16-Inch Gemstones
The 16-inch strand is the industry standard—and no one stocks more of them than Dakota Stones. Browse more than 200 stone types across every color and pattern, from everyday staples like Amethyst and Jasper to collector favorites such as Red Garnet and rare Turquoise mine-runs. Because the strands measure a full 15 – 16 inches, you get enough beads for matching earring pairs, stretch bracelets, or a necklace focal and still have extras for accents.
Need to drill down fast? Use the filter bar to sort by Stone Type when you know the gem you want, or by Color when you’re building a palette first. Shapes range from classic rounds and rondelles to cubes, heishi, chips, and rare designer cuts—each strand calibrated for even sizing and smooth stringing.
Whether you’re a hobbyist replenishing a bead board or a pro assembling a full production run, this category is the workhorse of our catalog: reliable lengths, vast variety, and new additions arriving every month. Dive in, filter your way to the perfect strand, and keep your design queue flowing with Dakota Stones’ biggest collection.
Products: 2462
Beryl (Morganite) 6x12-10x20mm Pear Free Form Dancing Drops A Grade - 15-16 Inch
A relatively rare silicate mineral found in igneous and metamorphic rocks around the world, Beryl is generally clear, while its variations in color...
View full detailsBlue Kyanite 6x12-10x20mm Free Form Pear A Grade - 15-16 Inch
Kyanite often occurs as long, bladed, striated crystals, transparent or translucent with a pearly luster. An aluminum silicate mineral, it may appe...
View full detailsLapis 6x12-10x20mm Free Form Dancing Drops A Grade - 15-16 Inch
Lapis is a semi to precious stone and one of the most sought after throughout history. It is highly regarded for its beautiful blue color flecked w...
View full detailsLabradorite 6x12-10x20mm Free Form Dancing Drops A Grade - 15-16 Inch
Labradorite is remarkable for the way its aggregate layers refract light, creating iridescent flashes of blue, gold, pale green or copper red. This...
View full detailsBlue Lace Agate 6x12-10x20mm Free Form Dancing Drops A Grade - 15-16 Inch
Blue Lace Agate is a naturally occuring soft blue agate, laced with bands or swirls of brighter blue, periwinkle, white and occasionally gray or br...
View full detailsCitrine 6x12-10x20mm Free Form Dancing Drops AA Grade - 15-16 Inch
Citrine is a transparent Quartz, ranging in color from pale yellow to golden yellow, honey or brown, giving it a similar appearance to Topaz. It ma...
View full detailsYellow Opal 6x12-10x20mm Free Form Dancing Drops A Grade - 15-16 Inch
Yellow Opal is transparent to opaque, milky white to pale yellow in color. It sometimes features dark brown to black dendritic inclusions that bran...
View full detailsPrehnite 6x12-10x20mm Free Form Dancing Drops A Grade - 15-16 Inch
Prehnite was the first mineral to be named after a person: its discoverer, Dutch Colonel Hendrik Von Prehn. Von Prehn discovered the stone in South...
View full detailsStrawberry Quartz 6x12-10x20mm Free Form Dancing Drops A Grade - 15-16 Inch
Strawberry Quartz is a translucent, milky to pink silicon dioxide mineral. Its needle to like inclusions of hematite are iridescent red. Quartz has...
View full detailsLavender Amethyst 6x12-10x20mm Free Form Dancing Drops A Grade - 15-16 Inch
Lavender Amethyst is a transparent lavender variety of Amethyst, which forms in geodes and is generally found in clusters of crystal points. The pr...
View full detailsHematite Black Plated 2x6mm Hexagon - 15-16 Inch
Hematite is an iron oxide and one of the few gemstones with a metallic luster. When tumbled it can have the look of polished steel. Hematite is bla...
View full detailsHematite White Silver Plated 2x6mm Hexagon - 15-16 Inch
Hematite is an iron oxide and one of the few gemstones with a metallic luster. When tumbled it can have the look of polished steel. Hematite is bla...
View full detailsHematite Antique Brass Plated 2x6mm Hexagon - 15-16 Inch
Hematite is an iron oxide and one of the few gemstones with a metallic luster. When tumbled it can have the look of polished steel. Hematite is bla...
View full detailsHematite Light Gold Plated 2x6mm Hexagon - 15-16 Inch
Hematite is an iron oxide and one of the few gemstones with a metallic luster. When tumbled it can have the look of polished steel. Hematite is bla...
View full detailsHematite Antique Silver Plated 2x6mm Hexagon - 15-16 Inch
Hematite is an iron oxide and one of the few gemstones with a metallic luster. When tumbled it can have the look of polished steel. Hematite is bla...
