origin.
Colors and Finishes
- Color lined - a color coating is applied inside the beads; sometimes this is not very durable and the color of finished work may appear very different in a short time
- Transparent - the glass is see-through
- Translucent - one can see light through the bead, although the light is diffused
- Opaque - the solid color prevents light from passing through the bead
- Matte - the bead is textured on a microscopic level to result in a matte finish
- Silver-lined - a silvery coating which reflects light is applied to the inside of the seed bead
- Copper-lined - a coppery coating which reflects a reddish light is applied to the inside of the seed bead
- Bronze-lined - a bronzy coating which reflects a brown light is applied to the inside of the seed bead
- Luster or lustre - a transparent "pearl" effect applied to the surface of the seed bead
- AB or aurora borealis - a rainbow effect applied to the surface of a seed bead
Formulas for different colors of glass are closely guarded. The recipe for a true
blackBlack is the color of objects that do not emit or reflect light in any part of the visible spectrum; they absorb all such frequencies of light...
glass was lost during World War I, and modern black glass held to sunlight is a deep purple. Examples of true black glass are circulating in jewelry pieces made to commemorate the
funeralA funeral is a ceremony marking a person's death. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember the dead, from the funeral itself, to various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in their honour. These customs vary widely between cultures, and...
of Queen Victoria.
Glass rods made with concentric layers of color or stripes of color can be used to make patterns of color in seed beads.
Seed bead machinery uses glass rods softened to a red heat, fed into a steel
dieA die is a specialized tool used in manufacturing industries to cut, shape and form a wide variety of products and components. Like molds and templates, dies are generally customized and uniquely matched to the product they are used to create...
stamp that forms the shape of the bead with a reciprocating needle that forms the hole. Manual and automatic machinery is in use in the Czech Republic. As the
steelSteel is an alloy consisting mostly of iron, with a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most cost-effective alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
dies wear eventually, they are replaced.
Cylinder beads
During the last decade, a new shape of Japanese seed bead, the
cylinderA cylinder is one of the most basic curvilinear geometric shapes, the surface formed by the points at a fixed distance from a given straight line, the axis of the cylinder. The solid enclosed by this surface and by two planes perpendicular to the axis is also called a cylinder...
bead, has become increasingly popular.
Unlike regular rounded seed beads, the cylinder beads are quite uniform in
shapeThe shape of an object located in some space is the part of that space occupied by the object, as determined by its external boundary – abstracting from other properties such as colour, content, and material composition, as well as from the object's other spatial properties The shape (from...
and
sizeIn science, measurement is the process of obtaining the magnitude of a quantity, such as length or mass, relative to a unit of measurement, such as a meter or a kilogram...
and have large holes for their size. Because the ends are
flatFlatness may refer to:*Flatness *Flatness *Flatness *Flatness *Flatness , a geometrical tolerance required in certain manufacturing situations*Flatness...
instead of rounded, work created with cylinder beads has a flat, smooth texture. Wikt:Rows and columns in
weavingWeaving is the textile art in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads, called the warp and the filling or weft , are interlaced with each other to form a fabric or cloth...
line up more uniformly, so pattern work comes out more accurate and even.
There are now 3 versions of cylinder beads:
- Delica made by Miyuki. Delicas are currently made in four sizes: 15/0 (the smallest), 11/0, 10/0, and 8/0. Delica varieties include a "cut" Delica that reflects light from flat facets.
- Treasures (formerly Antiques) made by Toho
- Aiko - an all new, extremely precise bead made by Toho, introduced in 2005
Charlotte cut beads
Charlotte cuts are seed beads that have a single facet per bead to add sparkle. These are called "the most brilliant of all seed beads".
"Two-cut" beads are similar to "charlotte" seed beads, but are not technically the same. Two-cut beads have two flat faces rather than one.
Bugle Beads
Bugle beads have different lengths but all bugle beads will be longer than they are thick, creating a tubular shape.
Units of measure
The most popular seed bead size is 11/0 ("eleven-aught"), but sizes range from 24/0 (believed to be the smallest) to 6/0 or 5/0 (the largest). The term "aught" refers to how many beads can fit into a standard unit. The origin of the name is debatable.
