Free Form Beads
Free form beads include many shapes; marquise, tear drop, tubes, rondelles, and more. They may be drilled for stringing, or undrilled and used as a cabochon. As the name implies, the shapes are organic and natural, making the best use of the original shape.
Products: 59
Hubei Turquoise 8x10-13x16mm Blue Free Form Faceted Oval AA Grade - 15-16 Inch
Hubei Turquoise is sourced from Hubei Province in Northern China, one of the most recognized turquoise-producing regions in the world. This materia...
View full detailsHubei Turquoise 8x10-10x12mm Blue Free Form Rectangle A Grade - 15-16 Inch
Hubei Turquoise is sourced from Hubei Province in Northern China, one of the most recognized turquoise-producing regions in the world. This materia...
View full detailsChrysocolla 12-18mm Freeform Flat Hexagon - 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 detailsCacoxenite 12-18mm Freeform Flat Hexagon - 15-16 Inch
Cacoxenite is the trade name for this naturally occurring blend of seven stone types. It was originally named for the visible inclusions of the min...
View full detailsAustralian Chrysoprase 12-18mm Freeform Flat Hexagon - 15-16 Inch
Chrysoprase is a bright apple green, translucent stone, whose color often caused ancient jewelers to confuse it with Emerald. A cryptocrystalline C...
View full detailsCacoxenite 3-5x14-16mm Freeform Hexagon Wheel - 15-16 Inch
Cacoxenite is the trade name for this naturally occurring blend of seven stone types. It was originally named for the visible inclusions of the min...
View full detailsKyanite 3-5x14-16mm Freeform Hexagon Wheel - 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 detailsLarimar 3-5x14-16mm Freeform Hexagon Wheel - 15-16 Inch
Larimar is a translucent blue, turquoise and white stone that can have streaks and patterns of white, as well as red or brown either from oxidation...
View full detailsAustralian Chrysoprase 9x13-13x22mm Freeform Pear A Grade - 15-16 Inch
Chrysoprase is a bright apple green, translucent stone, whose color often caused ancient jewelers to confuse it with Emerald. A cryptocrystalline C...
View full detailsPeruvian Amazonite 6x12-10x20mm Free Form Dancing Drops A Grade - 15-16 Inch
Peruvian Amazonite is an opaque stone occurring in colors from a bright turquoise blue to pale turquoise to pale yellow to green, with swirling inc...
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 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 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 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 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 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 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 detailsBeryl (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 detailsPink Tourmaline 6x12-10x20mm Free Form Dancing Drops A Grade - 15-16 Inch
Pink Tourmaline ranges in color from light pink to deep magenta, with inclusions of white to colorless translucent or transparent. Tourmaline occur...
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 detailsLight Amethyst 9x11-13x18mm Free Form Faceted Oval 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 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 detailsGolden Labradorite 7x9-10x13mm Free Form Rough Pear 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 detailsHubei Turquoise 9-10mm Blue with Matrix Free Form Rondelle AA Grade - 15-16 Inch
Hubei Turquoise is sourced from Hubei Province in Northern China, one of the most recognized turquoise-producing regions in the world. This materia...
View full detailsHubei Turquoise 8x10-10x12mm Blue/Green Free Form Rectangle - 15-16 Inch
Hubei Turquoise is sourced from Hubei Province in Northern China, one of the most recognized turquoise-producing regions in the world. This materia...
View full detailsBlue Rose Quartz 9x13mm Faceted Free Form Rectangle - 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 detailsOcean Jasper 15x20-18x25mm Free Form Pear Beads A Grade - 15-16 Inch
Ocean Jasper is a commercial name for Orbicular Jasper, a variety of Jasper containing variably colored spherical patterns. It forms when Quartz an...
View full detailsChalcedony 12x20-13x25mm Free Form Oval Beads - 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 detailsChalcedony 15x20-28mm Free Form Oval Beads - 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 detailsAbout this cut
Frequently asked questions
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What is a free form bead?
Free form is a catch-all for beads that aren't cut to a calibrated geometric shape. Each bead is polished into an irregular nugget, slab, pebble, or organic outline that follows the rough rather than a fixed template, so no two pieces in a strand match exactly. Most are center-drilled through the longest axis and tumble-polished smooth, though some strands include faceted free forms or matte finishes. Because the cut chases the material, free form strands often show off banding, inclusions, and color shifts that would be cropped out of a calibrated round or rondelle. -
What sizes does Dakota stock in free form?
Free form is described by a size range rather than a single dimension, since each bead varies. The deepest stock sits around 6x12–10x20mm nuggets (12 strands) and broader 12–18mm pebble cuts (6 strands), with single-dimension callouts at 9mm and 13mm for more uniform free forms (7 strands each). Smaller sliver-style cuts appear at 3–5x14–16mm, and larger statement pieces run up to 14x25mm. Exact bead count per strand varies with size — strand length should be disclosed, and ask before buying if it isn't specified. -
What stones come in free form at Dakota?
Free form skews toward stones with strong patterning that benefits from an irregular cut. Current depth is in jasper (11 strands across several varieties), chrysoprase (8), turquoise (7), agate (6), amazonite (6), quartz (6), amethyst (6), ocean jasper (5), labradorite (4), and tourmaline (4). You'll also find smaller runs in other materials across the 102 active free form SKUs. Variety, origin, and treatment vary by stone — those details should appear on each listing; ask before buying if anything isn't specified. -
What jewelry uses free form beads best?
Free form is the go-to for organic, one-of-a-kind designs where uniformity would feel wrong — knotted necklaces, asymmetric statement strands, beachy or earthy bracelets, and focal-bead pendants. Larger nuggets (12–18mm and 14x25mm) work as solo focals on cord or leather. Mid-range 6x12–10x20mm reads well as a full strand with spacers between beads to let each shape breathe. Smaller 9mm and 13mm free forms mix into multi-strand designs where you want texture without losing rhythm. -
How does free form compare to calibrated nugget or pebble cuts?
Calibrated nuggets are sized to a tolerance — every bead falls within a narrow range so strands stack predictably. Free form drops that constraint: bead-to-bead variation in length, width, and outline is the whole point. That means more visual movement and better yield from patterned rough, but harder math when you're spec'ing a multi-strand piece or matching to findings. If you need repeatability, choose a sized nugget or rondelle; if you want each finished piece to read as unique, free form earns its keep.