Repair and sourcing vintage beads

[Mad Catter]

I have a few items that have beading that I've been able to repair with regular beads available today but some have beads with a particular shine or shape that don't match anything I can find.
How do people deal with these type issues?
I have nightmares of myself running through value village and throwing every piece of old damaged beaded clothing into my cart in desperation.

Do people sell old clothing beads in lots like they do with broken jewellery? I haven't found a source.

Here's the two items I'm having trouble finding beads to match the colour or shape. The blue one looked like normal glass beads but they have a weird (lovely) lilac cast to them. Not like AB but almost like depression glass type sheen. It wasn't really noticeable until I put them beside new beads. The green dress has easy to find beads but it's those droplets that I'm having trouble with. Everything I find with the same shape is too large or too small or very sharp cut crystal.

Maybe it's a business idea for some entrepreneurial spirit out there?

Thanks for any tips offered!

 

[Circa Vintage Clothing]

Sometimes you can find vintage beads on Etsy but it’s a needle in a haystack: there was a lot more variety used the past and the beads sometimes change colour according to the conditions they’re stored in. Plus the subtleties of shades mean that beads that look good on your monitor may not match in real life.

I have a stash of vintage beads that I use for repairs but can rarely match them so usually work with what’s there: by moving beads on the garment you can fill gaps. Sometimes you an also find unused beads in the seams. Another last resort is just to secure the existing beads so no more come off and leave as is. It’s the nature of beaded garments to lose their trim.

 

[Linn]

There are dealers who specialize in vintage rhinestones and some may have vintage beads, but trying to find something that has changed color over the years and/or is unusual can be really difficult -especially if you don't know the name or size of what you are looking for. I did a very quick search for "vintage beads" on eBay and found several lots, but you would have to go through them carefully to see if there is anything you can use and there may not be. I think Nicole's idea of securing what you have and moving some beads is a really good idea!

 

[Mad Catter]

Thank you
The blue velvet piece has shoulder strap that I can raid beads from. Most of the missing ones were from there. The beading was done gently enough that the velvet on the straps wasn't damaged by them.
As for the silk dress, I'll just secure them for now and hope I come across more. I *might* be able to widen the loops of the back loose area so make both sides match but that's a project so it will have to wait Too many pots on the stove atm.

Thanks as always!