Steffany and I partnered up with Fizzy Pops today and are happy to be over on their site as well sharing this darling DIY Wood Bead Garland! I gotta say, I’m a little obsessed with cute banners and garlands! Remember paper straw garland from a couple weeks ago? (check it out HERE.) I’m thinking this wood bead garland has it beat! I really love how this one turned out! It would be a great craft for kids to help out with too; and just think of all the color possibilities! So fun!
All you need to make a wood bead garland is a variety of beads, some paint and a strand of jute. A few wooden skewers is helpful too. The rest is up to your own creativity! We’ll show you exactly how we made ours though. 🙂 Of course, any variation of colors and sizes of beads is great, but here’s what we used:
- 20 mm colored wooden beads, red
- 20 mm unfinished wooden beads
- 16 mm unfinished wooden beads
- 12 mm unfinished wooden beads
- 10 mm round transparent beads (as spacers)
First, line up about 5 unfinished beads on a wooden skewer to make painting them easier. 
We found that painting from left to right as opposed to up and down was much easier. If you paint them up and down, the beads spin around and around the skewer, but left to right was no problem.
To get the polka dots, use the tip of the handle on a paint brush. Dip it in a little paint and just tap it on the bead pulling straight up. Adorable polka dots! You can never go wrong with polka dots. 
For the half painted beads, use masking tape (or painters tape) and simply tape off half the bead. 
Then paint, let dry, and remove the tape!
Set the skewered beads on two bowls while they dry.
Once all the beads are dry, lay them out in the pattern you want. We placed the beads back on the skewers to create our pattern because otherwise they rolled all over place.
Now thread them onto a strand of jute. A large needle, or piece of wire folded in half (as shown below) makes threading the beads much easier. Like, probably 100 times easier. 😉 Don’t forget your spacer beads!
We put a transparent bead between every wooden bead.
Finish off the ends with a double knot tied around one of the transparent beads.
Pretty cute right?! I’ve got this one out for Valentine’s Day, but I think it needs to find a more permanent spot. I think I’ll be making a few more of these too. Like I said, I’m a little obsessed with cute garlands!
If you love beads, be sure to check out these geometric bead necklaces we made using Fizzy Pop beads too. These cuties even made it on TV! (Click HERE.)
Hi Melinda! I don’t blame you one bit for wanting to use beads on hand rather than buying new ones, I am all about being ‘frugal’ too! 😉 I would try painting a couple beads to see if the paint sticks okay first. The paint may adhere just fine, especially if you’re using them just as decor (they won’t be handled much.) If the paint doesn’t stick, the next best option would be to use some sand paper and give each bead a quick sanding. Hopefully the paint will stick just fine, so you won’t be stuck sanding beads for hours. 🙂 I hope that helps! Have a great day!
It has been a few months since this was posted but hoping it’s not too late to receive a reply. As a craft newbie, I am extremely grateful to find cool crafting chicks, like yourselves, who take the time to share their wisdom and ideas!
I gratefully received a few bags of wooden beads that I would like to paint. It looks (and feels) like there is some kind of clear coat finish on the beads. Being a little frugal (respectful way to say “cheap” lol), I would like to use these beads I was given instead of buying new unfinished ones. What would you recommend I do before I attempt to paint with acrylic craft paint? I would so appreciate receiving any suggestions/ideas! Thank you!