Local treasure. They really help you and have a great selection . Been going here for many years.

I stopped by to ask about the price of some wire because I noticed the exact same item was significantly cheaper on Amazon. I wasn't trying to lowball anyone or pressure the business into matching the online price--I was simply asking if they offered price matching. Unfortunately, the interaction took an unexpected turn. The owner became upset and told me, "Screw me," because he's a local business. I understand the challenges that small businesses face and I genuinely try to support them whenever I can. That's exactly why I asked the question instead of immediately buying it elsewhere. To his credit, he did apologize before we left, and I appreciate that. However, the initial response left a bad impression. Customer service matters just as much as pricing, and respectfully answering a simple question goes a long way. I truly wish the owner and the business the best, and I hope he finds healing and peace. I believe everyone has difficult days, but customers should still be treated with kindness and respect. read more

Such a kind and helpful experience! I came in with a quick necklace issue, and the person working was so nice and helped me right away. I really appreciated the great customer service and will definitely come back! read more

I came in looking for beads for a project i want to start and I was greeted right away by Jessie as I walked in. Even though they didn't have exactly what I was looking for, their supply was so abundant and beautiful! On top of that, this review is mostly for Jessie. He was soooo extremely helpful. I'm new to this world of beads and I walked out with soooo much knowledge! I HIGHLY recommend this shop! They even host workshops and 1 on 1 classes for great prices! Support Small!! read more

Great Store! Got great assistance and was helped with questions regarding beading. Such nice people. Really appreciate the help I got from Jesse! He was wonderful!! read more

Never knew there was a jewelry bead store in alameda! It was my first time venturing to this shop as my friend wanted to make jewelry for her bday celebration. We ended up spending over two hours in the store, looking over the cute beads and deciding on what material we needed. There's a lot of different options from beads for earrings, necklaces, brackets and even kits that has instructions. Keep in mind you will need to take the clipboard and paper pencil that is by the entrance of the door to log down your beads and the cost to make it easier for checkout. Also look for Groupons for deals on beads! read more

Bead Inspirations - Our jewelry making - Jewelry Repair Near Me - Alameda, California

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Great hands on staff. Nice selection of items. Friendly and engaging. Offered assistance and didn't feel pressure to take it. I'd come here again to invest in quality pieces for future projects. read more

Extremely nice people, wonderful classes, good selection of beads and other supplies. This is the place to go!

I took in a favorite necklace that had come unraveled and they were able to fix it for a reasonable price. Very low-key and friendly service! read more

Kind and sweet community jewelry making and repair shop! they hold jewelry making workshops too

Great little bead store in Alameda. The staff are extremely friendly and helpful. Took a class here that was very informative and hands on. I was impressed by the amount of supplies they fit in the store. Look forward to visiting again! read more

I had a very old Groupon to redeem here, like over 10 years. I called before I came to make certain they would accept it and they said to come on in, plus the woman on the phone mentioned that the entire store was 20% off for the holidays! When I arrived, I was greeted immediately upon entering and the small shop was teeming with customers! There were at least 4 workers helping everybody. I was able to browse and asked some questions and I ultimately bought some findings. Customer service was good but I've been to bead stores that had much better and unusual inventory, so I likely won't be back. read more

They fixed my amethyst bracelet. I know it is not a hard job, but since the bracelet is very valuable , i want someone professional to do the work. The staff is super nice and friendly. read more

Bead Inspirations - amethyst - Jewelry Repair Near Me - Alameda, California

Nice shop and awesome customer service. This shop seems to have great classes as well.

