Pow wows are a great place to find seed beads and see wonderful beaded workmanship! Pow wows are gatherings of Native American tribes to celebrate and honor native cultures and traditions. They are a social event that usually features a variety of dances, songs and vendors. 
Here's info on an upcoming one at CSUN in Northridge on November 29, 2025. 

Here's a link to the Press Release from California State University, Northridge.

To find other Pow wow events, you can try searching the Pow Wows Calendar from PowWows.com.  

The website for Calexplornia has lists of California Pow Wows. Unfortunately, it may not be as timely as one wants. 

Another website specifically for California is NewsfromNativeCalifornia. It is broader than just Pow wows. For example, there is some interesting information about rock art locations in California. 

In addition, another website on Southern California Pow wows comes from the San Manual Pow Wow and is linked  here. 

If you know of other websites that have useful Pow wow information, let us know in the Comments. 

The Fiesta of Gems hosted by the Culver City Rock and Mineral Club was June 28-29, 2025. The Bead Society had a presence there. We had two tables filled with beads, jewelry and findings at discount prices.  We enjoy participating in this show because the people who attend are very interesting. There is a lot of overlap between people who hunt for gemstones and people who make jewelry with them. 
 
Various Bead Society volunteers such as Angie C, Sylvia H, Bridgette W, Carmen L, Diedre G, David K and Nikki D helped out at the show. We demonstrated basic bead design for making a necklace with Lisa S, Bead Society President, and Kumihimo with Kay D. We had sample projects for popular bead weaving stitches We also answered questions about bead stringing, supplies, and classes.

The beads and jewelry come from donations from the families of Bead Society members and others. We have used the beads in classes, donated them to various groups and have sold some at our Pop Ups and other shows. We look forward to next year's show! 

The Bead Society was recently approached by Sage Phillips with the Makwa Studio about the Hospital Gown Project-- a community-based collaborative beaded artwork. They are currently seeking remote & in-person contributions of blue brick-stitch bead swatches! Remote swatches have a deadline to be sent by April 30th.

"It would be lovely if you could share this information and opportunity among your organization, students, friends, loved ones, or to anybody who would be interested! We invite anyone who has been impacted by alcoholism within their families or by their loved ones to join us in the creation of a new work titled “Hospital Gowns”. 

These will be exhibited at the Museum of Contemporary Native Arts, Santa Fe NM in July 2025.  Any sales of work will have a portion donated to the Minneapolis organization, Southside Harm Reduction. 

Swatches can vary in size and vary in shades of blue (as long as they are blue!) We ask that the swatch is no bigger than 4 inches on either side. They can even be as small as .5" x .5" -- any size within 4 inches is great! Please make sure they are constructed using the brick-stitch beading technique!

Swatches can be mailed to the following address:

Makwa Studio
1500 Jackson St NE
Studio #238
Minneapolis, MN, 55413

Makwa Studio is so excited to see the contributions! Please don't hesitate to reach out with questions, or for more information about the project and how to be involved.

Thank you,

Sage Phillips | [email protected] | they/she | www.makwastudio.com

This new column on Beads in the News will highlight articles and press releases and news items that focus on beads and jewelry. If you would like to contribute to this column, please send your input to [email protected]. ​

The Living, Breathing Brooches of the Yucatán by ROXANNE HOORN, Atlas Obscura SEPTEMBER 7, 2023
The live, jewel-encrusted beetles called maquechs are tied to an ancient Mayan legend, but some worry for their future. This article talks about these wonderful bejewelled beetles from Yucatán, Mexico. Sold to tourists, the beetles are attached with a pin and a chain. They scurry all over the wearer's blouse. They are adorned with fake diamonds, ruby, emeralds, pearls, or velvety fabric. The beetles can go months or years without eating.  The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. has a collection of these beetles with and without adornment! 
For more information, click on this link to Atlas Obscura. 

Dusting Off Your Pearls, New York Times, September 9, 2023, p. A3.
The New York Times advises us that Peals are back in and even men are wearing them! 

If you have ideas for this column, please send your input to [email protected]. ​
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