Here is one side of the Trollbeads Gallery/Rogers Gallery free standing museum. The museum has a total of 4 sides. We display it at Trollbeads Fest each year and many attendees love studying the older beads and learn a lot about the Trollbeads line this way! Each year we add more of the very old and hard to find beads.
The museum is comprised of only Retired Trollbeads and in the next few weeks there will be a large retirement of Trollbeads so we need to add an addition to our museum! Every couple of years or so Trollbeads decides which beads they will retire. With many new beads introduced through out the year and where it is the aim of Trollbeads to keep the line to around 400 beads the retirements are essential. Trollbeads has had a history of retiring beads every 2 years or so.
We all have opinions on which beads we love and which we will be sorry to lose but many factors go into deciding which beads will earn their "gold watch" and be retired. Obviously the beads that sell the less or the beads that have ended up difficult for collectors to work into a design. With this retirement we will see that there are many "Glass 1" Trollbeads going as well as silver beads and gold beads.
Sometimes is may be the size or weight of a bead that determines a retirement as many of the larger beads use a lot of gold or silver and where the raw precious metals market continues to increase it makes the large beads expensive so they sell less. With this retirement the "Snowman" is a good example of that. I have always sold this bead well during the holiday time and I am very sad to see it go. Another bead I will miss is the "Jellyfish" bead and I sell this one very well but my store is on the coast so this may be why but I know it is a heavier bead also. "Mouse With Cheese" as heavy is going to. Other heavy silver Trollbeads to be retired include "Find Your Pet", "Magician" and "Circus Elephant". As far as slow selling beads go I think maybe 95% of you will admit we won't miss the "Twister". Funky though it was it was also scary for many!
In the gold beads I will be very sorry to see the 18K Jugend leave the line. It was a slow seller due to it's size and price but I for one have set aside for myself. Both of the 18K "Transformation Man" and "Transformaiton Woman" are being retired as is the 18K Unity bead. With today's high gold prices selling any of the gold beads have become more rare then when I started selling 6 years ago. The 18K Pearl Lock is going and I know many who love that lock but perhaps they will introduce another gold lock to replace it!
The Glass 1 beads list heading into retirement is the longest list. It has over 15 items and while it has a lot I've never used it also includes beads I adore. Make sure you pick up "Black Squirrel", (Shown on left) "Deep Bubbles", "Wild Cat", "Brown Desert", "Red Feather", "Blue-Green Feather" and some of the others that are on the list. I will have a complete list on Trollbeads Gallery.
Click To view the list of beads set to retire on January 26, 2012
Below are some of the older Trollbeads we added to the Trollbeads Gallery museum in 2011.
