Help with bead and any comment?

[justahula]

Going down the rabbit hole of what is this?

Thanks for taking a look!

[1940fc]

 If they were glass I`d say West Germany similar to nugget beads ..but in seeing your pics..I`m not seeing any shiny to them.   

They aren`t glass are they? They almost look like papier mache..very unusual looking

[justahula]

Hi Sarah,

Definitely not glass is the only thing I know for sure.

Almost like a spun cotton?  Or maybe something like

those old beads made of organic flower petals?

Paper mache isn't something I thought of but could be....

[1940fc]

Hmmmm..trying to jump start brain.  There is a bead that is super lightweight..almost like styrofoam  LOl  But dang if I can remember the name of it. 

I had a few West Germay necklaces made with them years ago (they were round beads)..but where there was any damage to the bead..it really did look & feel like styrofoam.  

Hopefully someone else here can help..I`ll keep looking..I might even have a pic of my necklace.

[flipping_treasures]

They look like silk rose buds with a bead cap to me.

[old.crows.nest]

At first glance I saw the rose petal beads. Something that was said made me think otherwise so I searched pulp as a keyword and found a Antique French Rosary made from wood pulp. There is a gritty look to these beads which might match that idea.

[flipping_treasures]

I have also seen crushed pressed actual rose petals used as beads, especially on rosaries.  

[justahula]

So many ideas!

You people are awesome..

wood pulp is interesting..

silk is interesting...

I've see the rose petal beads before but thought

they had a seam from being molded..I could be wrong.

Almost wish there was a damaged bead to look at.

Brooch is remarkably intact so won't mess with it.

Thank you for the ideas, I'll look around.

See if I can come up with anything  🙂

[southernmermaid8]

Very unusual,  I’m not quite sure what to call them.  

I would use the keyword Cha Cha to describe  the movement.  

I think what Sarah is trying to describe is a type of celluloid.  I have a necklace that actually looks like popcorn.  Oooh I can’t pull up the term either.  

Sorry I’m not much help,  off to research them a bit.  

Mermaid 🐳

[southernmermaid8]

Sarah,  It just hit me.  Is it Bubblelite or Featherlite ?

[old.crows.nest]

Interesting thought Mermaid!

[old.crows.nest]

I just had a thought out of thin air. Are the beads each unique? I wonder if they are? If not? Maybe painted Seeds?

[old.crows.nest]

Just realized where last thought came from. Finish looks like painted Featherlite I have, matte color, kind of rough and bubbly.

[southernmermaid8]

Crow,  They do look like some kind of painted seed.  

Hmmmm the plot thickens

[1940fc]

The use of 2 different types of bead caps is unusual

They kinda appear to have a rough texture to them..so that doesn`t remind me of featherlite?

Well has been so long since I`ve seen any in person, so I just peeked at some online pics..so maybe it could be?