The Miyuki Delica seed bead tradition was started years ago by Seiichi Katsuoka. In 1949, Fascinated by the brilliance and beauty of glass seed beads, he dedicated himself to learning the art of glass seed bead making. Seiichi's passion for making beautiful, high quality glass seed beads was passed down to his son, Hiroshi. Hiroshi added innovation to passion and began creating new types and styles of beads. This resulted in the founding of the Miyuki company-- Japan's first successful mass-producing bead manufacturing company. Since then the company has continued to innovate, producing many new and wonderful kinds of seed beads. Among the many shapes manufactured by Miyuki, the perfect little Delica Bead has emerged as the pre-eminent favorite.