Cedi Bead Factory

Glass Beads of Tradition and creativity

Tucked away in Ghana's lush Eastern Region is a place full of creativity and colours - we are talking about the Cedi Bead Factory. Here, age-old traditions meet the creativity of today and the art of turning recycled glass into beautiful jewellery comes to life. Odumase Krobo is a town known for its bead-making heritage. Here on beautiful grounds is where the magic happens. This special place, led by Master bead maker Cedi, allows visitors to learn about the craft of bead making and try it themselves. Welcome to a place where recycled glass is reborn into masterpieces through fire with love and skill.

Brief History of Cedi Bead Factory

Glass bead making is a craft that has been a part of West African culture for hundreds of years. For centuries, the traditional glass beads of Ghana (Krobo beads) have played a significant role in Ghanaian culture. The natural environment and cultural influences that have swept through the region over the last 1400 years have shaped this art form. Also, environmental factors, like landscape and climate, impacted bead production significantly. Recycled glass has led to the creation of unique bead types and the bead-making tradition harmoniously integrates these external influences with traditional practices.

Nomoda Ebenezer Djaba, the Master bead maker, also known as "Cedi", has been crafting glass beads since he was a young boy. Today, he is known worldwide as a Master Bead maker and travels internationally for art fairs, workshops, and exhibitions. Cedi holds important roles in local and international bead-making associations and societies. He is one of Ghana's most distinguished bead makers out there, who was mastering the skills for the past four decades. Even royalties wear his jewellery!

Exploring Cedi Bead Factory

The factory is in a town called Odumase Krobo, in the Eastern Region of Ghana on beautifully landscaped, welcoming grounds. Cedi and his family-run team are a pure delight. When you are there, take a tour! Cedi will show and walk you through the bead-making process from start to finish - from selecting and recycling glass to making the beads.

Every single bead is meticulously handmade of recycled powdered glass! The beads come in a wide range, including antique, translucent, and imported glass beads. The torch-worked ones are Cedi’s specialty.

Marcel van Bussel

The skill and patience it takes to create each bead with ‌nano-sized lines and dots is impressive! Your appreciation for the detail, skill, and patience will grow even more when you sit down yourself and ‌make that ‘teeny tiny line’ on your bead. Seeing all this work and mastery makes each handcrafted piece of jewellery even more special. After creating your own masterpieces, don’t forget to pass by the gift shop. There, you can purchase handmade jewellery and beads of various shapes, styles, and colours. All the creations have moderate prices, so you can enjoy a well-deserved 'shopping therapy' and find beautiful gifts for your loved ones.

Nearby Attractions

While you are in the area, explore Aburi Botanical Gardens . The Botanical Gardens cover an area of 64.8 hectares and are in the Eastern Region. Initially, this place served as a sanatorium for Gold Coast government officials. Today, the focus is on plant diversity conservation, research, horticultural training, and environmental education. Visitors can explore a variety of tree species like silk cotton, mahogany, cedar, and silver oak. Have you ever stood inside a tree? Here you might have that chance! Add this must-visit to your travel bucket list!.