Delicas Beads, Often Mistakenly Labeled Seed Beads, Are Cylindrically Shaped Glass Beads Produced By World Famous Miyuki.
Delicas are a specific bead produced by world famous Miyuki, Japan's oldest seed bead producer. They are shaped like a cylinder with a large hole that allows several passes of thread through each bead and can be had in a extensive palette of colors and finishes.
Size 11 is the most in demand size of the Delica beads with 944 selections of colors, finishes and treatments in the round cylinders in addition to another 55 in the hex cuts, which are hexagon shaped cylinders. The diverse variations are obtained by specific glass treatments. There is basic transparent glass, basic opaque glass, and etched glass for a matte or semi-matte effect. Then there are the various colored glasses.
Also there are many different finishes or treatments. "Treatment" refers to something that is applied onto the surface of the glass and can be on the top, at times within the hole and in some instances one finish on the top and an alternate finish in the hole. Treatments can be made up of a clear "rainbow" or "aurora borealis" finish, a "pearl" finish, colored dyes, as well as various metal coatings including precious metals. Some Delica beads have more than one treatment applied to them in order to result in the desired effect.
Note that there are some durability concerns with some of the finishes such as the dyed or galvanized beads. The best retailers will be able to supply you with the durability information.
Miyuki also produces a size 10 Delica that is a little larger, a size 8 that is much larger than the size 11, and a size 15 that is much smaller. The size 10 and 15 are relatively new and therefore don't come in as as big a variety of colors and finishes as the size 11.
Miyuki's Delica beads are of very high quality and therefore they are more expensive. You should buy them from a reliable bead supplier that sells the authentic article. Be aware that some dealers have been known to buy less expensive, lower quality beads from another producer and pass them off as Delicas. Also be very careful if you are tempted to buy at an on-line auction.
If you are getting your beads to finish a pattern that provides you with the Delica number, such as DB-010, you should have no problem due to the fact that each color has a number. But if you are selecting your beads by color name you likely will have a problem, due to the fact that there is not a standard color description for each bead. The reason being that the Japanese description does not translate readily into English and the different importers each have their own interpretation. So it's always best to go by the DB- number.
Real Delica beads are a superb choice in any Loom, Peyote or Brick project due to the fact that they are so uniform. They make any pattern line up perfectly and give a clean, crisp finish to your project. There are fewer culls when you are working and therefore they are more cost effective than their price might indicate. And the color and finish selection is fantastic!