Add sparkle to your home with easy-to-make beaded accessories. Cindy Piccoli, host of HGTV's Decorating With Style, explains the simple process of crafting lovely beaded eggs. Beaded Egg
Materials:
Three extra-large eggs, blown out and wiped clean
Three hanks of beads (enough to cover three extra-large or four to five small to medium eggs)
Small shallow dish
Large-eye beading needle
Beading thread
Glue
- Clip the hanks of beads, and empty them into the dish. Stir to mix the colors.
- Thread the needle with string, but don't cut the string: work with the string attached to the spool. Unwind more string from the spool as needed, moving the beads down the line to make room for more.
- String 4 yards of beads for one egg.
- Remove the needle from the string, and knot the end at least twice. Cut the string, leaving 2" of excess string before knotting so the beads are in a loose strand.
- Place a dollop of glue on top of the egg, and begin applying the beads in a single tight circle (figure A). Set the egg down gently, and allow the first circle of beads to bond to the egg for 3 minutes to establish a solid base for gluing the remainder of the bead strand to the egg.
- After the initial circle of beads has bonded to the egg, continue to wrap and glue the strand, covering the excess end of the string with beads. Use plenty of glue: more is better, and the glue dries clear.
- While applying beads, keep them loose on the string. Beads that are strung too tightly pucker and make it difficult to cover the object evenly.
- When the egg is half beaded, gently set it down in an egg carton for 3 additional minutes to dry (figure B).
- Hold the beaded side of the egg, and finish gluing the strand on the uncovered side.
- Once the egg is covered with beads, push any remaining beads on the string down approximately 12", and cut the string 2" from the egg. Put the needle back on the string to prevent any of the leftover beads from unstringing.
- Using your needle, push the end of the string into the hole in the egg.
- Cover the bald ends of the eggs with loose beads by applying a dollop of glue to the bare spots and sticking on loose beads (figure C). Wet fingertips help you pick up loose beads.
Tip: - Prevent long strands of strung beads from tangling by wrapping them around a piece of cardboard till you're ready to use them.
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