Stretch cord for bead stringing

I would love to get a suggestion for a quality stretch cord for stringing faceted gemstone beads. I have tried several and they either break quickly, stretch and don’t rebound, or are too thick for the bead hole. Any brand suggestions that you have tried and has been successful would be most appreciated. Thank you!

We use Stretch Magic, which is available in a variety of diameters - 1mm, 0.8mm and 0.5mm. Your post mentions a quality material. Stretchy cord is not meant for the long haul. It breaks quite readily on its own after a certain amount of time. For a quality material, we use silk and, of course, a clasp.

As you are stringing gemstone beads, please be aware of the beads’ drill holes. If the beads are not ultrasonically drilled, e.g, smooth and straight through the bead, the interior roughness could encourage the stretchy material to break. If there are rough spots inside the bead, it can be smoothed by using a diamond bead reamer, either by hand or in a flex shaft. But it’s a lot of effort for a bracelet that may not live to see the new year.

My first jewelry class was at a bead shop when I was just starting to learn about stringing beads and making jewelry. I vividly remember the instructor telling us to never use stretch cord. He said that it wasn’t a matter of if it would break, just when it would break. Just last week I had the awful experience of a precious gift of a beautiful double drilled pearl and sterling round bead bracelet with a fairly complicated construction just crumble on my wrist when the stretch cord broke. I’ll be putting it back together with thin, supple, 49 strand nylon-coated stainless steel micro-wire…and a clasp.