A Box Full of Antique Beads

When my sister-in-law was visiting from New Zealand last fall, we talked a lot about beads and the ones I work with and the ones I use to decorate around my home...and, yes, the ones that I'm looking for. Well, while at an antique shop before she and my brother and their family headed back to New Zealand last week, she saw these beads, thought of me, and sent them. What a wonderful surprise! It is always a treat to find out that someone is thinking about me--and enough to actually spend money on me!
One thing I like about old beads is that, well, they actually look old. I like that old beads are slightly different in size and shape--they are not the precise exact-sized beads that one can buy from the store in those little tubes today (though I admit to preferring these when working on a piece of jewelry). Some of these beads are golden yellow and golden brown; others are orange-red to red with green leaves and metallic copper leaves. Other than the copper leaves, they are all glass and are gorgeous. These will go up in my home somewhere. I'll find the right places...and think of and pray for my dear sister-in-law when I look at them.