Storing Beads?

LynieG · #1 2011-01-31, 4:30pm

I would do this in a poll but I think there are so many ways to do this that a poll would be useless.

My question is ... How do you store your finished beads? We all make so many of them and in my case most of them are not worthy of selling IMHO (even tho I am getting better at it and I do have a few for sale.) I have seen several ideas for glass storage but what about the finished products?

Do you store them by color?
by theme?
fuglies in one jar - goodies in another?
By jewelry potential?
The ones you are selling - how do you store these?
How do you store your jewelry pieces? Focals?
Ones you have listed?
Ones you sell at shows?
Do you keep your favorites showcased somewhere so you can always admire them?
Do you have a drawer or box dedicated to beads?

And the list could go on?

I'm just curious cause I have so many and I HATE even throwing away my broken beads (I'm saving them for frit LOL) Right now I store mine in plastic storage bins with compartments by color with my fuglies in a jar but I'm running out of room in my jar and it's a BIG jar LOL. Some day Im going to make a birdbath out of them. At least that's what I keep telling myself! As for the jewelry that I make and am selling - right now they are on jewelry boards in a basket. I would LOVE any ideas you all have come up with!

Alaska · #2 2011-01-31, 5:53pm

Each has to develop a system that works for their needs. Beads for sale are grouped by mandrel size, then by OD (roughly speaking). Then each is imaged. The imaged 4 digit image number becomes the bead's SKU.

The imaged bead along with a paper tag are placed into a 2 x 2 inch plastic sealable 2 mil bag. These are then placed in groups of ten into a 4 x 6 plastic bag and then placed into a Stanley 6 x 4 x 3 plastic yellow bin by number. (Home Depot or Lowe's about seven bucks for 8 bins with hangers)

For rejects they go into a bucket for samples or free beads as needed.

All of this is indexed using Excel as to bead name, OD, thickness, SKU and price. Color could be used, however if a bead contains many colors then it becomes an issue as to what colors to use.

There is a sort done in Excel so that beads are indexed by both name in one table and SKU in another table. Thus it is easy to find any bead by either name or number. And there is a 100% paper backup just in case.

jaci · #3 2011-01-31, 6:04pm

uhhh... they are kindda all over........ hehee..

I am a visual person. If i dont see it I wont use it....e v e r. So I have lots of beads just out.

they are in mancala trays, bead trays, un different jars, one for fugglies, another for BOC, another for odds and ends separated into categories.. you know... total chaos

Lorraine Chandler · #4 2011-01-31, 7:02pm

If the beads are going to be listed, I say that tongue in cheek right now because I probably won't be listing again until late summer....I photograph them, card them, assign a inventory number, put that info into the Jewelry Manager Designer Pro, THEN put them in tissue paper and wrap them for sale and into the shipping envelope and then into the "to be listed basket" and when they are finally listed they move to the "for sale basket" where they stay until sold.

Easy to locate them and ship out. I also have a large basket of beads to be cleaned, beads to be cored and capped and of course lots of tins of beads that don't make it for what ever reasons and several tins of beads that are color combo experiments etc.

I really hated setting up the inventory manager but once up it is so easy to do. You just have to keep doing the data entry which is the worst part for me.

Taxes will be a breeze, if I am audited it will be a breeze. I know how many beads I have in stock down to size 15 seed bead hanks!

Lizzydee · #5 2011-01-31, 8:23pm

mine are spread all over my beading studio and piled high on cookie sheets. the seedbeads and findings are in clear tubes in a rack and strings are hanging from shelf edges. No sense ....except to me. whatever works I say!

pittypat · #6 2011-02-01, 12:14am

Me?? I am trying to decide if I want to go to California or Alaska for lessons!! LOL...
Organized chaos, that is me...My first year or two are well organized thanks to Schermo, who cannot stand a mess of beads..

artsyuno · #7 2011-02-01, 12:42am

The good ones go into plastic containers with dividers, separated by style and/or color. Those that I'm not happy with but want to remember to try again go into a bag that goes into the studio with me for days when I can't think of what to do. The truly sucky ones (bad bead holes, etc.) go into the garbage. The ones that aren't up to the level I want for selling but don't have anything technically wrong go into a ziplock and eventually to Beads of Courage.

Kalera · #8 2011-02-01, 12:52am

Mine are grouped by sets, photographed, and then go into tubs by type based on style, complexity, and number of matching beads in a set. It's essentially a system that allows me to find a particular set when it sells.

SuzyQ · #9 2011-02-01, 5:31am

I use stacking trays from Fire Mountain Gem and trays are sorted by design.

FourTailsLampwork · #10 2011-02-01, 8:46am

In show season I store beads in printers' trays. I lined each cubby with foam and grey panne velvet, put a tag in each with inventory # and price, and just carry the tray back and forth. Makes setup and takedown a breeze.

Out of show season I use cheap plastic rectangular bead/small parts boxes. At the end of show season I put all my beads back in the rectangular boxes by inventory number (mainly, just the order in which I made them). That way I can catch anything that I didn't update after a show, but the boxes stack in a drawer out of sight, and I can find beads fast.

