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Round Beads

Round beads are the workhorse—and showpiece—of jewelry design. Our All Rounds collection spans more than 100 natural stone types, each offered in graduated sizes from 4 mm to 12 mm so you can build seamless strands, stackable bracelets, or accent rows without hunting for a match.
What sets Dakota rounds apart is the one-batch method: we cut every size you see from the same parcel of rough, then sort by diameter in a single production run. That “Dakota Way” means a 6 mm lapis bead and its 10 mm big brother share identical hue and pattern, giving finished pieces a professional, color-true flow.
Every sphere is diamond-ground to perfect symmetry, hand-polished for a glassy finish, and visually graded to Dakota Stones standards before it ships. Stock up on crowd-pleasers like Amazonite, Kyanite, Jasper, and Quartz—or branch into rarities such as Variscite or Shattuckite—confident that each round will string, drape, and wear with the consistency designers trust.

Purple Marbled Quartz 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads - CLEARANCE

Original price $14.00 - Original price $14.00
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Marbeled or Mosaic Quartz is a composite stone made with a combination of dyed quartz and bronzite stone remnants from the cutting process mixed wi...

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Elephant Skin Jasper 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Elephant Skin Jasper, also known as Calligraphy Stone or Miriam Stone, features intricate light brown patterns on dark brown stones. Each stone is ...

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Botswana Agate 10mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Botswana Agate displays highly defined parallel banding, usually in white on hues of brown, gray, pink, tan, apricot and purplish red. Botswana Aga...

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Mookaite 10mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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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...

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Ruby Zoisite 6mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Ruby Zoisite occurs naturally when small Ruby crystals become embedded within Zoisite. The Ruby inclusions in this stone are pink to reddish purple...

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Carnelian 6mm Faceted Round - Large Hole Beads

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Carnelian is a glassy, translucent stone that can appear with such bright orange hues that the ancient Egyptians called it “the setting sun.” Most ...

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Mookaite 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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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...

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Carnelian 6mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Carnelian is a glassy, translucent stone that can appear with such bright orange hues that the ancient Egyptians called it “the setting sun.” Most ...

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Kabamby Ocean Jasper 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Named for the village near where it is found in Madagascar, Kabamby Ocean Jasper was first mined in 2002. It is known for its colors to to dark gre...

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BC Jade 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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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...

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Blue Marbled Quartz 6mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Marbeled or Mosaic Quartz is a composite stone made with a combination of dyed quartz and bronzite stone remnants from the cutting process mixed wi...

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Pink Opal 6mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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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...

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Crystal Quartz 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Crystal Quartz is a naturally occurring clear and colorless Quartz. It is a crystalline form of Quartz said to have many divine properties includin...

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Pink Opal 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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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...

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Rhodonite 8mm Round With Matrix - Large Hole Beads

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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...

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Botswana Agate 6mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Botswana Agate displays highly defined parallel banding, usually in white on hues of brown, gray, pink, tan, apricot and purplish red. Botswana Aga...

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Orange Garnet 6mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Orange or Hessonite Garnet is sometimes called “Cinnamon Stone” for its orange to orange to brown color as well as for its origin in the land of sp...

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Tiger Eye Yellow 6mm Round Faceted Large Hole Beads - 8 Inch

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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...

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Mixed Lodalite Quartz 6mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Mixed Lodolite is Quartz with inclusions of sand. These inclusions range broadly in type and color and produce patterns that can look like gardens....

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Selenite 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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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...

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Mookaite 6mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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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...

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Purple Marbled Quartz 6mm Round - Large Hole Beads - CLEARANCE

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Marbeled or Mosaic Quartz is a composite stone made with a combination of dyed quartz and bronzite stone remnants from the cutting process mixed wi...

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Unakite 6mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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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...

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BC Jade 10mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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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...

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Sky Blue Marbled Quartz 6mm Round Faceted - Large Hole Beads

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Marbeled or Mosaic Quartz is a composite stone made with a combination of dyed quartz and bronzite stone remnants from the cutting process mixed wi...

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Blueberry Quartz 8mm Round (Synthetic) - Large Hole Beads - CLEARANCE

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Treated quartz that results in a unique blue color.

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Brazilian Amazonite 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Brazilian Amazonite is an opaque blue to green to light green stone, often occurring with inclusions of white, yellow or gray and occasionally tran...

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Strawberry Quartz 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Strawberry Quartz is a translucent, milky to pink silicon dioxide mineral. Its needle to like inclusions of hematite are iridescent red. Quartz has...

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Botswana Red Agate 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Botswana Agate displays highly defined parallel banding, usually in white on hues of brown, gray, pink, tan, apricot and purplish red. Botswana Aga...

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Cacoxenite 6mm Faceted Round Large Hole Beads - 8 Inch

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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...

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Mixed Lodalite Quartz 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Mixed Lodolite is Quartz with inclusions of sand. These inclusions range broadly in type and color and produce patterns that can look like gardens....

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Lemurian Aquatine Calcite 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Calcite is the one of the most common minerals. It occurs in a great variety of shapes and colors, and it constitutes a major portion of many of th...

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Orange Garnet 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Orange or Hessonite Garnet is sometimes called “Cinnamon Stone” for its orange to orange to brown color as well as for its origin in the land of sp...

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Rainbow Obsidian 10mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Rainbow Obsidian earned its name from the chatoyant, rainbow effect of light refracting off of the air buddles inside of the stone. Like all obsidi...

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Red Garnet 6mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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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...

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Blue Marbled Quartz 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Marbeled or Mosaic Quartz is a composite stone made with a combination of dyed quartz and bronzite stone remnants from the cutting process mixed wi...

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Ruby Zoisite 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Ruby Zoisite occurs naturally when small Ruby crystals become embedded within Zoisite. The Ruby inclusions in this stone are pink to reddish purple...

