Facet Jewelry Box is a new subscription box from the editors at Facet Jewelry and Bead & Button magazine. They offer two versions, the “Quick and Easy Stringing” version and the “Bead Stitching Version,” so you can choose a subscription based on your skill level and interests, as well as the amount of time you want to invest in the projects.
This is a review of the “Bead Stitching” version (both versions cost the same).
Facet Jewelry Box provided this box at no cost for review purposes. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
About Facet Jewelry Box
The Subscription Box: Facet Jewelry Box (bead stitching version)
The Cost: $24.95 per month on a month-to-month basis, save with longer subscriptions
The Products: Materials and instructions to complete two beading/jewelry making projects using bead stitching techniques.
Ships to: US (free) and international (shipping fee will be assessed during checkout and you will be responsible for customs charges, VAT, receiving charges, etc., as appropriate for your location)
Facet Jewelry Box Bead Stitching March 2019 Review
I am never sure whether I’ll be working on a project for days or just a few hours with this subscription. Let's see what this month has to offer!
The first thing you see when you open the box is this full-color booklet. I haven’t shown you all of the pages inside, because part of the subscription fee is for the projects that are included.
(Lately, I’ve been noticing some of the projects are from older issues of Bead and Button magazine, so if you’d like to do some similar projects, check out this series of books, especially numbers 10 and 11.)
Elegant Earrings
We need to talk about materials here. Each earring has exactly four superduos in it, so only eight were provided. Anyone who buys beads knows that superduos sometimes come broken or with one hole blocked. As it happens, all eight of mine were OK, but even one being messed up could ruin the project (you could probably contact Facet Jewelry to get more, though, they seem to be good about that).
I even RAN OUT OF SEED BEADS this time. I was originally five short, but dropped two, so I had to come up with seven. I had a sort of similar color in my stash that happened to be variegated, so I picked through them to find the best matches and I think it turned out all right. But this is the second month in a row that not enough seed beads were provided to finish a project.
So anyway, the project worked up nicely and I might try it again with a different color choice, but I would strongly encourage the folks at Facet Jewelry to provide a few more beads than the design calls for to prevent problems. It would just cost a few cents if you’re buying in bulk and would save a lot in postage for replacements.
Winding Path Bracelet
I liked receiving some newer, trendier colors of beads with this project. It took somewhat longer than the earrings but really not more than an hour or two. I note that I had to make the bracelet somewhat longer than my wrist size because of the thickness, and if you have a larger wrist (say you usually wear an 8” bracelet) you might need to contact Facet Jewelry for more beads. I’d strongly suggest testing it around your wrist at various points as you work rather than relying on their length chart as I have been steered wrong by their length charts in the past.
Minor quibble: a size 12 needle was provided with 6-lb Fireline. Although I do prefer size 12 needles, I cannot thread them with 6-lb Fireline. In my own work, because of this, I use 4-lb Fireline. I just swapped out the needle from the other project. As long as you don’t go through the size 15 seed beads in this project too many times, a size 11 needle will work just fine. (Fireline is a type of plastic and most needle-threading tricks that you can do with Nymo or sewing thread don’t work with Fireline.)
For reference, larger numbers for both needle and bead sizes refer to smaller needles and beads. But larger numbers for Fireline sizes refer to a thicker thread.
Verdict: I did not calculate a value for Facet Jewelry Box, but you get the materials and instructions for making two complete pieces of jewelry. I had some criticisms about amounts of materials provided, and needle size, as outlined above, but I thought both projects were appropriate and relatively easy to complete, and I especially liked working with the finishes and two-hole beads for the bracelet.
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? Boxes go out after the 20th and people who sign up before the 15th will get that month’s box. If you sign up after the 15th, you may still be able to get that month’s box but this is not guaranteed.
Value Breakdown: At $24.95 per box, you are paying about $12.48 per project.
See my past reviews of Facet Jewelry Box here or check out the Craft Subscription Box list for more great beading, craft supply, and DIY project boxes.
Keep track of your subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!
What did you think of the March 2019 Facet Jewelry Box? Do you subscribe to any beading or craft boxes?
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