Stumbled upon this little shop and found Sterling Silver hoops for such cheap prices! note: the small hoops are impossible to put the hoop back into the hollow "cylinder" but the earrings stay in place in your ear. So, I doubt it'll come out. read more

X marks this spot. The treasure is here. Beautiful beads fill the room, along with spools of chains and all the little things that one might want for jewelry creations. If you need a part to fix your jewelry you'll probably find it here. I did. The two women who welcomed me into the shop were friendly and helpful. They showed me gorgeous beads with zero pressure to buy. This is a special little shop. read more

Bead Inspirations - All I needed was this tiny little ring to orient my charm correctly. It cost under $1. - Jewelry Repair Near Me - Alameda, California

Really a sweet little shop. So glad they are still around. Very friendly and informative staff and an impressive selection of beads and jewelry findings. Prices are fair. read more

Cute, clean, well-organized shop & the employees are very friendly. I was looking for 6/0 seed beads for beaded knitting, and found the colors I needed. They also have some colorful glass buttons that would be nice for cardigans. read more

Bead Inspirations is a very nice looking little bead shop, but that's about where my admiration for the place ends. The staff is often snotty and unwelcoming when I go in, and the prices are outrageous for what you're buying. The quality is lovely, but not that lovely to justify the prices. The breaking point for me was when I came here with my mother; she had received a coupon in her email from Bead Inspirations and brought it to the store to use with her purchase. The woman behind the counter looked at the coupon as if questioning its validity, and had to spend several minutes making sure the coupon indeed came from Bead Inspirations to my mother's email. The woman made no secret that she wasn't exactly thrilled to honor the coupon and my mother has never received one from them since. Not really a place I'll be returning to. I hate giving this place such a low review, it has a lot of potential. read more

Small shop but pretty well stocked with the latest trends in beads, stones, jewelry supplies and leather crafts. Some nice kids craft kits too, to get kids interested in jewelry making. Friendly and helpful staff and owner, Vicki. Great inexpensive classes with patient hands on instructors. Classes are taught that you go at your own pass, no push to have a completed project by the end of class. Very relaxed atmosphere. Metered street parking in front and side or use parking lot across the side street. read more

Such a Great little shop! ! I've come here so many times with craft problems and they've always been so kind and helpful. Just yesterday I came with a string of wooden beads that had broken and the woman showed me the perfect inexpensive restringing option. Please support them! Love that alameda has its own divine bead store. read more

My FAVORITE bead shop in Northern California. If you don't see it, ASK. It's usually somewhere in this tiny store. HUGE selection from top to bottom. Class was a BLAST! Super nice helpful people. Lots of good restaurants near by. read more

If you want someone to do a bead project for you and quickly then I recommend you consider this place. I am so grateful for the highly professional, excellent service I got here. I came in with a crystal mala I love which had broken and the person who helped me walked me through all the options to have it re-strung by one of their people. I asked for it to be done much faster than their usual two week turn around, and they did it in three business days without charging extra. And it was done beautifully. Just a gorgeous as it was originally. Excellent work. So grateful!! read more

Attentive staff, very upbeat atmosphere. Nice selection of glass beads; findings tend to be strong in copper, gun metal (die-stamp) and silver-plate. Stringing materials tend toward hemp and comparable. Lots of colorful pretty bits to appeal to the magpie in you. Attractive focal glass beads, pearls on strand and per piece, interesting semi-precious beads, on strand and per piece, Czech glass (strand), Japanese seed beads (tube). Great range of items packed neatly into a small space. Sales staff were patient in fielding questions and offering guidance to customers. Big thumbs-up for attitude. One very cool thing: they sell gemstone beads and pearls individually, so that it's not necessary to purchase a whole strand, when you only need one or two of a particular type. Plenty of weekday and weekend parking around the corner on Lincoln Blvd; good location. read more

I can't say enough good things about this incredible bead/jewelry supply shop because every time I shop here I discover amazing finds. Beautiful beads; one of a kind as well as an amazing variety of color, shape and forms. Exceptional customer service and the classes offered are a great addition to what you want to learn or build upon on your jewelry making journey. I'd like to add that I had lost a piece of sea glass that adorned one of my favorite pair of earrings. Problem was the found seaglass didn't match but what did was a pair of earrings that had several hanging pieces of seaglass I had been eyeing for about a year. I couldn't justify purchasing them only to take them apart for the one piece of seaglass I needed but kept coming back to the store hoping there's be more selections of loose seaglass. Every time I came in searching for seaglass only those earrings remained as an option but for sale. Today I went in for supplies, looked at the earrings and told myself nope, I can't. Well much to my surprise and shock the kind fellow who had been helping me actually purchased and offered the earrings for me! I was speechless to the point I was crying and kept shaking my head no, please don't. He insisted and while I'm all choked up, tears running from my eyes he hands me the earrings and says these are for you! Who does such a kind thing such as this these days?! I am forever humbled and while I don't expect this from any store, it is incredibly kind to have had this happen to me. Many thanks!! Bead Inspirations is your go to shop for bead supplies and classes! Don't miss this shop if you are a lover of beads or need jewelry making supplies! read more

