Long Distance Bead Exchange

Want to exchange beads with friends who live far away or a group who chats on a message board or other online forum? Here's a great way to do so without ever having to leave your home!

Form a group of 4-6 beaders and decide who will start the exchange. The starter makes up a package of beads to exchange. The type of beads, number of beads and value of beads are agreed upon by the group before the exchange starts, along with the weight of the package (to control shipping costs).

The starter sends the package to the next on one the list by mail. The second person chooses beads from the package and removes them. In exchange, he/she puts new beads in, making sure they are the same weight and/or value as what was removed. The second person then sends the packages to the third person on the list and so on.

Eventually, the package will arrive at the starter again. Some beads will still be the same, but most will have been exchanged. A fun idea is to take a picture of the contents of the package at the beginning of the exchange and again when it comes back to the starter and then post that picture. You might also want to post photos of the items you make with the exchanged beads so that your long-distance friends can see what you did with them!

Submitted by Elke Tuteleers, Belgium