Paper beads have been around for a very long time!
The practice is present in many different cultures both in the past and in the present day, but most noticeably, for England, it was very popular in the Victorian era among young women who would often gather to make these paper beads. They used to use old wall paper rolled around knitting needles that they then sealed with wax so they could be polished. It’s thought that they would make these as beads because jewellery was incredibly expensive during this time, so it was a way for women to create their own with tools they had available. Now it's seen as a way to recycle and upcycle old magazines, newspapers and books. I highly recommend checking out some paper bead artists, as the effects that they can achieve with paper and glue are truly amazing!
Naturally using paper does bring some questions about the durability and longevity of the beads that were made. In their basic form just after being rolled they are fairly fragile as they aren't waterproof so if they were to get wet then they would be damaged. But there are various methods of water proofing and sealing the beads. Some of the most common are dipping/painting the beads with nail varnish, mod podge, resin or wood varnish. For this craft I’m just going to go through the most accessible and cheapest version which is using standard PVA glue, this will still have the same effect in sealing and creating a waterproof barrier, however it won't be as strong in its waterproofing as some of the other sealing options.
I would get comfortable with this version and have a play around with the cheaper materials before going to the more expensive options.
For the paper that I used to create these beads, I wanted to try out a variety of different paper options. You can use any types of paper for these, it just will act slightly differently when rolling it, here are the ones I used and what I found:
- Magazine paper- the insides of magazines are the standard recommended, they glide nicely and are easy to roll. This paper creates a really pretty effect as they combine the colour images with the black and white text.
- Newspaper- A nightmare to roll, it did not glide or work with me in the rolling process. It also turned the beads a muddy colour as the sheets are very thin.
- Kids coloured paper- I got this from Lidl as it was on offer. I really liked the colours and it rolled nicely, it was on the thinner side of paper which meant the beads weren't as big as the others. A good option for rolling, especially for children or beginners.
- Scrapbooking sheets- These were thick double sided sheets of printed paper, I really liked using these because of the colours that it was creating. To roll the sheets did need to be worked a bit harder as they were quite stiff. But they did create some of my favourite beads.
I think we’re ready now to start rolling around with some beads!
Materials:
- Paper.
- PVA Glue
- Water
- String/thread/wool - something to string the beads on when dipping.
Tools:
- Scissors
- Ruler
- Cocktail stick/kebab stick or something of a similar size.
- Glue stick
- Plastic tub
- Newspaper/ something to protect the area.
Step 1 Cutting the paper
One of the most important aspects of paper bead rolling is cutting the paper to the correct shape, as the different shapes will alter the final shape of the bead. For example an equilateral triangle will create a barrel shaped bead whereas an isosceles triangle will create a circular bead. Don't worry I will go through each of the shapes below with visuals to help!
For the most basic bead as we get used to the process we should start with rectangle beads, these are use a narrow strip of paper, remember the width of the strip will be the width of the bead. I usually aim for about 1-2 cm depending on the paper.
So lay out the paper that you have chose to use, then at 1.5cm make a mark, then do the same at the other end. Connect the marks with a line down the paper. Then cut the strip of paper, it is easier to do this with a knife especially if you are making a large batch, but scissors are safer and work just as well for now.
You should now have a strip of paper that is 1.5 cm wide. Repeat this process cutting as much paper as you want, each strip will be one bead so however many beads you want cut the paper.
For the other shapes follow this image, remember each of the sizes can be altered, but the width at the top of the strip will be the final width of the bead.
Step 2 Rolling
Now we have our paper strips cut we can start rolling them, for this we will need the glue stick and the rolling stick. For the rolling stick you can use a cocktail stick, kebab stick, knitting needle or anything that is about that size and circular (if you use a knitting needle use a double pointed one of the lump on the end will get in the way).
Taking one strip of the paper place it so that the short side is facing you, it should be facing away from you. Then taking your rolling stick place it at the end of the strip.
Fold the end of the strip of the paper over the top of the rolling stick so that the paper encases it and touches the paper strip. Then roll the stick over the top of the end of the paper (which was now in front of the rolling stick) this will create a little tube with the rolling stick in the middle.
Now we can just roll the stick forwards down the paper, keeping the tension of the paper tight to the rolling stick, if you need to, you can hold one end of the paper and pull the stick back towards you slightly to tighten the paper on the stick. Keep rolling until you are almost at the end of the paper strip.
Holding the stick in place, apply the glue to the end of the paper, don't be afraid to add too much, too much is better than not enough! Then roll the stick over the area you’ve just glued, this will stick the end of the paper down on to the bead so that it seals nicely.
