Category: create

Packing Shoe Boxes for Operation Christmas Child – Girls 10-14

September 5, 2020gifts, , , , , Leave a comment

A friend gave me the book Operation Christmas Child: A Story of Simple Gifts, and y’all, it’s wonderful. It’s amazing to read the history of this ministry and have a glimpse into the personal stories of some of the recipients. I have dogeared the entire book because it’s just that good. My favorite quote is by seventy-three year old Doris Goodair who said “I stayed so busy with shoeboxes, I didn’t realize I was growing old.” I wanna be Doris when I grow up.

Here is a peek into the boxes we’re packing for 10 – 14 year old girls this year:

School Supplies: Composition book (college ruled for the older kiddos), colored pencils, pencils, pencils sharpener, scissors and erasers. In the interest of not shipping air, we stuff the pencil sharpener full of pencil-top erasers. Don’t you think a colorful or glittered pencil would make school work just *a little* more fun?

Personal Care Items: Included are a washcloth, soap, toothbrush and cover, Chap-stick, nail care set, hair elastics and shower comb. We sometimes use the hair elastics to secure rolled clothing items; it’s more useful to the recipient than sending a rubber band.

If you’ve wondered why we send a toothbrush but no toothpaste, this makes it easier to get the boxes through customs and because the kids were eating the toothpaste. I read of one boy who downed an entire tube of bubblegum favored toothpaste in one sitting! Yum. Yum.

Something to wear: Hat, socks, fun leopard print tights, tee shirt, panties, and soft cup bras. My sister had several fabric bags from new pillowcases, so we tucked the underthings in those. Because opening underwear in front of your friends is still not a fun party game.

Since we don’t know the girl’s sizes, we send 14-16 size clothing for this age group. I figure it’s better to send things she can grow into, rather than smaller clothes.

Fun Stuff: Paint brushes, watercolors, art paper, zippered wallet, travel sewing kit, beaded bracelet, water bottle and tiny trinkets.

I rolled the washcloth and socks and stuffed them into the water bottle. The Chap-stick, googly-eyes ring and tiny, new friends were jammed into the crevices.

We removed the foam packaging sheets from inside the wallet, and tucked these small items into the pockets.

Here’s how it all fits into the box:

For more shoe box inspiration:

Packing a shoe box for OCC
What fits inside the box?
Boys 5-9
Boys 10-14

Happy shoe box packing!

This post is not sponsored. I only endorse charities that I personally support, and I hope you will consider supporting them too.

Copyright 2019-2020 © Arthurized Home – All Rights Reserved. This post is the original content of Arthurized Home. If you’re reading this on another site, it’s unArthurized.

Packing Shoe Boxes for Operation Christmas Child – Boys 10 – 14

August 26, 2020gifts, , , , , , 1 Comment

Last year I learned that Operation Christmas Child receives the fewest number of boxes for boys 2-4 and 10-14. It’s got to be pretty upsetting for both the recipient and the distribution team to run out of boxes for a specific group. We’ve decided to focus our future efforts on the 10-14 year old boys category. That doesn’t mean we won’t ever pack for other groups, we just want to improve the collection stats for older boys. Here’s what we’re packing this year:

School Supplies: Composition book, pencils, double pencil sharpener, large eraser and full sized scissors. I like the scissors because they work for a lefty or righty and are practical for other uses in addition to school work. See the tiny fishing kit below.

Something to wear: 2 pairs of socks, 2 boxer briefs, a shirt and sunglasses.
In early August, Walmart marks down summer clothing and we were able to find sporty tees and nice button up shirts for $3 each. The performance fabric shirts are great because they are practical for any climate and take up less room in the box.

Hygiene Items: Washcloth, bar of soap, shower comb and toothbrush with cover. I like the shower combs because they are very sturdy and work for any hair type.

Fun Stuff: Building kits, sticky catch game and a tic-tac-toe game made by our sweet nieces. The game board is a drawstring eyeglasses bag from the Dollar Tree with the grid drawn on using a Sharpie marker. The game pieces are decorator’s pebbles. We include an extra pebble of each color in case one gets lost. The wordless instructions were found online and we printed them four to a page.