Size numbers are also used. Unfortunately online vendors generally do not explain the correlation between size numbers and aughts and millimeters, which is therefore set out here.
aught size |
mm diameter |
beads per inch |
6/0 |
3.3 |
10 |
8/0 |
2.5 |
13 |
9/0 |
2.2 |
15 |
10/0 |
2.0 |
16 |
11/0 |
1.8 |
20 |
13/0 |
1.5 |
27 |
14/0 |
1.4 |
24 |
15/0 |
1.3 |
25 |
delica/treasure |
1.8 |
20 |
Hanks
A
hankIn the textile industry, a hank refers to a unit of yarn or twine that is in a coiled form. This is often the best form for use with hand looms, compared to the cone form needed for power looms. Hanks come in a fixed length depending on the type of material, so the term hank is sometimes used as a...
is unit bundle of strands of
seedA seed , referred to as a kernel in some plants, is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
beads or bugle beads.
There are usually 12 strands of 20 inches of strung beads in each modern hank of 11/0 beads.
Different sizes and types of beads may be sold in hanks which have different numbers and lengths of strands.
Different hanks (age, type, size) have had from 8 to 14 strands, and lengths have varied from 8 to 20 inches per strand.
For example, Charlotte size 13/0 cut beads are generally on short hanks, containing 12 twelve-inch strands. Some
vintageVintage, in wine-making, is the process of picking grapes and creating the finished product. A vintage wine is one made from grapes that were all, or primarily, grown and harvested in a single specified year. In certain wines, it can denote quality, as in Port wine, where Port houses make and...
18/0 hanks have had 10 strands of 8-10 inches (200 to 250 mm) each.
1 hank = 3.333 fathoms = 6.667 yards = 20 feet = 6096mm = 609.6cm = 6.096 meters = x grams
CzechThe Czech Republic is a country in Central Europe that is sometimes considered to be Eastern European. The country borders Poland to the northeast, Germany to the west and northwest, Austria to the south and Slovakia to the east. The capital and largest city is Prague...
seed beads are sold from the factories by the hank. They are often repackaged into tubes, bags, or other containers for retail sale, in quantities varying from 5 grams to 40 or more grams. When Czech beads are repackaged, they are usually sold by the gram, which creates some confusion on how many beads come on a hank. Not every 20 inch strand of size 11 beads weighs the same.
A hank of size 2 bugles or size 11 seed beads generally weighs between 30 and 40 grams, depending on manufacturing variations, coatings or linings. Purchasing Czech beads by the hank is usually better value than repackaged beads.
A production run of a custom made seed bead is 8 kilograms. The beads are produced in the Czech Republic using a 10 kilogram rod of color glass. The excess glass is recycled to form new rods. The color glass rods are produced from a larger mass melt of some 10 metric tons.
Weight
Japanese beads are sold by gram weight, seldom by the hank. Buying Japanese beads by the hank usually costs about twice as much, therefore, they are not usually sold or purchased from Japan in this manner.
Most Japanese seed beads are repackaged for retail sale in manageable quantities based on price codes. More expensive beads may be sold in 2.5 or 5 gram units. Standard Japanese seed beads are usually sold in approximately 10 gram tubes. Thus, a 250 gram wholesale package would fill 25 tubes — a bit more than the average beader would need.
One major supplier, Miyuki, sells factory packages which contain up to 1 kg of beads, and are almost always repackaged into tubes or other containers for retail sale. To accommodate the average "wholesale" customer, whether it be a bead shop or designer, some larger distributors have made deals to receive their wholesale packages of beads in smaller (50 to 250 gram) pre-packaged sizes.
Toho, the other major Japanese supplier, seems to have a more flexible packaging policy. Many of the tubed seed beads that can be found in craft stores are stamped with their name on the bottoms, indicating both a wholesale and retail packaging setup.
Confusing terminology
Seed beads used by craftspersons should not be confused with Seed Beads: laboratory-grown beads made of PTFE used to generate seeds of protein crystals.