Now just double check that its all glued down and we have a bead! Its still on a stick but its a bead!
To remove the bead, gently pull it off the stick, if the middle pulls out slightly dont worry, just push the end of the bead down onto a flat surface and it will all coil back into the center of the bead.
If you are using any different shapes and styles for the beads, then the process is the same except the paper of the bead will taper into the middle, don't worry about trying to keep it straight and in the middle it will naturally pull itself central (as long as the triangle isn't wonky… yes I have done that before)
Step 3 Repeat
Unless you are just wanting to make one bead we need to repeat the process. One of the things I like about this craft is that it's a good pick up and put down craft as it's quick and relatively unmessy (at this stage).
You can make as many beads as you want, the process is the same for all the beads, and once you're done then they can sit until you are ready for the next step.
Step 4 Stringing
As I mentioned earlier the beads at this stage are quite absorbent so they won’t hold up to water or last as long as they could. So we need to protect them. For this we are going to dip them in PVA glue, but so we don’t have to dip each one individually we can string them up.
Its exactly as it sounds, taking a piece of string, wool or cord we are going to string these bead in a row. But there are 2 things we need to know before we can do that, first is where are we going to be drying them.
I made a little drying area out of some books and a plastic tub, this is so that I could hang the strings of beads over the kebab sticks that were lying across some books, but that the beads were over a tub so that any excess pva glue could fall into that instead of all over my desk. The reason we need to figure out this contraption first is because we need to know how long we can make the strings of beads.
I’ve seen many different types of bead drying contraptions, one of the easier versions is using a shoe box, that you cut notches into then you can hook the strings of beads over each end of so that they are suspended over the inside of the box. Or even hanging them outside in the summer to dry (I don’t advise this as British weather can be a bit unpredictable!).
However you decide to dry your beads, they will need to hang for a minimum of 12 hours as they need to fully dry.
Once the drying contraption has been created then we can measure how long our string of beads can be. Here is where the second important bit is, when you have finished the stringing of the beads, they need to have a bit of wiggle room, this is to make sure that you don't accidentally glue them together (yes I have done that as well) as then we would have one very large very odd bead instead of fun little beads to use.
Now that we know not to glue them to each other or to the table we can string the beads onto a piece of string, or whatever you will be using. If you are going to be hooking the bead strings over things make sure you leave a hanging hook on the end!
Step 5 Dipping
Now the beads are all strung together, with a little wiggle room for each one, we can get to dipping them. This is the most efficient way to dip beads as it will save time and mess.
For the dipping solution we will be using water and pva glue. Start by pouring out 3 tbsp worth of PVA glue (this is all just approximations) then add 1 tbsp of water, stir them together, this should loosen up the PVA so that it is runnier. Depending on the thickness of your PVA glue you might need more water, but add small amounts at a time when adjusting. If you are making a big batch then you can just scale up the amounts in a ration of 3:1 glue to water.
Once the dipping solution is made, go ahead and one string at a time place the beaded strings in the solution, make sure that the entire string and all the beads are completely covered and well saturated.
Then take the strings out slowly letting them drip back into the tub, stay there for about 30 seconds or until the dripping has slowed a bit. Then you can transfer them to your drying contraption. Do this for each of the strings of beads, then let them dry for 12 to 24 hours.
If you want the beads to be really well sealed and secure you can repeat this process again so that they have a secondary coating, personally I didn't, but if I were to do it again I think I would, just so that they’re even more protected.
Step 6 Beads beads beads
When the beads have had plenty of time to dry, we can remove them from the strings. Prewarning you now, when I did this I had some casualties but it was only about 3 beads that I lost so don't worry, sometimes we have to sacrifice a few for the greater good… of beads.
Cut the end of the string (Don’t even try and undo it, you glued it shut, yes I did that).
Then taking each bead you want to give it a little wiggle and twist this will unstick it from the string and the bead next to it. Then slide it off the string and you have a finished bead!
Repeat this for all the beads, occasionally they will be stuck together, if this happens just give them a little twist in opposite directions and they should come apart easily.
Now we have some pretty little paper beads, we can use them for anything. There are so many things you can use paper beads for, keyrings, bracelets, necklaces, earrings, wind chimes, decorations or you could just keep them in a bowl and let the beads themselves be the decor. I do suggest that you don't use all your beads right away though as we might be able to find a use for them very soon!
I hope you love this craft as much as I do, the versatility of this craft makes it one of those slippery slopes that you can spend hours playing around with! If you made some of these paper beads I would love to see the outcomes, please send them to me on instagram/ threads or facebook at @/ worldofthoodles
See you next week for another craft!
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