Darn Good Beads of the Month is a monthly subscription for jewelry makers from Darn Good Yarn. (You don’t have to be able to knit or crochet for this subscription!) Every month you’ll receive materials to complete a quick beading project. You will need some basic tools of your own (pliers, crimping pliers, glue) but they provide all the findings, beads, and stringing materials!
This month's box is being reviewed thanks to an MSA reader request!
My Subscription Addiction paid for this box. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
About Darn Good Beads of the Month
The Subscription Box: Darn Good Beads of the Month
The Cost: $10/month + shipping
The Products: Materials and instructions to complete one beading/jewelry making project.
Ships to: US ($4/continental US) and international ($13/Alaska, Hawaii, US territories, and other countries)
Darn Good Beads of the Month July 2018 Review
This is only my third time receiving Darn Good Beads of the Month. I know I will get a simple project with instructions that will be easy to complete in an hour or two, but the projects have been pretty varied.
The package came with this paper, which contained instructions for this month’s project. That is a piece of elastic cord taped to it. You also receive two colors of thread and a strand of Czech glass beads.
One quibble with the instructions this month: they say “Make tassels out of the lace weight silk yarn.” There is a QR code (as well as a URL) for a tutorial, but I personally prefer it if all the instructions I need are provided and I don’t have to go looking somewhere else for information. I don’t have a smartphone so I can’t actually scan the QR code, and the place where I work on beading projects isn’t really set up for computer use.
Anyway, so I am going to provide you with one suggestion for tassel making, which is something I’ve tried before but which I’m not very good at yet. Please note, the piece of equipment I’m using below was not part of the package, it is a supply I had at home. You can purchase it here.
Basically, I just followed the instructions for using the tassel maker that came with it. I made two with the seafoam colored thread and one with the salmon-colored thread.
Then I strung them on the stretch cord. The instructions were a little bit too simple for this part too. I really didn’t have a clue HOW to string them on the stretch cord. I ended up sort of tying the thread they were hanging from around the cord. I also added a dab of super glue where each was tied as well as to the knot I tied in the stretch cord to make sure everything was secure.
Here is the finished bracelet. Although it is on stretch cord, so it should fit over hands of various sizes, I don’t know how well this is going to work for people with larger wrist sizes. I have very small wrists (5.25 inches in circumference) and I used all the beads and when I get this over my hand and the elastic contracts again, you don’t see the cord on my wrist. But 7 inches or greater is not an unusual wrist size, and if someone with a wrist that size was wearing this bracelet, large stretches of elastic would be showing. One solution would be to make more tassels, which would take up more room on the cord, and enough yarn was certainly provided to make a lot of tassels.
Also, because of how I attached the tassels, they don’t hang freely, as you can see in the second picture. More instructions on how to attach the tassels would’ve been useful.
Verdict: I did not calculate a value for Darn Good Beads of the Month because the materials were unbranded/not labeled. I do feel that the physical materials provided were of good quality. I wish the tassel yarn had been labeled as it is actually perfect for making tassels (good weight, easy to tie off, etc.) and I’d love to purchase more of that. The beads were your standard Czech glass quality and in a style and color combo that is pretty trendy right now. The elastic cord seems fine, though I don’t usually make bracelets with an elastic cord because it does not exactly last a lifetime. (I was enamored of it when I was in college but 20+ years later, most of the bracelets I made at the time have become brittle and broken.) I also do wish the printed instructions had been a bit more thorough.
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? In general, you’ll get your first box at sign-up and then move to the regular shipping schedule after that.
Value Breakdown: This box costs $14 (including shipping to the continental US) and you get all the materials to make one jewelry project.
Check out the Craft Subscription Box Directory for more great beading, craft supply, and DIY project boxes.
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What did you think of the July 2018 Darn Good Beads of the Month? Do you subscribe to any beading or craft boxes?
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