Pony Beads are small plastic beads which come in all colours, and several different sizes. We got ours from the Brighton Bead Shop, in Brighton, but they are available in good craft stores all over the place. They originated in America.
By threading them onto string and following a pattern you can make 2-d or 3-d objects. We made a variety of Christmas tree decorations, using patterns from the Making Friends website, and some we made up ourselves.
We tried threading onto various materials, and found that natural fibres work best because they are not entirely even so as the threads cross each other inside a bead they catch and your piece remains tight instead of constantly working loose while you are making it. We tried using jute (from charities such as Tear Fund and Christian Aid) and also traditional string.
Most patterns start by making a loop in the thread - it can be easier to work if you tie this loop to something (use a safety pin to attach it to your shoelace or sticky tape to attach it to a table). Some of our patterns end with knots, but for others we used a "cool melt" glue gun to secure the ends inside the last beads. A cool melt glue gun uses a different kind of glue which melts at a lower temperature so there is less danger of burning yourself.
We give this pattern a MEDIUM/HARD difficulty rating.
You will Need:
13 Black Pony Beads
6 Red Pony Beads
28 White Pony Beads
1.5m of String (We used jute from Traidcraft)
Method:
Fold the string in half to find th middle and use a double overhand knot to make a loop to hang the ornament on a Christmas Tree.
Thread the beads using the pattern above.
We glued the ends with a small dab of glue from the glue gun, to finish. Then we cut off the excess thread.
Star of Bethlehem
We give this pattern a MEDIUM/HARD difficulty rating.
You will Need:
29 Yellow Pony Beads
1.5m of String (We used jute from Traidcraft)
Method:
Fold the string in half to find the middle and use a double overhand knot to make a loop to hang the ornament on a Christmas Tree.
Thread the beads using the pattern at above.
We tied another double overhand knot to finish.
Christmas Tree
We give this pattern an EASY difficulty rating.
You will Need:
1 Yellow Pony Bead
1 Orange Pony Bead
1 Purple Pony Bead
1 Blue Pony Bead
1 Red Pony bead
16 Green Pony Beads
4 Black Pony Beads
1.5m of String (We used jute from Traidcraft)
Method:
Fold the string in half to find th middle and use a double overhand knot to make a loop to hang the ornament on a Christmas Tree.
Thread the beads using the pattern above.
We glued the ends with a small dab of glue from the glue gun, to finish. Then we cut off the excess thread.