View full detailsChocolate Selenite 8mm Round - 15-16 Inch
Selenite is a crystal formed from the mineral gypsum, which comes in many forms and color variations, but has been used historically to describe th...
View full detailsChocolate Selenite 10mm Round - 15-16 Inch
Selenite is a crystal formed from the mineral gypsum, which comes in many forms and color variations, but has been used historically to describe th...
View full detailsChocolate Selenite 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch
Selenite is a crystal formed from the mineral gypsum, which comes in many forms and color variations, but has been used historically to describe th...
View full detailsGreen Imperial Jasper 8mm Round - 15-16 Inch
Imperial Jasper occurs naturally in a beautiful range of colors including pinks, mossy greens, burgundy and milky white, with striking patterns of ...
View full detailsGreen Imperial Jasper 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch
Imperial Jasper occurs naturally in a beautiful range of colors including pinks, mossy greens, burgundy and milky white, with striking patterns of ...
View full detailsOrbicular Rhyolite 10mm Round - 15-16 Inch
Rhyolite is a volcanic, igneous rock with high silica content. Its name is taken from the Greek word “rhyax,” meaning “a stream of lava.” It is che...
View full detailsEudialyte 8mm Round - 15-16 Inch
Eudialyte is a complex silicate mineral that most commonly forms in granular patterns. It is usually found within coarse grained rocks and contains...
View full detailsOrange Chalcedony 5x8mm Rondelle - 15-16 Inch
Blue Chalcedony is a naturally occurring soft blue translucent stone. It is a member of the Quartz family, a form of silica with a cryptocrystallin...
View full detailsLight Sunset Dumortierite 5x10-7x16mm Chip - 15-16 Inch
Sunset Dumortierite has a much brighter palette than regular Dumortierite, from light blue to lapis blue to cobalt, as well as some occurrences of ...
View full detailsPink Opal 3x6-5x7mm Chip - 15-16 Inch
Pink Opal is a variety of non to precious opal, meaning that it has lustre and some translucency without the fire or color play associated with pre...
View full detailsAmazonite 3x9-5x11mm Chip - 15-16 Inch
Brazilian Amazonite is an opaque blue to green to light green stone, often occurring with inclusions of white, yellow or gray and occasionally tran...
View full detailsSodalite 6x8-12mm Chip - 15-16 Inch
Sodalite is named for its sodium content and may be classified as a feldspathoid. Blue Sodalite is sometimes referred to as “poor man’s lapis” beca...
View full detailsAmetrine 3x7-6x12mm Chip - 15-16 Inch
Ametrine is quartz that occurs in bands of purple and yellow. As the name suggests, it is a combination of Amethyst and Citrine. The different colo...
View full detailsWhite Howlite 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
White Howlite is named for Canadian mineralogist Henry How, who first discovered the stone in Southern California in 1868. It is typically white or...
View full detailsUnakite 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Unakite is a granite composed of pink Feldspar and Epidote, creating a beautiful blend of pink and green in mottled patterns. The colors in this st...
View full detailsTiger Eye 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Tiger Eye is a macrocrystalline Quartz stone with bands of rich golds and browns. Its chatoyant layers that create a flash which seems to emanate f...
View full detailsSodalite 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Sodalite is named for its sodium content and may be classified as a feldspathoid. Blue Sodalite is sometimes referred to as “poor man’s lapis” beca...
View full detailsRose Quartz 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Rose Quartz is a silicon dioxide crystal and one of the most common varieties of the Quartz family. It is a translucent to transparent stone with a...
View full detailsRhodonite with Matrix 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Rhodonite, whose name is derived from the Greek word for Rose, “rhodon,” is known for its pink, red and magenta hues. A Manganese inosilicate (or c...
View full detailsPicture Jasper 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Picture Jasper is a form of brown Jasper characterized by its unique banding and flow patterns created by petrified or silicate mud and occasional ...
View full detailsRed Creek Jasper 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Red Creek Jasper is named for the Red River in china where the stone was recently discovered. Its colors include burnt red, mustard yellow, olive g...
View full detailsRed Jasper 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Red Jasper is an aggregate of microcrystalline quartz and/or chalcedony and other minerals. The opaque stone’s red color is due to high iron conten...
View full detailsMoss Agate 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Moss Agate is a variety of Chalcedony, clear to milky white to dark green, with inclusions that appear in patterns similar to moss or lichen. The i...
