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Bargain Bead Box Subscription Review – April 2017

Ragan Buckley
ByRagan BuckleyApr 18, 2017 | 5 comments

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Bargain Bead Box
5 overall rating
10 Ratings | 2 Reviews

Bargain Bead Box is a monthly subscription promising over $40 worth of quality jewelry-making supplies every month.

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This month, the packaging was changed slightly.

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Angus says, “Mine!”

My Subscription Addiction pays for this subscription. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)

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The Subscription Box: Bargain Bead Box

The Cost: $15.95 a month

The Products: Designer quality beads in materials ranging from crystal to glass to semi-precious gemstones, plus metal beads and findings. Bargain Bead Box does not send any plastic beads or seed beads.

Ships to: U.S. (free), Canada for $7.50

Check out all of our Bargain Bead Box reviews the Craft Subscription Box Directory for more great beading, craft supply, and DIY project boxes!

Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!

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There was a letter in the box with some more information on the theme (“Wanderlust”). The back contained a list of the month’s beads.

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!

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40 x 30 mm Filigree Style Donut Pendant

This is a bit smaller than some of the pendants you get with this subscription, but that is fine by me since I tend to prefer smaller pendants. I can think of a whole lot of directions to go with this but right now turquoise and coral are calling out to me for this one.

25 Pieces 7 mm 5-Prong Bead Caps

You get a lot of bead caps with this subscription. They’re something I rarely bought before but now I find myself using them all the time. I used some of these in one of my bracelets below.

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48 Pieces Forest Green 6 mm Chinese Crystal Round Beads

48 Pieces Dark Topaz 6 mm Chinese Crystal Round Beads

You’ll get a lot of Chinese crystal with Bargain Bead Box. But, it looks nice and has a price point such that you get quite a lot of beads instead of just 5 or 6 as with some other types of crystal in other subscriptions. I used most of the green beads in one of the bracelets below and some of the topaz ones as well.

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15” Strand 4 x 2 mm Synthetic Turquoise Heishe

These beads called out to me first from this package. Not sure why. But I just really wanted to use them. I kind of want to buy more, as well. I put a bunch of them in a bracelet and I like the result!

17” Strand 6 x 4 mm Chinese Crystal Rondelles in Pale Opaque Aqua

I don’t often buy glass or crystal beads in opaque colors but I really like these. It’s a great color for spring or even summer.

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20 Pieces 6 mm Textured Barrel Spacer Beads

I like how the metal finishes of the beads and findings always match with this subscription. This antique gold finish really goes well with the turquoise this month. I used quite a few of these.

48 Pieces Light Topaz 6 mm Chinese Crystal Round Beads

Another great color of Chinese crystal! I like how well it coordinates with the green crystal and I also think it looks pretty good with the various turquoise beads.

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9 Pieces Turquoise Dyed Howlite Faceted Nugget Beads

These are on the upper limit of size that I am comfortable with (I am small-boned and prefer delicate jewelry) but I think they will be great in a chunky sort of necklace that’s not too long, especially layered with some other necklaces in similar colors.

Synthetic Turquoise Point Pendant

I kind of just want to put a chain with this and then wear it as a necklace, also layered. Sometimes simple is great.

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10 Pieces Sky Blue Distressed Resin Beads

These seem great for a less formal piece. I’m thinking a macramé bracelet with white cord right now, but we will see.

5 Pieces 16 mm Textured Round Shield Charms

I used a couple of these in the bracelets I made this month. I think they coordinate really well with the other metal beads and charms.

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100 Pieces 4 mm Aqua Chinese Crystal Bicones

This is a great color for spring or summer. I’ve actually been hoarding a lot of beads in this color family so these are good to have around to use with everything I’ve bought lately.

16” Strand 8 mm Reconstituted Turquoise Beads

You pretty much never get real turquoise these days. It is always stabilized or reconstituted (or dyed howlite). But these beads have a nice, smooth finish, and I like the look of the darker lines in them. Not sure how I will use these yet but I have a lot in my stash they will go with.

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10 Pieces 8 x 12 mm Round Stamped Drops

I used a few of these this month, as well. These are smaller charms and are really well-suited to being used in charm bracelets. They are also small enough for earrings.

4 Sets Toggle Clasps

I am getting such a clasp collection thanks to Bargain Bead Box. But that is a good thing – you can never have too many clasps. These are basic in terms of design but they should hold a lot of weight for larger necklaces.

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This month I wanted to make some bangle bracelets. I didn’t have quite the stringing materials I wanted so I used 8-inch loops of memory wire, rounded the ends, and attached a few of the charms and magnetic clasps. They do have the look of a bangle set when they are on.

Verdict: I did not calculate a value for Bargain Bead Box, as explained above. I definitely feel that I got a value that greatly exceeded the cost of the subscription; the information letter said the total retail value was $51 and I can believe that. At any rate, if you divide the price by the number of items, you get about $1 each, which I think is definitely reasonable. Don’t forget subscribers also get a discount off the already-low prices at Bead Box Bargains (including additional units of many items from the box)!

Please note that no directions are given and you have to supply your own needles, stringing materials, tools, etc.

What did you think of the April 2017 Bargain Bead Box? Do you subscribe to any beading or craft boxes?

Starting at $19.49
Subscribe Now

Bargain Bead Box is a monthly subscription box for bead lovers and jewelry designers. Each shipment includes over $40 worth of glass, gemstone, crystal, and/or metal beads & findings for $17.95 per month, curated around a surprise theme.

Ragan Buckley
Ragan Buckley
Ragan stumbled across My Subscription Addiction in late 2013 and immediately subscribed to way too many beauty boxes. She's now focused on boxes for her cats and dog, vegan/vegetarian food boxes, and craft subscriptions (and she didn't give up beauty boxes entirely).

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5 comments

nana

These are beautiful and I want to make some bracelets! What’s the best type of wire to buy? If it’s something that it’s sold at Michaels, even better 🙂

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Ragan

It’s called memory wire and it comes in coils (ring, bracelet, and necklace sized) and retains its shape (if you only do one coil, you probably want to connect the ends with a clasp or jump ring or something). You can also just continue to string beads on a longer, continuous coil of a few loops and it will stay on, on its own.

There will probably be silver-toned (not bright, more of a plain steel finish) at Michael’s. (If you want gold or copper colored, they exist but you probably have to buy online or possibly at a bead store if there is one near you.)

You will not want to use your regular cutters on memory wire because it will damage them (and they may not cut all the way through). Get some memory wire cutters (or if you have access to a tool box with heavy duty wire cutters, those may work). I also find it helpful to use special memory wire looping pliers for rounding the ends of memory wire (you can round the ends so they don’t poke you, or there are sometimes balls with holes available that you can glue on, to finish the ends that way).

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lizR

Love using memory wire for bracelets. You have such a good eye for color and style. Your bracelets are great!

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katie

Cute bracelets! And you are right ,that turquoise point pendant would look great on a chain by itself. Where do you find the time to do all that you do? I am going to take a jewelry making class at a local craft store and then probably subscribe to this box.

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Ragan

I spend like every weekend making jewelry from subscription bead boxes…

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