Thursday, August 3, 2017

DIY Beaded Bracelet Tutorial.

Hey friends!!  Today, I've got that DIY Beaded Bracelet Tutorial I've been teasing y'all with for awhile!  I'm going to start off by apologizing for the awful, amateur-ish lighting in all my pictures though.  It was raining outside and I was in my craft room on the floor with the yellow-y overhead lights making ugly shadows.  And no one to snap pics for me so I had to prop it up and set a timer.  

It was a giant disaster and I thought I about re-doing the whole thing outside in some prettier lighting.  But I didn't want to wait until we got back from the beach, so y'all will have to deal with amateur hour.  ;)

I got started with making jewelry several years ago when the sideways cross bracelets were all the rage.  I did what I always do.  I saw them in a store and said "That can't be that hard.  I wonder how you make those."  So I googled "how to make a beaded bracelet" and just ran with it.  Easy peasy.

Here's a look at some of my nicer bracelets.  And I say my nicer bracelets because looking back at pictures of some of the ones I made, I have to ask myself "What the heck was I thinking?" a LOT.  Some of my bead choices and color combos were questionable at best and tacky as hell at worst.  ;)

No, I will not be posting those awful pictures.  It was bad enough people saw them at all.

But here are some of the ones I really liked (and still do!).





Now on to the tutorial.

Here's what you'll need.



Beads

So for your beads, I'd head on over to your nearest Michaels.  Prepare to be overwhelmed by all your choices!  Joann Fabrics and Hobby Lobby also have them but I prefer the selection at Michaels.


Tip:  Remember to use any coupons you have!  Download the Michaels app.  They usually have a 40% off coupon in there.  Or catch them on sale like I did here!  And teachers, don't forget to show your teacher badge for 15% off your entire purchase EVERY TIME.  Also, the green tagged beads are one price (I can't remember what...maybe $3.99?  $5.99?) and the red tagged beads are another.  So be sure to pay attention to that if you are trying to stick to a budget for this little project!

Clear 1mm Stretch Magic Elastic Cord (here) or at Michaels


 And Scissors

Before you get started, get somewhere with a flat surface.  I have this little cushion tray thing leftover from my jewelry makin' days but a blanket or something works well too.  If you put them a smooth, slick surface just be prepared to chase a few beads down at some point.  ;)

1.  Snip the plastic that your beads are strung on so they are all loose.


2.  Cut a 10-12" piece of elastic cord.  (Doesn't have to be exact.  It just needs to be long enough to around your wrist with a few extra inches of overhang.)

3.  Take the two ends and give them a few little stretches.  (Not a lot.  Just a little.)  Your elastic will stretch out a little overtime if you don't do this.  This kind of pre-stretches it so it's set.  There's nothing worse than a beaded bracelet that's all stretched out.


4.  Start on one end of the cord and string your beads on one at at time.  If you have a paperclip or something you can attach at the other end so your beads won't fall off the other side you can do that, or I've seen people tape down the cord (about an inch from the end) and that will help keep them in place as well.  

I don't worry about all that and just keep one side of the cord on the tray and gently string on my beads.




5.  Once you've got a good amount of beads on there, hold it by the two ends (shown above) and check to see how you're doing, size wise.  You should be able to see if you need more beads or if you should take some off. (see below)


I think I may have added just one more bead after this.

6.  Once you've gotten all your beads on, and you're confident with the size, it's time to tie the knot!  This is the most intimidating part, I know but it's really not that hard. 

If you look on YouTube, you will find a ton of different ways to tie the knot.  A lot of them involve super glue or E6000 (a type of glue).  I don't use this and haven't had an issue but you definitely can!  I'll include a YouTube video that shows how to do this.

Here's how I start.


Start how you tie your shoe (before the bunny ears).  Do left over right. Pull tight. 


Once you've got that first little tie, switch it up and do the same everyday tie but this time, right over left.  Pull tight.



Tip:  Sometimes it can be hard to get the knot to "lock".  If you are having trouble, try using your bottom two fingers (ring finger and pinky) to pull the bracelet out while your top fingers are pulling the knot tight.  You can use a dab of super glue on the knot at this point as well.  

7.  As an extra step, I always do a left over right tie one more time to lock it up good.  :)  (Ignore where I'm doing right over left in this picture!  It should be left over right.  But as long as you are doing the opposite of what you did the previous time, it won't matter.)



8.  You can add another dab of glue to your knot here too if you'd like.  Give it a little tug and make sure your knot is nice and secure.

9.  Now all that is left is to snip the ends!  I leave mine about this long.  It used to bother me that you could see the knot but I don't care too much anymore.  Some beads have large holes that the knot can slip in.  Or you can add a charm in the there somewhere and hide the knot that way.  I just leave it as is.


And that's it!  Slip it on and wear it with pride!  ;)


I ended up making a second bracelet the next day with some of my leftover beads from my overabundant supply.


So now I have 2 new ones!


The love one is a little more complicated to make (but not much!).

And I will leave you with what is definitely a much better tutorial than mine.  The only thing I'd change from the way she does hers is I would make my cord longer.  It's just easier to grip when you go to tie it if you have more to work with.


(This post was not sponsored by Michael's but it would be awesome if it was!) ;)

Happy beading everyone!  I know my tutorial isn't the greatest so if you need more help be sure to check for more YouTube videos!  There are thousands!!

Have a great Thursday!!

-Amanda
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6 comments

  1. Now I want to try this!

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  2. Oh my gosh!! So cool! You made it look super simple.

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  3. Thanks for sharing! I'll have to try this!

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  4. So cute! Thanks for sharing!

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  5. FYI...I made myself a wooden bead bracelet today from your tutorial! Turned out SO CUTE and I surprised myself HAHAHA. I am NOT DIY at all. I have grand ideas that always turn to FAIL. Thanks for the inspiration! I even added my initial charm on it! Go me. LOL

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  6. Fantastic post.Thanks For share this post with us.To make positive that the ends wouldn't relax, you will be able to place glue on the knots and flatten it with spherical nose pliers. You String Bracelet currently have distinctive souvenirs that you just will provide out throughout youngsters birthday parties.

    ReplyDelete

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