I took their Basic Necklace & Bracelet class last Sun. Cheryl was VERY patient with me and helped me every step of the way. It was my first time beading ever and she taught in a way that was clear, and at a good pace for a beginner. She helped me find the beads and other materials in the store. Even after she gave the instruction I asked her more questions as I was working on my necklace to make sure I had it down. I loved how my necklace turned out! I think I may be hooked on beads!!! read more

Bead Inspirations was the first store I ever went to regarding beading. I have found that customer service is simply above and beyond retail stores in general, let alone jewelry stores - Always helpful, tons of suggestions and infinite patience. Despite other reviews, I have found the classes very helpful, and they often cost LESS than nearly anywhere in the Bay Area. They are always updating inventory with newest trends and gemstones. You really have to see gems in person; they get lost in translation when ordering over the net or via catalog Two things I really like about this store is that they have a trunk show every few months, which offers the ability to buy quality at a discount and see the things that are showing up in the bead shows. The other is that they now offer sales online. I just can't say enough about Bead Inspirations. I think they are great! read more

I have always enjoyed my experiences there, whether browsing, shopping or taking a class. The classes are very good. I've taken about 4 different ones, the latest being beginning PMC. All the teachers have been well organized, helpful and generous with their time and feedback. I almost always left feeling satisfied with my effort and results. Definitely worth the money. The only time I wasn't was a Byzantine jump ring class and it just wasn't my thing. The staff is always very helpful and encouraging. I've gone in there with no idea what to make and often I get ideas and then get positive input and suggestions on what might work or not. They've made the difference in my confidence in my designs. That to me is worth going to Alameda for rather than convenience or price. read more

[note: my daughter works here but I was a customer long before that happened.] I love Bead Inspirations, they have a great, well-organized selection of beads and findings. I thought they were a little pricey when I started beading but have found they're actually pretty comparable to the craft store up the street and most other beading shops, they just don't sell all the lower-end stuff like the cheapy wire that chips after a couple wears, which is fine with me. Plus the staff actually knows what you're talking about and can help you sort out your problems. I've taken one course, the Resin class with Steven James, and it was a lot of fun though I haven't had a chance to try it at home yet. re: parking -- there are one or two spots at the Wienerschnitzel across the street that are for Bead Inspirations customers, they're marked, and there are several other options, see http://www.beadinspirations.com/index.php?main_page=page&id=10&chapter=0 They're open til 9 on Fridays. Sometimes they have a free beading group Friday evenings if you like to bead with other people. bonus tip: sign up for their email list, they have sales all the time. Like right now the glass bead strands are 20% off. read more

Short and simple: 1. The saleswoman was overly helpful and kind of up my butt the whole time I was in the shop. Unless I specifically need help, I want to be left alone to look at things. 2. The current inventory of beads are kind of fugly. I was looking for something pretty as a gift for a young girl and after making multiple passes through the store I realized I was not going to find anything. I would say the beads are more age appropriate for the 60+ set. 3. The beads are overpriced. 4. They frown on using debit cards for small purchases. I understand that they are charged a fee for the transaction, and I'm not adverse to paying that for the convenience of using my card and not having to stop at a bank machine before I go in. The bottom line, don't make your customers feel bad about wanting to buy stuff in your store! read more

For anyone interested in Beading or jewelry making this is the store for you. I went in with my girlfriend and we spent quite a lot of time there looking at all the interesting and beautiful beads. My girlfriend signed up for a couple of classes and I might even do one myself sometime. The is quite a variety and the one that was in progress while we were there looked great. Lots of beginner classes which is helpful for people like me. Its a very fun place just to hang out in and look at everything, and the staff was very friendly and helpful. I would defiantly recommend the store to anyone interested or thinking about beading. They even offer jewelry making classes for groups of people who want to make a party out of it. Its also nice to support a small independent business as we have enough big box stores out there. read more