Practical Gifts: Bungee cord, drawstring backpack, cup, bowl and utility spork, the little box holds a tiny fishing kit.

The fishing kit contains one bobber, four hooks, two sinkers and approximately twenty-five feet of fishing line. We included a sketch showing how to assemble the line on a wooden stick.

Nest as much as possible. In the interest of not shipping air, we like to pack those nooks and crannies full.

Once I’ve figured out how everything fits into the box, I snap pictures of each layer for reference. This is especially helpful when I have breaks between packing the boxes.

Tuck a Christmas card, your picture and a note of encouragement into your shoe box. Let the child know that you love them, and are praying for them. Include your address or email if you like; sometimes the recipient or their parents will write to you!

So that’s what we’re sending to big guys this year. I hope this post is helpful for shopping and packing inspiration.

Happy shoe box packing!

Links to other posts about OCC:
https://arthurizedhome.com/tag/shoe-box-gift/
https://arthurizedhome.com/2019/09/27/packing-a-shoe-box-for-operation-christmas-child-what-fits-inside-the-box/
https://arthurizedhome.com/2020/08/19/packing-a-shoe-box-for-operation-christmas-child-boys-5-9/

This post is not sponsored. I only share charities that I personally support, and I hope you will consider supporting them too.

Copyright 2019-2020 © Arthurized Home – All Rights Reserved. This post is the original content of Arthurized Home. If you’re reading this on another site, it’s unArthurized.

Packing a Shoe Box for Operation Christmas Child – Boys 5 – 9

August 19, 2020gifts, , , , , 2 Comments

With school supplies on sale in the stores, it’s time to ramp up packing shoe boxes for Operation Christmas Child. Here’s a peek at what’s inside the boxes we’re packing for 5-9 year old boys.

School Supplies: Composition book, student scissors, double pencil sharpener, pencils, erasers and colored pencils
School supplies are key. In some areas, children can only attend school if they provide their own supplies; a price of admission too high for many.

Something new to wear: Shirt, shorts, two pairs of underwear and socks
For boys in this age category I buy size 8 pants and shirts. Bonus points for elastic waistbands.

Hygiene supplies: Washcloth, bar of soap, toothbrush with cover and a comb
Can you imagine having to share your toothbrush or washcloth with several other people? I can’t either. This is a reality for many children in orphanages.

Toys/Wow Item: Jump rope, block type building kit and mesh bag, water bottle and Young Simba. Because even nine year old boys need a stuffed friend for sharing all their secrets.

So that tiny blocks don’t fall out of the mesh bag opening, I removed the manufacturer’s plastic bag and placed the pieces in a quart sized zipper bag.

A note about packaging: Many of the shoe box destinations do not have the infrastructure to handle trash. The packaging we ship becomes a burden for the receiver. Having said that, I did leave the colored pencils in the box for storage when they’re not in use.

I like to roll and rubber band soft goods to fit them into the box. Those rubber bands could be useful to the recipient, or just ammo for an epic rubber band battle!

When packing multiple like boxes, I snap pictures of each layer of the first box so that each box is not a new puzzle. I placed the package of colored pencils flat in the bottom of the box, then began the first full layer above. Sharpened pencils are positioned away from clothing, to avoid unwanted markings during shipment!

In the interest of not shipping air, I rolled and stuffed the socks and one pair of underwear into the water bottle.

Last layer! Position the notebook along the upper edge of the box and gently bend it over as you snap the lid on. My husband says the box is not full until you have to “Sit on it, to get the lid on it!” LOL! Rubber bands hold the lid in place until the box is inspected and taped shut at the processing center.

Tuck a Christmas card, your picture and a note of encouragement into your shoe box. Let the child know that you love them, and are praying for them. Include your address or email if you like; sometimes the recipient or their parents will write to you!

So that’s what we’re sending to little guys this year. I hope this post is helpful to you for shopping and packing inspiration.

Happy shoe box packing!

