Q. What is your delivery policy?

A. We're generally really fast at packing and despatching your orders - apart from exceptionally busy periods we will despatch all orders within 24 hours by Royal Mail 1st Class Packet Post.

Next Day Delivery - UK Mainland Only

If you do need your beads really speedily for an extra charge of £5.50 we will send your order by Royal Mail Special Delivery (This service is free for all orders over £80). Order by 9am and providing everything is in stock your parcel will be sent Special Delivery and should arrive by 1pm the following day.

If you select this service and your order weighs over 500g we may use Parcel Force 48 which will ensure your parcel is received within 48 hours of posting, regardless of postal strikes. 

Q. Help I want to start making jewellery but I don't know where to start?

A. Relax you're in good hands! Everyone who works at Spoilt Rotten Beads makes jewellery and we're here to help and guide you along at every stage of your new hobby.

Click here for your FREE printable Jewellery Making Instruction Booklet with all of the basics that you need to begin making jewellery!

We're happy to give advice over the phone, our shop number is  01353 749853  and we're open 10am - 3pm Monday to Friday and 10am - 4pm on Saturdays. Before you pick up the phone please read the information below;

Recommended products for new beaders:

The Basics of Bead Stringing, it's not a very glamorous looking book (just a little paperback) but it does have lots and lots of easy to follow diagrams and all of the information that you need in order to start making your own jewellery - such as crimping (that's how you attach wire to a clasp), wire wrapped loops (that's how you make earrings and attach dangles and charms to bracelets).

You'll also need some beading wire, tools, crimps and clasps and beads of course!

Wire: We sell Beadalon wires simply because they're the best wires on the market - the generic name for beading wire is Tiger Tail but you'll find anything sold as Tiger Tail is very stiff and kinks easily. Beadalon is very strong, it's made of several strands of steel wire woven together and then given a plastic coating. The more strands of steel there are in the wire the softer and more flexible the wire is so a 19 Strand Beadalon wire is softer than a 7 Strand Beadalon Wire. We use Beadalon 19 Strand in most of our designs but 7 Strand is a little more economical.

Tools: You'll need a set of tools (Round Nose Pliers, Flat Nose Pliers, Snipe Nose Pliers & Side Cutters), and also a pair of Crimping Pliers. The Crimping pliers come with a handy set of instructions on the back which shows you how to use them.

Crimps: You'll need some 2x2mm Crimps to attach your wire to your clasp, choose from sterling silver or silver plated

Findings: These are all the components that you use to make up your jewellery such as clasps, jump rings, earwires and headpins

Beads: This bit's down to you! Choose from Semi-Precious Stones, Czech Glass, Freshwater Pearls, Swarovski Crystals, it's pretty much unlimited but you might want to check out some of our free beading projects for some ideas to get you started.

Q. How much do you charge for p&p?

A. We charge a flat rate of just £2.95 p&p for all UK orders under £40, for UK orders over £40 p&p is free! P&P on international orders is £7.50. If you need your beads extra speedily then we do offer Special Delivery for £5.50 (order by 9am for same day despatch) - this service is free for all orders over £80.

Q. Do you have a minimum order value?

A. No we don't, you can order as much or as little as you like, at Spoilt Rotten Beads there is no minimum order value!

Q. How long will it take to despatch my order?

A. We aim to despatch orders within 24 hours of their receipt (not including Sat/Sun). Most orders are sent by Royal Mail 1st Class. Orders over £80 in value are sent by Royal Mail Special Delivery and require a signature upon delivery. Bulky or heavy items (e.g. craft lamps or anvils) may be sent by Parcel Force.

We try to keep our stock levels as accurate as possible, however with such a large inventory it is inevitable that from time to time we may run out of certain items. When this happens if we know that we will have more stock arriving within the next 7 days we will hold your order and despatch it as soon as all the items come into stock. If the out of stock items will be longer than 7 days we will refund you for the out of stock items and send your order straight away.

Q. Do you offer any wholesale discounts?

A. Yes, all orders over £160 receive an automatic 5% discount, all orders over £250 receive an automatic 10% discount and all orders over £350 receive an automatic 15% discount.

Theses discounts will be deducted automatically at the check out. Please note that our wholesale discounts do not apply to kilns which must be ordered by phoning us on   01353 749853.

Q. How safe and secure is shopping online at SpoiltRottenBeads.co.uk?

A. Your details are extremely safe when you shop at www.spoiltrottenbeads.co.uk. Our website is scanned and tested daily by McAfee Secure. All customer details are kept on a secure server which is kept secure by a seperate Firewall. Except for giving address details to the Royal Mail for delivery of goods we never share your details with any third parties.

We offer our customers the choice of two different payment methods:

SagePay - a highly secure and Alliance and Leicester approved payment provider, certified by Trustwave (All transactions are processed over a 128 bit encrypted secure connection).