Right now, for pendants and necklaces I use stacking trays (same principle--bring to show, spread out, done), but I am looking for a better system for longer necklaces.

glassymom · #11 2011-02-01, 9:37am

Mine are put into baggies, then into containers I got from Ikea. They are flat with compartments and you can stack them. I label each box with whats in it. Buttons, focals, animals, sets,spacers and such. It works for me.......I'm not really great on organizing......actually I'm horrible LOL But my beads are organized enough that they are safe and I can find them in a moments notice!!
The containers are from idea and are sold in the kids area but I've never seen them on their site. They are rectangles, come in frosted white and blue and are about 3.99 each. They hold a TON!
Sue

LynieG · #12 2011-02-01, 10:50am

Dang - I need someone to come and organize me! Even if its just labeled boxes! Felicia I do like your idea for beads of courage. Think I will do that for these single beads that are good but I don't know what to do with them! Gotta find another jar to label BOC. I'm kinda organized just not really! LOL (I know - it doesn't make sense to me either

)

SassyGlass9 · #13 2011-02-01, 11:14am

This is a good question, and I would bet almost everyone has a slightly (or completely!) different way of storing their beads. Here's mine, for what it's worth:

Do you store them by color? Only my spacer beads are stored by color, in individual tupperware type bowls with lids.

by theme? Sort of. I store my "critters" separately - usually in the great cigar boxes that BeadBoxMan makes for storing beads. This keeps their various "sticking out parts" safe! I also store all my Pandora style cored beads in a BeadBoxMan cigar box made specifically for that size bead. If you don't know about him, check him out - he's here on LE by that name, and sells on Etsy.

fuglies in one jar - goodies in another? Fuglies always get separated out into two groups - ones that are so fugly I can't see doing anything with them other than throwing them in the flower beds, and those that are OK but not what I wanted - those get donated to Beads of Courage.

By jewelry potential? Not really - I store all my beads with the thought that someone might make jewelry out of even the most unlikely bead. Think of the cool jewelry you may have seen with some of the funky, fun beads Sharon Peters makes!

The ones you are selling - how do you store these? all of the beads go into their various containers and then into larger jewelry totes that I use to take to shows. In between shows, they can either stay in the totes (most of them do), or the cigar boxes etc., get stored in my studio cabinets.

How do you store your jewelry pieces? Focals? Same as above. I use the long trays with the velvet inserts and store a lot of my jewelry in ziplocks with the little paper thingies to keep the sterling from tarnishing. Those get laid into the trays.

Ones you have listed? These always go into a separate tray, so I don't accidentally sell them at shows while I have them listed online! (I did that once, and of course those were the beads that someone tried to purchase from my Artfire store right after I sold them - ack!)

Ones you sell at shows? I do 90% of my selling at shows, so my various methods mentioned above apply here.

Do you keep your favorites showcased somewhere so you can always admire them? I have some of my very favorites that I don't plan to sell, along with all the beads I have made in the different classes I've taken, on my bookshelf. I can't say I often admire them

, but they are there, separate from everything else.

Do you have a drawer or box dedicated to beads?

I have a whole ROOM dedicated to beads and glass!!!

This will be a fun thread to read - I am glad you asked these questions!

LynieG · #14 2011-02-01, 12:50pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by SassyGlass9

This will be a fun thread to read - I am glad you asked these questions!

It's been fun reading so far and I love the different ways people are storing them. Makes for some great ideas too!

DesertDreamer · #15 2011-02-01, 1:18pm

Good lord, apparently I'm a slob. LOL

Beads that have pix taken but haven't been listed yet are in two baggies--one for sets, one for focals. Beads that have been listed are all in an Artbin box so I can see them easily (in case one actually sells, LOL). Sets and focals that still need pix are in two more baggies, and some are malingering in display trays that I used to use at shows, gathered into a tote made to hold the trays. I'm working on taking pix of all of them, slowly but surely.

Anything that I'm not willing to sell goes one of two places....into the fountain in my backyard, or into the latest Beads of Courage bag.

cadia · #16 2011-02-01, 1:51pm

My really ugly, hopeless beads are stored on the bottom of Blue Hill Bay.

jaci · #17 2011-02-01, 2:28pm

OH I have a lazy susan stacked with clear deviled egg rays too. the small round ones from the $1 store. They are the perfect size for a hand full of small beads, I have a tray with different color spacers in them, 1 focal per egg section or 1 pair of earring pairs. They also have a flat center part that beads can be stored in. They stack pretty well with stuff in them, and you can see everything because they are clear. You can add something to the center to prop up the containers so you can access them without moving anything as well. This worked good for me because I can see it all

. As for things I list. They have their own bin and trays, in a safe spot.

