When you're making and selling your own handcrafted bead jewelry you're always looking for ways to reduce you bead and supply expenses by buying your beads for the lowest price you can. If you save just ten cents per bead that can quickly add up to a lot of extra profit when you sell your jewelry, so it makes sense to shop smart and take your time looking for good deals on both the beads you use and the supplies you buy.

And if you sell your handmade jewelry at craft shows you know that most of the larger shows are in the spring and fall each year when the weather is mild and people are in a buying sort of mood! I always sell much more jewelry at the fall craft shows that I attend because I've learned that from early October onward a lot of people are beginning to look for new and unique pieces of jewelry to wear around the holidays like Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Obviously holiday jewelry requires beads and accessories you don't normally wear throughout the year For example, around Halloween I usually sell a lot of little charm bracelets with black cat and jack-o-lantern charms on them and around Christmas I find that anything with snowmen or Christmas trees sells like the proverbial hot cakes!

The key to making a decent profit on your handmade holiday jewelry is buying your beads and supplies as cheaply as possible. Here are a couple ways to do this:

Buy your beads in bulk: You can always save money doing this, but it's especially important to mention this method when thinking about holiday beads. A lot of people only buy enough holiday beads to last them through the short holiday season, but you have to think long term and realize that these holiday come every single year and no matter what you don't sell this year you'll surely be able to sell next year. By buying a lot of holiday beads at once you'll save a fair bit of money and reduce your cost per bead.

Buy holiday beads right before or right after the holidays: This is another trick that a lot of people forget about. On November first I start shopping the local craft stores and online bead sites for clearance sales of Halloween beads. I simple stock up on those beads and put them in storage until next year when I can pull them out and make lots of jewelry without spending a lot of money.

Of course, if you're going to buy a lot of beads and you're going to store them for a long time you have to be sure you have enough storage space set aside. I use two large plastic bins to keep most of the beads I buy for holidays an then separate those bins with smaller boxes that are clearly labeled. For example, I have three large boxes in one of my bins that are marked "Christmas beads" and I have one box that is marked "New Years Beads."

I wish you the best of luck making and selling your holiday jewelry!