5 Fun Facts About Jewelry Beads

These tiny shimmery droplets do way much more than their size implies. Whether you wish to add a fresh glamour to your jewelry wardrobe or you wish to create your own style, beaded jewelry is just the perfect way to mold your imagination. Coming in tens of hundreds of varieties, these little beads can offer you the looks you desire, nearly for any or every occasion. Each bead, after all, is unique and individual in itself. However, you’d be fascinated to know that the bead culture is not just another modern-day trend flashing in the latest fashion. In fact, beads have been in the trade since, well, maybe forever.

Scroll down to read five interesting facts about jewelry beads.

Lava Beads Carry The Energy of Fire Within Them

As the name implies, lava beads are formed out of molten lava that is released during a volcanic eruption through igneous rocks. It is said that once the volcano goes silent and the hot molten lava comes in contact with the atmospheric air, it begins to cool. Once the material is cooled, it starts taking the shape of blackish or greyish solid matter, which is semi-porous and semi-soft.

This matter is then collected by jewelry makers and cut into little lava beads. However, it is said that, even after converting to beads, this matter contains the stupendous energy of fire element within. It is, therefore, said that wearing lava bead jewelry can help regulate body temperature.

Seed Beads Were Used As Barter Materials In Ancient Age

Seed beads are tiddly little beads usually manufactured out of glass. Usually, a huge amount of glass is pulled in a machine to create a slender glass tube, which is then cut, varnished and colored to form seed beads. Seed beads are used not just in jewelry but are highly popular in art & craft as well. The origins of seed beads take us back into the 13th century when India was still under the rule of English and other Empires.

In those days, when the barter system was prevalent, seeds beads were commonly used as currency materials for barter exchange. That is, people who had a shortage of money would purchase goods while trading them for packets of seed beads instead of actual money. So, you see these tiny little glass beads have carried royal significance over hundreds of years!

The First Ever Art of Making Glass Beads Was Discovered by Egyptians

The name ‘glass beads’ come from the manufacturing process of these beads, that is, beads formed by manipulating the glass. It is said that thousands of years ago, some merchants were traveling by sea carrying pots of nitrate for trading. On one day they settled on a beach to have their meal. In order to cook their food, they needed to fix their cauldron in the sand. To do so, they made some heaps of nitrate powder in the sand. Nitrate, upon reacting with sand and catching the heat of Sun started producing a glassy liquid. However, even though the glass was discovered accidentally, it was the Egyptians who were able to first shape it into glass beadwork, which was nearly 3000 years ago.

The earliest known glass beads are Egyptian faience beads which were made in clay and coated in vitreous materials. Following the Egyptian glass beads, Romans too learned the art of glass beadmaking, further followed by other regions. Today, glass beads are one of the top most popular beads used by jewelers and artisans around the world.

Real Coral Beads Can Change the Colour of Milk & Turmeric

Scientists confirm that if you want to test the coral beads from real to faux, here is a simple test. Put some coral beads in a bowl of milk. Leave it for some time. If, after some time, the color of milk begins to change from white to slightly colored, it indicates that the coral beads are real, not imitations. Similarly, you can test these beads using turmeric powder.

Fill a bowl or box with turmeric powder and sprinkle your coral beads inside it. If after a few hours, you notice the change in the color of the powder, the beads are real. If the color doesn’t change, you need to have a talk with your jeweler!

Lapis Lazuli Beads Are Known As The Beads of Truth

Did you know that Cleopatra, the Egyptian queen used powdered Lapis Lazuli for her cosmetics? Also, did you know that Catherine, the Russian princess dedicated an entire room of her palace to Lapis Lazuli, decorating everything with this bead stone?

Lapis Lazuli was one of the favorite bead stones of great kings, empresses, and leaders, and still is. It is said that due to the properties of materials it consists of, Lapis Lazuli is said to be the Stone of Truth and Awakening. It is believed by many spiritual masters that carrying or wearing the jewelry made of Lapis Lazuli can prevent psychic attacks and help a person contain the energy needed for success, peace, and abundance.

So, the next time you see one of these little inconspicuous jewelry beads, you will know a little more about them. Wasn't that fun?