BeadCrate Subscription Box Review – December 2016

BeadCrate is a monthly subscription box for beading enthusiasts. Choose from “The Hobbyist” for $7.99 a month, “The Enthusiast” for $15.99 a month, or “The Collector” for $35 a month. You can also buy a single box to see if this subscription is for you.

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

This review is of The Enthusiast, $15.99 a month, box. 

The Subscription Box: BeadCrate

The Cost: “The Hobbyist” for $7.99 a month, “The Enthusiast” for $15.99 a month or "The Collector" for $35 a month. Save with longer subscriptions.

The Products: A selection of beads curated around a monthly theme (or beads that are just cool and random).

Ships to: US (free for “The Collector,” $5 for “The Enthusiast,” and $4 for “The Hobbyist”)

Check out all my BeadCrate reviews and 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!

This letter/information sheet (folded like a card) accompanied the shipment. The theme this month was “Silver Bells.”

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!

3 mm Firepolish Silver Lined Crystal Faceted Rounds (50, Czech Glass)

4 mm Firepolish Crystal AB Faceted Rounds (50, Czech Glass)

I think clear beads look really nice with silver and I used a lot of both of these types of beads in my necklace below.

5 x 3 mm ½ Coat Silver Pinch Beads (50, Czech Glass)

I also used these in my necklace; I was drawn to a lot of the smaller beads this month.

12 mm Silver Firepolish Faceted Rounds (4, Czech Glass)

14 mm Milky White w/Antique Silver ½ Coat Faceted Coins (4, Chinese Glass)

These are bigger and bolder. I have some ideas on how to use them in conjunction with smaller beads, I just need to find the time (maybe over the holidays).

Beadsmith 1 7/8” No Tangle Kumihimo Bobbin

This is a little bit of a weird inclusion since not everyone is going to have kumihimo supplies. That being said, I have been splurging on craft supplies these past few weeks (lots of good sales) and I Just bought a couple of kumihimo disks, a variety of thread, and some kumihimo books, weights, and other bobbins. So I will use this. (If you don’t know what kumihimo is, click here.)

9 mm Sterling Silver Oval Lobster Claw Clasp

You only get one of these because they’re actual sterling silver, not plated. I used it in my necklace although you can’t see it in the photos below.

8 x 27 mm TierraCast Antiqued Silver Plated Pewter Silver Bells Charm

A “silver bells” themed box wouldn’t be complete without some actual silver bells of some sort. I am collecting a whole bunch of one-off charms and will probably put them together in a bracelet.

Toho 11/0 Black Diamond Seed Beads (18 grams, Japanese Glass)

11s are my favorite seed bead size (though I have gained new appreciation lately for 6s and 15s). I recently bought a couple of different inexpensive bead looms and I don’t have any other seed beads in quite this color or finish, so these will get used soon. I’m thinking of putting them with some purples and blues.

20 mm TierraCast Antique Silver Plated Pewter Peace Slide

This is a nice sentiment for the holiday season and TierraCast charms and findings are usually pretty high quality!

7 x 5 mm Crystal AB Gemstone Donut (25, Czech Glass)

I love these, too. I managed to use all but one of them in my necklace.

11 x 4 mm Oval Ridged Link in Silver Plated Pewter (10)

I used a handful of these in my project although it is hard to see them between the larger cluster elements. They were a good size for spacing things out.

4 x 2 mm Silver Plated Hematite Rectangles (10)

These are so tiny. Like smaller than grains of rice. I am pretty sure I have some other hematite in my stash to go with them.

Here is a necklace I made using the three clear beads, the pinch beads, and the oval ridged links (the links are hard to see here, though). I think this is one of my favorite things yet (chain, headpins, some more unseen findings, and fake pearls came from my stash). I predict you will see more pieces like this from me in coming months, even though it took more than two hours to make.

Verdict: I did not calculate a value for BeadCrate, as explained above in my note about prices. If you divide the price plus shipping by the number of items, you get about $1.61 per item, which I think is great – some of the glass, especially, is going to be more than that per strand. The information sheet gave a total estimated retail value of $30.69 and to me, that is believable. (I may have been doing a lot of bead shopping lately…) I liked the challenge this month of using neutrals (not my usual instinct) and still managed to come up with something sparkly, so I am happy.

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

What did you think of the December 2016 BeadCrate? Do you subscribe to any beading or craft boxes?