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Pony Bead Star Ornament


On the back of a label of beads I found a link to the Beadery.com website and on the site I found this simple beaded star project. I liked it that I could use my plastic pony beads. I haven't tried it with glass beads yet. So here are my step by step pictures to help you make it.

The star is about 3 inches in diameter.

Materials

  • 35 pony beads (play around with different color combinations to suit you)
  • 2 beads to dangle from the star
  • 1.5 yards of cotton string or hemp
  • wool sewing needle
  • fabric starch

Instructions

I am trying to keep my instruction step the same as the original from the beadery.com. The star has 5 rays.

Click on the thumbnails to see the big version of the picture

 

  •  Before I started beading I laid out all beads on a plate in the colors I wanted. That way I always knew if I had enough beads of any given color as I was using up beads I had lying around.

Step 1

  1. cut 1.5 yards (about 1.5 m) of cord and thread on wool sewing needle. This makes it so much easier than stiffening the end of the cord with glue
  2. thread the first group of 6 beads, starting with the inner most beads. Leave about a 4-6 inch tail.
  3. weave back through the 5th and 4th bead on the cord and pull tight.
  4. weave back through the 3rd, 2nd and 1st bead on the cord and pull tight. Make sure to hold the tail tight or it will slip out of the beads when you pull the needle through.


beads laid out on plate


1.2 the 6 beads strung onto the cord


1.3 weaving back through beads 5 and 4


1.3 thread pulled tight


1.4 weaving back through beads 3, 2 and 1


1.4 first finished ray

Step 2

  • repeat steps 1.2 -> 1.4 4 more times for the other 4 rays of the star.
  • keep about the width of one bead of empty cord between the triangles.


picking up beads


6 beads strung on cord


weaving through beads 5 and 4


cord pulled tight


weaving through beads 3, 2 and 1


2 triangles

Step 3

  • all 5 triangles in a row


all 5 triangles

Step 4

  1. layout the triangles into a circle and connect the first and last triangle


Step 5

  1. now pick up one bead
  2. and pass the needle through the last bead of that triangle
  3. pass the needle through the first bead of the next triangle
  4. pick up another bead
  5. and pass the needle through the last bead of that triangle
  6. repeat steps 4 and 5 three more times


through the last bead of the triangle


through the first bead of the next triangle


add a bead


through the last bead of that triangle


all center beads are added

Step 6

  1. go with the cord through all 5 center beads and pull tight


through the 1st center bead


through the 2nd and 3rd center bead


through the 1st bead again


pull circle tight

Step 6a

Note: this is my way of finishing up the star

  1. go back through the 2nd and 3rd bead of the 3 bead row. There are now 2 cords coming out of the 3rd bead
  2. tie the two cords together twice


6a.1 weaving back through beads 2 and 3


6a.2 tying the first knot


6a.2 tying the second knot

Step 7

  • add one of the 2 special beads to each piece of cord and tie a knot. I looped the end of the cord about 4 times before pulling it tight to give it bulk and prevent the bead from falling off.
  • cut a 10-12 inch (30 cm) piece of cord or use the leftover cord from the project.
  • thread it through the top bead of the triangle opposite the dangling beads and tie a knot.


finished star

Step 8

You might have noticed that in my material list it says 'fabric starch'. Well, I found that the star was a little limp. So I decided to soak it in liquid fabric starch to give it some body and it worked.

  1. either spray the star on a piece of plastic with liquid fabric starch or
  2. immerse it into the starch
  3. take it out and squeeze the strings between your fingers
  4. then place the star on a wet wash cloth and pat the beads to remove the starch only from the bead
  5. now layout the star on a dry piece of plastic and let it dry, don't forget to flip it after some time


stars sprayed with liquid starch


stars drying

My Finished Stars

After following the colors in the instructions from the beadery I decided to create my own color combinations. Another factor was also the number of beads I had of any given color.

You can buy the ornaments here.



winter day star


winter night star


winter dawn star


midnight sparkle star


happy day star


sugar plums star


bubble gum star


in my heart star


Christmas tree star


pine tree star


lit tree star