Bead Factory in Dodowa

I went with Margaret and a friend of ours, Loreli, and her two little girls, Mallory and Sophia, to a bead factory recently. Our goal was to buy a variety of beads to make jewelry as gifts for Christmas. Let's just say - goal accomplished! I was amazed at the huge number of beads that this place had and all of them so beautiful. Before we went in to look at the finished product we were given a brief tour of the "factory" and told how they make the beads. It is incredible. Hopefully the pictures will help to give you a good idea of what I saw. The beads are made from old wine bottles. The glass is either broken up into small pieces or ground into a fine powder depending on the type of bead they will make. The broken pieces are then put into these small molds made of clay and covered with ceramic paint and baked in the fiery furnace until they melt. A craftsman then takes each mold and forms the bead and creates the hole to string them with two simple looking tools. After this the beads are colored and baked again and then the artiste paints the decorations on them. The beads are placed on strings and put into the store for sale. I found it interesting that all the baking and shaping of the beads was done by men and the stringing done by women. Overall the process was fascinating to watch and even more so when we were told that this technique has been used by bead makers for centuries. The main tribe here that makes these beads is called the Krobo tribe and the beads can be dated back to the 16th century. The technique is handed down from family to family.

The first picture is of the "factory". I have to admit when I first heard the term "bead factory", my American mind actually thought it would be like a real factory in the states. Silly but true. Actually I think the term "factory" here is a bit lofty but you get the point.



The forming and shaping of the bead after it has just come out of the fire.

























Waiting for the crushed glass to melt.











The finished product. Aren't they beautiful? Each one made like I described and painted one by one by hand. Incredible. These sell in two strands of each bead - so about 20-30 beads for approximately 80 cents to 2 dollars depending on the bead.


And there are multiple sizes and colors to make the jewelry from. When Margaret and I finish making something I will put up a picture.

I have to thank Loreli for these pictures as I had forgotten my camera at home when we left. I can't believe I did that but I did! Thanks for the pics Loreli!!