VintageGent’s Menswear Daily

A Good Source for Replacement Beads

Recently, we found a treasure trove of my great aunt’s costume jewelry.  It was never really “lost.”  It has been sitting in a trunk in my parent’s garage for the past ten years unbeknownst to all of us.  When she and my great uncle moved out of the family home, they downsized to a small cottage, sending a trunk load of family memorabilia to my parent’s house for storage.  They have long passed on and the trunk remained undisturbed, until my parents made plans to move.

Some of the paste jewelry was destroyed by the humidity, but there were still semi-precious stone jewelry that is salvageable.  The only problem is that some of the toggles are missing and the thread is crispy. When I picked one up, a few beads were lost.

Since there are folks in the family who sell antiques or putter around with restoration, we thought it would be a good idea to look into Wholesale Beads & Gemstones. The beads and findings that I found at Beadofcambay.com fit the bill. The jewelry that was salvageable wasn’t rhinestone, but contained some irregularly shaped stones. I didn’t know the proper “lingo” to describe them in an internet search. The site had pictures of each shaped to help me stumble through.

I learned the difference between oval and olive shaped beads. More importantly, I found some hexagon faceted smokey quartz beads that fit the bill.   In truth, I wouldn’t have been able to describe them to ask for them by name so the photos helped. Next time if you are looking, whether you are looking for sterling silver, or semi-precious gem beads, the site is definitely worth a visit.  Discounts range up to 30%, so you can afford the process of trial and error.

My advice would be to document any repairs or replaced beads, just in case there are any questions in the future.  It also reminds you when things were done. My memory can be as crispy as the thread was, so that would be key.  The nice thing is that instead of being socked away in the drawer, family members get to wear it.

I have an idea.  Buy a necklace for your sweetheart, and then buy a number of similar beads at Beads Of Cambay.  Scatter them about the table and say, “See, I made it all by myself for you!”