Age: 8 and up (This project is rated EASY to do.)

What you need

• Stretch Magic jewelry cord
• heart, flower or other charms
• Alphabet beads (with hearts)
• shiny or iridescent beads in pink, clear and red
• scissors
• paperclip
• hot glue gun
• tape measure (optional)

What you do

1. Measure child's wrist with tape measure. Lay tape measure down on table and cut a piece of jewelry cord two inches longer than child's wrist measurement.

2. Put a paper clip on one end of the jewelry cord. This will keep the beads from sliding off that end when beading the bracelet.

3. Thread beads onto jewelry cord, you will be leaving one inch of space at the end of the cord when finished. Here are ideas for your bracelet:

Charm bracelet: To make the charm bracelet, thread a pattern of three pink beads and one clear bead twice, then add a charm. Continue with two more sets of pink and clear bead patterns, then add another charm. Finish by continuing the pink and clear bead pattern until there is one inch of cord left.

Red conversation heart bracelet: For the red conversation bracelet, our bracelet uses ten red beads to start, yours may use more or less depending on the size of your child's wrist. This won't affect your bracelet design, you can adjust the number of beads at the end as there isn't a specific pattern color to follow and all beads will flow together. After the ten red beads, add a heart bead found in the Alphabet Bead package. Thread on two more red beads. Add letters "B" and "E". Add two more red beads. Thread on letters "M", "I", "N", and "E". Add two more red beads. Thread on another heart bead. Finish off bracelet with red beads until there is one inch of cord remaining.

4. Remove the paperclip and hold both ends of cord up next to each other. Tie cord into a loose knot, slide down so that the knot is touching the beads so there are no gaps between beads, then tighten the knot. Tie another knot and apply a small dot of hot glue to the knot for added security.

5. Trim excess cord above the knot, but not too close as to hinder the knot. Leave approximately one-quarter inch of cord showing.

Helpful hints

Getting the right size. Beads come in a variety of colors and sizes. Be sure to purchase beads that correspond with your cord size. For example, the holes in pony beads are far too large for Stretch Magic jewelry cord, however, they can be successfully used with hemp cord. As for how big the bracelet should be, if this is a gift and you cannot obtain the wrist size of the gift recipient, measure another child with similar wrist size.

Save beads for other projects. Beads are sold in packages of individual colors, or you can purchase multi-packs, which contain a multitude of colors to use for other projects. Bead supplies can be found at discount department stores like Wal Mart and Kmart. If you are looking for a much larger selection, try a craft supply store.

Stumble Upon Facebook Del.icio.us Google Yahoo Digg it