I do not list too too much, but I plan on doing more of this, so this thread is very helpful to me as well.

cadia · #18 2011-02-01, 3:21pm

I'm wonder how people mark the price of their beads, do you do it individually or in "groups" by price.
And if you do some group pricing ~ how do you (and customers) keep track of which beads came from where for when it comes to check out?

flaming_fools · #19 2011-02-02, 10:54am

Got this at the hardware store - in tool box section. A case used for storing screws, bolts, etc. Made of durable plastic, with drawers that will not come all the way out on their own. Measures 14 x 9 x 6 inches deep. If I remember correctly, it cost somewhere around $15 - $20.

As we make primarily focals, as each is photographed and named, the name of the bead becomes the names of the photographs (e.g. flambe01,jpg, flambe02.jpg, etc.) The bead is then put into the 'F' drawer. The 4 extra drawers contain sets of beads, which are put on pipe cleaners to keep the sets together.

Traveling with this is also easy, as you can lay it on its back and everything stays in the proper drawer.

LynieG · #20 2011-02-02, 12:31pm

What an awesome idea Micheal and Brad - this would make it easy to pull out a bead or two to make jewelry too! Without having to sort thru everything! Of course I like the baggie ideas too! Everyone has such good ideas! I am really liking this thread!

Yellow Dog Girl · #21 2011-02-03, 1:36pm

Okay, well, this is kind of a weird one, but it's what works for me....I make/sell mostly sets. So, 6 or 8 beads, plus 6 or 8 matching spacers, would get made, cleaned, then dumped in a bowl. And this would go on for weeks....Every time I had a show coming up I would CURSE myself for my slovenly ways. Did I make this bead to go in that set, or in THAT set? Does that bead go with the purple set, or is the base really ink blue? And OMG look at all the spacers! What was I thinking?! You get the idea. Then, I visited a bicycle shop....did you know that beads made on a 3/32 mandrel fit perfectly on the thinnest bicycle spoke? And the spokes have these nifty little screw-on things? Makes set-making a breeze! String them on in the desired order, put the little nipple thing on, and store in a stackable tray until I can get around to putting them on their copper wire semi-permanent home. I'd always used 1/16 mandrels because I make pretty small beads, and the 3/32 is just a smidgen larger. I've also found this works well as temporary storage for smaller focals that I can also make on the 3/32 mandrel. I'm sure that if you routinely make focals buying a larger spoke would be a solution. I'll have to give credit to Michelle Waldren for this little epiphany. She had her large, honkin' focals displayed this way at a Blue Moon Glassworks show....I just had to find the smaller spokes!

Lisi · #22 2011-02-03, 1:46pm

Three small tackle boxes - one for sold beads, one for listed beads, and one for beads that need to be listed. I have an old jewelry box where I have a few sets of OPBs (other peoples' beads) but I don't usually keep beads lying around. They get sold or given away.

Wonkies, "oopsies", and totally for the trash can beads?? You don't want to know!

SilverRiverJewelry · #23 2011-02-03, 2:11pm

My beads awaiting pics go on a sushi tray. Beads photographed but waiting to be listed go on another tray. Beads that are photographed and listed are in a box awaiting sale.

the beads i keep to make my own jewelry are in a clear plastic bin on my jewelry desk, I have a large jar of beads for beads of courage. The ones that are not savable go in the garden or the trash.

KarenBeth · #24 2011-02-03, 5:08pm

I tried organizing when I first started making beads and they got organized by color in the lil plastic containers with dividers. I still have those trays and I look back and think, wtf was I thinking? So those are my old, ugly bead trays. Since then, I tried organizing, however, I failed. I have a container with swarovski (spilled and now they are in all diff divders all mixed up.) I have one with silver beads. I have several empty. I have several fugly bead jars, a glass filled with water for my to-be-cleaned beads, and I don't even know where my nice beads are.....oh yeah, they are in a tin. My problem is I don't like taking pictures, adjusting size and listing. (Not to mention, I'm afraid of selling my good beads cus I like them too much, LOL) I plan to sell them. I just have to get over my fear. What do I care how they are organized? I just like making em! I'm envious of you guys.

jaci · #25 2011-02-03, 5:47pm

Karen you should sell your beads! They are GREAT!

KarenBeth · #26 2011-02-03, 6:35pm

Thank you Jaci! My family tells me too, as well, but you know how families are. I've definitely progressed over the last year or two. I'm trying to get the balls, lol.

jaci · #27 2011-02-03, 7:18pm

I know how you feel! Book craft show, or contact a local coffee shop for a few days of promotions. You will quickly gain confidence in your work! Especially when you tell people that you make them, and explain how!

glassactcc · #28 2011-02-03, 7:42pm

I don't have any to store. I make, I post, I sell, I make more. I have no inventory which is good and bad.

LynieG · #29 2011-02-03, 8:05pm

Would love to have this problem glassactcc!

redbearmountain · #30 2011-02-03, 8:51pm

I also don't have any beads to store. I make them then they go into jewelry then I sell my jewelry and then I make. All my beads go right into my jewelry so I have plenty of jewelry for my store. Niya