Chances are if you enjoy making things out of crystal beads, you enjoy making jewelry. Although making jewelry is fun and rewarding you can also use wholesale jewelry supplies to make a host of other cool items. These ornamental items are a great way to learn new artistic skills and are another theater for you to show off your impressive abilities.

A great project to take on if you want a break from making jewelry items, is a dream catcher. It’s a lot easier than it looks. Then you can use your beads and other supplies to decorate it and make it your own. Don’t think your decoration is limited to only beads; you can also use paint, glitter, feather and just about anything else you can find.  Making a dream catcher is a good way to expand your skill set while displaying your talents.

Another fun project to take on is making a wind chime with beads and other ornaments. The good thing about making a wind chime is the level of creative freedom. As long as it makes noise when the wind blows, technically, it’s a working wind chime! Other than that you can make it however way you want.

What other kinds of projects do you use your Mode Beads for? Share in the comments section below!

If you have a little girl who is going to be home for the summer there is a good chance you are going to need to find ways for her to pass the time. Even if you have enrolled her in some summer classes or a day camp she still is going to need a hobby. You can’t have her on the internet or in front of the computer for hours a day. Why not buy her some Czech beads, crystal beads, and other jewelry making supplies? She is sure to love making her own jewelry and it’s a fun and time consuming activity.

Jewelry making is fun and educational hobby for a young girl. It takes planning, an eye for form and color, and patience. The reward for your little one’s hard work is she gets to wear her jewelry with pride. You will be surprised at just how much she can learn in just one summer. She may even be able to make you a necklace or bracelet. At the very least she will stimulating her mind not wasting it away in front of a screen.

So order some jewelry supplies today and watch as your daughter delights in her new hobby.

For members of the LGBT community and their families June is a special month. Why? Because it’s LGBT Pride month in America and much of the world. LGBT and their supporters will be celebrating, engaging with the community and looking back on LGBT history. This month is particularly special because President Obama just endorsed marriage equality. Jewelers should definitely use this as an opportunity to craft some Pride related jewelry.

The rainbow has long been a symbol of the LGBT community so make sure you have a variety of colors of crystal beads and Czech beads. Create rainbow necklaces, headbands, earrings and just about anything else with a rainbow on it. Considering how many LGBT Pride events are held in June, your LGBT friends and family will want event appropriate attire. You may want to get some rainbow rhinestones so you can bejewel clothes with the rainbow emblem.

Other Pride symbols include a pink triangle or a yellow equal sign on a blue background. These are all recognizable symbols that your LGBT loved one will appreciate and want to wear for Pride month. You may want to make extras and sell them at Pride events. People love to shop when they are in the festive spirit!

Now that summer is in full swing (almost) you should make sure you have plenty of season friendly jewelry and wholesale jewelry supplies. This summer is all about jewelry and accessories over simple items, so be prepared. Do you have enough supplies? If not make sure to get some fast!

Make sure you buy seed beads in light summery colors like green, blue, and pink. Long flowing necklaces featuring these colors are sure to be a big hit. Try to also incorporate some summery items like feathers, leaves, butterflies and flowers. The same is true for earrings. Another popular item this summer will be natural crystals. Try to incorporate natural style crystals with the more symmetrical cut of conventional beads and stones. Another fun and easy to incorporate item is stands of fabric. These play well against beads and look wonderful flowing in the summer breeze.

Tribal inspired items are also popular this season so keep that in mind when you undertake your jewelry construction. Since these pieces can be busy or attention grabbing you should wear them with something low key, like a white t-shirt or a solid color tank top. All that jewelry is sure to look great shining and shimmering in the summer sun.

A prominent trend in jewelry making today is mixing conventional items, like crystal beads, with more unique items like feathers or recycled materials. Not only do these items look great, they give jewelry makers the opportunity to incorporate everyday items into beautiful works of fashion.

An easy way to incorporate a non-bead item into your work is by attaching it to a large hole bead. You can take wire and run it through the hole in the bead and then wrap the wire around the non-bead item. Make sure you wrap the wire tightly so it does not become undone. Another option you have is just punching a hole in the item and using at as you would a bead. The method you use for securing said item will depend on the size, shape, weight and build of the object itself and the piece you are creating.

