This is one of my new favorite products, the safety chain for our PerlaVita Bracelets. Most of us have a little trouble putting on a bracelet and taking it off. There are “bracelet buddy” tools, someone in your household who helps you or your co-worker who comes to your aid but this little Safety Chain will make your life easier.
Here’s an easy way to be sure your bracelet doesn’t go rolling across the floor when you are trying that tricky maneuver, no matter how rushed you are. And you’ll want one for all your large hole bead bracelets.
This is a simple trick that works and makes it easy to prevent loosing your favorite bracelet/beads.
Swarovski and others crystals, rhinestones and flatbacks use PP, SS and MM, what do they mean and why!
PP means Pearl Plate and was originally used to measure, well Pearls. That’s because the pearls were graded through stacks of plates with varying size holes.
Pearl Plates are still Used
Actually we still use these in our first sort on sizes of our Murano Glass Beads. So if a bead/or stone is size PP 10 it will fall through larger plates but will stay in the PP10 and smaller. This helps us quickly sort through sizes of hundreds of beads – and obviously gives us a bit of range, which is why we always say “approximately”. And it would be virtually impossible for us to measure each bead with a micrometer.
SS means Stone Size and with the advent of better measuring equipmentm like bead gauges and micrometers, it has become the standard, just not as colorful history!!
Relative Sizes to Millimeters
They can all be converted to MM (Millimeters) and of course Inches and if you must, fractions!
Use our handy guide to understand or for reference.
Many of our customers are designers who sell their Venetian Jewelry in the fairs and shows around the world. Sometimes they fall in love with Swarovski, but it is everywhere and hard to make a name for yourself with such a ubiquitous commodity; and in the words of Brenda “an accent” bead! Yes they are “perfetto” but they are machine made and in the words of one of our glass blowers in Murano ‘Non ha un cuore’ (It does not have a heart!).
The love of Murano glass is all about heart. Why else would our blowers and bead makers work in hot furnaces, in front of hot torches creating our little jewels?
Certainly there are easier ways to make a living?
Certainly there are occupations where everyone isn’t a critic of your labor of love?
Each piece is a small work of art, never to be repeated again exactly, like snowflakes.
Murano Glass Beads – Irresistible Colors
When you make jewelry with our genuine Murano Glass Beads, you aren’t just making jewelry, you are carrying on a tradition of centuries. When you sell this jewelry, you aren’t just selling pieces of jewelry, you are selling the Romance that is Venice, the history of centuries, the legends, the state secrets of making glass that could get you killed in the middle ages.
To our glass workers, the glass is alive, it reacts differently each day, and never tamed, some days it just allows you a little more control.
And let’s face it no one ever proudly advertised that they have “Chinese Beads” and even Czech while again available everywhere, simply doesn’t carry the allure or Romance of Venetian Beads. Venice has such a history, and though they were not the first in the world to make beads, they certainly influenced the design and production of beads since about the 10th Century.
Our Blown Beads are Made in the Furnace!
Remind them that Marco Polo traveled to China taking beads! Remember that Manhattan was purchased with beads! Venetian Beads were the currency in Africa, known as Trade Beads. And we still make them pretty much the same way as then. Now that’s something to talk about with your customers.
Having Venetian Beads in your design gives you a story to tell. When you are at that hot and dusty Craft Fair, the sparkle under the sunlight will bring your customers in and your ability to weave the history of Venice will help you sell your jewelry. And when you wear our Venetian Beads, you have a story to tell, the story of the artisans of Murano who have been making glass since 1293.
We hope our behind the scenes of the history and how our beads and sterling silver along with the trials and tribulations of daily life in Venice will help our designers and customers. Use the resources on our website to learn more about Venice and you’ll be able to talk to your customers, or just tell your friends why you chose Venetian Beads.
Here are some resources on our website which will be helpful:
Time to get started on your projects for spring. Here’s Pantone’s choices. You’ll find these colors featured in clothing, accessories like handbags and shoes in all the department stores. You can make your own jewelry to match, just follow these color trends.
You can download and print a PDF of this to have handy by the computer as you shop, or put in your purse to take with you to the store. Click Here for printable: PANTONE_Spring_2015_VenetianBeadShop
We have taken these colors and matched both Swarovski Crystals as well as our own authentic Murano Glass Beads to make it easy for you to shop complimentary colors. Just click on any color to shop. VenetianBeadShop
