::: Findings

Hello there and thanks for visiting our little bag of tricks. We sell jewelry, beading and paper craft supplies for the discriminating and creative crafter. You’ll love browsing our selection of raw and plated brass charms and filigree including animal charms, bird charms, seahorse charms and leaf charms. We add new designs all the time as we have very short attention spans and are, quite honestly, magpies. You know, we get distracted by shiny copper headpins, rhinestone beads, antique brass chain and shimmery ribbons. Don’t you? Of course you do, that’s why you are here. Please be sure to visit our Bits-n-Bobs page where you will see a plethora of crafty goodies that defy easy categorization like the amazing long brass bat. He’s long, really long. We also have charms like octopus, keys and Pegasus. Or is it pegasi? Don’t forget the lockets, for heaven’s sake. These sweet brass lockets are so nicely made in the USA just for us in oval, round, ball, square or triangle shapes and the styles change frequently. On the Findings page we have brass clasps, gunmetal clasps, copper clasps, brass headpins, square jumprings or jump rings (your pleasure), toggles, badge clips, earring findings and more all made in the USA. For matching chains you can visit the chain page and look for my personal favorites, the antique brass knurled chain.

If you are a paper freak you’ll want to visit the Decopatch decoupage papers from France and see their fabulous patterns and colors. This fine paper is perfect paired with the Decopatch glues and varnishes. Treat yourself to a fine Decopatch decoupage brush, too. We also have paper mache animals such as rhinos, ladybugs, squirrels, dogs, dolphins and unicorns. We have the Rhodia pads that will make your every word seem just that much better chosen. I use them for sketching out my ideas and even making grocery lists.

We also sell resins and glues including the hard-to-find Amazing Glaze and Diamond Glaze. We love these easy to use resins and also the fabulous Envirotex doming resin. Look at our tiny watch parts to add to your resin projects, too. If you can’t decide which resin to choose, we have the details and resin how-tos you need.

Oh, Ornamentea is the on-line store of a very real, brick-and-mortar bead store called Ornamentea located in Raleigh, North Carolina. We have jewelry making classes and workshops and teach beading, silver smithing, wire working and other techniques in our classrooms and you can always come learn at our work tables. If you are in North Carolina, we are worth the drive. We have a sister store in Raleigh called Panopolie and we think they are worth a visit as well.

Are you wondering who I am? I am Cynthia, the owner of Ornamentea and Panopolie and the author of Shiny Little Things, the Bead Store Owner’s Blog as well as Beading With Filigree from Lark Press. I am mom to two girls and my husband and I work in our crafty business together. He’s an engineer with an endless amount of patience and he’s (right now) the only man that works in our stores. We have a talented staff of artists and designers who work on our sales floors and behind the scenes to make Ornamentea the best bead store in North Carolina and your living room. They’re all women, so there is a fair amount of giddiness and excitement when we open a box of pretty beads or ribbons as you can imagine. The incredible amount of creative energy contained in our building at any one time is really awe inspiring, but somehow we still manage to have a dirty fridge in the break room and I have to make my own coffee.

Since I am a mom and a crafty gal I have a studio in my home that has a tiny table where my girls do their own work. My older daughter loves to felt with the Clover Felting tools and our colorful wool roving and the younger daughter strings beads on pipe cleaners and bugs her big sister. It is sometimes peaceful, sometimes crazy. I do a good bit of beading at the big table with brass chain, brass charms, copper head pins, you name it.

If you have been patient enough to read all this chatter you probably need a reward, right? Please click here and add the Secret Gift from Cynthia to your order. This gift is from me, to you, for paying attention to details and sticking to things.

Happy crafting!