Trollbeads information that can inspire your creativity with your own Trollbeads collection. Share your thoughts, be involved and please leave comments!

Today the venerable interchangeable bead pioneers released a new kind of Unique beads, Universal Uniques.  The only thing that separates these from the original Unique Trollbeads is the size of the silver core at the center of the bead.  As the original bead line Trollbeads set the course for all other lines and the lines that followed them developed their products so anyone with Trollbeads could not use their chains.  With Pandora the end is larger allowing it only to accept its own beads that have large cores. Chamelia came out years later and they use the same closure, not allowing Trollbeads to be used on their chain.   I have to explain that many Trollbeads collectors know Trollbeads are the original bead brand and are questioning this move to modify on Trollbeads part.  I too was conflicted but now that I've learned the "why's" I understand and support this decision.

Universal Uniques are a meant to be, in Lise Aagaard's exact words, "a migration tool" for other bracelet wearers to be able to add our beautiful glass to their bracelets.  There are so many other people with other bracelets who have yearned for the Trollbeads product, especially the glass beads.  So Lise's idea was to make something for them without impinging on Trollbeads or forcing the other collectors to go without.

Having been a retailer for Trollbeads for years now I have seen many people who wear Pandora look longingly into our cases full of colorful glass beads, discussing the desire to have them but are simply not able to change the chain they wear.  (The glass beads from Pandora are very limited and they have a visually intrusive silver band running on the side of the bead and attached to the core with PANDORA all over it.) When you consider the collectable beads are often gifts from husbands and children (mother’s day being our biggest holiday) the Pandora or Chamelia wearer’s may want to add more color to their bracelets but they don't want to offend the gift giver.  Or maybe it's the cost of starting over but whatever the reason the Universal Uniques will stretch and break the boundaries laid down by the subsequent bead brands. No other bead brand has the history and experience of creating and offering glass beads like Trollbeads and this seems the best way to accomplish sharing of the beads! The Aagaard's are inclusive by nature and want all people from all communities to be able to try Trollbeads while keeping the integrity of the Trollbeads Mantra... excellence is craftsmanship, materials and design.

On Trollbeads Gallery Forum there is an on-going discussion by collectors on the pros and cons of this decision and both sides have valuable merits and you may want to read this discussion. Please join the forum for the most up to date Troll beads information.

This isn’t the first time Troll has offered the larger cores.  In both of the charitable collections one being the breast cancer awareness beads and the beads created to raise funds for Haiti’s earthquake survivors both used the larger core so all collectors could take part in the fund raising efforts.

My personal experience in seeing the Universal Uniques for the first time was overwhelming and if you know me and my history with Unique beads I have always offered them and I am not easily overwhelmed.  Just last week at the jewelry show in Las Vegas dealers were given the opportunity to select their own sets from large bowls filled to the brim with some of the most glorious beads I have ever seen.  Having only met Isabel Aagaard prior to this show I was excited to meet Lise and the rest of the family. I was also beyond excited about the new beads.  For a week prior to the show I kept on imagining myself rushing right past Peter and Lise, the two people I have been dying to meet for years, to dive into the Uniques!  Well it just about played out exactly as I imagined but I did it with a smile.  My son was the first in the booth and had already pulled his selections for Starfish, the Trollbead store in Boulder, Colorado- so I was the natural second.  I want to finish by reporting after my first day of sales they are being met with strong enthusiasm and so far my collectors have been all Trollbead collectors!

If you feel strongly one way or the other I would love to hear your comments.  If you have already left them on Trollbeads Gallery Forum, please also leave them here for the people who don’t visit the forum. (imagine that!)

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From l to r:Peter,Isabel,Lise Aagaard,Krista,Louise Rogers,Robin A, Alex Rogers and Nicolas Aagaard at Las Vegas party!

The New Trollbeads release for the Winter 2010 is coming out in the U.S. on November 12th! There are  all sorts of wonderful new additions to the Trollbeads line!!  We are particularily excited to see the 2010 People's Bead Award Winner the "Ice Bear" bead designed by Kristi Denning from Maryland. Kristi was at our Trollbeads Fest! 2010 in October and she had with her the model she made for the contest.  The "Ice Bear" will be a huge favorite, especially for all the people who were lucky enough to meet Kristi at Trollbeads Fest. Below Kristi is holding the model for her award winning design.  Just this weed Kristi received the Gold version of the "Ice Bear" as an award from Trollbeads Denmark.

Another favorite will be the new "Pink Diamonds" bead.  The "White Diamonds" and "Black Diamonds" Trollbeads are two of the more popular beads for Trollbeads Gallery customers.  The new silver Star Trollbead and the new Snowflake Trollbeads look to be a great addition also.  There is one new 18K Gold bead and it looks to be very interesting, I can't wait to see it in person!

