About Us
Jamie & Jason
Jamie (aka Bead Girl) and Jason had a serendipitous beginning to their relationship. In the summer of 1997, Jamie was just about to open a bead store in Honolulu relying on her love for beads and beading skills to get her through… especially since she had no real experience in retail, sales or management!
It all began on January 1st of 1994, when she woke up in her friend's apartment, and was told "Whatever you do today, you'll do for the rest of the year!" Her friend whipped out a little tool box and rusty old plier, and showed her how to make her first pair of earrings! The premonition was true and Jamie has beaded every day since, trying seed beading, macrame, needle weaving, knotting, stringing and finally settling on wire work as her ultimate favorite (besides lampworking, of course!)
Two months prior to opening the store, she met Jason, who although had no beading experience, had been managing a retail photo store for 10 years! Fortunately, he was comfortable with the principles of retail (like mark–up, profit and reordering) and with a few at–home tutorials in beading was soon a pro behind the counter! Being a smart businesswoman, she quickly married her best employee at a last minute beachfront wedding.
***2011 UPDATE: Beading has remained a true passion for me, and the BEST part of having a store is working with my husband, family and friends everyday.
What started out as a "store", has turned into relationships, community and the opportunity for a spiritual growth that I never imagined was possible. I am so proud to work with people that I love and to be able to welcome you in our store and our hearts!
The Bead Gallery
The Bead Gallery, Honolulu is the ultimate bead store, created by bead lovers, for bead lovers! Located in the heart of Honolulu, we are dedicated to providing you not only with the materials, but with the inspiration and the confidence to create something you will love. From charms to crystals, findings to fire polish, you're sure to find everything you're looking for… and so much more!
Come experience the joy of beading and see why our customers laugh, love, and bead with us every day.
At The Bead Gallery you'll find…
- An impressive selection of gemstones and Swarovski Austrian crystals in a variety of cuts, colors, shapes, sizes, and finishes! We have thousands of beads to choose from!
- Chains in sterling silver, rhodium, gold-filled, vermeil, gunmetal and plated!
- Handcrafted lampwork beads from the Czech Republic, designed for TBG by Jamie and Jason, plus exclusive collections from local lampwork artists Calvin Orr, Kim Yamakawa of JuJu Beadz, and Rene Yoshida a.k.a. "Firebug!"
- Sterling silver, gold–filled, and rhodium pieces!
- High–quality findings and clasps!
- Handmade treasures from local artists!
- The original Tic–Tac storage system!
- Precision jewelry tools!
- An unbelievable selection of glass beads!
- Hand–selected gemstones and pearls!
- Hundreds of seed beads to choose from!
- Over a thousand unique buttons!
- Threads, cords, strings - wonderful color selection!
- Asian and oriental style beads!
- Beautiful pendants and focal beads!
- One–to–one custom classes!
