Please do not forget to enter our January 2012 jewellery making competition. There is a first prize of £50's worth of beads or jewellery making items of your choice from our website.
To enter simply SEND A PICTURE of your creation to COMPETITION@SANCTUARYBEADS.CO.UK no later than midnight on the 31st January 2011.
The prize can be spent on anything from beads to jewellery pliers to jewellery findings to Beadsmith products .. the choice is yours....
The winner will be announced on this blog no later than 2nd February 2012.
Tuesday 24 January 2012
Thursday 19 January 2012
New Jewellery Making Plier Sets
Those of you that havent visited our website lately may have missed the new range of jewellery making pliers that we have just introduced.
The mini plier set features 4 3" pliers and comes in a Sanctuary Beads zip up pouch. These represent amazing value for money and are a much better buy than the popular Beadsmith 3 piece mini pliers. The come with purple sparkle handles.
If you prefer a full size set we now have a clutch style set
This a full size set and is priced at £9.99 which is great value. Some of the larger sellers on the internet have similar sets as these priced at anywhere between £15 and £25. These are boxjoint pliers and have purple sparkle handles.
We have new colours of the full size jewellery making pliers arriving in about 3 weeks.
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| Mini Plier Set £3.99 |
If you prefer a full size set we now have a clutch style set
We have new colours of the full size jewellery making pliers arriving in about 3 weeks.
Sunday 15 January 2012
TIP OF THE DAY - 15 January 2012 - Getting the stretch back into Stretch Magic
Stretch magic is a premium elastic stringing material used to making simple stretch bracelets. Over time with taking the bracelet on and off you may find that the elastic will start to lose its shape.
To restore the properties of the elastic simply dip the bracelet into boiling water for 2 to 3 seconds and you should find that the elastic regains some of its elasticity.
Sanctuary Beads stock a wide range of stretch magic in our online store.
To restore the properties of the elastic simply dip the bracelet into boiling water for 2 to 3 seconds and you should find that the elastic regains some of its elasticity.
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| Stretch Magic cord |
Sanctuary Beads stock a wide range of stretch magic in our online store.
Thursday 12 January 2012
TIP OF THE DAY - 12 January 2012 - Split rings
If you are annoyed with jump rings that are continually opening under the slightest pressure then use a split ring!
Split rings are simply a double loop of wire. Beware of copper based split rings and always use alloy rings when possible since alloy rings always spring back into shape.
Split rings can be fiddly to open in the smaller sizes and you can buy split ring pliers and split ring tweezers to make the job easier.
Split rings can be fiddly to open in the smaller sizes and you can buy split ring pliers and split ring tweezers to make the job easier.
Wednesday 11 January 2012
LARGE ORDER DISCOUNTS
We are often asked for discounts by buyers both on EBAY and from our website. Unfortunately the normal answer is no simply because we want to befair to ALL our customers.
We try and keep our prices to a minimum and regularly check our prices with those being charged by other suppliers.
Many of the prices of our Beadsmith products are the lowest in the UK especially for items such as Fireline.
We are, however, able to offer the following discounts for purchases made on our website:
A. 5% discount for any purchase over £50 before shipping.
B. 10% discount for any purchase over £100 before shipping.
To claim your discount enter code DISCOUNT50 or DISCOUNT100 into the coupon box before making payment and the cart total will be adjusted to reflect the discount.
The discount does not apply to any wholesale items.
We try and keep our prices to a minimum and regularly check our prices with those being charged by other suppliers.
Many of the prices of our Beadsmith products are the lowest in the UK especially for items such as Fireline.
We are, however, able to offer the following discounts for purchases made on our website:
A. 5% discount for any purchase over £50 before shipping.
B. 10% discount for any purchase over £100 before shipping.
To claim your discount enter code DISCOUNT50 or DISCOUNT100 into the coupon box before making payment and the cart total will be adjusted to reflect the discount.
The discount does not apply to any wholesale items.
TIP OF THE DAY - 11 January 2012 - Use a bead mat!
The bead mat is probably the most useful piece of beading equipment ever invented. Beadsmith's bead mat costs less than £1 and placed on any flat surface it will prevent your beads rolling everywhere!
Used in conjunction with a bead scoop it makes it easy to use seed beads in the smaller sizes.
Just tip your seed beads onto the mat and by pressing the scoop onto the foam mat it is a doddle to collect up and repack your precious beads!
Sanctuary Beads stock a range of products from Beadsmith.
Just tip your seed beads onto the mat and by pressing the scoop onto the foam mat it is a doddle to collect up and repack your precious beads!
Sanctuary Beads stock a range of products from Beadsmith.
