Silver Beads

Silver beads are yet another precious metal beads. Silver beads are expensive but not as much as gold beads and thus are affordable when compared to gold. Silver metal is widely used to make jewelry. Being relatively inexpensive, silver finds wide applications in making of utensils, key chains, gift items, candle stands, picture frames and jewelry (chains, pendants, locks, fasteners and beads). Silver beads which form an essential part of jewelry, are gleaming small round objects. These beads are often pierced so that they could be stringed and worn as jewelry. Silver beads are equally popular as silver metal for making silver beaded jewelry and other beads crafts.

Types of Silver Beads

There are many types of silver beads used for jewelry making and other beaded crafts. Some are categorized on the basis of purity of silver such as fine silver beads and sterling silver beads. Some others are classified on the basis of places where these silver beads are made such as Bali silver beads and Thai silver beads etc. Yet other types of silver beads include those classified on the basis of their manufacturing techniques such as handmade silver beads and machine made silver beads. There is one unique type of silver beads which are known as antique silver beads and which belong to the bygone periods of history. Some of the most popular types of silver beads are described here.

Bali Silver Beads

Bali silver beads are very popular beads all over world. The original Bali silver beads are made in Indonesia by professional and experienced silversmiths. Silver beads made on Bali contain more silver than sterling silver. They are generally beautiful handmade beads with granulation and strong contrasts between an antiqued dark base and shiny spheres of patterns on top. Bali silver beads can be found in all styles- silver bead spacers, bead caps, clasps, toggles, and silver findings.

Hill Tribe Silver Beads

Hill tribe silver beads are basically Thai silver beads made in northern Thailand by ethnic tribes settled in the hills. These silver beads contain approximately 98-99% silver. These precious metal beads as well as hill tribe silver jewelry are handmade and often shaped like plants, animals and geometric patterns. Many precious metal beads manufacturers and exporters dealing in wholesale silver beads, especially hill tribe beads, can get made custom silver beads as well as silver jewelry according to the specifications provided by customers.

Tibetan Silver Beads

Tibetan silver beads, as the name suggests are made in Tibet. They are ethnic, handmade and are often large silver beads, rather oversized beads. However, silver beads buyers should always be cautious about the cheap Chinese metal beads which many bead sellers describe as Tibetan silver beads. When pure silver is used, these beads are very expensive. Tibetan style silver beads are also popular among bead lovers. However, there is a difference between Tibetan silver beads and Tibetan style silver beads. Tibetan style silver beads are mostly not made of silver but of an alloy with nickel or copper. The original Tibetan beads are often combined with gemstones. Typical Tibetan silver beads have gemstone center with metal bead caps.

Liquid Silver Beads

Liquid silver beads, also known as silver heishi are very elegant silver beads for jewelry. They are very small beads. In fact, these liquid silver beads are very fine beads with as smaller a length as 1/16 inch or 5/32 inch. These small silver beads have holes ranging from just .021 inch to .029 inch. When strung together, the very fine and small liquid silver beads look like a seamless silver rope. Sterling heishi is sometimes electroplated to retard tarnishing and ensure their bright finish. These can then be called silver plated beads.

Silver Plated Beads

Silver plated beads are not wholly made of the precious metal silver. These beads are made with some base metal covered by a silver electroplated finish. The finish colors, thicknesses and weights of silver plated beadsmay differ from one silver beads manufacturer to other. This is because silver plated beads manufacturers use different thicknesses of plating according to their own standards.

Silver Foil Beads

Silver foil beads are in fact not precious metal beads but are mostly glass beads having a silver foil core encased in transparent colors of glass. The glasses used in silver foil beads could be Venetian, Murano or decorative lampwork beads. Silver foil-lined lampwork beads add sparkle and color to jewelry designs.

Silver Beads Shapes

Silver beads are not only categorized on the basis of their originating places and manufacturing methods but also on the basis of bead shapes. One can easily find silver alphabet beads or letter beads, silver tube beads, silver heart beads, etc. In fact, silver beads can be found in almost all imaginable shapes that silver smiths can think of.

Silver Beads Usage

Silver bead form an integral component of jewelry, decoratives, and fashion accessories. Silver beads are a part of range of jewelries like silver bead chain, necklace, bangles, bracelets, ear rings, nose rings and so on. Silver bead serve as a part of design of the things used for decorative purposes like candle stands, show pieces, picture frames. There are silver rosary beads too which are used for religious purposes.