Glass Beads Wholesale: Goldstone, Opalite, Lampwork and Obsidian

Looking for glass beads wholesale? Start by deciding which kind of glass you mean. Some glass beads are made in a furnace to look like nothing else, like goldstone and opalite. Some are shaped by hand over a torch, like lampwork evil eyes. And some glass was made by a volcano: obsidian is natural glass, sold on the same bead wall as gemstones. This guide explains each kind, how to tell glass from stone, how to label it honestly and how a glass bead line can pay its way in your shop.

Four kinds of glass beads a shop can stock

Glass is a solid that never formed crystals. It cools from a melt too quickly for atoms to line up, so it has no crystal shape and breaks with a smooth, curved edge. That one fact covers a wide shelf:

• Man-made "stone look" glass. Goldstone and opalite are the two you will meet on most crystal and bead walls. They are made to be pretty, not to copy a particular gemstone.
• Lampwork glass. Rods of coloured glass are melted in a torch flame and wound onto a steel rod, one bead at a time. Evil eye beads are the best-known lampwork shape.
• Pressed and seed glass. Small uniform beads made in moulds or cut from drawn glass tube. These are a craft-store staple and come from specialist glass bead makers.
• Natural glass. Obsidian forms when lava cools too fast to crystallise. Tektites and Libyan desert glass formed in very different ways, but they are natural glass too.

Stonebridge is a gemstone-led supplier, so we stock the first, second and fourth kinds. When we checked the shelf for this guide, there were no seed or pressed glass beads on it. If those are the core of your designs, use a dedicated glass bead supplier for them. A gemstone supplier is where you add the sparkle and the natural pieces.

Goldstone and opalite: glass made to be itself

Goldstone is glass with tiny copper crystals grown inside it, which is why it glitters. Brown goldstone shows the copper colour. Blue goldstone gets its deep blue from cobalt, with flecks that sparkle like a night sky. It is also called aventurine glass, and the story goes that it was first made by accident in Venice. The mineral aventurine was later named after the glass, because of its similar shimmer.

Opalite is milky glass with a soft blue-white glow. Hold it against a dark background and it looks blue. Hold it against a light one and it often turns peachy gold. It is not opal and contains no opal.

Both are easy sellers because the colour is even from bead to bead. A bracelet made from goldstone looks the same as the photo on your shelf card, which matters if you sell online. Here is what we had on the shelf when this guide was written:

• Blue goldstone bead strand: 15-inch strands from 4 mm to 12 mm, plain and faceted, plus a 32-inch chip strand. Nine options in all.
• Brown goldstone bead strand: faceted 6 and 8 mm, plain 10 mm, and two chip sizes.
• Opalite bead strand: round beads from 4 mm to 12 mm and a 32-inch chip strand.

Rather sell finished pieces? Our opalite bracelet comes in 4 mm, 8 mm and chip, and the blue goldstone bracelet in 4 mm and 8 mm.

Lampwork and natural glass

Lampwork beads are made one at a time, so no two are quite the same. The evil eye, or nazar, is a blue glass charm with a white and blue "eye" in the middle, traditionally hung or worn to turn away bad luck. It sells to jewellery makers and to gift shops that sell it as a charm on its own. Our evil eye lampwork glass pendants come in packs of 50, a size that suits a maker or a bowl by the till.

Obsidian is the natural glass most bead buyers know. It is volcanic, about 5 to 5.5 on the Mohs hardness scale, and it comes in several looks. Snowflake obsidian has white spots of cristobalite. Gold sheen and rainbow obsidian shimmer because of tiny aligned bubbles and inclusions inside the glass. Mahogany obsidian is streaked with reddish-brown iron. You will find strands and bracelets on our obsidian beads and bracelets page, including the mahogany obsidian bead strand.

Libyan desert glass is a collector's piece rather than a bead. It is a pale yellow natural glass from the Sahara, thought to have formed in a meteorite impact or airburst millions of years ago. It sells best as a labelled specimen.

How to tell glass from gemstone

Glass beads are not a problem. Glass sold as a gemstone is. You do not need a lab to catch most of it, just a few habits:

1. Use a 10x loupe. Round gas bubbles, swirl lines and a perfectly even colour point to glass. Natural stones show irregular inclusions, banding or tiny cracks.
2. Check the hardness. Glass sits around 5.5 on the Mohs scale. Quartz is 7 and scratches glass easily, so a "quartz" bead that a quartz point scratches is not quartz.
3. Look at the price per strand. A rare stone sold at the price of common glass is a warning sign.
4. Read the listing. A good supplier says what a bead is. If the label is vague, ask before you buy.

Our guide to buying bead strands in Canada covers enhancement labels on natural stone in more detail.

Label it right

Gemmologists draw a line between a synthetic, which has the same make-up as the natural stone, and an imitation, which only looks like it. Strictly speaking, goldstone and opalite are neither: they are man-made glass that copies no natural stone. The clearest label for your customer is the plain one. "Goldstone, man-made glass" on a shelf card tells the truth and still sells the sparkle.

On our shelf, opalite and blue goldstone are marked "(Synthetic)" in the product name, and our bracelet pages describe both as man-made glass. Copy that onto your own cards and online listings, so nobody buys opalite thinking it is opal. Our authenticity page explains how we label stones.

Can I make money reselling glass beads?

Yes, if you sell the finished piece, not the loose bead. Glass beads have three things going for them in a shop:

• Even colour. Every bracelet in a batch matches, so you can photograph one and sell twenty.
• Little waste. Uniform beads mean fewer rejects when you string, and a 15-inch strand still makes about two 7-inch bracelets.
• An easy story. "Glass with copper inside that sparkles" or "an evil eye charm for luck" is quick to explain at the till.

Do the maths before you order. Take the strand or pack cost, divide it by the number of finished pieces it makes, then add cord, findings and packaging. A 50-pack of evil eye pendants divides by 50. Price the finished piece the way you price the rest of your shelf. Our guide to markup vs margin shows how to set a price that leaves the margin you want.

Mixing glass with stone works well too. A goldstone spacer in an amethyst bracelet, or opalite between rose quartz beads, adds colour at a lower cost per bead. Browse the full range on our bead strands bulk order page.

Frequently asked questions

Can I buy glass beads wholesale?

Yes. Glass beads are sold by the strand or by the pack. Stonebridge Imports sells goldstone and opalite strands, lampwork evil eye pendants and natural obsidian beads with no minimum order, shipping from Kitchener, Ontario. For seed beads and pressed glass, use a specialist glass bead supplier.

Where can I buy glass beads in bulk?

Buy from a wholesaler that sells by the strand or pack and says plainly which beads are glass. In Canada, ordering from a supplier that ships inside the country saves you duty, brokerage and border delays on small orders.

Where is the cheapest place to buy glass beads?

Large overseas marketplaces often show the lowest price per bead, but add shipping, duty, brokerage, minimum order sizes and the wait before you compare. Work out the landed cost per finished piece, not the sticker price per strand.

Where is the best place to buy wholesale beads?

The best supplier labels every bead clearly, sells in the quantities you actually use and ships fast enough that you can reorder what sells. Check strand lengths, bead counts and how enhanced or man-made beads are marked before you place a big order.

Is goldstone a real stone?

Goldstone is real glass, not a natural stone. It is man-made glass with tiny copper crystals that make it sparkle. Brown goldstone shows the copper colour and blue goldstone is coloured with cobalt. Label it as man-made glass when you sell it.

Stock it for your shop

Stonebridge has no minimum order and ships from Kitchener, Ontario. Open a wholesale account or plan your opening order.