Links to other posts about OCC:
https://arthurizedhome.com/tag/shoe-box-gift/
https://arthurizedhome.com/2019/09/27/packing-a-shoe-box-for-operation-christmas-child-what-fits-inside-the-box/

This post is not sponsored. I only endorse charities that I personally support, and I hope you will consider supporting them too.

Copyright 2019-2020 © Arthurized Home – All Rights Reserved. This post is the original content of Arthurized Home. If you’re reading this on another site, it’s unArthurized.

Let’s Have a Crafternoon! – Felt Sushi

February 12, 2020gifts, , , , , , 2 Comments

My sister-in-law loves a local Japanese restaurant and we recently went there to buy her a birthday gift. Unfortunately, they were having computer troubles, and couldn’t activate any gift cards. So I asked for a take-out box, and put on my thinking cap to came up with an unexpected way to gift sushi money instead.

This also happens to be a fun way to make play food for your favorite tiny sushi chef. Wanna make some? Here’s what you will need:

Felt in dark green (nori), white (rice), medium green (avocado) and other colors for your sushi filling. Various shades of orange, green and purple would work for veggie sushi. How about orange micro pom poms for salmon roe? I didn’t have felt in a salmon color, so I went with two different pinks, one solid and one striped.

A note about the felt: My dark green and white felts are the thin craft store variety. The pinks and medium green are from felted wool sweaters and about .25″ thick. If you are using thin felt for your sushi filling, you may need to cut your strips longer than mine. I don’t want you to end up with sad, skinny sushi rolls!

Cutting mat, quilting ruler and rotary cutter – if you don’t have these, you could make paper templates of your sushi pieces, pin them to the felt and trim using scissors.

Fabric scissors and pinking shears

Hot glue gun and glue sticks – alternatively, you could sew each section together using thread that coordinates with your felt. If I were making this for a very young child, I might go that route.
Nah. Who am I kidding? I would still hot glue it.

Optional:
If you would like to present your sushi in a tray, ask for one at your favorite restaurant, or just save and wash the tray the next time you buy take out. A perfect reason to have sushi for lunch! If you’re making this for a child, use a plastic tray, not aluminum. Those sharp edges will CUT you!

Also optional:

I made twelve pieces of sushi. For each piece, I cut:
Striped pink felt to 1.25″ wide x 1.75″ long
Solid green and solid pink felt to 1.25″ wide x 3″ long
Dark green felt to 1.25″ wide by 5.5″ long
White felt to 1.75″ wide by 10″ long

Using pinking shears, trim a scant 1/8″ from both long edges of the white felt.

Begin folding or rolling and gluing the filling pieces. Glue sparingly and toward the center of the pieces, so the glue doesn’t ooze out the ends of the roll. Next, glue the filling pieces to each other.

When glued together, the filling pieces should roughly form a circle.

Glue one end of the white strip to the filling and wait for the glue to set. It should hold securely because we’ll tug on it in the next step.

Wrap the white strip around the fillings, pulling it snugly to form the roll. Keeping the edges aligned, dot underneath the center of the strip as you work. Gently tug to tighten as needed.

Keeping the glue toward the center of the strip, glue the end to secure.

Next, butt the end of the dark green felt strip against the white strip end.

Glue and roll as you did the white strip.

And there you have a sushi roll! Repeat as many times as necessary to fill the container. This next step is totally optional. I created a label by matting the restaurant’s logo from the takeout menu with two coordinating pieces of scrapbooking paper, and a snippet of their gift card holder. Adhere using a tape runner. To complete the gift, I tucked cash underneath the sushi and popped the lid on top.

With or without a label, this gift would be charming tied with with a pretty bow and chopsticks.

I hope you enjoyed this little tutorial. If you make this project, I’d love to see it! Send your pictures to me at arthurized dot home at gmail dot com.

Disclosure: In addition to occasional sponsored posts, Arthurized Home uses clickable affiliate links. That means that I may receive a small commission from sales at no extra charge to you. As always, my opinion is 100% my own, and I only recommend things that I truly love or use myself. Thank you for patronizing the brands that support Arthurized Home!

