What are Rhinestones?

Rhinestones originally were rock crystals for the river Rhine. Over the years, they have been made from several different elements, for example, rock crystal, glass and acrylic. Today, most rhinestones are made to imitate diamonds. Designers are using rhinestones for costumes, bridal dresses, ball room dresses, everyday t-shirts and much more.

As of right now, there is one type of rhinestone that is above all the rest. Swarovski Crystal rhinestones are by far the best type of rhinestone you can get today. 99.9% of the time, top designers for wedding dresses, customs and custom fashions will use Swarovski Rhinestones for there pieces, hence the reason for the steep prices. Swarovski rhinestones and Preciosa (second in quality) are both made with Lead Crystal. The lead adds more light reflection to the stone. These rhinestones are easy to find BUT come at a high price. If you are looking to make your own rhinestone t-shirt or apparel to sell, you may want to look at purchasing Swarovski Rhinestones at wholesale prices. This is the only way you will save money. If you try to buy per package, you will end up paying a lot more then you will be able to sell your product!

We at IBXpressions, started with Swarovski Rhinestones but soon found out that the quality of the crystal isn't worth the price for our line of apparel. We use Korean Glass Rhinestones that are made of glass (hint, hint) and that still sparkle in the sun and under a household light. These by far the the most cost effective type of rhinestone you can get today. As of May, we have started selling Korean Hotfix Rhinestones and Rhinestuds. We have some of the more competitive prices out on the web today. We will be adding flatback rhinestones soon.

Hotfix rhinestones are rhinestones that have an adhesive glue on the back of the rhinestone. You can apply these rhinestones with a household iron, a Rhinestone Wand and a Heat Press. The easiest way to apply rhinestones to garments and is the cheapest way the Rhinestone Applicator. If you are planning on doing rhinestone designs on a commercial basis, it might be best if you purchase a heat press to apply your rhinestone designs to your garments. There are several ways you can produce your designs to your garment. Either you can use Mylar heat transfer paper, rhinestone templates, or you can purchase a rhinestone setting machine. The last option would only be used if you have high volume orders for it to be cost effective. Later on, we will show you how easy it is set your rhinestone design on Mylar paper. You can start producing your own designs easier then you think!

Flatback rhinestones are rhinestones that are flat on the back and that require you to use a glue to attach them to the garment. You will need to purchase tweezers, glue, q-tips and flatback rhinestones to begin. There are several types of glues you can get that will work. Most sites will recommend Gem Tac. It is an multi purpose adhesive bonds rhinestones to rhinestones, gems, crystals, glitter, wire, metal findings, any other semi-porous surface. Great for fabric; dries crystal clear. Cleans up with water, but once fully set will withstand washing in cold water. If you plan on going this route, you will be save a bit of money, but the application process is much longer then hotfix rhinestone application. Just keep that in mind, but really it is up to you on how you want to proceed. When done right your results should look the same.

This is just a quick run down on rhinestones and what you can do with them. Check back soon for how to application instructions for both hotfix rhinestones and flatback rhinestones. To see our current product, go to http://www.ibxpressions.com!