Beadz: The Source for Your Custom Prom Accessories
NEIRAD enilno edition
Prom is coming, and once that special dress is picked out, you aren’t done. Now there is the challenge of finding matching shoes and other accessories to compliment the dress. Beadz Boutique allows you to find that perfect accent.
“There are no rules. You can make whatever you want. When you are walking down the hall and someone asks you where you bought it. You can say, you made it. No one has it,” said co-owner, Amanda England.
Beadz Boutique was created in 2007 by Suzanne England and her step daughter Amanda. Amanda learned how to bead from a professional when she lived on Block Island. When she returned Suzanne realized beading wasn’t that hard and she could do this too. They began selling beads through their home and high end stores in Westport. Selling through their home was a big hassle. They would have to pack and unpack everything wherever they went. Then they opened a store on Tokenneke road. They were there for two and a half years and just moved to their new, bigger location on the Post Road.
Suzanne and Amanda get their beads from all over the country. The largest convention they go to is in Tucson, Arizona. In Arizona they find new, original beads that are not seen on the east coast. By going straight to the producer, Beadz Boutique keeps their prices low. They also have many venders who come to Suzanne and Amanda to sell their beads. The venders range from well known bead makers with boxes of beads, to venders selling beads out of suitcases.
Longtime employee Kathy Finnegan said, “It is like a candy store for the people who like tactile things.” She described how she loves to feel the different beads. It is addictive and immediate. Unlike things such as needle point, beading is immediate. You have a piece that day.
Many people think that you can only come and bead if you have scheduled a party. However, you can come in for studio time whenever you want. Also, for prom, you can bring in your dress and even put it on if you want. The people at Beads Boutique will help you make custom made jewelry to wear with your dress.
Prices can range. Beads run from 25 cents to a string of beads that cost a couple hundred dollars. Parties also range depending on the amount of people and the kind of beads from 30 to 90 dollars a person. The parties that Beadz Boutique does now are mostly for children from 6 to 12 years old and adults. There is always a reason for a beading party, whether it is for a birthday or Mother’s Day. Beading parties are as much for the beading as they are for the socializing.
Beadz Boutique has had much success with its parties; however, it has had trouble drawing a teenage crowd. Beadz Boutique is hoping to draw in more teens by creating relations to DHS through art students. The store is hoping that eventually art students would be able to display and sell their work from the store. Beadz Boutique is currently working with teens outside of DHS and helping them display their art; however, there have not been any Darien students.
Due to the fact that not many teens walk into the store, Beadz Boutique doesn’t know what kind of jewelry high school students like to make or wear. If you have time drop by and tell them your opinion. Maybe even bring in your prom dress.
