USEFUL STUFF

DIP 'N ETCH Matte your own beads in 15 minutes! This re-usable colorless solution is safer and less obnoxious than conventional glass etching compounds. Complete instructions come with each bottle. A bottle will matte about 12 hanks of beads. Active ingredient: 20% Ammonium Bifloride

BEAD STOPPER New Small size
This is a short spring coil which you put at the end of a thread when you're stringing beads. It keeps beads from falling off the end of the thread, without your having to put in a temporary knot or "stopper bead". With two sizes available, there's a bead stopper perfect for your type and weight of thread.

Handy*Tape
This is a yellow, self-adhesive measuring tape. It's got inches (in 1/8" resolution) on one edge and millimeters on the other. It's designed to stick directly onto fabric, paper, or anywhere you need a ruler. There's 25 feet of it on a roll, and it can be used in a normal tape dispenses. It's removable and reusable. The markings are in 1 foot increments.

MAC's BEAD LOOM
Wooden, adjustable looms, with tensioning capability. The loom dimension is 3-3/4" high, 7-3/8" wide, 18" long. The working area is 7-3/8" wide and 15-1/2" long. Here is what the promotional literature says: "Our custom springs allow you great flexibility for using the most common sized beads for loom work. A single size 8, 10, 11 or 12 bead fits neatly into each successive space; sizes 13 and 14 fit 2 to a space; and size 6 beads fit into every other space."

BEADCATS' BEAD LOOMS These looms are made of clear, vertical grain fir, with 1"x2" side rails and 2"x3" end boards. Standard size is 1'x3', but custom sizes are available on request. Looms are pre-drilled and sanded smooth. End springs for size 11° or 14°/16° beads are included. Nails and directions for assembly are provided.

SPRINGS FOR LOOMS (build your own!)
Virginia just knocks together a frame out of whatever rough lumber is around and places a spring at each end for her looms. She doesn't even use the nice looms we sell. The cheaper the loom, the more of them she can have warped up at once, she says. Her philosophy is "Spend your money on beads, not on fancy looms." The different pitch of the two kinds of springs corresponds to the warp spacing needed for size 11° and size 14° beads. For wider warps, just stretch the springs further apart.

TRANSPARENT GRAPH PAPERS These are for size 11° beads. Reduce them to see the actual size of your finished project in smaller beads; enlarge them to see your design more easily. Copy them onto plain paper for drawing designs. Unlimited reproduction for your personal use.

WHITE CERAMIC BEAD TRAYS 5" in diameter, with nine 1/4" deep compartments, this tray is really the best working dish we've ever used. The shallow compartments make bead selection easy, the color makes bead selection easy and the weight makes it really hard for your cat to tip them over!

BEAD SCOOPS
These miniature flat-bottomer steel scoops, shaped like the big ones they have at the bulk food aisle, are just the ticket for shoveling beads out of your bead tray. The small ones are 2-1/8" long, the medium are 2-5/8" long.

SCOOP EEZ®
This is a long scoop designed for picking up beads from your work surface and then transferring them back into your bead tube (or other container). It's designed specially for repatriating loose beads to the tubes they came in.

TINY SCISSORS
Good scissors are really one of your most important supplies. These are the best beadwork scissors ever - their fine sharp points let you get right in between beads to snip off your thread close to your work, without leaving a nasty little frayed end. AND, they fit in the needle safe. Both Carol and Virginia use these.

CLOVER® brand airline legal thread cutter
This is a flat, circular pendant about 1-1/2" in diamter with tiny cutters embedded along the edge. It won't get confiscated at security - no more strugging to cut thread with your teeth in you economy class seat.

STORAGE BAGS
2"x2" Zipper closure plastic bags. The most reliable storage we've found. No spills from broken threads (like hanks) or from popped tops and roll-aways (like tubes). Easy and compact to pack for travelling. Bags for an entire project will easily fit in one of our travelling bead cases together with 1 (or 2) of our bead trays.

NEEDLE SAFE
These light blue plastic boxes are lined with magnetic material to hold your needles gently in place. They are deep enough to hold bobbins of Nymo, a pair of tiny scissors and a bead scoop. Throw the Needle Safe in your purse and you're set for on-the-road beading! 4-1/2"x2-1/4"x5/8" thick.

WOODEN NEEDLE CASE
These cylindrical needle cases are not only practical, but they look great peyote stitched! Carol recently peyote stitched a rose pattern on one in size 20° beads and sold it for $400. 1/2" in diameter by 2-1/4" long.

NEEDLE NEST
This is slender plastic box with a transparent top and magnetic lining to hold your needles. It measures 2-3/4" by 3", and is only 3/8" thick, so it's easy to slip into you purse or beading box. The transparent top lets you see immediately if you have enough of the right kind of needles before you leave home!

MAGNETIC WANDS
These are plastic covered magnetic wands, 5-1/4" long and 1" wide, perfect for picking up needles hiding on the floor, carpet, bed or desk. Of course you will also find any pins, thumb-tacks, or paper clips along the way. What a great way to keep needles out of the wrong little mouths or your own big feet! Choose from 3 fun colors

"THIMBLE-IT" Finger Pads
Can't stand traditional thimbles, no matter what the sales pitch? Try one of these oval, stick-on pads. Designed to stick to the pad of your index finger, they cushion against the sharp end of the needle, and provide some extra gripping power as well. Re-usable for many beading sessions, the ovals are about 3/8" by 3/4" and come 64 to a package.

"NEEDLE GRIP-IT" Finger Dots
These are small, self-adhesive circles which can be worn on any finger, including your thumb. They give you better grip and control over slender beading needles, eliminating the need for the "death-grip" method of needle handling. The re-usable patches are about 3/8" in diameter and come 70 to a package.

LEATHER THIMBLES
Tired of stabbing your fingertips with the end of your beading needle or crochet hook, but hate those rigid metal thimbles? Try one of these little leather thimbles - it's like a second skin for your fingertip.

ULTRA-FINE NEEDLE THREADER
These needle threaders will work with size 10° - 12° needles, but not all threads. They won't work with smaller needles.

BEESWAX In protective plastic case

THREAD HEAVEN® is an anti-static, lubricating treatment for thread. It keeps thread from tangling but never leaves a residue to stain fabric or rub off onto beads. It comes in a little plastic box and lasts practically forever.

THREAD ZAP® is a battery-powered precision thread sealer. It's about the size of a long bead tube, and utilizes a tiny hot wire to cut thread or to burn (and seal) thread ends. The battery is included.

BOARD W/ MAGNETIC STRIPS
Place your design on this 8"x10" metal board and hold it securely with the magnetic strips. If you do loomwork, you'll immediately recognize how valuable this tool is. Virginia swears by hers. For greater ease in following your design row by row, get the LINE MAGNIFIER, below.

LINE MAGNIFIER
Clear plastic magnifier has magnets on each end to hold it securely in place over the row of your drawing on the metal board.

14 in 1 MEASURING GAUGE
This small aluminum gauge has 14 different measurements, in inches, perfect for counting number of beads or rows to the inch, no matter what beading technique you're using. The flat gauge measures 2-1/4" by 2-1/8" so there's no excuse for not carrying it.

LEATHER THONGThis thong can be used as a permanent base for peyote stitching or for stringing beads with large holes, like pony, crow and trade beads.

CAT DANCER
Our cats have played with this simple toy for years and never tired of it. Rolled cardboard on a spring steel wire emulates a flying moth (or something). Drives cats crazy!