SHOP LOVE BEADS BY KATE RAY ON ETSY
These bracelets, long wrap chains, called “Love Beads” are my debut piece into the jewelry market and represent my main style of art. They can be made to order. I will always have love beads on deck and will restock when out. So don’t worry if it says I’m out… just send me a message on Etsy or by email at katebykateray@gmail.com and I will take care of you.
“Love beads” were a jewelry trend that started in the 1960s inspired by the hippie movement and their festival lifestyle. They would make long strings of small seed beads together with multiple colors and sizes. They were made with love to be shared with other hippies and friends to spread the peace and love. No bead was left behind. Every strand of beads was unique and the people stringing them made them with love and shared them with others in order to spread the altruistic ideals of brotherhood, peace, and love.
Every strand of love beads is unique and one-of-a-kind. I used a lot of the same materials, however I am always making adjustments and additions and creating new mixes of random beads. You never know what you’re going to get when you order a string of love beads. That is because there are no rules to making and creating love bead chains. Any and all beads are welcomed and used. “No bead left behind.”
SHOP LOVE BEADS BY KATE RAY ON ETSY
SHOP LOVE BEADS BY KATE RAY ON ETSY
Intro to “Love Beads” by Kate Ray
KATE BY KATE RAY is my brand name and I debuted the jewelry line with my first collection of bracelets, a revamped style of beading, known as “Love Beads.” They were long strands of small multi-colored beads that can be wrapped around the neck, wrist, ankle, and body. Since then, I’ve branched out to other styles of bracelets and jewelry, including wire string with metal clasps, other beaded bracelets, special stones beads, chain-link bracelets, and braided fabric bracelets. But… it all started with the multi-colored strands of love beads.
The first mix of “Love Beads” I made was when I was in college. I made wrap bracelets of multi-colored and multi-sized beads I had collected for my best friends at the time. My group of girlfriends tended to have a slightly “hippie” or “bohemian” vibe so these bracelets were perfect for them.
Then I started making single strand wraps using the rainbow seed bead soup mix, calling them friendship bracelets, and adding a unique center bead or pendant piece to make each one special. The rainbow beads mix used for the singles come from the “Love Beads” original long chain/wrap collection. Most of the centerpieces and charms have some sort of symbolism or meaning to them, which can be a thoughtful present while picking one out that represents your friendship with a specific person. Take a look at my RAINBOW FRIENDSHIP BRACELETS PAGE for more information. They are a smaller, simpler variation of my love bead wrap bracelets and are perfect for sharing or trading with friends.
These beaded bracelets were inspired by the historical 1960’s hippie trend of what they called, “Love Beads” during the “Summer of Love”. The Summer of Love was a social phenomenon that occurred during the summer of 1967, when as many as 100,000 people, mostly young people sporting hippie fashions of dress and behavior, converged in California. More broadly, the Summer of Love encompassed the hippie music, hallucinogenic drugs, anti-war, and free-love scene throughout the West Coast of the United States, and as far away as New York City. Hippies, sometimes called “flower children,” were an eclectic group. Many were suspicious of the government, rejected consumerist values, and generally opposed the Vietnam War. A few were interested in politics; others were concerned more with art (music, painting, poetry in particular) or spiritual and meditative practices. The Summer of Love is often regarded as a significant cultural event.
Love beads become popular during the 1960s counterculture movement of Bohemianism, hippies or “flower people,” and other alternative lifestyles. Love beads began as layered necklaces consisting of one or more long strings of closely spaced small beads, usually colorful, with mismatched shapes and sizes. Love beads were worn as a symbol of the altruistic ideals of brotherhood, peace, and goodwill.
This was my first inspiration for beaded wrap bracelets and the first style of bracelets that I opened the Kate by Kate Ray brand with. I’ve since then branched off to include other bracelet types such as wire clasps, special stone beads, chain-link bracelets, and braided fabric bracelets. But… it all started with the classic trend of love beads and trying to bring back the trend of spreading peace and love. Beads that don’t match… friends that don’t match… we’re all accepted in this place. We’re all promoting brotherhood, peace, and love for the world.
This product listed here is my version of the classic hippie trend, known as “love beads”. The length and multi-wrap necklaces and bracelets are the original idea (long strands of random beads strung together and shared with fellow hippies). Historically, the Love Beads were mostly worn as necklaces, however the length of the strands can be wrapped to be bracelets or anklets and that’s how I preferred to wear mine. Possibilities are endless with these long strands of love beads and there is no way that you wear them is wrong.
SHOP LOVE BEADS BY KATE RAY ON ETSY
More History of Love Beads…
These love beads are made from multi-colored seed beads sized 11/0 to 6/0 with accent beads, pieces, charms, or pendants that could be made of wood, glass, silver, gold, bone, and other special materials. Often peace signs, hearts, and flowers were used.
Love beads are one of the traditional accessories of hippies. They consist of one or more long strings of beads, frequently handmade, worn around the neck by both sexes. The love bead trend probably evolved from the hippie fascination with non-Western cultures, such as those of Africa, India, and Native America, which make common use of similar beads.
Wear them however you like. Pick one (or multiple) that speaks to you and represents your love and friendship. Share with your friends. Stack them up together on your own wrist. There’s no wrong way to wear these and there’s no pattern or theme to follow. They look good by themselves or in collections.
Channel your inner 60s hippie vibe by wearing these and remember that these bracelets were made out of love in order to share with others the spread of happiness, brotherhood, peace, and love.
There are many ways to design your own version of this cultural icon. The styles included easy-wear necklaces that go anywhere. Traditionally, love beads were macramé of natural stringing materials such as cotton cord, jute and hemp. Small organic-style brightly colored beads of glass, shell, wood and bone were strung tightly spaced and embellished with a peace symbol, flower, and heart charms. This style could be dubbed as “festival bohemian chic.”
The term, “Love Beads,” was firmly established in English in 1965. Perhaps if we talk about the vast counterculture layer of those years, the beads will sink in it as a minor accessory. But if you try to find a visual symbol of the 60’s, then most likely it will be the beads.
Beads of love are long, thin colored threads with small, unique beads and seed beads, which firmly entered the everyday life of Americans and Europeans with the generation of “flower children”. They are usually consisted of hundreds, if not thousands, of tiny beads wrapped many times around the neck, waist, ankles, and wrists. Very often people made (and still make) curtains of such beads.
An integral part of the wardrobe of the hippies were handicrafts made of natural materials. Many elements of clothes hark back to the traditional design of India, Nepal, Morocco, and Central America. The hippies largely copied Indian jewelry.
It was probably the only taboo in relation to beads. They used everything to make love beads. Different patterns, colors, lengths—nothing was regulated. The only rule was the complete lack of rules when it came to expressing themselves.
Imagine… jewelry designed with a passion for uniting the world “one bead at a time,” in order to promote peace & love and to guide the planet and the world to live as one.
SHOP LOVE BEADS BY KATE RAY ON ETSY
For more information on the history of love beads check out these websites:
https://www.firemountaingems.com/resources/jewelry-making-articles/d53p#:~:text=Popularized%20by%20the%20California%20counterculture,of%20brotherhood%2C%20peace%20and%20goodwill
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Love_beads
https://amp.livemaster.com/topic/2999623-hippies-and-love-beads