You can add your own events to this website. Cool, huh?
 
First you will need to register. Once registered you can post in the forum, have a profile page with your links on it, and participate in the chat thingie.
 
To do more you will need to apply for a role, although at this time I'm assigning roles to individuals who fill out their profiles well. I must approve you to a role. This helps me protect the front page from unwanted junk. The best way to assure me that you are real is to fill out your profile and at least provide your website there. Once approved you can post events, blog posts, and weblinks which all get shared with everyone on the main sidebars of the site so it's a lot of exposure. Also, worthy posts will be published on the front page which is serious exposure and makes it to both my feed subscribers and those who get this feed by email (quite a few beadlovers).

The roles available are friend, artist, or commercial. If you are just a hobbiest or like to hang out with beaders but don't consider yourself an artist then apply for friend. If you make your own stuff to show or sell then apply as an artist. If you resell items (don't make it with your own hands and yes this includes "handmade" items made in factories) then apply for commercial. If I don't think you look real, you won't be approved.

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If you email me about a link exchange I will ignore you. The reason for this is I'm constantly spammed with link requests.
 
Instead, I am allowing you to add your own link to this website. But there's a catch because if I open it up to everyone I'll be flooded with irrelevant links. So to add your link here you will need to register. And then you will need to apply for a role. This lets me know you are serious and not just a link spammer. I must approve you to a role. The best way to assure me that you are real is to fill out your profile and at least provide your website there.
 
The roles available are friend, artist, or commercial. If you are just a hobbiest or like to hang out with beaders but don't consider yourself an artist then apply for friend. If you make your own stuff to show or sell then apply as an artist. If you resell items (don't make it with your own hands and yes this includes "handmade" items made in factories) then apply for commercial. If I don't think you look real, you won't be approved.
 
Reciprocal links are appreciated.
 
Members who post irrelevant links (links to sites that are not bead, jewelry, art, or craft related, or fit legitimately within one of my categories) will have their priveleges revoked, their links deleted, their profiles removed, and will be banned.
 
The good news is that once you are approved in one of these roles you can also post events (classes or shows or sales) or blog posts. And the really good events and posts will be promoted to the front page and reach a large audience, including all of my e-mail subscribers. This is great deal of free publicity to a large and receptive bead buying audience.

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I'm not making beads at the moment due to some pretty severe back problems.  Hopefully that will change soon.

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Look for someone who calls themselves a self-representing-artist (although even that can be abused). If you notice a lot of listings on ebay (I mean many hundreds or thousands) they are probably an importer. If you don't know for sure you can ask on any of the forums (bead and button, wet canvas, or lampwork etc.) and they will be happy to educate you.

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Quality.

I know it's cliche, but you get what you pay for.

Cheap beads are generally made with inferior glass (cloudy clears and scummy colors), aren't properly kiln annealed, may have rough edges, and are rarely cleaned as they tend to break in water. Frequently they break at the slightest bump or even arrive broken. If you are making jewelry for sale with these beads you may want to reconsider because an unhappy customer can spread bad things about you pretty quickly.

It can be hard to tell the difference between artist beads and those made in factories in China and elsewhere. This is because some unscrupulous import sellers make themselves look like artisans. They list in the handmade lampwork US category on ebay and make up multiple names for themselves.

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Keep in mind that a lampwork bead may take an artist anywhere from five minutes for a simple spacer bead to several hours (I’ve heard of longer but I think my back would give out) to make and that doesn’t include the time it takes to get set up, clean the beads, and market the work. 

Lampwork beads are not only used in jewelry, some
are collectable and are becoming more so. Lampwork beads are durable, unique, miniature, wearable pieces of art. A well-made bead will enhance your jewelry creations and draw an unbelievable amount of attention. What’s not to love?

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