beads, beads, beads

[sewidarity]

Just went to The Bead Warehouse in Silver Spring - normally they're wholesale only, but they sometimes have days where normal mortals can shop there. I liked it a LOT - prices range from decent to extremely good.

Good things: bags of interesting glass beads (cheap in quantity), semi-precious stones, millefiori, fiberoptic and magnetic hematite beads, findings in large quantities. Miscellaneous interesting things like a small bin of vintage trade beads, and some vintage Czech, and trace quantities of dichroic and shell. There were some things which, to judge from the price, must've been real live freshwater pearls. Didn't see any lampwork. You have to be willing to sort of paw through bins to find stuff.

To get there, if you don't have a car, you take the bus from Silver Spring metro out to a grungy industrial neighborhood, where the store is hidden in an industrial building next to a sign that says "Marvin Schwab" rather than "The Bead Warehouse." Marvin was there - nice guy. I'd recommend going earlier in the day, because otherwise, if the bus is 40 minutes late, you'll get stuck waiting in the cold and dark (although in my case this worked out fine; I met some lovely folks and we all bonded by bilingually agreeing that the bus lateness sucked).

[twowishes]

Wow, sounds worth a visit!  How do you find out about their "mortal days"?  (Feel free to message me next time -- not to deprive you of the bonding time at the bus stop, but we could carpool!)

[ChrisSews]

I use to visit this place quite a bit when I lived up in Silver Spring.  They have a ton of cool beads.  Prices seem to be all over the place.  Some great deals and some things kinda pricey.  Tons of variety though.  They have everything from cheap glass beads to precious stones.  The place is usually packed and there are tons of baskets with all kinds of beads to sort through so it can have a treasure-hunt quality. 

Marvin does alot of trade shows and travels alot.  His open hours change every month depending upon his schedule.  You can find a clanader on his website http://www.thebeadwarehouse.com/ to find out when he's open.  You can also call him and request an appointment.  If you make a appointment you are required to spend at least $200 on beads.  If you spend alot on bead and supplies or have a couple of friends who go in together this is another option for you.

[circus]

Good to know! My parents live a few blocks away from there and I know my mom was talking about going (if she hasn't already). I'm definitely going to point out this thread to her.