About Us

Fandangle Bead Store is the only full-range bead shop in the Metro-Richmond area that also provides an informative shopping experience for a wide variety of customers with different skill levels, access to the latest high-quality beads and beading-related materials, and the opportunity to take a wide range of jewelry-related classes, all at a fair market value.

More than Richmond’s premier bead shop; we are a community of people that enjoy learning, sharing creative ideas, and teaching others:

• Arts and crafts
• Bead making classes
• Jewelry making skills
• Basic wire working

History (… or more aptly, HERstory)

Melanie Bentley opened Fandangle Bead Store six years ago on a whim. Having taught precious metal clay classes in the Richmond area for a number of years, she recognized the need for a friendly full-range bead store in the Richmond area where customers and students could learn basic jewelry making skills. So, armed with a solid business plan and the hope that she could help build a creative community South of the James, Melanie pleaded her case to First Market Bank, got the loan, signed the lease and … the rest is history! Low and behold, almost six years later the “Little Bead Store That Could” expanded and relocated two doors down the sidewalk from it’s original location.

Over the years we have expanded our inventory drastically as well as our jewelry class offerings, with approximately 45 jewelry making classes every quarter. Come join us, explore your muse, and even if you’re one of those people who says, “But I’m not creative…”, give us a chance to us prove you wrong! At Fandangle Bead Store we believe everyone has that creative spark–you just need to learn a couple of basic skills to get started and then the windows to creativity will be flung wide open!

Hope to see you in a class soon!

A little more about Melanie Bentley, Bead Empress:

7 years of teaching experience, including:

• Hand Workshop (now Visual Arts Center)
• Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
• Bay School of the Arts
• Artisan Center of Virginia
• Art & Soul Retreats
• Fandangle Bead Store
• Finding New Hope” Retreat for United Nation’s-sponsored retreat for 911 victims

Articles Published in:

• PMC National Guild quarterly
• A Connecting Thread

Art Work Featured in:

• Best of Virginia 2006 – Best in Jewelry
• Virginia Magazine – Featured on cover
• The Art of Metal Clay – Sherri Haab

Awards:

• 2009 Virginia Museum of the Fine Arts “MUSE” award recipient for creativity in business pursuits
• Juried into First National PMC Guild Exhibit