Bargain Bead Box is a monthly subscription promising over $40 worth of quality jewelry-making supplies every month.
My Subscription Addiction pays for this subscription. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
About Bargain Bead Box
The Subscription Box: Bargain Bead Box
The Cost: $15.95
The Products: Designer quality beads in materials ranging from crystal to glass to semiprecious gemstones, plus metal beads and findings. Bargain Bead Box does not send any plastic beads or seed beads.
Ships to: US (free), Canada for $7.50
Bargain Bead Box February 2019 “Picasso” Review
Bargain Bead Box always includes a few clasps and other findings in matching metal tones; this month they were in an antique silver finish. Here’s more about the specific items in the box this month:
There was a letter in the box with some more information on the theme (“Picasso”). The back contained a list of the month’s beads. This month’s theme related to the semiprecious gemstones in the package (Picasso jasper).
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!
7.5” Strand 6mm Picasso Jasper Round Beads
I like the warm colors here. It is cold and dreary outside and these put me in mind of a different season. I used some of these in a necklace, which you can see below.
7.5” Strand 8mm Picasso Jasper Round Beads
I have basically the same thing to say about these as about the 6mm ones. Having two sizes helped me to add some curvature to a two-stranded project, which was handy.
6.5mm Scrollwork Square Bead Caps, Antique Silver (20)
You’ll get bead caps pretty much every month with this subscription. My collection of them has really grown in the past few years! Anyway, I never used to work with bead caps much but now I often reach for some from this subscription if I’m making something that’s just strung (as opposed to beadwoven). These have an interesting square shape.
4mm Coated Glass Bicone Beads, Midnight Metallic (15”)
I am not usually the type to use crystal or glass with gemstones, but I tried it here because these were a good size for what I wanted to do, and I like the way it turned out, so I now have some other ideas with items from my stash I’d like to try.
1m 4 x 3mm Steel Oval Jewelry Chain, Antique Silver
You’ll get chain most, if not all months with this subscription. It’s usually plated steel. It is pretty strong (it is holding up kind of a heavy centerpiece below) but you will need to use special wire cutters for it as it will mar your standard jewelry wire cutters. (I have some heavy duty ones meant for electricians I used with this.)
4mm Chinese Crystal Cube Beads, Teal AB (20)
These are tiny and cute, but a bit small for the scale of what I was working on for this month, so I’ve set them aside to use in the future. They are a great size for use in earrings.
6 x 4mm Chinese Crystal Rondelle Beads, Jonquil Luster (48)
This is a shape I could use more of in my collection. They were a little light-colored for the look I was going for this month, but they are lovely and I know they will be used soon.
18 x 13mm Chinese Crystal Rectangle Beads, Silver Shadow (4)
I love these, I’m just not sure how to use them yet. They seem like they would work really well in something bold and statement-like. I’ll have to go through my stash to find some coordinating beads (I’m sure I have plenty).
21 x 8mm Abstract Style Textured Links, Antique Silver (10)
I ended up using all of these in a necklace this month, in a way a little different than I originally intended. But I was tossing different items from the box out onto my table to see if I got any ideas and I hit upon something that I thought would work with these. Anyway, you can see below what I did.
4mm Cube Spacer Beads, Antique Silver (50)
You’ll usually get some metal spacer beads with this subscription. They’ll always match the box’s metal tone for the month (they cycle through various shades). I used one of them but have the rest left over. (I know this is a strange thing to use only one of, but I promise it makes sense in the context of what I designed.)
Picasso Jasper Pendant Set (2 at 34mm and 1 at 48mm)
You’ll get a large(ish) centerpiece every month. This time there were actually three pendants. I used the biggest one; the other two are a matched pair, although I think they would be way too heavy for earrings. If you want to take a different route from me, you could use the smaller ones on either side of the larger one in a necklace.
26 x 18mm Rectangle Pendants, Antique Silver Finish (2)
I think these are really cool. I have no idea how I will use them, but I kind of like just looking at them. I feel like maybe I could put beads in the centers of the circles to add some color or something like that.
6mm Silver Plated Glass Stardust Round Beads (40)
These are the same size as one set of the Picasso jasper beads, so they could work quite well together and provide an interesting set of textures. Actually, I may try to do something like that with these and the jasper beads I have left over after making my necklace.
Textured Square Toggle Clasps (3)
You’ll always get clasps with this subscription. These are perfect considering the geometric theme that has been going on with other items in the box. I used one of them in a necklace, which you can see below.
Here is a necklace I made using the largest jasper pendant, some of the bicones, both sizes of gemstone rounds, the textured links, and one of the metal spacers (needed something opposite the pendant) as well as one of the clasps and the chain. It doesn’t move quite as freely as I’d like and if I was going to do it again, I’d probably use some jump rings instead of just connecting the eyepins to the links, but I still actually like the way it turned out.
Verdict: I did not calculate a value for Bargain Bead Box, as explained above. The information sheet gives a retail value of about $53 and I can believe that value if you were to go out looking for similar beads to purchase individually. There is definitely enough here to make several pieces of jewelry, too. Looking at it another way, you are paying just over $1 per item since the price is $15.95 and there were 14 items this month. And THAT is a pretty good deal. I ran through several ideas before I settled on something but that was only possible because there were so many options for this month.
Please note that no directions are given and you have to supply your own needles, stringing materials, tools, etc.
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? No, you would receive the March 2019 box as your first one, although they do sometimes offer past boxes on their site, and individual items can sometimes be purchased from Bead Box Bargains.
Value Breakdown: At $15.95 for this subscription, you are paying about $1.14 per item.
Check out all of our Bargain Bead Box reviews and more craft subscription boxes in the DIY Subscription Box List!
Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!
What did you think of the February 2019 Bargain Bead Box? Do you subscribe to any beading or craft boxes?
Please do not enter your email address in the Name field or in the comment content. Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *. Remember to post with kindness and respect. Comments with offensive language, cruelness to others, etc will not be approved. See our full comment policy here.