Adornable Elements Beads of the Month Club Review – September 2017

Adornable Elements Beads of the Month Clubs are the original beading subscription boxes (they’ve been around since 2000). 

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

This is a review of the Single Superduos of the Month Club, $22.95 a month, box.

The Subscription Box: Adornable Elements Beads of the Month Club

The Cost: Varies depending on the club selected and whether you choose the single or double club; this is a review of the Single Superduos of the Month Club, which is $22.95/month for 12.5 grams of each of 8 different Superduo colors (Superduos are the most popular 2-hole beads and you will see what they look like below, if you are unfamiliar); save a bit more with the double clubs

The Products: 8 packages of color-coordinated beads; choose from “Hot and Trendy” beads, “2-Hole Beads,” “Superduos,” “11/0 Delicas,” “11/0 Seed Beads,” “Swarovski crystals,” or a rotating club where you get a different selection each month

Good to know: I actually subscribe to several of these clubs and they all come in the same package. I’m going to do a rotation with these reviews so you’ll see something a little different each month.

Ships to: US, cost varies depending on the number of clubs subscribed to (shipping is $4.50 for one club; refer to their FAQ for shipping costs for additional clubs)

Check out all of our Adornable Element Beads of the Month Reviews and more great beading, craft supply, and DIY project boxes in the Craft Subscription Box Directory!

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

The package came with a list of the beads included as well as retail values. Note: I am using the retail values from this list.  They seem reasonable to me, plus it is pretty much impossible to find each color from the same online shop, let alone the same exact package size, so things like quantity discounts are not going to apply here (plus Fire Mountain Gems doesn’t sell Superduos, anyway). This month’s theme is “Tuscany.”

Crystal Aztec Gold Superduos – Listed Value $3

I used some of these in a pendant because I had wanted to try the pattern and had a lot of coordinating beads.  The matte finish here looked nice with a few shiny-finish gold O beads (see below).

Crystal Capri Gold Matte Superduos – Listed Value $3

I used a few of these in my pendant as well. (“Capri gold” is a little different than you might expect based on the name, f you don’t spend a lot of time shopping for beads.) These go really well with a lot of things in my stash so I know the rest will get used soon.

Superduo Duets in Opaque Navy/Ivory (10 g) – Listed Value $3.25

You get a slightly smaller amount of these than with the others because these are more expensive beads (which come in 12.5 gram quantities). It’s still plenty to do a few things with. Duets are beads with two distinct colors, one on each side. This opaque navy color is new to me.  I like it a lot. These also go nicely with the opaque navy superduos from this month’s shipment.

Opaque Navy Superduos – Listed Value $3.75

This color is now my obsession. I went looking for other beads in this color after receiving this shipment. I found some 2-hole lentils and some Czech 2-hole tile beads in this color, and Beadaholique still had some matching (or very close) Toho seed beads in stock (they seemed to be out everywhere else). So I may have gone and purchased a whole bunch of opaque navy beads to go with these…

Opaque Umber Superduos – Listed Value $3.25

I don’t have any of this color in my collection, but I do have a lot of greens, peridots, and some similar colors, so I am now all set if I want to do something with earth tones!

Opaque Orange/Red Luster Superduos – Listed Value $4

These are cool and I love warm colors, so I had to use them right away. See what I did with them in a bracelet pictured below.

Turquoise Green Capri Gold Matte Superduos – Listed Value $3.75

Instead of two-sided like the duets, sometimes superduos come in two colors where the colors are sort of mixed, like here.  You don’t have to pay so much attention to which direction you are stringing these in. I haven’t used these yet, but I have really been focusing on turquoise, green, and similar shades in my buying lately, so these fit right in with the rest of my stash.

Superduo Duets in Green Turquoise and Opaque Ivory (10 g) – Listed Value $3

More duets!  I think these could work in conjunction with the other duets since both have an opaque ivory side. I also think they might look nice next to some copper. Or I could go and buy more ivory beads (yay for buying beads) and have just a touch of turquoise accent in what I make. There are a lot of choices with these.

Here is a pendant I made with two colors of superduos this month (it is hard to see one of them, admittedly). Pay no mind to the thread sticking out, I was having trouble with tension and I’m going to go fix that…

This pattern is from the October/November 2017 issue of Beadwork magazine.

I’ve been wanting to try this pattern for awhile. This is the Claudia Cali Bead Chain (free pattern available on Linda’s Crafty Inspirations blog). This is a good reminder to check all the holes of your multi-hole beads before putting them into your piece because I had to unravel a bunch of this partway through due to a cali bead (the ivory ones) with a blocked third hole.

Verdict: I calculated a value of $27 for the September 2017 Superduos of the Month Club . That about breaks even with the cost of the subscription plus shipping. (It’s a savings of $4.05 over the retail price of the beads, but shipping is $4.50 for one club.) You can get a somewhat better deal by subscribing to multiple clubs and/or the double clubs, since a double club counts the same as a single when it comes to shipping.

You do have to call to cancel or change your payment method. I will say, though, that I have had a good experience with their customer service so far. I got quick responses to emails, and if you want to add a club or change to a double club or switch clubs, you can do that with a quick email. Also, you get a free storage case for the tubes every three months, and you get some free Swarovski crystals with your first shipment of any new club (not shown here because neither applies to me this month).

What did you think of the September 2017 Superduos of the Month club? Do you subscribe to any beading or craft boxes?