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Lac/Kashmiri Beads

Sandra Paluzzi
 The Bead Peddler®

 Beads are made of everything under the sun:  seeds, wood, glass, metal, bone, horn, clay, semi precious and even insect secretions  You read that correctly - lac beads are made from a resin secreted by a small beetle, called the lac beatle.  This material is exclusive to India.  Originally all the lac beads and ornaments came from Kashmiri in India, hence the nick name Kashmiri beads. 

Making lac beads is a long involved process taking up to 16 hours per bead.  The production is done in the villages and the bead may travel from home to home during its inception.

 
Lac is hard when dry, soft when melted.  It is a clear, colorless material.  The lac is heated and mixed with a dye.  It is layered around a thin metal base. The bead may be painted with layers of polish to produce a shine.  Lac beads are unique in that their surface is often embellished.  Small dots or pieces of mirror are frequently embedded into the surface of the lac bead.  Today, these centuries old beads are even embellished with pieces of holograms  

 

Register to win 25.00 Worth of Beads and   Beading Supplies

 Click here to visit The Bead Peddler®

Full line of
  * Bali sterling
    beads   
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 * Findings.

Wholesale prices available to the public!