I have seen jewelry made from soda pull tabs, children’s toys, natural objects and a lot more. With the proper wholesale jewelry supplies anything and everything can become part of your designs.  Just take whatever inspires you and work with it! If you are feeling a bit lost, look online for other jewelry designs people have created using found objects.

Although with spring and summer we usually see less fabric and smaller clothing, that will not be the case for jewelry. Large statement pieces are very trendy right now so expect to see big necklaces, sculptural rings, and multi-tiered earrings. Wholesale jewelry supply retailers are responding to the trend be offering large beads, crystals and other supplies for statement pieces.

Many people are mixing larger, uncut, natural stones with more conventional crystal beads to create some really eye-popping looks. Since these stones can be large, jewelry makers needed bigger pieces to accommodate them. Pendants especially have gotten large and often feature natural looking stones next to more polished, sculpted ones.

Earrings have gotten larger but still need to stay light. Multi-tiered earrings with seed beads and other light beads allow for big size without annoying weight. Native American themed designs combing beads with leather thread and feathers are popular, as are 80s style Brazilian glass bead earrings. Bright pastel colors are in for jewelry and clothing.

Rings are also getting bigger with more of an emphasis on shape. Sculptural rings are trending in the form of large, cut stones, natural stones, or just fun shapes. Take this trend as an opportunity to work bigger.

The trend of charm bracelets and necklaces goes hand in hand with people asserting their independence. Charm bracelets have been around for a long time but they have recently fallen back into style. People like the fact you can customize your look. You can pick different charms for different occasions and there is a fun collectability to charms. You can swap them, borrow them from friends and move them between jewelry.

As a whole sale jewelry supplier or jewelry maker this trend represents great opportunity. With so many styles of charms and so many materials being used to make charms everyone can get in on this trend. The profit margin on charms is high because they require less work and materials than most pendants and other forms of jewelry.

Chances are you can take what you are doing now and apply it to charms. If you work with crystal beads for example, you can easily take the techniques you use making earrings and pendants and apply it to charm making. Just make sure you adhere to the standardized charm system, this mainly applies to the way the charm connects to the jewelry item in question. Other than that you can let your imagination and craft run wild. Look up ‘charms’ online for inspiration.

The bejeweling trend is taking America by storm. People are bejeweling clothing, accessories, and even their own hair and skin. For those unfamiliar with bejeweling it is the practice of attaching gems, beads, and rhinestones to a given object. Many stores sell bejeweled merchandise while other stores sell wholesale rhinestones and bedazzlers (glue guns to apply the jewels) to people who want to create their own designs.

Bejeweling offers jewelry designers a way to apply their unique talents to an increasing number of products. Cell phone cases, jackets, shoes, bags, and wallets with bejeweled designs are very popular. Some salons offer bejeweling of the hair or body. Many jewelers need only purchase a few supplies to turn their existing stock of crystal beads and other stones into potential bejeweling stuffs. Bejeweling is only increasing in popularity so get in on this trend now!

Hobby stores can also stand to benefit from the bejeweling trend. Many amateur artists and jewelers are taking on their own bejeweling products. These people are not using materials on a scale large enough to warrant a purchase from a wholesale jewelry supplier but they need crystals and stones nonetheless. This is why art stores, hobby shops, and other stores that cater to the creative should stock bejeweling supplies.

As a jewelry maker it can be hard to get inspired. You can look through magazines, in store windows, online and through your personal jewelry box for ideas. Sometimes however, it is best to simply start creating and see what happens. That is why, when it comes to wholesale jewelry supplies, a mixed stand of beads can give the inspirational boost you need.

When you get a wide variety of beads you can experiment, get exposed to materials you would have otherwise not known about, and have plenty left over for future projects. Crystal beads come in so many varieties it’s impossible to see them all. Mixed bead strands offer a good cross section of what is out there and can inform you on future purchases.

If you have some ideas in mind for a collection you should start by getting some mixed bead strands. That way you can try out your ideas before committing to a large order of beads. Remember that any bead you find on a mixed strand you can order in bulk. Sometimes simply having all those shiny beads at your disposal can inspire you. Challenge yourself by using materials you normally don’t work with and see if you end up with something you like.