For me when I was starting out buying the supplies was the easiest part. I was living in Guangzhou, Guangdong or sometimes called Canton in China. Guangzhou has some amazing markets, especially for jewelry. There are some markets that are the size a five mega sized wal-marts stacked on top of each other, just selling boxes, bags, ribbons and other packing supplies. Its overwhelming, you can loose days in there, but you always find exactly what you are look for. (And most of the time a lot more!!!)
Well, I started going to the traditional or religious market, near the jade markets in Guangzhou. I went with my husband, who is also Canadian and between the two of us and a Chinese English dictionary we were able to find out what we needed, where to start and what to do.
This is what we learned.....For a mala necklace because the stones are heavy its best not to use a stretch string. If you do, when you wear the necklace it will be pulled down and there will be gaps in the necklace where you can see the string and it doesn't look so great. Use a thick non stretch cord or a thinner string and double or triple string the necklace. Some people worry about the size of the necklace, but because there are so many beads the necklace will be very long and fit over your head, even if you use small beads.
The next problem a lot of people have what beads to use. Most malas are made from a stone bead. The Dali Lama always uses a brown Tiger Eye, so do many people in China. It give a very traditional look, especially with a red tassel. I have made malas from every type of bead imaginable stone, pearl, lava, wood, coconut, shell, turquoise, coral, glass....you name it and I have made a mala from that bead! But, I really like to play with the styles and textures. I tell customers to choose a bead in a color or texture they like. That is always a good start point. And remember that stone beads will be heavier, coconut beads will be lighter and cheaper and to use things like pearl or special gemstones you will need a much bigger budget.
After you have chosen your beads you need to pick a three spacer beads, a mountain bead and a guru bead. And remember the guru bead is the one with three holes and can be really tricky to get on right!!! Traditionally these beads are an opposite color from the rest of the mala so they stand out. Often they are a different size or texture so that when you are counting your mantras you can feel a difference in the beads. It really helps you to count and keep track. As I mentioned before the Dali Lama uses a brown Tiger Eye bead for his mala and for the spacer beads, mountain bead and guru bead uses a red coral. The red beads really stand out and also give a traditional feel. But, choose colors you like, textures you like, play with the beads and have fun with the combinations.
Lastly comes the tassel or pendant. Again the possibilities are endless! Traditionally in China and Tibet two sets of small beads are hung from the mountain bead. These are called son beads. They can be the same color as your spacer beads or even something different. Tassels are also often used, especially if the mala is not worn often. Many people in China hang their malas in their car, from the rear view mirror, having a long silk tassel looks amazing. You can also add a pendant. I love the traditional pendants such as the laughing Buddha, White Tara or something else important to you.
If you want to see some examples check http://www.artfire.com/ext/shop/studio/shangrilacraft/2/1/44467//
For some ideas and inspiration check here to see all of the malas have have been working on. http://www.artfire.com/ext/shop/studio/shangrilacraft/1/1/15440//
If you are starting out making malas, have any questions or anything leave me a comment or send me an email at shangrilacraft@gmail.com I'd be happy to help!
Tiger eye and red coral, similar to the mala the Dali Lama wears. A very traditional mala. 
I made this mala with wooden bodhi beads that are HUGE, about 1.5cm. It's not really the most wearable mala because of the size of the beads and the tassel, but it looks Amazing!
A simple 8mm black agate bead mala bracelet and whtie turquoise spacer beads. For this one I didn't use a mountain bead or guru bead. I like the white-gray marbelling effect in the white turquoise beads, so I used one of them instead. 
I had made this mala originally as a bracelet. I had someone contact me and ask if they could buy a matching set, bracelet and necklace together. So I made a matching necklace and WOW, they look amazing together!
These two I made for a wedding gift for one of my best friends back home in Canada. For hers I used pearls and lava beads and the spacers and I reversed the beads for his. 
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