Maker Monday: Paper Beads

You can make stylish beads in a multitude of colors and patterns with simple steps and easily accessible materials.

As a Maker Monday project, these paper beads help develop small motor skills, promote problem-solving, and provide a creative outlet for budding artists and crafters.

Don’t worry if your wrapping paper is leftover from Christmas, Valentine’s Day, or a baby shower. Once you make the bead, the paper creates such a unique pattern that you cannot discern the original paper design. 

Supplies:

Wrapping paper scraps (or use magazines or catalogs)

Ruler or straight edge

Pencil

Scissors

Coffee stirrers

Glue stick

Assortment of plastic beads

Stretchy cord 

Mark the wrapping paper with very long triangles, beginning with a base of about 1 inch wide and getting thinner and thinner until the triangle is at least 12 inches long by the pointy end. The longer and skinnier the triangle, the fatter your finished beads. Using your scissors, cut the long triangles. Don’t worry if they are not perfectly straight.

Using a glue stick, swipe the back of one long paper triangle with the glue.

Beginning with the base of the triangle, wrap the paper around the end of the coffee stirrer. Keep wrapping very tightly until the reaching the long pointy end. That will be your first paper bead.

Continue alongside the first bead with additional paper triangles. You can probably fit three or four side by side on each coffee stirrer. It’s fun to the see the new patterns emerging from the different wrapping paper prints.

Once the glue has dried, use your scissors to snip the coffee stirrer at the end of each bead.

Thread your paper beads onto the stretchy cord. If you like, you can add plastic beads in between your paper beads for added color and texture.

For more Maker Monday projects and other fun ideas, visit the Kidsburgh Activities Page.

If you have cool craft projects that your kids love, share them with Kidsburgh! Email us your maker activities, and we’ll publish the best here.