Artbeads.com

Full review
Background
About three years ago, after helping her sister make some jewelry items, my wife quickly learned the art of making beautiful beaded necklaces and bracelets. As she began wearing her creations she began receiving requests for custom orders. She soon added rosaries, earrings, wine glass charms, watches, ceiling fan pulls and beaded eyeglass chains to her repertoire. At that time, there were only two local shops which sold beading and other jewelry-making supplies to the public. Both were inconvenient and expensive.

Today, her hobby takes up two six-foot tables; four multi-drawer storage boxes (the type used for storing nut, bolts, & screws); at least a dozen, flat, single-tray tackle boxes; countless smaller storage containers; beads; findings; charms; a large removable-tray tackle box filled with jewelry-making tools, beading wire, assorted odds & ends; and three beading boards. With the increase in size and scope of her hobby those two shops have become very inconvenient and very expensive

Internet Answer
About a year ago, she assigned her part-time designer and full-time supply runner (me), the duty of surfing the Internet for sites that sold the items she used. Over the past year we have narrowed the sites to those that offer a quick turn-around time with competitive prices. We have placed small orders with a few of the sites that survived the cuts. For the most part, they all delivered the goods.

Prior to Mother's Day, my wife was inundated with orders for necklaces, bracelets, and beaded eye-glass chains. This required a quick re-supply of items she did not have on hand.. She received the most orders for a bracelet of cube-shaped Swarovski Crystals, sterling silver clasps, and adorned with single, sterling silver, letter charm. The crystals and charms were our most immediate need.

We wanted to purchase all the materials from one site to make things easier all-around. However, we quickly encountered a major problem. We were unable to locate the letter charms that fit the bill. The charm she used on her bracelet was a simple italic, block letter. As we searched we found block letters, fancy italic letters, and filigreed italic letters. We only found the charms she wanted on one site....Artbeads.com.

Artbeads.com, your online bead store
Ironically, Artbeads.com (www.Artbeads.com) was not on our “favorites” list. The search of the ever-elusive, simple italic letter charm, in the correct size, led us to company. According to the “About Us” page, Artbeads began as an online business in 1999, selling sterling silver beads made in Bali and India. Anyone visiting this site today can quickly ascertain that their original product is now only one of many sold by the company and has now become a minor portion of their sales.

What do they sell?
Artbeads sells nearly all the products that the beading hobbyist or professional may need. Their extensive inventory appeals to my wife and me. Ordering supplies is so much easier when it can be done from one site. The ability to continue making one order from Artbeads will go a long way in retaining our business. Our ability to place, pay, and track only one order, have all the supplies arrive together, and shop competitive prices makes Artbeads.com a “no-brainer” for us.

Some of the items Artbeads currently offers through their site include:
Swarovski Beads and Flatbacks ▪ Silver Components ▪ Gold Components ▪ Base-Metal Components ▪ Sterling Silver Charms ▪ Bali Silver ▪ Israeli Silver ▪ Hill Tribe Silver ▪ Silver Alphabet Beads ▪ Stone Beads ▪ Glass Beads ▪ Fresh Water Pearls ▪ Stringing Materials ▪ Wire and Chain ▪ Beading Tools and Supplies ▪ Beading Books ▪ Pre-cut/Finished Chains and Necklaces

Each of the above are listed on the site's right-hand sidebar. They are also represented in the main viewing area of the page with thumbnail pictures. Clicking on a category listed in the sidebar extends the sidebar to list all the subcategories, as well as switching the main screen from the home-page to that category page for that item. Like the home-page, the category page thumbnails pictures to navigate the next step of the search. For example, we were searching for Swarovski Crystals in faceted cubes. Clicking on the rightbar, listed eighteen subheadings, most according to shape of the beads. At the same time, the home page switched to the Swarovski Beads Page. The thumbnails categorized the beads into different bead shapes, pendants, and birthstone colors.

Similarly, items listed under the heading of Silver Components included beads, spacer beads, clasps, charms, alphabet blocks, crimp tubes, bead caps/tips, head/eye pins, extenders, earring components, stations, bails, and miscellaneous findings.

In addition to the headings already listed, Artbeads.com has pages offering “Weekly Specials,” “New Products,” “Bead Clearance” and “Email Gift Certificates.”

Our Experience
We placed our order for crystals, letter charms, watch faces, silver findings, and a few other odds and ends. Artbeads allowed us to order the crystals individually rather than in packs or strands. This is a great advantage when only one person wants an unusual color, size, and/or shape. By ordering individual crystals we won't end up with one or more crystals that are never used at a cost $1.40 each (8mm faceted cube). .

Like most shopping sites, we were able to place and remove items from our “shopping cart” at any point in the process. The total amount of the order is re-calculated with each item added to prevent “sticker-shock” at check-out.

Navigation around the site was quick and easy. In addition to the sidebar mentioned earlier, there is a search tool available. There is also a top-bar where Ordering Information, View Last Items, Learning Center, Customer Care, and Site Map pages can be quickly accessed.

Order information provides details on shipping, back orders, and pricing information. Although we had a deadline, we were able to take advantage of Artbeads, free-shipping option which available when using First Class Mail. They also offer several other quicker, but pricier, delivery methods including Priority Overnight Shipping. The site indicated our order should arrive within 3-6 working days. We were delighted when the entire order arrived just 3 days later.

The Learning Center is lagniappe, “a little something extra,” for site visitors. Here Artbeads, offers jewelry design ideas, handy tips, and resources. Although we have not used the Customer Care Service, their return policy states they guarantee a 100% refund on any and all items returned for any reason until one-year after the order is placed. They also supply telephone numbers, e-mail address, and ground mail address for contacts and returns. On this page the company toots their own horn, informing customers, “Artbeads,com has won Yahoo! Stores' Top Service Star,” signifying their top quality service.

We chose to pay by credit card. Artbeads accepts all the major cards. They also accept payment through PayPal. Orders can also be placed by telephone and fax. Check-out was a snap. Completing the payment and shipping information was no trouble. The site also provides an area for the customer to write additional information regarding the order. On-line Order Security is provided by SSL encryption and their Privacy Policy is that of Yahoo! Storefronts.

We were completely satisfied with the quality of all the items we received. They have now been made into some beautiful items. As a matter of fact, my wife is telling me to finish this review so we can go on-line and place another order.