Copyright 2019-2021 © Arthurized Home – All Rights Reserved. This post is the original content of Arthurized Home. If you’re reading this on another site, it’s unArthurized.

Let’s Have a Crafternoon – Washi Food Picks

February 5, 2020create, , , , , , Leave a comment

Washi picks are a fun way to dress up party foods and baked goods. This easy DIY project is perfect for crafting with kids; and quick enough to make for Valentine’s Day. If you’ve got twenty minutes, you can craft a set of food picks.

Here’s what you’ll need to make them:

  • Washi tape – I like to keep an assortment of widths, styles, colors and patterns on hand. (You never know when a crafting emergency will strike.)
  • Round wood toothpicks (lollipop sticks would work as sandwich picks)
  • Scissors

Optional supplies:

To make the flags, cut washi strips into approximately 3″ lengths. Carefully line up the ends of the tape so that the long sides are flush. Don’t worry about the ends, we’ll trim them later. Press the tape together until you are about .25″ from the center fold. Slide the toothpick into the fold and line the top of the pick with the top of the tape. Press to seal.

Without creasing the tape, gently fold the fly end of the flag from top to bottom. Snip the tape at an angle into the center to create the “v” shape.

There are so many ways to customize these by varying the flag shapes and sizes. Add a tiny pom pom to the top of the toothpick to create a little finial.

Valentine’s Day

Create a double flag by combining narrow washi tapes.

So cute for Christmas!

Washi picks are not just for dressing up sweets and treats. They are equally cute on finger sandwiches and sliders. Gift a pack of handmade washi flags to a friend who loves to bake.

For more creative ways to dress up food, go here.

Disclosure: In addition to occasional sponsored posts, Arthurized Home uses clickable affiliate links. That means that I may receive a small commission from sales at no extra charge to you. As always, my opinion is 100% my own, and I only recommend things that I truly love or use myself. Thank you for patronizing the brands that support Arthurized Home!

Copyright 2019-2021 © Arthurized Home – All Rights Reserved. This post is the original content of Arthurized Home. If you’re reading this on another site, it’s unArthurized.

An Arthurized Gift Guide – Stocking Stuffers For Men

December 10, 2019gifts 2 Comments

I know it’s cliche, but coming up with gift ideas for the men in my life is no easy task. Generally speaking, if they want something, they just order it. They’re problem solvers like that. If you get stuck trying to think of fun stocking stuffers for the men in your life, here are a few ideas:

Something to wear:

‘Cause fun socks are for the guys too.
Football
For Dad
Punch up a navy suit or wear them with a hoodie, jeans and chucks.
When his sense of sarcasm is fully developed.

My personal favs…to go with this shirt.
For the guy who likes to make the most of each day (These shirts are super soft)
Although not every day is a gift.
When he really loves his job.


My Grandpa would have loved this one; one of his favorite shirts said “So what?” on the front. The back side said “Who cares?”

Grooming Gifts:

Retro Rocket Trimmer – Ya gotta do it anyway, might as well make it fun. Mark’s had this one for several years and it’s still going strong.

Caffeinated Shave Products Fresh smelling and moisturizing. He needs a little more caffeine in his life.

A rock? Sure, if it’s one of these.
Favorite scents: Watermelon Tourmaline, Turquoise, Marble and Malachite
Have this one on hand if he’s on Santa’s naughty list this year.

For the guy who knows his way around in the kitchen:

Mark uses this milk frother every day.

Dishwasher Sign We have and love this. This handy product puts a stop to those scintillating questions like “Do I need to start the dishwasher?” and “Is this ready to unload?” You have more important things to discuss.

Meat Shredders – We use these often.

I think he’d love this oven mitt…or this one.

Pizza Wheel – He can always use another tool.

Speaking of tools, here are a few that are small enough to slip into a stocking.

Drill bits

Sandpaper, Electrical tape, Duck tape, Painter’s tape and super glue are useful gifts for most handymen.

Dude food:

If you have go-to stocking stuffers for men, I’d love to hear about them in the comments. I’m always up for some new ideas. Happy shopping!