Tuesday 10 January 2012
TIP OF THE DAY - 10 January 2012 - Making Loops
Making loops using normal round nose pliers is relatively easy but it is surprising how many people end up with misformed loops.
Even some of the pieces of hand made pieces of jewellery for sale in stores are let down by poorly created loops.
If this is a problem you have then use a looping plier
Easy to use looping pliers create loops with ease of a consistant size and can also be used to form larger loops when making connectors etc.
Even some of the pieces of hand made pieces of jewellery for sale in stores are let down by poorly created loops.
If this is a problem you have then use a looping plier
Monday 9 January 2012
TIP OF THE DAY - 9 January 2012 - Buying pliers
People are always asking ... what type of pliers should I buy?
The points you need to consider are:
Beadaddicts have a round nose plier on EBAY at £1.25. To be honest you will be disappointed if you take the cheap route. Those style of pliers are made from cheap alloys and in some cases will mark your work.
So ALWAYS go for a stainless steel, purpose made jewellery making plier. These are not expensive and we have a large range including a full size 4 piece set for as little as £9.99 on our website. Decent pliers are worth their weight in gold.
If you are a beginner you really only need three styles of plier
The points you need to consider are:
- How often will I be using them
- What types do I need
- What quality do I need
Beadaddicts have a round nose plier on EBAY at £1.25. To be honest you will be disappointed if you take the cheap route. Those style of pliers are made from cheap alloys and in some cases will mark your work.
So ALWAYS go for a stainless steel, purpose made jewellery making plier. These are not expensive and we have a large range including a full size 4 piece set for as little as £9.99 on our website. Decent pliers are worth their weight in gold.
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| 6 Piece jewellery making set |
- Round nose
- Chain nose
- Side cutter
Sunday 8 January 2012
TIP OF THE DAY - 8 January 2012 - Opening Jump Rings
People often make the classic mistake of opening jump rings simply by pulling the two ends apart. This however simply distorts the ring.
Instead use two pliers and twist the two ends of the jump rings apart as shown in the picture on the left.
After adding your finding twist the two ends back together
Jump rings are available in many sizes. If you need a firmer ring choose the heavy jump ring as opposed to a standard one. Heavy jump rings typically have a wire diameter of 1mm as opposed to 0.7mm for standard jump rings.
Instead use two pliers and twist the two ends of the jump rings apart as shown in the picture on the left.
After adding your finding twist the two ends back together
Jump rings are available in many sizes. If you need a firmer ring choose the heavy jump ring as opposed to a standard one. Heavy jump rings typically have a wire diameter of 1mm as opposed to 0.7mm for standard jump rings.
Saturday 7 January 2012
TIP OF THE DAY - 7 January 2012 - Needle Threading
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| Beadsmith Big Eye Needle - 2" version |
The Beadsmith big eye needle solves all those problems... Its basically two needles attached top and bottom. It is still fine enough to pass through a size 11 seed bead. Just flex the needle and insert your thread.
An added bonus is the thread is less likly to pull out of the needle!
Friday 6 January 2012
TIP OF THE DAY - 6 January 2012 - USING NYMO
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| Nymo Beading thread - always pre stretch |
- Pre stretch each length by simply wrapping the end around a wooden dowel or pencil and applying pressure
- Use Beadsmith Beeswax or thread heaven to wax the thread before use enabling you to create tighter work in the first place
A great alternative to Nymo is KO thread. This is slightly more expensive but comes pre waxed and stretched and is resistant to fraying. I would not use anything else now.
Thursday 5 January 2012
Choosing the right memory wire cutter
If you use memory wire a lot you might have realised by now how disappointing many of the chinese memory wire cutter sold on EBAY are.
We have been selling the Beadsmith cutter which is made in Pakistan and we decided it was about time to source a decent memory wire cutter for ourselves.
After trying several companies we have managed to source the cutter shown on the left.
The cutter is slightly longer than the chinese versions and has a rounded handle. This gives it a better leverage and being made from hardened steel it cuts memory wire easily.
We believe the purple sparkle handles to be unique on this type of cutter in the UK.
We have been selling the Beadsmith cutter which is made in Pakistan and we decided it was about time to source a decent memory wire cutter for ourselves.
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| Purple sparkle memory wire cutter |
After trying several companies we have managed to source the cutter shown on the left.
The cutter is slightly longer than the chinese versions and has a rounded handle. This gives it a better leverage and being made from hardened steel it cuts memory wire easily.
We believe the purple sparkle handles to be unique on this type of cutter in the UK.
The purple sparkle memory wire cutter is now available in our website at £3.99 which represents very good value for money. Please click HERE to visit the product page.
