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New seed beads are arriving to compliment our existing collection . Seeds beads are a must-have for any jewellery project and besides use in jewellery making (necklaces, earrings), seed beads are also ideal for other crafts like crochet with fiber or wire.
Seed beads are an excellent see-through transparent little craft beads that add a little glitter to all your jewellery and craft projects. Also known as common embroidery, and jewellery making beads – these seed beads are transparent or clear in colour. Operating from Melbourne, Australia we offer an amazing range of seeds beads – different colours and sizes. Soon we’ll be adding Czech, Miyuki, Toho & Magatama seed beads.
Read more about them on our blog – A definitive guide to seed beads to learn more about the seed beads types, size chart, and a bit of history.
Seed Beads
Seed beads are as essential to making jewellery, craft, crochet and beading projects.
Here you’ll find the most definitive seed beads sizing and information guide.
Some of the terms you’ll hear and people will often inter-change are seed beads ( generic), Czech seed beads, Miyuki Delica, Rocailles, Treasure, Aiko, Toho tree, Dyna-mites, Ming Tree etc.
All of the above are referred to as seed beads in generic terms with the obvious reference to the fact that they are tiny and all look like seeds.
History
The original or vintage seed beads were made in Bohemia when it was a part of Austr0-Hungarian empire which became Czechoslovakia and yet again the republic split into two independent countries the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The Bohemian tradition of cutting glass and seeds beads is still alive but slowly dying out due to costs and the entrance of competitors.
The Czech Republic still offers the most variety and the quality is still unparalleled only to be surpassed by Japan in terms of consistency and uniformity of the beads. Lots of people credit Murano in Italy is the birthplace of seed beads but this claim cannot be verified – Murano did have a rich tradition of glass beads & glassmaking e.g Murano, millefiori beads etc.
Germany & France also had some presence earlier during the last century but that tradition almost died. France had specialised in faceted metal beads and similar seed beads but that tradition is lost as well only to be picked by Miyuki from Japan when they started producing their Delica seed beads.
Among other competitors to enter this market Japan produces the most uniform, high-quality seed beads. Seed beads produced in India & China are of inferior quality but a lot cheaper – beads from these countries are not always uniform in shape and can have dye issues where colour from the beads is transferred to clothes.
Most of the seed beads sold in retail markets are imported from China & Taiwan or India – unless explicitly stated that the beads have been imported from Czech republic or manufactured by Miyuki from Japan.
Japanese Seed Beads
The Japanese seed beads are perhaps the best quality seed beads in the market today and are mainly manufactured by three big companies – Matsuno, Toho and Miyuki. Toho and Miyuki have a very strong brand name and often their seeds beads are sold as Toho seed beads and Miyuki seed beads respectively.
Since the quality in terms of the shape of the seed beads is high, you’ll get their beads to be symmetric, uniform and the consistency is always there. With this quality and consistency, comes higher prices as well. A word of caution, the beading size will differ from the rest of the seed beads e.g Japanese seed beads seems to be taller and the hole is also wider compared to its diameter.
Czech Seed Beads
The major seed bead supplier from the Czech republic is Preciosa and even though over the years, the Czech market may have lost some market share to other competitors mainly the Japanese seed beads manufactures at the high end and Indian/Chinese manufacturers at the lower end, it still remains a sentimental favourite among many beading designers.
Czech seed beads are pretty much the original pioneers in this industry and still offer the natural softer and more natural round shapes, compared to the more precision-cut Japanese beads. Its more vintage, traditional and offers more shapes and is still a pioneer in offering more versatility as well as more colours. Most artists prefer the authentic Czech beads in embroidery, clothing and other handicrafts due to the natural look and feel of the Czech seed beads – the fact the hole is slightly bigger and you can pass threading multiple time is also an added advantage.
Indian & Chinese Seed Beads
Seed beads manufactured in both China & India are very similar in make & feel and often the difference is not visible to a naked eye. However, these are cheaper versions and consistency might be lacking but some Chinese manufactures are known for producing high quality seed beads.
These seeds beads may not be suitable in a Peyote, brick stitch, look work or even some high-end fashion designs or clothing due to their unevenness and the fact that the uniformity of the beads is missing. These are ideal for necklaces, bracelets, where this unevenness may actually add some contrast but threading these seed beads, might also be frustrating & difficult at times as the holes may not be uniform either.