The brand new Trollbeads earring components are frosty and fun and interchangeable! Add them to your holiday wardobe!  We have begun to create more earring designs with the interchangeable accessories to much acclaim from our customers and Trollbeads will continue to add fresh components with each new Troll release.

While Denmark enjoys a white Christmas,  the designers at Trollbeads have not forgotten those on the other side of the world that celebrate Christmas with beach parties and blossoming cherry orchards. For Premier Partner Program members, Trollbeads has two Special Edition glass kits - Christmas in Hawaii with blue nuances and Christmas in Australia with patterns of Cherry Blossoms.  These two glass kits will be sold separately and will add a great set of colors for your holiday jewelry designs. 

For those of you looking for a more traditional Trollbeads look please check out the Red Stripe Glass Bead, the Green Stripe Bead which is much darker than the photograph on the website and is perfect with the red stripe!  Also think of adding White Diamonds !  With the old silver Trollbeads favorites like the Snowman bead and the silver Snow bead and the new snow bead we should all be able to make many very unique Christmas designs this year.  Very soon Trollbeads Gallery will be releasing our holiday favorite "Holiday Uniques". We have assembled a huge quanity and are quite excited by our selection! Many beautiful unique (referred to OOAK in Europe) in greens and reds are being photographed as I write this!  We will announce it on Trollbeads Gallery Forum and we will send out an email when they are released!

Trollbeads Fest! 2010

Rogers Gallery /Trollbeads Gallery

New Bedford, Mass.

October 15 & 16 2010

Post Trollbeads Fest! 2010 Letter

Dear Trollbeads Fans,

How can I thank you all enough for everything you each brought to our amazing event? It has been referred to as a truly historical event for Trollbeads in the U.S. and we should all be proud to have been a part of it.  I have tried to imagine what I would say to you but words can’t quite express it.  Having been present, you know what I mean. 

There was something magical in our midst, palpable yet indescribable.  Mary Jo Coe, the National Sales Director for TrollbeadsUS, summed it up by saying what we created and what the event embodied was exactly what Trollbeads is all about.   So I thought I would sum up the event in Trollbeads.

Friendship Bead.  Do you realize that our Forum is only 1 ½ years old and we were more like old friends at a high school reunion? Look at some of the photos and you’ll see why I think that. The closeness we all felt allowed us to” let our hair down” and be who we are and enjoy the moment with friends and with Trollbeads. Our forum had brought together a very real sense of ourselves relating to each other through our hearts.

Pax Bead. Having the designer, Suzanne Hopping and her husband with us from Australia created a sense of the world just as she portrayed it.  Protected by the doves wings we were safe amongst each other to celebrate our love of Trollbeads and our own community.

Waves Bead. How was I to know about the Northeaster storm hitting New England mid-October when I planned the event and the accompanying Harbor Cruises?  Frede got a wave in the face and I know a lot of you other hardy souls did to!

Three Monkeys Bead.  There was definitely mischief about!  The monkeys were busy will pranks and tricks although I would love to name you all, I can’t! 1 monkey would be Maddog, 2 would be his sidekick Mary Maddog and 3 would be Mary Anna the screamer!

Angel and Devil bead.  Dearest Frede, with your smooth southern accent and your tall stature you resemble an angel in all ways…but boy what a devil you are!  Our Soren didn’t know what he was in for!

Lucky Knot bead.  This bead is for luck and happiness and we surely had luck and happiness all covered for our Trollbeads Fest. My face still hurts from all the smiling and laughing.

Harmony bead. Most importantly this bead is about harmony, something our gathering was graced with and out friendships are sealed by.

Victory bead. This I dedicate to New Bedford’s Mayor, Scott Lang.  At our dinner Saturday night Scott gave a great talk sharing his love of New Bedford and its history for everyone to take home and share. Scott has been leading New Bedford to rise again to its past prominence with grace and intelligence, which are two things not often seen in politics.  Thank you to Scott and to his wife Gig, our courageous event planner!

Transition Man bead. I definitely want to give a “Hat’s off” to all the wonderfully patient and enabling spouses.  What amazing men!  I have never seen such supportive men and the best were the ones that ended up sporting their own Trollbeads by the end of the Fest!  You guys are the real men!

Yesterday all of our gang from Rogers Gallery and Trollbeads Gallery assembled for a post Trollbeads Fest meeting.  Before I knew what was happening Carole, Penni, Nate, Marjorie, Ruth and Gig were all chattering about Trollbeads Fest! 2011.    Did you all notice I left Ben’s name out of it… actually we are all on board for next year.  So many people wanted to be there that could not be this time around that for we owe it to them and to everyone else asking for Trollbeads Fest! 2011, we are off and running!!

