GetCrafty Craft Facts

Q: Does anyone know how to make beads from herbs?

A: I saw a description of spice beads mad of Myhr and Frankinsence in Lois Sherr Dubin's The History of Beads. I know that there are several books on decorating with herbs that have recipes for rose beads. These are made by mashing rose petals in a cast iron pan over a fire until you have a pulp. This is repeated over a couple of days. After the third or fourth time the pulp is rolled into beads and stuck to a pincushion with large hat pins. When the beads are dry they are polished with velvet and strung on silk. They are black in color. You will probably get a few good recipes if you post to rec.org.sca. There are folks who keep archives and I believe that recipes for rose beads are in the archives. I make them and have quite a range of scents and colors for sale. All materails are 100% natural and there are no chemicals or additives. They are also non-toxic. Why don't you try bread dough paste (not edible - the sort that one makes figures from; add 1/3 volume of mortared herbs of your choice, and dry at no more than 140 degree F. This should give you a stable bead that will not be greasy (a problem with beads made with oils.) Actually, one of those dehydrator thingys might be better still, as it would slowly remove moisture without changing the scent with excessive heat. Actually beads made with essentaial oils are not greasy and using a dehydrater chases the natural oils out, or when drying beads help chase out the smell.