Fun Activities for Kids, Families, and Teachers

My friend and fellow Story Time Felts Consultant, Awnya Boam, shared a few craft ideas with me and I thought I’d pass them along.
“What you do is you take pages of a magazine and tear them out.  I like to choose the really colorful ones.  (Flower mag’s work REALLY well). On the BACK of the page that you like, you will draw a triangle that will go the length of the page.  You want the fat part of the triangle to be how fat you want the bead.  You also want the 2 sides of the triangle to be equal or the bead will turn out crooked.  I like beads that measure somewhere between 3 and 5 cm.

So lets say I’m doing a 3cm bead.  I will mark the spot where the bead will start (remember this is on the back that you are marking, or it will ruin the colors of the bead) and then where it will end.  I draw these lines all the way across the page.  Then I will measure 1/2 way between the 2, so 1 1/2 cm and mark a spot there.  This is the top of the triangle and then I will draw the sides.

Cut the triangles out and then you will need to have something to roll them around.  I use a piece of wire coat hanger but a toothpick works well too.  Wrap the triangle around the wire starting with the fat part first.  try to keep it as tight as you can, although you can take it off and tighten it up later if you need to.  To keep the bead in place, I put a little bit of Elmer’s glue on the smaller end.  When the bead is all wrapped up, I will put elmers glue over the whole thing and wipe it with my fingers.  This seals the bead in a clear finish and will help to hold it together.

Try all different colors.  I like to make up like 20 beads and then choose which ones match the best to put them on a bracelet or necklace.  To accent the beads, use clear beads in between.

You will be amazed at how great these beads look and what colors you come up with!”

Thanks, Awnya!

Executive National Director
Story Time Felts