A Little History of Anita's Beads

I was updating my Toad Hollow Minerals information page the other day because I noticed the links to most of the photographs were broken. This activity got me thinking about the history of Anita's Beads. I started my first business, "Designs On You," back in the late 70's when I was living in Beverly, Massachusetts. I produced silk-screened t-shirts, batik (the wax resist dye technique that was my major self-taught discovery for that decade) pillows and quilted wall hangings, quilted ornaments, and objects embellished with applique and/or embroidery.

Then came major discovery number two: minerals and beads. I began selling quartz crystals and beaded sterling silver jewelry with a partner as "Underground Sterling & Stone." My partner was a salesman and the jewelry I produced was sold, for the most part, to New Age/Alternative Healing gift shops.

When I moved to New Hampshire in 1996, I decided to look for a place that could accommodate a home-based retail shop. I purchased the property then known as "Toad Hollow" in Wakefield. I moved in June and by the fourth of July I had established "Toad Hollow Jewelry" in the carriage house attached to the barn. By October the unheated space was too cold for comfort so I moved the operation into house occupying the room which is now Studio 2. Once filled with display cases, the room seemed very small!

At the time I was working as a children's librarian in the nearby town of Wolfeboro so in March 1997 I decided to open "Venus Rising," a mineral, crystal, bead and jewelry shop with a decidedly New Age flavor there.

Venus Rising closed in May of 2000 when I shifted my focus back to Toad Hollow full-time and expanded the business to occupy the barn (for minerals) and the carriage house once again (for jewelry and beads). Only this time the buildings were heated! Below is a photo of the carriage house as bead room.

Then bead part of the business became more popular than the rest and required more space, so the barn became a bead shop. In September 2006 I officially started "Anita's Beads" and added a large selection of Czech glass beads to the inventory.

And having made major discovery number 3 which was collage, the carriage house became my gallery.

Below is a recent photo of the bead shop as it looks today:

I'm working on a new display for the check-out counter on the right to show some of the lovely Toad Hollow crystals on sale this winter and will put up photos here soon!

Toad Hollow Coprolite

I'm excited to report that one of my photographs of Coprolite or "petrified dinosaur poop" has been included in Exotic Gems, Volume 2 by Renee Newman. The book is due to be released next month at the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show. You can see more photos of Toad Hollow coprolite, in addition to other fossil and mineral specimens online. Specimens are available for purchase at Anita's Beads in Wakefield, New Hampshire. Don't forget our 25% off Winter Sale on all Toad Hollow minerals, crystals and tumbled stones which runs through March 21st.

Toad Hollow Mineral Sale

At Anita's Beads we are having a sale on our entire collection of Toad Hollow Minerals. Take 25% off of tumbled stones, rough stones, crystals, and mineral specimens beginning today. The sale will continue through March 21st but supplies are limited to stock on hand so shop early for the best selection. In addition, weekly specials will be offered at an additional 25% off.

This week's special is tumbled stones. Wire-wrappers take note: stock up on tumbled stones at 50% off now through Friday January 21st. Watch for our next weekly special to be announced on Anita's Bead Blog!

I've also been doing some long overdue revision work on the Toad Hollow Minerals site. All broken links on the Site Index page have been updated or removed to eliminate the annoying "404 Page Not Found" error messages. Additional work will be forthcoming!

Anita's Customer Appreciation Sale

20% Off - Toad Hollow Minerals

15% OFF - All Czech Glass Beads

10% OFF - Anita's Jewelry and Collage Art

10% OFF - Just About Everything Else (*)

(*)Not on sale: Sterling Silver items; Gold-Filled items; Soft Flex and Soft Touch Wire; Power Pro; Fire-Line

Sale Ends - Friday December 31, 2010

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Seven New Daily Bracelets

Seven new designs have been added to Anita's Daily Bracelet blog. Bead kits and finished bracelets are available at Anita's Beads.

New designs include an Apollo Gold rosebud design (detail above), a Czech "Stone" diamond bracelet, and two designs featuring our new synthetic stones: Azurite/Malachite and the incredibly popular Pink Rainbow Stone.

Happy Birthday!

Today is the 14th anniversary of what is now Anita's Beads. I opened as Toad Hollow Jewelry on July 4th, 1996 just three weeks or so after relocating here. Miss Pearl moved in about the same time and has been a loyal mascot ever since.

New Camera & New Daily Bracelets

I just got a Nikon Coolpix digital camera with my credit card miles (happy birthday to me!) and I took some photos of a few new Daily Bracelet designs to test it out. All of the bracelets are available as kits at Anita's Beads.

Mixed Fruit a la Carmen Miranda

A lovely mix of bananas, grapes, apples, pears, strawberries and peach pits available by the 50-piece assortment.

Spring Special! (ends May 31st) - purchase three strands together as pictured and receive a 30% discount.

Bohemian Trade Beads

I absolutely adore the color and shape of these beautiful old glass cylinder beads known as Bohemian. We have two strands available. The first strand (outside) is an interesting mix of oranges with a few darker red beads. Strand length is 32 inches and the bead diameter is between 14mm to 18mm.

The second strand (inside, detail shown below) has larger (16mm to 20mm) predominantly red beads. The strand is 27 inches long.

Stop by Anita's Beads in Wakefield, New Hampshire to see more Trade Beads just received for Winter 2010. Shop hours are 10-5; closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Old Ornate Brass Beads from Nigeria

This is a very special strand of lovely hollow African Brass Beads from Nigeria. There are 43 beads on the strand. Visit Anita's Beads to see more Trade Beads just received for Winter 2010.

Baoule Brass from Africa's Ivory Coast

We have only two strands of lovely Baoule Brass beads from the Ivory Coast of Africa. Each strand is 28 inches long with 24 brass 15x22mm beads separated by 5mm black glass beads on each strand. Visit Anita's Beads to see more Special Trade Bead Offerings.

Antique Coin Silver Telsum

We just received this lovely one-of-a-kind strand of Antique Coin Silver Telsum from Ethiopia. There are 40 amulets of varying styles (ave. width 14mm) separated by 8mm hollow beads on a 36-inch strand. Visit Anita's Beads to see this this and other Special Trade Bead Offers.

New Books for Knit Wits!

Here are some great books on crocheting and knitting with beads. Projects include scarves, sweaters, holiday ornaments, and jewelry items. Stop in and see them in person. Anita's Beads will be open every day of the week from 10-5 beginning December 17th through New Years day (closed Christmas Day).

Ann Benson's Beaded Crochet Designs shows beautiful necklace, bracelet and earring projects built on seed-beaded tubes or ropes. Learning this technique is item no. 2 (after getting organized) on my list of resolutions for the new year. My favorites are the "rainbow" and "diamond" bangles, and the "argyle" earrings.

I'm sure you will love the beautiful wearable items (including shawls, scarves, and sweaters) that can be created by knitting and crocheting as shown in Lily Chin's Knit and Crochet with Beads and Scarlet Taylor's Knit With Beads: Stunning Shawls and Wraps.

And these popular books from Bead & Button are back in stock:

I should also mention that we have the popular "Big Eye" needle in both the 2-inch and 5-inch lengths:

Holiday Hours & Gift Certificates

Beginning December 17th Anita's Beads will be open from 10-5 every day (except Christmas Day, December 25th) through New Years Day.

Gift certificates are available in any amount desired.

Regular hours (open 10-5; closed Tuesday & Wednesday) will resume on January 5th.