Styles of Marbles

Common Marbles

• Common marbles are small marbles made of clay that are frequently painted in different vibrant colors. If you are going to use common marbles, you should be aware that game play makes the paint chip off quite quickly. Common marbles are also known as "commies" or "combos" and are among the least valuable kinds of marbles. Two special types of common marbles are benningtons (clay marbles with a salt glaze) and crocks (marbles made of crockery clay).

Chinas and Plasters

• Chinas are marbles that are made out of glazed china while plasters are just like chinas except unglazed. Chinas and plasters are frequently decorated with designs such as plaid or concentric circles.

Alleys and Reals

• Alleys are marbles that are made of alabaster while reals are marbles that are made of actual marble. These marbles also frequently have designs on them with names such as turtle (streaked green and yellow), oxblood (with a large blood colored streak) and onionskin (with layered onion-like swirls). The famous cat's eye marble is a type of alley or real.

Micas

• Mica marbles are clear or translucent marbles with mica metal flakes on the inside. These marbles have a shimmering appearance to them that makes for interesting visuals when they are used in game play.

Steelies

• Steelies are marbles that are made entirely out of steel. Frequently these marbles are nothing more than marble-sized ball bearings. In addition to finding them anywhere marble-sized ball bearings can be located, you can also purchase steelies made specifically for playing marbles.

Crystals, Clearies and Puries

• Crystals, clearies and puries are marbles made of colored clear glass. The different colored crystals, clearies and puries often have names that reflect their color such as bloods, rubies, glimmers and deep blue sea. Princess marbles are a marble of this type made of tinted crystal while galaxy marbles are dotted to look like they are filled with stars. They are easily damaged through the nicking that naturally happens in game play.

Bumbos and Peawees

• Bumbos are marbles in any style that are significantly larger than normal marbles. They are also known as bumboozers and bowlers. Peawees are the opposite--a marble of any make that is significantly smaller than a standard marble.