Frequently Asked Questions

We are happy to announce that after many months of work, our new website has arrived! Our new system integrates website, showroom, and sales systems into one, with a new customer experience and a host of new capabilities. Along with these new capabilities comes new workflows for our employees as well as for online shopping. You can now log in to manage your account, including looking up previous orders, managing addresses, and payment methods, making payments on N30 invoices, adding new authorized buyers to your account, and much more! To ease our migration into this new platform, please read the following FAQ before you place an order to make sure your first order goes as smoothly as possible.

Q: How do I create an account? A: If this is your first time visiting our new website you will need to create a new login by clicking the Register or Login link on the top right of our website. New and returning customers will need to register as a new customer by filling out the New Customer from and include your name, email address and a password then clicking the “Create Account” button on the bottom. Once complete you are ready to start exploring!

Q: I tried to create an account but it says there already is an account under that email. A: If an account has already been created with your email but you cannot login due to a forgotten password you can click the link “Forgot Password” under the Returning Customers box or use the following link: Forgot Password Simply enter your email and a link will be sent to your email address that you can use to reset your password.

Q: Do I still use the same customer number to place orders? A: The customer numbers from our previous system won't transfer to our new system. A unique ID number will be assigned; however, in most cases, you will log in by your email address. When calling in, a salesperson will look you up by your name or create a new account.

Q: What if I have a question on one of my orders from the previous system? A: After keeping our old database up for one year it has now been permanently retired.

Q: How about your item numbers, have they changed? A: Item numbers have not changed. However, some items will now have separate SKUs for package size. One for the factory put-up and one for the retail quantity. For example, 11SB109 is still a half kilo of 11/0 Black seed beads, but now there is also a hank record 11SB109R.

Q: Are there still quantity breaks? A: Yes! Most items will have multiple price levels so that you can save by buying more! Since the retail record and the wholesale record are different part numbers, purchasing many retail hanks will no longer bring the price down to the wholesale bag. If you want the best price per piece, our wholesale bags are the best deal.

Q: What if you are out of wholesale bags, can I get the retail for the wholesale price? A: Unfortunately, we cannot offer retail items at wholesale prices. If the wholesale SKU is out of stock, that price will not be transferable to the hank SKU.

Q: Can I still use my Newsletter number for free shipping? A: Free shipping is now only available for orders over $50.00

Q: How about the discount I used to get for military/wholesale/tribal/VIB, etc.? A: Military and Tribal discounts are available instore only. Please call us if you have a question about discounts, and make sure to sign up for our newsletter to be the first to know about our promotion.

Q: I don't see an item on your new website that I purchases previously. A: If a search is not bringing up the item on our site, give us a call or drop us an email and we will take a look. Often this will mean it has been discontinued, but it doesn't hurt to look.

Q: Do you ship internationally?
Yes. We ship to all countries where US Mail, DHL, Fed Ex, and UPS ship.

Q: I live outside the United States. How much will my duties and import taxes be?
Duties and Import Taxes are based on your country. Please contact your local customs office for that information.

Q:Is your new web site"secure"?
Yes. Shipwreck Beads is concerned about the safety and security of our customers. Accordingly, we have put a number of technological protections in place to ensure that our transaction process is extremely safe and that our customers' information is secure. The personal information you provide, including your credit card information, is secured using industry standard e-commerce security technology such as Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) encryption. We use this SSL technology to prevent such information from being intercepted and read as it is transmitted over the Internet. The encrypted data goes to a secure site where your information is stored on restricted-access computers located at restricted-access sites.

Q: Is there a minimum order amount?
No. We no longer require a minimum order however the minimum shipping is now $7.50.

Q: Why do I have to pay $7.50 if I only want a small item?
The cost of shipping a single item often is more than the value of the item. This minimum shipping charge allows orders without a minimum order amount.

Q: Why are you out of so many items?
COVID has made many supply chains difficult. Many businesses have closed, while many others were forced to close temporarily due to regulations or lack of staff. The production and delivery times of many of our products have been months sometimes many months more than previously. Seed beads for example usually take about 12-14 month have been taking 14-20 months. This mean some orders we paced in June of 2020 might not be ready until 2022!

Q: How do I get free shipping?
Free Economy shipping is available to all orders over $50.00

Q: What happens to items I don’t receive in my order?
We will fill and ship all items that are available at the time we process your order. Any item that is out of stock will be zeroed and the final total adjusted before we ship your order. Any item that is only partially in stock will be prorated at the best price.

Q: Does Shipwreck send back orders?
Shipwreck beads does not fill or maintain back orders. Once your order is shipping no further stock will be sent from that order.

Q: What do all of these abbreviations on the site mean? What is a PC, ST, and HK?
Here at Shipwreck Beads we use a variety of industry standard abbreviations in our product listings. The most common ones are included below: