BeadCrate is a monthly subscription box for beading enthusiasts. They offer “The Enthusiast” for $18.99 a month + $5 shipping and “The Collector” for $35 a month + free shipping. You can also buy a single box to see if this subscription is for you.
This is a review of “The Enthusiast,” which is $18.99/month + $5 shipping.
My Subscription Addiction pays for this subscription. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
About BeadCrate
The Subscription Box: BeadCrate
The Cost: $18.99 a month + $5 shipping. Save with longer subscriptions.
The Products: A selection of beads curated around a monthly theme (or beads that are just cool and random).
Ships to: The US (free for “The Collector,” $5 for “The Enthusiast”)
BeadCrate September 2020 Review
BeadCrate is great for stash-building if you are into seed beads and Czech glass, and you’ll also often get some useful supplies:
This letter/information sheet accompanied the shipment. This month's theme is "Forgotten Garden."
A note on prices: Items like this can come from a variety of different suppliers at many price points depending on how many you buy, etc. I couldn’t find a lot of these exact beads from common sources (e.g., Fire Mountain Gems) and it’s of questionable value to pick something similar because a slight difference in grading or size or material and you are looking at half or double the price (or an even greater difference). Even different colors of the same size and shape of glass beads are priced differently due to materials needed to make the colors.
On to the items:
3mm Firepolished Rounds, Sueded Gold Montana Blue (Czech glass, 50)
The sueded gold finish really changes the appearance of bead colors; Montana blue is normally quite dark. But I like how these look. 3mm fire-polished rounds are great for patterns and bead weaving. I think these would look nice with some brass findings or maybe antiqued silver-tone.
4mm Prairie Mix Druks (Czech glass, 50)
I am trying to come up with some ideas for bead mixes, I'm not so great at using them right now, but I have bought a lot of lovely ones from various Etsy sellers and I really should start using them. Perhaps in my search, I will come up with a great idea for these. I may just make a beaded chain with these by putting them on eyepins but I am keeping an eye out for other ideas.
18x13mm Topaz Flat Leaves (Czech glass, 4)
I really have quite the collection of glass leaves now, and a few in metal. I would like to do something where I use them all together. If you are going to try to put these on jump rings, use a pretty thin gauge as otherwise, it will be hard to get them through the holes. I might turn them into charms by using wire and making a messy wrapped loop (mostly because my wire skills are such that I can't make a neat wrapped loop...).
6mm Peridot M&Ms (Czech glass, 25)
These are flat discs rather than actual M&M shapes. I like flat shapes quite a lot. Anyway, I used some of these in a necklace this month but I have plenty left over to try a few more things.
6x10mm Jet Twisted Barrels (Czech glass, 18)
Not so long ago I bought a ton of jet shaped beads, seed beads, and Swarovski crystal, wanting to play with texture while using only a single color. I think I will add these to that stash of products as there's nothing quite like these in that collection yet but I think they would look great with some seed beads.
Toho 11/0 Silver Lined Prairie Green (Japanese glass, 10g)
You'll get seed beads every month with this subscription, usually size 11/0 but sometimes 8/0, and almost always Toho. I used some of these this month as spacers and others in a spiral rope as part of the necklace I made. You can see what I did, below.
12mm Aqua/Rosaline Mix Pinwheel Flowers (Czech glass, 8)
I like these a lot. I have never seen this particular style of bead before but I would like to find some for sale so I can buy them in a ton of different colors. Then I will make a necklace with these in a cluster. Off to search Etsy (you can find a lot of unique beads on Etsy that some of the more well-known bead retailers don't carry)...
14x12mm Large Pebble (Czech glass, 3)
I had an idea for a necklace this month that used these. I ended up making it and while it didn't turn out exactly like I thought it would, I am still happy with the result. Plus I found a way to use beads that came in a group of 3, which is something I haven't been great with in the past.
8mm Crystal Hearts (Czech glass, 25)
Back when I started beading (mid/late 1990s), I bought a lot of hearts and stars as there weren't so many other shapes available. I still have some of them. Maybe I will use some of the hearts in a necklace with these; since they're clear, pretty much any color will match!
6mm Firepolished Rounds, Emerald Brown (Czech glass, 25)
Here are some larger fire-polished rounds. Because I wanted to use the seed beads and flat green discs, as well as the brown nuggets, I figured these would be perfect to use, so every single one of them is now in a necklace, which you can see below. Although I used them in a stringing project, they would also work in patterns, wrap bracelets, etc.
8x4mm Rosaline AB Flowers (Czech glass, 25)
I have these in some other colors as well. I have a couple of options, either using them all (as in all the colors I have) in one piece or maybe making a simple strung bracelet. If you like to make simple strung bracelets using Czech glass, sign up for the Artbeads email list, as they send out a lot of sample projects that should give you some ideas.
3mm Firepolished Rounds, Luster Iris Topaz (Czech glass, 50)
I like the finish on these, I think it works really well with the color. This is more of an autumnal yellow than a spring one, I think. Czech glass fire-polished beads are great for stash building and can be substituted for crystal bicones in many cases as a more affordable option.
15x7mm Beige Full AB Owls (Czech glass, 10)
This is actually the second subscription box this month in which I've received owl beads, although these have a much different color and finish compared to the others. I wonder if I might use them together; I also have some cute owl charms and I could just do a whole owl thing (bracelet or necklace).
Here is the necklace I made this month:
1 of 8
I saw a picture in a catalog and wanted to do something like that. It was more of an asymmetrical inspiration, which I think I would have liked, but I got kind of tired of doing the spiral rope with the seed beads, so I stopped when the spiral rope strand was about as long as the fire-polished round strand. I added some wire protectors, jump rings, crimps, knot covers, clasp, and eyepins from my stash to complete the necklace.
Here is the finished necklace. I have two green dresses I could wear this with:
Verdict: I did not calculate a value for BeadCrate, as explained above in my note about prices. If you divide the cost of the box plus shipping by the number of items (I counted 13), you get about $1.84 per item. I was in more of a fall mood so I used some of the browns this month, but you could easily come up with a summery piece using these colors if that was what you were feeling like doing. I liked combining stringing and seed bead stitching in the same piece and may try to do more of this in the future. Also, I am happy to have a lot of new fire-polished rounds for my stash.
Please note that no directions are given and you have to supply your own needles, stringing materials, tools, and findings.
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? Your subscription would likely start with the October box. Destash items and excess inventory (and sometimes whole boxes) may occasionally be available in the BeadCrate Etsy shop.
Value Breakdown: At $23.99 for this subscription (counting shipping), you are paying about $1.84 per item.
Check out my past BeadCrate reviews and visit the Craft Subscription Box List for more great beading, craft supply, and DIY project boxes.
Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!
What did you think of the September 2020 BeadCrate? Do you subscribe to any beading or craft boxes?
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