Glass beads have been used from making the ancient jewelry of Babylon and Egypt to today's trendier jewelry. These beads are widely used in the making of jewelery owing to it's amazingly detailed work that come with a natural fluidity. Designers manufacture glass bead jewelry, having a very specific creative concept in mind. Glass beads are produced in a very large quantity both in factories and by cottage industries to fulfill the rising demands of jewelery industry.

Techniques
Glass bead jewelry consists of really intricate designs that is only limited by the imagination and creativity of the maker. Most often, they are strung, but on occasion they are wired to a mesh backing which is called the "collage" technique of jewelry making. The collage technique is most often used for broaches or earrings. Glass beads are made more beautiful when mixed together with gemstone beads and some metal beads for accent.

Popular Forms
Glass beads are available in a wide variety of colors, sizes, and shapes that make them a great element in one's jewelry supplies. An added benefit of using glass beads in jewelry making is their low cost. Jewelery makers find a wide selection of shapes of glass beads including flowers, leaves, cathedral beads also known as "window beads", pyramids, bicones, stars, hearts and coins. The various finishes in which glass bead jewelry is found include shiny and pearlescent appearance, beads that have a hole or center color, oil-polished, iridescent, very shiny and polished looking on the surface.