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T♥

Friday, September 4, 2009

Jewelry by Tara's best kept supply secrets, shhhhhhhh........

Some of you loyal friends may know that along with my jewelry and sewing shops, I ran a pretty successful supply shop on Etsy.

Supplies by Tara

Per the request of several newbies on Etsy and others who are just curious to where I get some of my great finds, I am letting some of my fab suppliers slip.

*Please note, I would love, love, love to tell you all where I get my vintage Lucite, Celluloid, and brass. But then I'd be out of  business:(

Okay, let's start with the beading basics! Two suppliers that I personally know are reputable and their lamp work and other types of beads are priced reasonably.


Only use those two for beads, the rest of their stuff is overpriced.
This girl was on Etsy a long time ago and is extremely reputable, pricey but a good selection for altered art.
You can get basic findings here…
I use an overseas merchant for mine and I buy in big quantity. Oriental Trading co. has a ton of beads that I already see on Etsy, so it’s your call.

This person has another secret wholesale shop… But their main site is pretty cheap too!!

Now I think this is the most money saving, secretive one of all these. Please, please, please, stop paying high prices for crystal after I give you this, okay??

Another important tip, do not be afraid to go on eBay to get findings. If you can count the findings you are buying, then you have paid too much! I just got a HUGE bag of silver earring hooks that could make at least 1,000 pairs of earrings for $5, including shipping. It took 1 1/2 weeks to get here and I had not prob w/the quality. Do not be an eBay snob! When you start paying $6 for a toggle clasp, you know you need to get on eBay. I once bought a $30 bag, including shipping, of sterling vintage toggle clasps. This was 3 years ago, and I still have enough for the next 10 years!! Look around, there are great finds on eBay with FREE shipping. Same things you can buy online for $1 each you can have 50 of for $1.00. 
Buying supplies on Etsy is great too, there are a lot of unique and fab deals on there, and you can support your fellow artists with destash deals:)

So you may be asking yourself, how can Tara afford to give away her beading suppliers??? Well, I don't dabble w/the beads anymore. I actually have a houseful of unused beads that could keep my supply shop going for at least 5 years! So shop away, I'm happy for you all to get a good deal:)

Good luck in your bead hunt!
T♥

P.S. If you are looking for something specific you can always email me.

Email Tara

2 comments:

Honey Nest said...

I really enjoyed reading your blog :) Thanks so much for sharing all of these great sites....

Lady Steel said...

These site will be a big help. Thanks so much for sharing. Peace