Heart Bead

I come here a lot. The women here are very efficient and suggestive, as well as helpful and kind. The prices here are affordable and the variety is large in range. They recognize me now and are very welcoming.

Great spot with a good selection. employees are helpful and knowledgeable about jewelry making.

I came into this little cute shop looking for a stetchy cord to make bracelets with. I definitely found it. I wanted to look around a little, so I started walking away from the counter to the other sections to look at beads. However, the worker stopped me and said, «Can I hold that for you?» with a voice that showed fear of me stealing and basically taking it out of my hands. I let her hold it and I continued to look around. my friends and I looked at the beads for earrings and the same worker followed us «rearranging» the beads. So, if you are a PERSON OF COLOR and want to support unconsciously prejudice people, this is the place to go.

I hate to give this place a bad review because they have an extensive selection of beads. I would’ve spent quite a bit of money at the store if the sales people hadn’t been so aggressive in following me around or blowing me off the few times that I’ve been into the store.
Whoever was working «assumed» I was going to steal something. I’ve never stolen a thing in my life. I know what salespeople do when they feel like there is theft happening. Is it because I was the only brown person in the store? Having heard similar experiences from close friends who have been into the store as well, that is the conclusion that I’ve come to.
I even came back into the store to give it another chance and had a staff member standing behind me, practically breathing on the back of my neck the whole time.
The other times I have been into the store I was completely blown off. The salespeople focused on other things behind the counter, talking to their fellow staff members, fumbling on their phones, or more interested in serving other customers.
I’m sure heart bead has a loyal following of customers, but I certainly won’t be one of them.

Super fun! I went with a 7yr old and she showed me how it works. We cruised around and picked out a central piece which was an Asian coin, and found an assortment of other fun items to make it all go shazam! She made a necklace and I made earrings and they have more meaning than anything I could have ever bought.
The staff was super helpful and I learned a lot too!

I am going to admit up front that I am NOT the crafty or artistic type. The idea of spending an afternoon making my own jewelry didn’t appeal to me at all and I only visited this store because friends of mine like it and I was visiting Arcata for the weekend.
I was in shock when we walked in and it was so beautiful. Everything is displayed in a gorgeous manner, making you want to spend hours perusing each and every thing in the store. I ended up buying some artisan blown glass and as I was asking questions to the clerk on what to do with it, she just started asking me questions and before I knew it, she was creating jewelry right in front of me. It was fascinating and inspiring. I had no idea of what went into jewelry making and beading and all. She patiently answered a hundred of my questions.
I spent a good couple of hours in a store that I thought I’d spend 20 minutes max in. And when I walked out, lo and behold, I had purchased a couple of kits on beading some simple earrings. They got me!!!
All in all a great experience and I can’t wait to visit again next time I am craving a long drive through the giant redwoods!

I always think I could make jewelry myself, but then, where would I get all the parts? The great thing about this store is that you can make your jewelry there (with tons of help) and just buy the pieces you need… they even charge by the inch for your chains and strings so that you don’t have to buy anything in bulk. They were so friendly. I just wished I lived closer!

So glad we wandered into this well organized and creative bead shop on our visit in Arcata! We did not even know we needed any beads until we started looking around. Very enticing selection! We bought many pairs of unique beads to be able to make earrings when we get back home.
Staff was attentive and helpful.
I am sure we will shop at again in future visits to the area.

Great experiences! I bring all my friends and family here when they visit from out of state. The staff are extremely knowledgeable, creative and positive! The materials used are high quality, and impressive. My boyfriend has made beautiful pieces from here. Lots of fun!

I came there recently to get a necklace fixed and it was a great experience. Good customer service, they were very helpful and knew exactly what they were doing. Their selection and products are excellent, I will come here for everything I need to do with jewelry.

Fun, and friendly store. They have a massive assortment. Pricing is comparable to most bead shops.

Heart Bead is wonderful. The staff is awesome!

Whenever I need to come up with a reasonably priced gift for someone, I come here. I get to make a personalized piece of jewelry or a bookmark, and the staff is super helpful. I am indecisive as can be and they’re always super sweet to me.

I love this place. They repaired a necklace for me on the spot. The staff is so friendly.
Today, I had to give up a necklace cause it broke and it was time consuming for me to repair myself. So, I gave them this necklace and they can restring it and sell it. I had no problem doing this cause they are all artists and someone will get a neat necklace when they are done.
I loved the staff and how helpful they were to me. Best bead shoppe ever!

The staff is extremely helpful. Great selection! Love Heart Beads!

Wonderful selection of beads. A line of locally produced pieces and lots of very helpful employees. Prices are high and you pay top dollar for locally made products, but they have some beautiful stuff.

Spent Saturday morning downtown Arcata and my daughter decided to shop here to make a necklace for her grandmother. The place was BUSY but we still got great service, great advice and a fun time. I believe her name was Chelsey, and she knew her stuff!!! Appreciated her taking the time to help and advise us, and the fact she was attentive to others waiting. Well organized, reasonably prices, and fun.

Two weeks ago, my friend and I were shopping on the Plaza. She bought a pair of earrings from Hot Knots but since she is allergic to most metals, she needed the hooks changed out. We went to Heart Bead. The lights were all on, the door was open and there were customers milling around the beads. As we walked in, there was a cluster of staff huddled together and one woman poked her head up to yell that they just closed and we can’t come in. She said it so rudely, we thought she must be joking. My friend said she just needed to have a hook changed on earrings. One staff member said she’d sell us hooks but wouldn’t change them because it would take too long. It turned out they didn’t have the right hooks my friend needed in stock. The staff member told us they wouldn’t be restocking for a long time so, «don’t come back.» Ok fine, we won’t. My friend got the hooks changed at Talisman in Eureka where the woman was friendly and the whole process took, like, two minutes.
In this economy, I don’t think any business can afford to tell customers to not come back. She should have told us when she thought we should check back, like in two weeks or a month or whatever it would be.

I wish we had a place like this in San Diego. Heart Bead was an overwhelming blast of creativity. Upon entering, my jaw dropped when I saw the selection of beads and types of jewelry that could be made. Really, the only limiting factor is your own personal creativity and preferences when it comes to Heart Bead.
All of the beads are organized in bins and easy to peruse. I had no problem whatsoever finding the colors, shapes, and price range I was looking for. The beads range anywhere from .3 cents each to $ 6 depending on what you want. They have materials made of everything from shell to wood to glass. Take your pick! It was also very simple to find the right tools to put the jewelry together such as clasps and wire.
The staff was extremely helpful as well, seeing as I’m not a pro jewelry maker. Jonathan helped me put my projects together when I ran into difficulties. He’s a real nice guy. While we were there, they were hosting a birthday party and the kids were having a fantastic time. I also overheard that they offer beading classes periodically.
Great selection. Friendly staff. Low prices. What’s not to like?

It’s still wonderful at Heart Bead! After the farmer’s market, we went in for a fix. Alex got a set of earrings made. After window-​shopping, I sat at their work table and knitted. Friendly busy place. Worth a visit! As noted by Anastacia, they’re so helpful. The ladies know their stuff!