Paper beads! They’re fun (possibly even addictive) to make and they give you a lot of scope to play around with a kind of elementary transformative geometry. You will need:
- Paper, you could use magazines, newspaper, old wrapping paper, catalogs, etc.
- Scissors
- Glue
- A bamboo skewer or other fairly thin rod like tool (I actually used a steel chopstick)
- A cup
Start by drawing and cutting your pattern. Some sample patterns are shown in the image below. Each starting pattern yields a slightly different shaped bead. Try visualizing how the pattern would wrap up to picture the finished bead.
Next take your pattern piece and use the skewer to begin rolling it. Roll a couple of turns evenly but loose enough so the roll can rotate independently from the skewer. Put a drop of glue on the paper and continue rolling. Periodically put a new drop of glue on the paper as the old one runs out. You should find your fingers getting coated in glue, this is not a problem just rub the glue across the bead as you continue rolling. When finished set the skewer across the top of the glass so the bead can dry without sticking to anything (see image below).
When the bead is completely dry apply another coat of glue to the bead, just use your fingers, and allow it to dry again.
Make as many beads as you want. Start experimenting with your own patterns to make unique beads. Play with the paper selection and pattern placement to get different looking beads in terms of their color or pattern (see image below)
Finally use the beads in other projects. You might make them into a bracelet using some elastic beading cord or string them on some wire to make a necklace. I used some steel wire I had in my tool box to fashion a bracelet & a pendant that could hang from a necklace (see image of finished projects at top). You could make many, many beads and string them in rows to create a beaded curtain. The sky’s really the limit here.
