“For beading fanatics, it’s like being a kid in a GIGANTIC candy store.”

Prepare to be dazzled.

What’s that? Tasty beads at sweet prices? Yes indeed! Our 2012 Bead Shows are starting up again in just a few weeks! Our crew kicks off the season with our Spokane Bead Frenzy and then travels all across the continental United States with a truckload full of beads and other jewelry-making goodies.  We actually do put out candy dishes to help customers maintain their energy as they peruse the thousands and thousands of beads available!

If you haven’t already, now is  a great time to sign up to get an invite to our shows! Admission is free. Bring a friend to help you decide – or to help carry your haul! Plus, if you plan a week or two ahead, you can have a regular stock order delivered to the show for no charge. Translation: free shipping! Then, if you purchase more than $100 at the show, you’ll get a free shipping coupon for your next phone, catalog or online order. We visit most cities on our route 2x per year, so if you keep up this cycle long enough, you might not ever pay for shipping again!

Still not convinced? Here’s what some of your beady friends have to say about Rings & Things Bead Shows:

“For those of you near the cities below, check out this schedule to make sure you don’t miss it!!” http://abeadaday.blogspot.com/2011/09/rings-and-things-bead-tour.html

“So much goodness – I can’t begin to tell you.”  http://justatish.blogspot.com/2011/06/rings-things-bead-tour-and-give-away.html

“Clients want something unique, handmade, not mass produced. That’s why these trips are worth it to me…”  http://lexibeads.blogspot.com/2011/06/rings-and-things-bead-tour.html

“They set up a sea of beads and allow you to browse with no pressure to buy.”  http://karenlandis.com/2011/05/19/rings-things-bead-tour-in-charlotte/

“When I walked into the room, I couldn’t believe my eyes. There were tables lined up with strands and strands of beads.”   http://trendygal.com/?p=77

“For beading fanatics, it’s like being a kid in a GIGANTIC candy store.”  http://donnahuebsch.wordpress.com/2011/06/28/rings-things-bead-tour/

All the Bead Show details are right here. Have questions? Contact us here on the blog or via Twitter, Facebook or regular old email. Hope to see you there! ~ Cindy

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The holiday season is all about giving, yet it has been a tough year economically and budgets are tight. Fortunately, Rings & Things offers a voluntary donation program for employees where a set dollar amount is deducted from each paycheck. At the end of the year, owners Russ & Dee match the deducted funds and give the money to charity. Each employee chooses which charity to support. So, for example, just $2 per bi-weekly paycheck translates into a $100 donation!

Yesterday our HR manager sent out the grand total: through this humble program, Rings & Things employees donated more than $10,000 to charity in 2011! It is really exciting to see a those few dollars we end up not even missing each month add up to something so substantial.  The nonprofits selected this year include:

Spokesman Review Christmas Fund ~ 2nd Harvest Food Bank ~ ACLU Foundation ~ Alzheimers Association ~ Anna Ogden Hall ~ Cancer Patient Care ~ American Childhood Cancer Organization ~ Doctors without Borders ~ KSFC ~ KYRS ~ Living Tongues Institute ~ Las Hermanas ~ Meals on Wheels ~ Planned Parenthood ~ SCRAPS ~ SNAP ~ Spokanimal ~ Union Gospel Mission ~ Vanessa Behan Crisis Nursery ~ YFA Connections

Christmas is just days away, but to make them easier to find I also wanted to post a recap of the 12 Days of Christmas Jewelry Designs. There’s always next year to plan for, plus many of the techniques are adaptable to any occasion!

Day 1 – Swarovski Crystal Christmas Tree Earrings

Day 2 – Bottle Cap Baubles

Day 3 – Lampwork Glass Bead Zipper Pulls

Day 4 – Beaded Snowflakes

Day 5 – Swarovski Crystal Holiday Light Charms

Day 6 – Family Keepsakes

Day 7 – Faux Stained Glass Soldered Ornaments

Day 8 – Mini Ceramic Cookies Charm Bracelet

Day 9 – Hinged Picture Frames

Day 10 – Velvet Ribbon and Bead Bookmarks

Day 11 – Stamped Metal Gift Tags

Day 12 – Brass Fairy Door Sandwich Pendants

Happy holidays everyone! ~ Cindy

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As you may know it is our 39th Anniversary! Hip Hip Hooray! We have been frantically rushing to get all our goodies ready for our beadaholic customers.  Here are some of the great things we have going on in celebration of our 39 years!

Resin Flowers and Birds:

So many colors and shapes to choose from!

With twenty colors and twenty styles available, the possibilities are endless! Make easy post earrings, cute little bobby pins or linked bracelets! Just glue using Beadfix or a little E-6000. A garden of possibilities awaits you

Easy to make earrings, rings, bracelets and bobby pins!

Bracelets, Bracelets and more Bracelets:

We have so many bracelets it’s insane! In fact, we had to dedicate several tables to these cascading, sparkly glass bracelets. Keep them as is, or take them apart and use the beads to make your own creations! Either way, the price can’t be beat, $4.00 a piece or $3.00 a piece if you buy 10 or more!

Bracelets galore!

Sparkly glass bracelets make great gifts!

Czech Glass Island:

The Czech Republic may not have tropical beaches, but they do have some of the best glass beads around! So we figured why not fill up a swimming pool full of Czech glass beads and sell them for $3.00 a strand! It’s glass island!

Take a dip in our pool full of Czech glass!

Simply Swank:

Soldering made easy with Simply Swank Soldering Tools!

If you have always wanted to solder, but have been too scared to try, we have a solution! Simply Swank Soldering tools make soldering easy as pie. Come stop by the showroom and see Rita create soldering magic.

Simply Swank Soldering Irons and Accessories

Well, that’s just a sampling of all the goodness happening here at the Rings & Things Anniversary Event! Hope to see you down here!

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Jan (Marketing Manager) and I have spent the last week in Milwaukee for the Bead and Button Show.  It was a busy week!

We met with vendors and talked about new product ideas;  took classes and learned new jewelry making techniques;  chatted with customers and helped at the Rings & Things booth; met with jewelry designers and the editors of several magazines and found some time to enjoy the city. (Who knew that “Beer Capital of the World” was home to a lifesize statue of Arthur Fonzarelli ~ AKA the Fonz!)

Thanks to our many customers who attended the show! Share your photos of your Bead & Button experience. Check out our photos on Facebook!

Happy Beading!

Sondra (Sales Manager)

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