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Sky Blue Marbled Quartz 8mm Round Faceted - Large Hole Beads

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Marbeled or Mosaic Quartz is a composite stone made with a combination of dyed quartz and bronzite stone remnants from the cutting process mixed wi...

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Crystal Quartz 6mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Crystal Quartz is a naturally occurring clear and colorless Quartz. It is a crystalline form of Quartz said to have many divine properties includin...

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Mookaite 6mm Round Faceted - Large Hole Beads

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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...

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Sunset Dumortierite 6mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Sunset Dumortierite has a much brighter palette than regular Dumortierite, from light blue to lapis blue to cobalt, as well as some occurrences of ...

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Graphic Feldspar 6mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Feldspars are a group of rock-forming aluminium tectosilicate minerals, containing sodium, calcium, potassium or barium. The most common members of...

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Graphic Feldspar 10mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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Feldspars are a group of rock-forming aluminium tectosilicate minerals, containing sodium, calcium, potassium or barium. The most common members of...

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Opalite 8mm Faceted Large Hole Round - 8-inch - CLEARANCE

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Opalite is the trade name for man to made glass treated to exhibit the internal flashes of true Opals in translucent samples, and opalescence or lu...

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Orange Garnet 8mm Round Faceted - Large Hole Beads

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Orange or Hessonite Garnet is sometimes called “Cinnamon Stone” for its orange to orange to brown color as well as for its origin in the land of sp...

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Botswana Agate 8mm Round Faceted - Large Hole Beads

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Botswana Agate displays highly defined parallel banding, usually in white on hues of brown, gray, pink, tan, apricot and purplish red. Botswana Aga...

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Pietersite 8mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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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...

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Pietersite 6mm Round - Large Hole Beads

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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...

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About this cut

Round bead shape diagram
Cut name
Round
Drill style
Center-drilled
Typical sizes
8mm6mm4mm10mm3mm2mm12mm5mm
Stones in this cut
AgateJasperQuartzTurquoiseGarnetTourmalineMoonstoneOpalDZI AgateTiger EyeAmazoniteSapphire
Common uses
stretch braceletsmala and prayer-style strandsclassic beaded necklacesmulti-strand layered designsknotted silk or cord necklacesuniform color-block sections in mixed-cut workmen's beaded bracelets in 8mm and 10mm
Related cuts
Faceted Round, Microfaceted Round, Oval
Design notes
Round is the most forgiving cut to design around — predictable diameter, predictable drill, predictable drape. Scale by wrist or neck: 6mm and 8mm cover most adult bracelet work, 4mm reads delicate on a necklace, 10mm+ carries as statement scale. Rounds pair cleanly with faceted rondelles, heishi, or metal spacers when you want textural contrast without breaking the silhouette. For stones with strong pattern, smooth round shows the material better than the faceted-round sibling cut; for uniform-color stones, faceted rounds add sparkle the smooth cut can't.

Frequently asked questions

  • What is a smooth round gemstone bead?
    A round bead is a sphere cut from gemstone rough and polished smooth — no facets, no flat edges. Standard rounds are center-drilled straight through the bead so the hole runs pole-to-pole. The geometry makes them the most predictable cut to design with: they sit cleanly on flex wire, stack uniformly on stretch cord, and read as a clean color block without the light play of a faceted surface. Rounds are typically calibrated to nominal sizes (4mm, 6mm, 8mm) within standard trade tolerances, though softer or more fractured stones can vary a half-millimeter strand to strand.
  • What sizes does Dakota stock in round?
    Round is Dakota's deepest cut by volume. Current stock concentrates in 8mm (554 strands), 6mm (477), 4mm (353), and 10mm (342) — the four sizes that cover most beaded jewelry work. Smaller 2mm and 3mm rounds (54 and 140 strands) work for accent spacers and fine-gauge stringing. 12mm (50) and 5mm (28) are stocked in narrower stone selections. Sizes are nominal; actual diameter can run ±0.3mm depending on the stone and lot, so for tight calibration work pull from a single strand where possible.
  • What stones come in round cut?
    Almost every stone Dakota carries is available as round somewhere in the range. The deepest selections are agate (195 strands across varieties), jasper (149), quartz (134 — clear, smoky, rose, rutilated, and more), and turquoise (107). Garnet (68), tourmaline (64), moonstone (58), opal (55), DZI agate (53), and tiger eye (48) all hold meaningful stock. Less common stones may only appear in one or two sizes — if you need a specific stone-size pairing, filter the collection or check the size tags on individual products before ordering.
  • What jewelry work are round beads best for?
    Rounds are the default cut for stretch bracelets, mala-style strands, classic beaded necklaces, and anywhere you want the stone's color and pattern to read without faceted sparkle. They sit predictably next to metal spacers, knot cleanly between cord, and don't catch on fabric the way faceted edges can. 6mm and 8mm are the workhorse sizes for adult bracelets; 4mm suits layered necklaces and children's pieces; 10mm and 12mm carry as statement strands or focal sections. For mixed-cut designs, smooth rounds pair well with faceted rondelles or heishi as a textural counterpoint.
  • Smooth round vs faceted round — how do I choose?
    Smooth rounds emphasize the stone itself — color, pattern, inclusions, chatoyancy. Faceted rounds (a separate cut in the catalog) cut small flat planes across the sphere to add light return, which reads as sparkle but slightly mutes the underlying pattern. For stones with strong figure — ocean jasper, dendritic agate, picture jasper, moss agate — smooth round shows the material better. For uniformly colored stones — garnet, amethyst, smoky quartz — faceted rounds add visible movement. Both drill the same way, so they swap cleanly in a design if you want to test the difference on a sample strand.