It has been seven months since I dropped off my custom rainbow necklace to get restrung. I paid 100 . I had to call over there weeks later to even get an update! They then told me the person they had repairing it will call me back as she had to talk to me. This was the start of complete waste of time! She called said on my voicemail there was something urgent we needed to talk about. Hello I just want you to restring my necklace. I called back, left a message. No call back! Really hurts because that was a custom piece someone made. Absolutely terrible service and I feel completely gutted. read more

I used to bead years ago just for distraction while in grad school. Until recently I hadn't done much, but I took a copper enamel class here with Stephen James and LOVED it! Then another class on cold metalwork (stamping, riveting, etc) that was pretty good too. Now I'm spending way too much money on tools, beads, findings and the nice Vintaj brass pieces. I love the staff - they are helpful, not pushy, and let me spend inordinate amounts of time trying to figure out what I want. I live within a stone's throw of this place in Alameda, so it's my first thought if I want supplies or something specific. They may or may not be more expensive - sometimes I'll pick findings and things up at Beverly's - usually you're buying in bulk there so I'm not sure how it compares. I really prefer to shop local if I have a great option like this! (I love Beverly's too) read more

I tried to take 2 beading classes here, ugh! On the morning of the first class (1 hour prior) they called to cancel. When they called to reschedule me on my cell they threw several scedules at me, while I was driving. I requested an email and I never received one. Needless to say -- I missed the first class. When I tried to reschedule they simply said no, and refused to refund. I asked for a refund on the second class, and have not heard back. I have attempted to contact 4 times, and have yet to get a refund or a call back. I would not recommend Bead Inspirations for classes! read more

I first visited Bead Inspirations with my then 5 year old daughter. We were both amazed at the inventory of beads! They are beautiful, sturdy, fun, and time passed quickly for us there. We bought our fill of beads, which ended up providing us with hours of fun afterward. Later I also ended up buying a necklace kit for my mother. My experience has been that I can find anything I want at Bead Inspirations. There are beads, chains, strings, kits, classes, and everything at prices I can afford. From my experience in the store, I really got the sense that the store atmosphere was characterized by customer care. I experienced that I and my daughter mattered, and I understood that the staff were committed to treating us with warmth and care. I highly recommend this store. read more

I am a burlesque entertainer/waist bead maker/craft whore, so I'm always looking for new things to create with. The selection at Bead Inspirations is small, but store is within walking distance of my house (East Oakland/Fruitvale), so that's where I go. The only reason this place gets three stars instead of two is because the staff is very sweet and helpful. I also don't have to worry about being followed around the store and treated like a thief when I shop here. That's enough to keep me coming back. There is also a small Swarovski rhinestone section. Another reason for 3 star review. Prices are normal for beads, expensive for charms and cabochons. If you have a car, or the energy to go to SF, go to General Bead instead. read more

I took a pearl knotting bead workshop at Bead Inspirations and it was fantastic! The folks at the shop are all so nice and helpful with no pressure to purchase their merchandise, but you'll want to because everything is so gorgeous and great quality. For the workshop, I was able to bring my own pearls and completely re-knot them with the skills taught during the class. All of my friends have told me the outcome looks like they were professionally done. Thank you Bead Inspirations! read more

I just took a great class here. Everyone is friendly and very helpful. They'll even do repairs if your jewelry breaks. Im glad this bead store is still open. Most in the bay have closed due to ridiculous rents. read more

A fair selection of beads, high quality metal stampings/filigree, tools, findings and pre made jewelry and pre made kits if you would rather assemble. Having the pre made jewelry on display and for sale at the store made it much easier to know what I needed to make my ideas work. A last minute suggestion for a tool turned out to save me a ton of time and effort. I will be back. read more

What are you even writing me for or talking about?! It has taken you over a year to say anything about my review and, as posted, the bracelet went in the trash that day! I have not returned, will never return and now this response, when it is 6/24/16, is a day late and a dollar short and you seriously were better off not even writing a word. Dumbest thing I've ever read. SMH read more