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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.

Green Goldstone 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch

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Green Goldstone is an opaque, almost black glass with flecks of copper suspended within it. These flecks glitter as they catch the light and appear...

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DZI Turtle Agate 6mm Round Brown- 15-16 Inch

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“DZI” Agate is made to resemble beads first found in India between 1000 and 2000 BCE. These reproductions are designed in the traditional color, pa...

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DZI Turtle Agate 6mm Round Green - 15-16 Inch

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“DZI” Agate is made to resemble beads first found in India between 1000 and 2000 BCE. These reproductions are designed in the traditional color, pa...

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Blue Ocean Agate 6mm Round 15-16

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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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Strawberry Quartz 6mm Round AA Grade - 15-16 Inch

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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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Blue Moonstone 6mm Round AAA Grade - 15-16 Inch

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Moonstone naturally occurs in a broad spectrum of colors, but is most commonly associated with white, gray and peach. It's soft chatoyancy is remin...

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Poppy Jasper 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch

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Jasper has a long and illustrious history, having been worn by shamans, priests and kings and believed to be a powerful protection stone. Ancient E...

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Shattuckite 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch

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Shattuckite is a rare copper silicate hydroxide mineral. It occurs in bright turquoise blues and darker blues as well as rust reds, commonly with i...

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DZI Eye Agate 6mm Round Dark Green - 15-16 Inch

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“DZI” Agate is made to resemble beads first found in India between 1000 and 2000 BCE. These reproductions are designed in the traditional color, pa...

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Iolite 6mm Round Faceted A Grade - 15-16 Inch

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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...

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Blue Hackmanite 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch

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Discovered in Greenland in the late 1890's, hackmanite is named for Finnish geologist Victor Hackman. It is a rare occurrence to find gem-grade hac...

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Mexican Laguna Lace Agate 6mm Round - 15-16 inch

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Amazonite 6mm Round A Grade - 15-16 Inch

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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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Silver Grey Mixed Moonstone 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch

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Moonstone naturally occurs in a broad spectrum of colors, but is most commonly associated with white, gray and peach. It's soft chatoyancy is remin...

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Topaz 6mm Round A Grade - 15-16 Inch

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Topaz is a rare silicate mineral and obtains much of its popularity from its beautiful colors and its status as a birthstone. Topaz occurs in a wi...

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Prehnite 6mm Round Faceted A Grade - 15-16 Inch

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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...

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Red Aventurine 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch

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Red Aventurine is a peach to orange colored translucent Quartz with inclusions of Mica or other minerals. These inclusions give it a glistening eff...

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Black Rutilated Quartz 6mm Round A Grade - 15-16 Inch

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Rutilated Quartz is a silicon dioxide mineral with unique needle-like inclusions of Rutile. These “needles” usually appear golden, but can also app...

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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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MATTE Petrified Wood Opalite 6mm Round 8-Inch

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Wood Opalite is a type of petrified wood that has been impregnated with the Silicon Dioxide commonly known as Opal. Wood Opalite occurs in a range ...

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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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Rose Quartz 6mm Round A Grade - 15-16 Inch

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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...

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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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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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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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Bumble Bee Jasper 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch

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Black Web Jasper 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch

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Jasper has a long and illustrious history, having been worn by shamans, priests and kings and believed to be a powerful protection stone. Ancient E...

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DZI Line Agate 6mm Round Red Brown - 15-16 Inch

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“DZI” Agate is made to resemble beads first found in India between 1000 and 2000 BCE. These reproductions are designed in the traditional color, pa...

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Fluorite 6mm Round A Grade - 15-16 Inch

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Fluorite is a luminous, soft and glassy stone, sometimes referred to as “the most colorful mineral in the world.” It is one of the most sought to a...

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Hematoid Quartz Copper 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch

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Hematoid Quartz is Quartz with inclusions of hematite. The hematite inclusions are responsible for the stone’s color, which can be yellow, orange, ...

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DZI Eye Agate 6mm Round Brown - 15-16 Inch

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“DZI” Agate is made to resemble beads first found in India between 1000 and 2000 BCE. These reproductions are designed in the traditional color, pa...

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Ruby Pink Purple Natural 6mm Faceted Round Banded - 15-16 Inch

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Ruby is a precious gemstone known for its deep red color. It is a variety of the mineral corundum, the second-hardest mineral next to diamond . The...

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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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Biotite 6mm Round Orange - 15-16 Inch

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Biotite is a name used for a large group of black mica minerals that are commonly found in igneous and metamorphic rocks. These include annite, phl...

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Red Botswana Agate 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch

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

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Mahogany Obsidian 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch

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Essentially a volcanic glass, Obsidian ranges in color from opaque black, to green, brown, mahogany, black with rainbow colors, black with snowflak...

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Red Tiger Iron 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch

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Composed mostly of tiger's eye, red jasper and black hematite, Tiger Iron has long been popular with jewelry-makers. The gold, silver, brown and re...

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Sodalite 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch

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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...

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Atlantisite Stichtite 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch

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Stichtite is a mineral, a carbonate of chromium and magnesium. Its color ranges from pink through lilac to a rich purple color. Discovered in 1910 ...

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Jet 6mm Round - 15-16 inch

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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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Red Hematoid Quartz 6mm Round AA Grade - 15-16 Inch

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Hematoid Quartz is Quartz with inclusions of hematite. The hematite inclusions are responsible for the stone’s color, which can be yellow, orange, ...

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DZI Line Agate 6mm Round Brown - 15-16 Inch

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“DZI” Agate is made to resemble beads first found in India between 1000 and 2000 BCE. These reproductions are designed in the traditional color, pa...

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Brazilian Amazonite 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch

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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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Blue Goldstone 6mm Round - 15-16 Inch

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Blue Goldstone is an opaque, midnight blue glass with flecks of copper suspended within it. These flecks glitter as they catch the light and may ap...

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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.