Don’t be intimidated by the lengthy instructions below. This popular handmade gift idea from art instructor Kippi Mack-vonDuhn is surprisingly easy and quick, once you get going.
SUPPLIES
Card stock, index card or other sturdy paper
White craft glue or tacky glue
Ruler
Pencil
Toothpicks
Acrylic gloss medium or clear nail polish
Floral foam brick, Styrofoam egg carton or tray, or modeling clay
Triangle template (see instructions)
Scissors or X-acto knife
Plastic sandwich bag for finished beads
DIRECTIONS
MAKE A BEAD TEMPLATE
1. Decide how wide you want your beads to be. Using the card stock or index card, draw a line that marks that measurement.
2. Use that line as a guide, and start at one end of the line and measure a 45-degree angle to a point equal to the center of your first line. Make a dot there.
3. Draw a line from each end of the first line to the dot, creating a tall triangle.
ROLLING THE BEADS
4. Choose your colored paper.
5. Cut triangles using your template. Each triangle will make one bead.
6. Lay a toothpick on the bottom of the triangle, opposite the tip. Roll the paper once around the toothpick, and pinch the edge to secure it.
7. Tightly roll the rest of the triangle over the toothpick with your thumb and forefingers, like making a crescent roll. Keep the triangle centered and snug, but loose enough to remove from the toothpick when the bead is finished.
8. Dot a bit of glue on the inside tip when you reach the triangle’s apex, and finish rolling. Apply pressure for a few moments, being careful to avoid getting glue on the toothpick.
9. Leave the bead on the toothpick to dry.
SEALING THE BEAD
Important: This step should be done in a well-ventilated room.
10. After the glue is dry, hold one end of the toothpick, and carefully coat the bead with the fingernail polish or gloss medium.
11. Poke the sealed, bead-adorned toothpick into the floral block, Styrofoam or clay, without letting the beads touch.
12. Allow the beads to dry for at least 30 minutes.
13. Remove the beads, which are ready to string.
TIPS
If the paper seems too stiff to roll, dampen it with a sponge.
Alter the beads’ shape by modifying the triangle template. Eliminating the sharp apex will produce rounder beads.