Please accept my heartfelt thanks to everyone who came and who made the effort to travel to be a part of this amazing event.  We all made it what it was. 

Warm regards,

Louise

PS. If you have not joined Our Trollbeads Gallery Forum do so! You can catch all of the photos from Trollbeads Fest and believe me they are high on the factor!

With only 12 days to go before our Trollbeads get together gets underway we have only to sit back and ponder our plans!  The Fantasy Necklace, Leather Bracelet and New Trollbeads Earrings learning stations are well thought out and well stocked. The teachers are getting their learning stations ready!  The photo above was taken by our Trollbeads Fest visiting photographer, Ginger Hatten from Wyoming.  She will show you how to shoot photos of your collection with clarity and detail so you can be proud of your Trollbeads photographs.

The famous Rogers Gallery/Trollbeads Gallery selection of Unique beads totaling almost 1500 Assorted Unique Trollbeads (referred to as OOAK in Europe) could not be more diverse and more beautiful.  The stunning possibilities for adding to your Troll collection in one place has never been as great.  Trollbeads Fest! 2010 will be the the first festival of it's kind in the United States.

A Trollbeads Trunk Show will be running concurrently with Trollfest offering specials to all attendees. If you purchace 4 Trollbeads of any value you may receive a free Trollbead of equal or less that the lowest priced bead purchased. If you purchase any of the Gold Trollbeads you will receive $100.00 off and if you purchase a Silver/Gold Trollbead you will receive $50.00 off!  The Trunk show specials offer such great savings attending Trollbeads Fest for this alone is worth it! If you need further details call the gallery at 1-508-758-3641.

Purchase a "Pax" Trollbead at Trollbeads Fest and meet Suzanne Hopping the designer.  Suzanne is coming from Australia and will be at Trollbeads Fest signing special Trollbeads Fest presentation certificates for the "Pax" bead so you will always have unique memoriabilia for the first festival of it's kind.  Suzanne will also be signing the coffee table book "Icon of Jewelry Design, Trollbeads".  The 2009 Trollbeads People's Bead Winner is featured in the book.

If you haven't yet signed up for Trollbeads Fest, it's not too late! Join us for a fun filled weekend in the best month of the year in New England!  Enjoy the foliage and the crisp clean fall air with a lot of other Trollbeads fanatics!

Check out the excitement here!

History in the making! On Friday October 15th Rogers Gallery will be unveiling the first Trollbeads Museum of its kind in the United States.  Two years of collecting some of the oldest and the rarest of Trollbeads has produced a collection worthy of seeing!

Trollbeads Fest! 2010 How did this come about?

From my first announcement of Trollbeads Fest! 2010 many people have asked me how this event has come about and how long had I been planning it.  A shadow of an idea came last year when I started plans for the Rogers Gallery/Trollbeads Gallery Trollbeads Museum.  Having the only on-line collection dedicated entirely to retired Trollbeads www.retiredtrollbeadsgallery.com ,I became aware of a great story not yet told and of a history not yet documented or celebrated. At this point in time there was no comprehensive information or collection anywhere that displayed the history of the individual Trollbeads from the beginning of Trollbeads time.* I began researching and investing in as many of the hard to find retired Trollbeads I could find.  As the collection grew every collector that knew about it wanted to know where and when they could see it and this is when the notion came to be.  We would put on an event that would accomplish everything I have ever dreamed of offering my customers, our Trollbeads Gallery Forum members and serious collectors.  I want to offer something so complete, so educational and so inspirational it would be the event all subsequent U.S. Trollbeads events would want to live up to.

 When I first brought this line into Rogers Gallery it was when most people in the U.S. knew very little about it Trollbeads.  It was a challenge for me to tell the story of Trollbeads and to do so before Facebook or any other form of social marketing.  It was before any national branding or advertising campaign.  I started it by telling one person at a time.  My belief in Trollbeads was and is so strong it was never about me “selling” them and it isn’t about selling the most Trollbeads, it’s about telling the Trollbeads story and it’s about representing a line of beads I believe in for their artistry and for their unsurpassed quality.  Selling isn’t selling when it’s sharing and with Trollbeads I really feel that I am sharing. In sharing something you believe in your energy for that product comes from passion.  The only real absolute truth in marketing is passion. In my peculiarly stubborm but strong way I created my own branding and conducted my own campaign to share the news of Trollbeads and it was all fueled by passion.I went as far as designing the first Trollbeads display table when other retailers has the countertop display racks.   I wasn't trying to be different to problematic, it was just the way I had run my gallery for 30 years and every artist or product I represent would get this kind of energy from me.

