All roads for glass bead lovers lead to Crystal Valley. Please accept our invitation to a small showcase of what is being created with them in various corners of the world. Welcome to the global realm ruled by Queen Bead.

Welcome to the exhibition BEADS FOR THE WHOLE WORLD, which will kick off the bead craze with an opening reception on August 24 at 5 p.m. at Kavárna Pošta in Liberec! What will you see? You will see a tiny glass ornament as perceived and used by people living tens of thousands of kilometers away from where it is made. They are the ones who crafted the items you can see here. Their skill, taste, and spirit are imprinted in them. The seed bead is, in fact, a true bridge between people of different cultures, faiths, interests, and desires. A bridge full of imagination, just like life itself.

The world’s largest manufacturer of glass beads is PRECIOSA ORNELA, a joint-stock company with factories in Desná and Zásada. It produces a staggering 3.5 million kilograms of them annually. If we were to string them all together, we could wrap our planet several times over with a colorful ring. Nowhere else but at PRECIOSA ORNELA can they produce so many shapes, colors, sizes, and surface finishes that can be combined with one another—more than 255,000!

In Europe, seed beads are primarily a means of self-expression in hobby items and have also become popular with fashion designers. In the eastern part of the continent, rooms are adorned with embroidered seed bead pictures. In America, they are also used to create traditional ornaments or souvenirs of indigenous cultures, and of course, they are a must-have at any carnival. What would Africa be without beaded ornaments, and what souvenirs would pilgrims to Islam’s holy sites buy? Beads are also popular in Asia, where they are used to decorate clothing, jewelry, and interiors. Isn’t Turkey the kingdom of embroidery—ornaments for a thousand and one nights—and India a land literally studded with beads?

02.6.2026