exactly finding different ways to collect beads..... Lately I've been getting a lot of "broken jewerly" requests. Someone has a favorite necklace bracelet etc... actually most people have a pile of these that broke and ended up in a make-up bag to be "fixed" at some point in time, so I get the pieces of whats left, I fix it or more likely make something totally new out of it and keep the left overs as my payment for the repairs. No money exchanged, I get new things to work with and the person gets the treasure back new and improved, its my version of a win-win!

What is the variety available?

Some of the various beads available: Venetian Glass, Czech glass, Bone (camel, typically--so I'm assuming middle east), horn (origen uncertain), pearl, Indian (subcontinent) Lampwork (glass again), Dze (tibetan), African Agate, Hill Tribe (SE Asia) Silver, shell (various coastal areas), seeds (unknown), delica, netsuke (from Japan, various stones and wood), chinese ceramic, peruvian ceramic, sandcastle (africa), etc, etc.

I don't know what they make in Pine Ridge, or what materials they use, but my guess is that unless one is working within a very narrow idiom, that it wouldn't be "enough." Even the indian beadwork of the 19th century used beads traded from far away. Shell beads didn't get to the great plains "naturally." My point is that there are a lot of wonderful beads from all over and many made by persons who could use the money in their local economy. And that beadworkers may want to use a broad range of the products.