Trollbeads is the original interchangeable jewelry/bead line and no other subsequent bead line will ever succeed in surpassing Trollbeads in respect to its quality and its history and this is what I want to share and celebrate with everyone I can so how could I best accomplish this?

Trollbeads Fest! 2010

It had to be an event of magnitude that would surpass any Trollbeads Trunk Show by offering much more to the attendees in way of offering them a weekend long experience that would enrich their  Trollbeads knowledge, their Trollbeads friends, their Trollbeads Collection and most importantly enrich their own relationship with Trollbeads.  Collector member forums like Trollbeads Gallery Forum have become a conduit for Trollbeads friendships between people from all over the world and these resulting relationships and communities have become an intimate part of collector’s lives and they spend a great amount time loving their Trollbeads life.  I feel strongly I would like to offer something back in return and I what I have to offer you is Trollbeads Fest!

 Agenda!

Friday: A day at Rogers Gallery!

• Trunk show day Friday! Enjoy a day in the gallery buying and playing with beads. Lunch will be offered and you can spend time getting to know other Trollbeads friends
•  4:00-6:00 PM   Wine and Cheese event at Rogers Gallery. Be a part of the unveiling of the only U.S. Trollbeads Museum. Public images will be limited until after the unveiling.
• Registration 9:00 - ON. (Tickets should be purchased in advance.) $50.00 Entitles you to the event and the gift bag.
• On Saturday Receive a Trollbeads Gift Bag with Exclusive Trollbeads Fest! 2010 gifts including a glass Trollbeads Unique bead, official Trollbeads Playing Cards, Trollbeads Fest! 2010 Etched Coffee Mug, Trollbeads Gallery 2011 Datebook, Official Trollbeads Polishing Cloth and other Trollbeads Fest! 2010 memorabilia.
• Trunk Show Offers! Include Balloon Prizes!! Many,many Trolllbeads and Trollbeads prizes will be a part of the Balloon give away. For ever $150 you spend, you will get a Balloon!
• Stop at any one of our T.E.L.S. and learn more about how to TELL your story through Trollbeads.

1.       Learn to use the Trollbeads Fantasy Necklace in many different ways!

2.       Learn to use the Trollbeads Leather bracelet to best show off your beads!

3.       Learn how to use the new Trollbeads interchangeable earrings!

4.       Ginger, a Trollbeads Gallery member will show how to photograph your beads, even if you just have a point and shoot camera.

• Choose from our VAST collection of Unique Trollbeads, 1400+ BEAUTIES!!
• Shine up your silver Trollbeads. We will have a station set up with a Tumbler and assistant
• We will have our Retired Trollbeads Gallery inventory on hand to view and purchase.
• We will have our Unique Amber collection on view and to purchase.
• We will have all of new and old Unique Trollstones on view and to purchase.
• Suzanne Hopping from Australia, the 2009 People’s Bead Award Winner, will be signing the Trollbeads Coffee Table Book.
• Kristi Denning from Maryland, the 2010 People’s Bead Award Winner will be showing her bead prototype.
• Bead Swap!  In the Trollbeads Café we will have a special table set up just for swapping!
• Harbor Cruise!  The 5:00 Cruise has sold out. We have now added a 3:00 cruise.
• Dinner at 7:00 at the Waterfront Grille. $38.00 per person

Thursday July  28, at 8:00 P.M.(E.D.T.) Trollbeads Gallery will be listing over 60 New Unique Trollbeads.  There are extraordinary new Amber sets. One set has 2 rare Pink Amber in it!  There are Mini Beads and of course many beautiful Unique Trollbeads.  This is a very inspiring groups of summer colors for a mid summer celebration! Remember when a Unique Trollbead is purchased, it is gone!  Tune in on time! Please take note, in between releases we will add Unique beads so keep your eyes on the site!

 Trollbeads Gallery has earned a reputation of offering one of the best selections of Unique Trollbeads.  The term "Unique" was an original term Trollbeads Gallery started to use three years ago and it remains a perfect term for us.  Trollbeads U.S. (the U.S. Distributor of Trollbeads) refers to the beads as "Assorted" and the European market refers to them as OOAK or "One of a Kind".  The dealers in the U.S. have been asked to refrain from using the OOAK term as it has a misleading connotation.  While these Trollbeads are unique there is often more than one of each style created.  Our "Unique" term is referring to the beads' style more than the quantity made.  Whatever the name, the beads are spectacular!  What differentiates these beads from other Trollbeads Glass I beads are their designs and also they are not given names.  In the U.S. Trollbeads retailers are alloted a limited quantity each month.  From the quantity we receive we split the shipment between our store Rogers Gallery and our website.To access the new Trollbead Uniques follow the link below!

What's New!    (New Beads Thursday Night 7-30, *PM EDT)