Dollar Bead Box Subscription Box Review – June 2017

Dollar Bead Box is a monthly delivery of beads and beading products. During a given month, reorder your favorite items from the Dollar Bead Box shop for just $1. (This deal is only available to subscribers.)

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 $19.50 a month, Dollar Bead Box. 

The Subscription Box: Dollar Bead Box

The Cost: $19.50 + $4.50 shipping for the Dollar Bead Box or $8 for the Dollar Bead Bag (4 strands of 3 mm Czech Fire Polish Beads and 4 strands of 4 mm Czech Fire Polish Beads in every bag); free shipping with 3- and 6-month subscriptions (plus get an additional discount on 6-month subscriptions)

The Products: Beads and beading-related items including but not limited to stringing materials, Swarovski crystals, vintage glass, freshwater pearls, buttons, and more.

Ships to: U.S.

Check out all of our Dollar Bead Box reviews and the Craft Subscription Box Directory! 

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

You’ll always get a brief letter and an item list from Dollar Bead Box.

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!

Artistic Wire 3 Ring Magnetic Slide Clasp (silver plated x 2)

Clasps are always welcome and I actually have a lot of use for these; they are good for loomed bracelets and necklaces and I’ve been playing around with a couple of different beading looms lately.

5 x 6 mm Oval Bracelet Chain in Antique Brass (1 foot)

I like getting chain. I typically buy more delicate chain but I am definitely glad I got a chance to work with this. It really was quite good for a couple of different bracelets (and I found matching clasps and jump rings in my stash).

Natural Amethyst Nugget

I have been doing a bit more work with natural materials lately and I think this will look nice with some silver findings and small gemstone accent beads in a simple necklace.

18 x 18 mm Czech Glass Tabular Square with Peacock Finish

I really just love this bead so I found a way to use it this month in a bracelet (see below). The peacock finish is, in general, lots of fun.

6 mm Czech Glass Bicone in Jonquil (25)

Bicones are always useful and this is such a good color for spring and summer. (You’ll get a fair amount of Czech glass with this subscription – sometimes more conventional shapes like this, and sometimes the newer glass shaped beads that are popular these days.)

6 mm Czech Glass Lentil in Peridot (50)

I love lentil beads. They are good to use as flower petals in pendants and add an element of interest and texture to spiral bead patterns, as well. I have rather a lot of lentils in my collection, but none in this color (until now!).

8 x 20 mm Czech Glass Tabular Oval Crystal with Aqua Stripes

More Czech glass! I am a fan of flat ovals and flat rounds so I was happy to see these.

3 x 7 mm Czech Glass Dagger in True Purple AB (100)

I am accumulating more and more of these small daggers. I like them, but I’m still on the lookout for a good pattern or design idea. I know I will find the right thing soon.

6 mm Swarovski Top-Drilled Bicone in Air Blue Opal (6)

Top-drilled bicones have a hole across one of the points instead of down the long axis of the bead. They are good for dangles and similar constructions. I don’t have any others in my collection but I think these will be fun to work with.

8 mm Vintage Swarovski Multi-Faceted Bead in Vitrail Medium

Swarovski is expensive! Vintage Swarovski, even more so. I might have to get more of these, though, because the vitrail finish is lovely here.

10 mm Antique Brass Plated Floral Bead Cap (6)

You’ll get quite a few bead caps with this subscription. If you like the ones you receive, you can always order more, or you can just use the ones you get in a simple bracelet or some earrings. These are a color that will go well with a lot of other items in my collection.

14 x 20 mm Pewter Filigree Pendant in Antique Copper (2)

I think these are going to become earrings. I have a lot of great TierraCast niobium earring findings with copper and antique copper accents that will look good with these.

10 x 14 mm Czech Glass Butterfly in Dark Tanzanite AB (3)

Amazingly, I didn’t have any other butterfly-shaped glass in my collection (I had hearts and stars galore, even a few scarabs). The drill hole in these is down the center of the butterfly’s body.

12 x 14 mm Czech Glass Table Cut Butterfly (2)

The glass in these is very cool. The stringing direction is perpendicular to the butterfly’s body, so they wouldn’t necessarily make great charms, but I like the glass so much I need to figure out a way to use them.

12 x 15 mm Vintage German Hand Cut 3-Tone Glass Drop (2)

I love the facets on these and the color will go well with a lot of other items in my stash.

6 x 9 mm Swarovski Center-Drilled Drop in Jet Hematite (2)

These are quite pretty in real life. Swarovski crystals always have the best, sharpest facets. These would be good in some simple earrings.

I have small wrists so I thought to use the bracelet chain to make two different pieces. That is some THICK bracelet chain. I had to break out my industrial-strength wire cutters to cut it. (I don’t know where the brass butterflies came from. Possibly a previous Dollar Bead Box, but I can’t be certain. I found them in my stash.)

Verdict: I did not calculate a value for the June 2017 Dollar Bead Box, for reasons explained above. There were 16 items so if you divide the cost of the box by the number of items, it is about $1.22 per item. I feel like I got a pretty good deal, especially considering that there were several Czech glass strands and lots of Swarovski. I also like the wider variety of items in their new shop (it is members-only; you get access to the shop with a subscription).

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 June 2017 Dollar Bead Box? Do you subscribe to any beading or craft boxes?