Disclosure: In addition to occasional sponsored posts, Arthurized Home uses clickable affiliate links. That means that I may receive a small commission from sales at no extra charge to you. As always, my opinion is 100% my own, and I only recommend things that I truly love or use myself. Thank you for patronizing the brands that support Arthurized Home!

Copyright 2019-2021 © Arthurized Home – All Rights Reserved. This post is the original content of Arthurized Home. If you’re reading this on another site, it’s unArthurized.

Make a Pumpkin Pie Bunting

November 25, 2019create, , , , , , , , Leave a comment

How fun is this little bunting?! I decided to write a tutorial so that you can make one (or a million) too!

For each 8 slice bunting, you will need the following materials:

Kunin ‘Pumpkin Spice’ felt sheets – 1 sheet per bunting, bought at Joann Fabrics
Kunin ‘Cashmere Tan’ felt sheets – 2 sheets per bunting, bought at Joann Fabrics
Clear Tacky Glue
Hot Glue – I use mini glue guns for small projects like this one.
Scissors – I use mine for fabric only. They stay sharp for years this way.
Twine – Raid the garage, any twine will do. Cut to 8′ length.
1″ White Pom Poms – You’ll need one for each slice of pie. I used store bought; but tiny, hand made poms would be darling.

To make the pie slice template: Cut a piece of chipboard or heavy cardstock into a 3″ x 4″ rectangle. Find and mark the center of one 3″ end.

Draw lines from the opposite corners to create the triangle, as shown.

Curve the crust end of the template just slightly; use a small saucer as a guide, if you like.

Using your fancy-schmancy template, cut eight slices each of cashmere tan and pumpkin spice. Glue each slice of pumpkin spice onto a slice of cashmere tan, using clear tacky glue. (The glue is important. I tried white tacky glue and it seeped through the felt and was visible when dried. #craftfail #tragic)

We’ll trim the sides of the slices later, so avoid gluing all the way to the edge. (Dried glue is difficult to cut through and shows between the layers of felt.) Dot the center of each slice with glue so the weight of the pom pom doesn’t pull it loose.

Don’t worry about lining the edges up perfectly. Set the slices aside to dry.

For the pie crust: Starting on the long side of the felt sheet in cashmere tan, cut strips in gentle waves slightly narrower than .5″ wide. Repeat until you have six strips total.

Lay the strips out, and then flip every other strip over so the waves are opposite one another as shown below.

Overlap the ends of each set of two strips. Using hot glue, dot the ends and press together in a narrow “v” shape.

Once the glue has set, start to lay the strips over each other without twisting them. As you work, dot the underside between the strips with hot glue. I glued every second overlap. Be sure to burn off your fingerprints with the hot glue. I don’t think you can call yourself a crafter if you don’t. (Of course, I’m kidding. Please take care when crafting dangerously.)

Continue overlapping and dotting the underside with glue until you reach the end of the strips, then glue the end closed. The strips should lay fairly flat. You’ll need three complete strips for the eight slice bunting.

Use the template to trim the sides of the now dried, pie slices.

Find the center of the length of twine and place it between two pie slices spaced 1.5″ from each other. Using hot glue, quickly glue the twine down. Spacing evenly, work outward from the center, adding three more slices on each side.

Next, glue sections of pie crust trim to the top of each pie slice. Leave a little excess overhanging the edges.

Turn the bunting over and cut off the excess crust. Take care not to cut the twine accidentally! If the cut ends of the trim are loose, dot hot glue on to secure.

Hot glue a white pom pom to the center of each slice for the dollop of cream, then hang your bunting! Mine is just wide enough to span the front of the Hoosier cabinet.

See that cute little tractor? I’m gossiping about it on Instagram today. Join me!

Whether you are travelling for the holiday or staying hygged up at home, I hope your Thanksgiving celebration is a happy one.

Disclosure: In addition to occasional sponsored posts, Arthurized Home uses clickable affiliate links. That means that I may receive a small commission from sales at no extra charge to you. As always, my opinion is 100% my own, and I only recommend things that I truly love or use myself. Thank you for patronizing the brands that support Arthurized Home!

