Types of Wood Used To Make Wooden Beads

Jan 27
07:41

2016

Sanjana Antony

Sanjana Antony

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Wood is a very interesting material. It can be shaped, painted, cured, sanded to polish, drilled to string dyed and coated with other matter easily. It has been seen that wood carving was also a kind of pastime for journeymen in the past. All this leads to establish the popularity of wooden beads that eventually came to be used for making jewelry also.

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Abacus made of wooden beads in China and India is one of the best examples of the ancient art of using wood for making beads. Wood was available everywhere. It was less expensive than metals and other materials used for making beads. Wood was not only cheaper; it was easy to work with. What is more it was available to even the commonest craftsman compared to other findings.

The wood is liked for beads for other reasons also. The finished product gives a natural lustre and shine to the piece after it has been carved and sanded to a flawless sparkle. It can be made very easily with tools as simple as a chisel,Types of Wood Used To Make Wooden Beads Articles a cutter and a polishing sander. It does not require a very big outfit also.

These basic qualities had made the use of wood for beads a thriving business in the past. It has constantly developed and has been inherited today by makers of wooden beads in the world.

Types of wood Used

One of the reasons the wood came to be used for beads is the natural grains in the core of wood. Sanded and filed these pieces of beads begin to have natural spirals, sheen and designs. The woods of certain trees give a soothing aroma which made such beads accepted by religious persons. The best example of this can be found in the wooden beads of a rosary or 'mala' used for prayers. These prayer beads are highly popular among all religious people, be it Hindus, Muslims and Christian.

Some popular woods for beads are sandal wood, rosewood, olive, bamboo, apple, ebony, ironwood and pear. These woods have all the necessary qualities required for making wonderful beads of colours, shine and patterns found naturally in wood.

Olive is much liked by craftsman for the naturally occurring reddish brown grain when the wood is seasoned. This grain appears brightly sparking in the finished beads. The core of olive provides the grainy patterns that make it a much coveted wood.

Sandalwood is recognised everywhere for its natural fragrance of sandal. It is famously desired in the Orient and Middle East but in the western world also. The beads are lightweight that makes it the all-time favourite of making prayer beads. In fact, this wood is used for a variety of crafts.  A dividing curtain of sandalwood beads can spread out wonderful aroma in the whole house. Statues made of sandalwood are also crafted as collection pieces.

Rosewood is an ideal wood for making beads because of its weight, the dark grains and the natural patterns found in seasoned rosewood. These beads are used for a variety of projects which includes jewelry also. It is believed that the rosewood beads improve the mental peace of the wearer of such pieces of jewelry or ‘mala’.

The wood of apple tree, ebony, pear, bamboo and ironwood are some of the other types used for making wooden jewelry for both women and men. Jewelry makers depend to a large extent on the online sellers to provide wooden beads.