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: 2265
Kyanite 7x9-8x10mm Pebble - 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 detailsKunzite 7x9-8x10mm Pebble A Grade - 15-16-Inch
Kunzite was named after a former Tiffany & Co. vice president, famed mineralogist and jeweler George Frederick Kunz, who first catalogued the s...
View full detailsJade 7x9-8x10mm Pebble A Grade - 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 detailsIolite 7x9-8x10mm Pebble A Grade - 15-16-Inch
Iolite most commonly occurs in shades of blue to gray, violet or indigo. It displays a visual property called “pleochroism,” which means that it ca...
View full detailsDiopside 7x9-8x10mm Pebble - 15-16-Inch
Diopside is a calcium and magnesium silicate mineral. It is transparent or translucent, and can display a nearly emerald green color due to the pre...
View full detailsGolden Rutilated Quartz 7x9-8x10mm Pebble - 15-16-Inch
Golden Rutilated Quartz is a silicon dioxide mineral with unique needle-like inclusions of Rutile. These “needles” usually appear golden, but can a...
View full detailsChrysocolla 7x9-8x10mm Pebble A Grade - 15-16-Inch
Chrysocolla, a hydrous copper silicate, is often mistaken for turquoise due to its rich blues and blue to greens. It often also occurs with colors ...
View full detailsCitrine 7x9-8x10mm Pebble A 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 detailsCrystal Quartz 7x9-8x10mm Pebble - 15-16-Inch
Crystal Quartz is a naturally occurring clear and colorless Quartz. It is a crystalline form of Quartz said to have many divine properties includin...
View full detailsRed Botswana Agate 7x9-8x10mm Pebble - 15-16-Inch
Red Botswana Agate displays highly defined parallel banding, usually in white on hues of brown, gray, pink, tan, apricot and purplish red. Botswana...
View full detailsBlue Tiger Eye 7x9-8x10mm Pebble A Grade - 15-16-Inch
Blue Tiger Eye is a naturally occurring dark stone with chatoyant layers that create a flash which seems to emanate from within the stone as they c...
View full detailsBlack Opal 7x9-8x10mm Pebble - 15-16-Inch
Black Opal is a naturally occurring variety of precious opal mined in Australia. this opal variety is characterized by their dark base tone. It is ...
View full detailsAmethyst 7x9-8x10mm Pebble A Grade - 15-16-Inch
Amethyst is a beautiful purple stone, known as a “Gem of Fire” by ancient cultures. It has been greatly sought after throughout history and was at ...
View full detailsDevil Aquamarine 7x9-8x10mm Pebble A Grade - 15-16-Inch
"Devil Aquamarine" (or "Devil Blue Aquamarine") is a market term for natural aquamarine characterized by deep blue, dark tones, and inclusions of b...
View full detailsBlue Apatite 7x9-8x10mm Pebble A Grade - 15-16-Inch
Blue Apatite ranges in color from light teal to blue to bright blue to dark blue to green. It can be easily confused with other minerals due to its...
View full detailsAquamarine 7x9-8x10mm Pebble A Grade - 15-16-Inch
Aquamarine is a transparent to translucent stone ranging from cerulean blue to light blue in higher grades. In lower grades it can be transparent t...
View full detailsTiger Eye 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget A Grade - 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 detailsSmoky Quartz 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget - 15-16 Inch
Smoky Quartz is a translucent smoky brown or gray variety of Quartz. It ranges from almost completely transparent to an almost opaque brownish to g...
View full detailsSodalite 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget A Grade - 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 detailsSardonyx 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget - 15-16 Inch
Sardonyx has a Sard base, typically of brown or black, with bands of white Onyx running through it. Sard is not Onyx, but rather a dark variety of ...
View full detailsRed Garnet 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget - 15-16 Inch
Red Garnet is the most commonly known type of Garnet, which occurs in many colors. Garnet has been used for adornment and spirituality by myriad cu...