View full detailsMookaite 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Mookaite is a variety of Jasper in colors of red, burgundy, pink, mauve, purple, yellow and white. It takes its name from Mooka Creek, near the Ken...
View full detailsPurple Lepidolite 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
A particularly soft stone, Lepidolite has a glassy or lustrous sheen. It is the most abundant lithium-bearing mineral as well as a significant sour...
View full detailsLemon Jade 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Jade refers to an ornamental mineral, mostly known for its green varieties. Jade has been used for tens of thousands of years, initially as tools b...
View full detailsWhite Jade 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Jade refers to an ornamental mineral, mostly known for its green varieties. Jade has been used for tens of thousands of years, initially as tools b...
View full detailsGreen Aventurine 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Green Aventurine is a green translucent quartz with glimmering metallic inclusions. Green is the most common color for Aventurine, but it can also ...
View full detailsDog Teeth Amethyst 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Dog Teeth Amethyst has a purple and white striped appearance due to its combination of Amethyst and White Quartz. The name derives from the recurri...
View full detailsFancy Jasper 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Bronzite 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Bronzite is a brown stone with a bronze to colored metallic luster due to iron deposits within the stone. An orthoproxene mineral, it is believed t...
View full detailsAfrican Turquoise 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
African Turquoise is not actually Turquoise, but rather a speckled teal Jasper found in Africa and often treated to simulate the beautiful blue to ...
View full detailsBlack Gold Amazonite 2x4mm Heishi - 15-16 Inch
Black Gold Amazonite is a member of the Feldspar family and varies in hue from robin’s egg blue to blue-green to black, occasionally mingled with r...
View full detailsFrequently asked questions
-
What is a 16-inch strand and why is it the trade standard?
A 16-inch strand is the working length most US jewelry designers buy for design-grade work — necklaces, multi-strand layouts, and bulk component sourcing. It gives enough beads to lay out a full 18–20 inch necklace with clasp and findings, or to cut down into shorter assemblies without running short. The 16-inch length has been the trade default for decades because it standardizes pricing and bead-count math across stones and cuts. Dakota's 16-inch hub covers the full catalog at this length, across rounds, rondelles, faceted cuts, cubes, coins, and shape work. The bracelet counterpart is the 8-inch strand. -
How many beads per 16-inch strand at common sizes?
Approximate bead counts per 16-inch strand assume snug-strung beads with no spacer drift. At 2mm you get roughly 200 beads, at 3mm about 135, at 4mm about 100, at 6mm about 66, at 8mm about 50, at 10mm about 40, and at 12mm about 33. Faceted cuts, rondelles, and irregular shapes (pebble, nugget, coin) vary — count is driven by the bead's drilled axis, not its widest dimension. Exact count should be disclosed; ask before buying if a piece-count is critical for your design and isn't specified. -
16-inch vs 8-inch — which length for which project?
16-inch is the necklace and design-strand length: enough material for an 18–20 inch finished necklace, multi-strand torsades, long earring drops, or component cutting. 8-inch is the bracelet length: pre-cut to the wrist standard, sized for stretch-cord bracelets and single-wrap pieces. Designers running production bracelet lines typically buy 8-inch to skip the cut-down step; designers doing necklace work, statement pieces, or mixed assemblies buy 16-inch for the bead count and pricing efficiency. Both lengths share the same stones and cuts where stocked — the choice is about finished-piece geometry, not material grade. -
What stones and cuts does Dakota carry in 16-inch?
The 16-inch hub spans the full catalog. Most-stocked stones include agate, turquoise, quartz, jasper, tourmaline, moonstone, garnet, labradorite, opal, and amazonite, with deeper coverage across feldspar, chalcedony, and silica varieties. Cut coverage runs from smooth round and faceted round (the largest categories) through rondelle, microfaceted round, pebble and nugget, cube, table-cut cube, faceted cube, and coin. Standard sizes are 4mm, 6mm, 8mm, and 10mm, with 2mm and 3mm in microfaceted work and 12mm in larger statement rounds. Filter by stone, cut, or size to narrow the grid. -
How does Dakota measure 16-inch strand lengths?
Strand length is measured end-to-end along the drilled axis, beads strung snug with no gaps. A 16-inch strand can run 15.5 to 16.5 inches depending on bead shape and how the cutter finished the temporary string — irregular shapes (nugget, pebble, raw-faceted) sit at the looser end because the drill points don't always center on the bead's midline. Bead count per strand reflects this variance. Length and approximate count should be disclosed; if you need a tight tolerance for a calibrated production run, ask before buying so the team can pull and measure before shipping.