Q. How "Green" & Ethical is Spoilt Rotten Beads?

A. At Spoilt Rotten Beads we take environmental & ethical issues very seriously, our motto is "Good Beads, Doing Good"

We are constantly looking for greener ways to package our beads. Our Internet Orders are packaged in Jiffy Bubble Mailers made from paper sourced from sustainable forests, and the pretty pink carrier bags we give out in our shop are made from 100% recycled paper. We have a large recycling bin outside our shop into which we put all our paper and cardboard. If you order from our website you'll also see that we often send out your internet orders in reused cardboard boxes. We also serve fair trade tea and coffee in our workshops.

We do not sell any natural coral beads as this contributes to the destruction of the worlds beautiful coral reefs.

We donate a percentage of our profits every year to charity -this year we donated £1000 to UNICEFs Child Protection Programme - UNICEF works with families, communities and governments in more than 190 countries worldwide to protect and promote the rights of children. In 2009 we donated over £700 to charity, including £500 to War on Want and various other small amounts to local charities including local Pre-Schools and Cancer Charity Fund Raisers.

We also purchase a beautiful range of fair trade beads called Acholi Beads which support the Acholi Tribes Women in Uganda and mean that they are now able to send their children to school with the income that they earn from the production of the Acholi Beads.

Q. What is your refund policy?

A.  If for any reason you are not completely satisfied you may return the goods within 7 days of purchase and we will be happy to offer a refund, less deductions for P&P. We do not accept returns of beads which have been taken off their temporary string. Damaged, broken or incomplete orders must be made verbally within three days; no responsibility can be accepted after this period. This does not affect your statutory rights. The goods must be returned in the original condition, with proof of purchase. When returning items you MUST contact us first - either call us on 01353 749853 or email customerservice@spoiltrottenbeads.com . When returning items you are strongly recommended to obtain proof of posting as we cannot accept responsibility for parcels lost in transit. Current EU Hygiene regulations mean that we are unable to exchange or refund earring findings.

Q. What is your exchange policy?

A. We are happy to accept exchanges, simply return the unwanted items to us along with details of your order number, full name and address and details of what you'd like instead. Please remember to include your telephone number as we will need to contact you to take payment for P&P.  P&P on exchanges will be charged at a minimum rate of £1.50 and may be greater for large or heavy items. We recommend that you return your items by Recorded Delivery as we can't be responsible for items which are lost or damaged in the post.

Q. What is your privacy policy?

A. At Spoilt Rotten Beads we take your privacy extremely seriously, you can view our privacy policy at http://www.spoiltrottenbeads.co.uk/terms-conditions.asp

Q. Do you run jewellery making courses and workshops?

A. Yes we do! Click here for more information on our beaded jewellery making courses and Art Clay Silver workshops

Q. Do you post to BFPO addresses?

A. Yes we do, we charge our normal UK shipping charge of £2.95 for BFPO shipping and shipping is free for BFPO and UK orders over £40!

Q. How do I find you?

A. We're just 20 mins outside of Cambridge in the pretty village of Haddenham. Click here for store opening hours and directions

Q. What is the mission of Spoilt Rotten Beads?

A. Spoilt Rotten Beads exists to provide quality beads and jewellery supplies at the best possible price, and to help new beaders learn the craft of jewellery making. We also strive to run our business in an ethical way (see environmental & ethical policy above).

Q. I'm trying to source a particular kind of bead which you don't stock, will you be able to get it in stock for me?

A. Just email us at julietbrowse@aol.com with the details of what you're looking for and we'll let you know if we can buy it in for you. At Spoilt Rotten Beads we're constantly expanding our range of beads and findings and are always really keen to hear customers suggestions for new products.

Q. What is stabilized turquoise?

A. A lot of natural turquoise stones are too soft or porous to hold a luster and when they are shaped into beads they become too fragile. Because of this the turquoise is submerged in a stabilizing compound (like epoxy resin).  The natural capillary action of the porous stone draws this clear stabilizing compound throughout the stone.  This makes the turquoise harder and also means that it will maintain it's colour and luster over time. We purchase our turquoise from China where it is mined, and it may also be colour enhanced.

Q. How many beads do I need?

Q. What do the "/0" numbers beside the seed and delica beads mean?

A. Seed beads are sized in aughts, which are different than millimeters. No one seems to know exactly what an “aught” is but the bead sizes are in inverse proportion to the size of the beads. A size 15 is very small, and size 6 is big.

aught size - mm diameter

6/0 - 3.3
8/0 - 2.5
11/0 - 1.8
15/0 - 1.3
11/0 delica - 1.8

Q. How many beads on a 16 inch strand?

A.   Below is a table showing the approx number of round beads on a 16 inch strand:

Q. What is Sterling Silver?

A. Sterling silver is an alloy consisting of 92.5% pure silver and 7.5% of other metals, usually copper. Most silver jewellery is made using sterling silver because pure silver is too soft and needs a stronger metal like copper to preserve its ductility (capable of sustaining large plastic deformations without fracture).

Q. Why does Sterling Silver tarnish?

A. The natural tendency for sterling silver that is alloyed with copper is to tarnish after exposure to oxygen. This is normal and is expected from sterling silver. There are various silver cleaners and polishing cloths on the market that can remove tarnish from sterling silver. To reduce tarnishing store your beads in an airtight container along with some silica gel to reduce the humidity - humidity will speed up the tarnishing process