View full detailsSilver Obsidian 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget - 15-16 Inch
Essentially a volcanic glass, Obsidian ranges in color from opaque black, to green, brown, mahogany, black with rainbow colors, black with snowflak...
View full detailsLemon Jade (Serpentine) 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget - 15-16 Inch
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Lapis 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget - 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 detailsIolite 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget - 15-16 Inch
Iolite most commonly occurs in shades of blue to gray, violet or indigo. It displays a visual property called “pleochroism,” which means that it ca...
View full detailsFlower Agate 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget - 15-16 Inch
Dog Teeth Amethyst 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget - 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 detailsCrystal Quartz 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget - 15-16 Inch
Crystal Quartz is a naturally occurring clear and colorless Quartz. It is a crystalline form of Quartz said to have many divine properties includin...
View full detailsCharoite 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget - 15-16 Inch
Charoite is a stone that naturally occurs in intense purple hues, as well as grays, browns, greenish yellows, white and black. These colors swirl t...
View full detailsBlack Gold Amazonite 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget - 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 detailsBotswana Agate 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget - 15-16 Inch
Botswana Agate displays highly defined parallel banding, usually in white on hues of brown, gray, pink, tan, apricot and purplish red. Botswana Aga...
View full detailsBrazilian Amazonite 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget - 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 detailsAquamarine 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget A Grade - 15-16 Inch
Aquamarine is a transparent to translucent stone ranging from cerulean blue to light blue in higher grades. In lower grades it can be transparent t...
View full detailsAmethyst 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget A Grade - 15-16 Inch
Amethyst is a beautiful purple stone, known as a “Gem of Fire” by ancient cultures. It has been greatly sought after throughout history and was at ...
View full detailsAfrican Turquoise 7x8mm Faceted Round Nugget A Grade - 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 Tourmaline 5x10-20mm Top Drill Teeth - 15-16-Inch
Black Tourmaline is a black crystalline aluminum borosilicate mineral with occasional light gray inclusions that appear as flecks or veins. Tourmal...
View full detailsTanzanite 5x10-20mm Top Drill Teeth - 15-16-Inch
Tanzanite is both extremely rare and extremely attractive, and we offer it when we can.
Strawberry Quartz 5x10-20mm Top Drill Teeth - 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 detailsBlue Apatite 5x10-20mm Top Drill Teeth - 15-16-Inch
Blue Apatite ranges in color from light teal to blue to bright blue to dark blue to green. It can be easily confused with other minerals due to its...
View full detailsRuby Zoisite 5x10-20mm Top Drill Teeth - 15-16-Inch
Ruby Zoisite occurs naturally when small Ruby crystals become embedded within Zoisite. The Ruby inclusions in this stone are pink to reddish purple...
View full detailsBlack Sunstone 5x8mm Chip - 15-16 Inch
Sunstone, a variety of Feldspar, is aptly named for its shades of gold, orange, red and brown, as well as its iridescent sparkle. As the stone catc...
View full detailsBlue Kyanite 5x8m Chip - 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 detailsWood Rhodonite 4mm Microfaceted Round - 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 detailsTanzanite 4mm Microfaceted Round - 15-16 Inch
Tanzanite is both extremely rare and extremely attractive, and we offer it when we can.
Green Rutilated Quartz 4mm Microfaceted Round - 15-16 Inch
Rutilated Quartz is a silicon dioxide mineral with unique needle-like inclusions of Rutile. These “needles” usually appear golden, but can also app...
View full detailsRhodonite 4mm Microfaceted Round A Grade - 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 detailsPeruvian Turquoise (Chrysocolla) 4mm Microfaceted Round - 15-16 Inch
Peruvian Turquoise is also known as Turquoise Chrysocolla. It’s attractive blue-green provides a unique color to the mineral world. Peruvian Turquo...
View full detailsPietersite 4mm Microfaceted Round - 15-16 Inch
Pietersite has been called the Tempest Stone for its colors of deep blue and gray with metallic gold and flashes of brilliant chatoyancy as it catc...
View full detailsFrequently asked questions
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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.