Please do not forget to enter our January beading competition!!! See our previous blog for details
Wednesday 4 January 2012
Sanctuary Beads Beading Competition - January 2012
This year we thought we would run a monthly competition with a prize so that you, our customers, can show us some of the lovely creations made from our beads (well hopefully mostly ours but feel free to use whatever you have!).
This month there is no particular theme and we will be giving a prize of £50 of items of your choice for the winner.
To enter simply send a picture of your creation to competition@sanctuarybeads.co.uk no later than 31st January 2012. PLEASE NOTE it is not necessary to send the original item!!!!!
The winner will be chosen by Beverley Platten with help from Amber, our daughter, from all the entries submitted and the winning entry will be published on the blog by the 2nd February 2012.
All we ask in return is for permission to use any of the submitted photos in the new gallery section on our website which will be live by early February. So even if you do not win you might get to see your creation on our website and obviously all pictures used will be attributed.
So why not get creating today..........
This month there is no particular theme and we will be giving a prize of £50 of items of your choice for the winner.
To enter simply send a picture of your creation to competition@sanctuarybeads.co.uk no later than 31st January 2012. PLEASE NOTE it is not necessary to send the original item!!!!!
The winner will be chosen by Beverley Platten with help from Amber, our daughter, from all the entries submitted and the winning entry will be published on the blog by the 2nd February 2012.
All we ask in return is for permission to use any of the submitted photos in the new gallery section on our website which will be live by early February. So even if you do not win you might get to see your creation on our website and obviously all pictures used will be attributed.
So why not get creating today..........
7 Piece Mini Tool Set now back in stock
We have just had our new delivery of pliers and plier sets from Pakistan. Amoung the items is the popular 7 piece mini plier set which sold out in November. Priced at only £5.99 on our website
This set includes a round nose, flat nose, chain nose and side cutter plier together with a mini nylon jaw plier.
Very similar to the popular Beadsmith 8 piece set we believe our set to be much better quality as the set was made for us in Pakistan rather than China which is where many Beadsmith tools come from.
We will also be listing a clutch style 6 piece set and a handily sized mini 4 piece set in the next couple of days.
This set includes a round nose, flat nose, chain nose and side cutter plier together with a mini nylon jaw plier.
Very similar to the popular Beadsmith 8 piece set we believe our set to be much better quality as the set was made for us in Pakistan rather than China which is where many Beadsmith tools come from.
We will also be listing a clutch style 6 piece set and a handily sized mini 4 piece set in the next couple of days.
Beadsmith are now sharing their videos online at You Tube
Beadsmith have recently launched their own series of jewellery making videos on You Tube. Featuring several of their new products including their micro engraver its well worth taking a look. Their videos can be found here
We have just ordered stock of the Kumihimo products featured here
You can find many Beadsmith products on our website
We have just ordered stock of the Kumihimo products featured here
You can find many Beadsmith products on our website
Tuesday 3 January 2012
Special Discount for new buyers at Sanctuary Beads
Sanctuary Beads are pleased to confirm that ALL new customers at our website at www.sanctuarybeads.co.uk can get an immediate 10% off their first order by simply entering code A1001 into their shopping cart before checking out.
Why not take advantage of this great offer today... and do not forget to sign up to our Newsletter to receive notification of all special offers and new stock.
Why not take advantage of this great offer today... and do not forget to sign up to our Newsletter to receive notification of all special offers and new stock.
A New Year........ a few thoughts
2012 is a big year for Sanctuary Beads. We have been improving our website and a revamp is on the cards.
We have masses of new stock arriving shortly from China and our range of beading tools goes from strength to strength.
In 2011 we were approached by one of the largest tool manufacturers in Pakistan. They had been disappointed by the sales generated by their current UK distributors and we have now negotiated a sole supply contract for all of the jewellery making kits developed for our company.
So what do we hope to achieve in 2012. Firstly we are going to revamp and improve our website by adding lots of information including beading projects, information and other useful beading resources.
We will be adding more products including new boxes of assorted beads, a wider range of seed beads and further quality items from Beadsmith.
2012 will be a great year for Sanctuary Beads
Paul Platten is the technical director of Sanctuary Beads
We have masses of new stock arriving shortly from China and our range of beading tools goes from strength to strength.
In 2011 we were approached by one of the largest tool manufacturers in Pakistan. They had been disappointed by the sales generated by their current UK distributors and we have now negotiated a sole supply contract for all of the jewellery making kits developed for our company.
So what do we hope to achieve in 2012. Firstly we are going to revamp and improve our website by adding lots of information including beading projects, information and other useful beading resources.
We will be adding more products including new boxes of assorted beads, a wider range of seed beads and further quality items from Beadsmith.
2012 will be a great year for Sanctuary Beads
Paul Platten is the technical director of Sanctuary Beads
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