Copyright 2019-2021 © Arthurized Home – All Rights Reserved. This post is the original content of Arthurized Home. If you’re reading this on another site, it’s unArthurized.

Let’s Have a Crafternoon – Painted Acorns

November 6, 2019create, decor, , , , , , Leave a comment

Here’s a quick and thrifty idea for fall decor. Paint acorns in every shade of the rainbow, (well, except for purple, apparently) and pearlize them. This is a simple and fun craft to make with kids.

Don’t you think these look like tiny candies?

Here’s how I made them:

Collect fallen acorns.

Rinse the acorns thoroughly, and allow them to dry completely.

(Bonus step: Bake the acorns in the oven at the lowest temperature for an hour or so, to kill any unwanted inhabitants. I didn’t do this, but I should have. I left mine in a bucket in the garage for two weeks or so. Apparently the little freeloaders can live for two weeks in there. Notice a worm. Scream like a girl, etc.)

Glue loose acorns back into their caps using clear tacky glue.

Carefully paint the acorn using acrylic craft paint and flat and detail paint brushes. Let the first coat dry, then apply a second coat if necessary to get the desired coverage. One the acrylic paint has dried, apply a pearlizing medium over the acorn. This will soften the tone of the first coat considerably. Let dry, and display as you please.

Crank some tunes, make a mess! Sip a big ol’ mug of tea while you’re working.

Here are some ideas for variations:

  • Go monochromatic, and paint the entire acorn in a single color.
  • Create an ombre display using progressively darker tones of the same color.
  • Mix pearlizing medium directly into the acrylic paint if you like.
  • Dry-brush the cap using white paint for a weathered effect.
  • Paint glue onto the cap and sprinkle glitter over the wet glue.

Disclosure: In addition to occasional sponsored posts, Arthurized Home uses clickable affiliate links. That means that I may receive a small commission from sales at no extra charge to you. As always, my opinion is 100% my own, and I only recommend things that I truly love or use myself. Thank you for patronizing the brands that support Arthurized Home!

Copyright 2019-2021 © Arthurized Home – All Rights Reserved. This post is the original content of Arthurized Home. If you’re reading this on another site, it’s unArthurized.

Packing a Shoe Box for Operation Christmas Child – What Fits Inside the Box?

September 27, 2019gifts, , , , , 9 Comments

Since the gift idea blog post, I’ve had some requests to show how those items fit inside the shoe box. While I can’t send every toy to each child, I squeeze as much as possible into each box, making use of every nook and cranny. It’s most important to send a fun “wow” item and school supplies, clothing and extra toys are secondary.

I ordered plastic shoe boxes from Samaritan’s Purse for a few reasons: They’re large (6 quart), sturdy and reusable. The children can use them to store their things long-term. Parents often use them for food storage in the home, to keep foods dry and pests out, or to hold washing water.

Here are some things I learned while packing the boxes:

Roll the clothes. I tried several different packing tricks but rolling made them the most compact. The boy’s socks are thick with larger cuffs, so I rolled each pair separately. When rolling socks, stagger them so that the cuffs aren’t lined up. The girl’s socks are thinner, so I rolled two pairs together.

Underwear: Folding and rubber banding the underwear together spares the recipient the potential embarrassment of opening underwear in front of their friends. That’s never gonna be a fun party game! I folded them so that the elastic waistband shows, and they’ll get an idea of what it is without removing the rubber bands.

Boys underwear: While I don’t regret buying the five pack of boxer briefs for $2, I’ll stick to only buying briefs in the future. They take up a lot less room than boxers.

This next point blew me away! It’s so important to remove the packaging. I decided to collect all of the paper and plastic trash in one bag, and see how much our boxes generated. WOW! Enough to overflow a laundry basket. When you think of sending all of this trash overseas, the decision to remove the packaging becomes very obvious.

I used my car packing method to pack the boxes in layers. Here’s what fit into the girl’s boxes.

Layer One: tiara headband

Layer Two: 20″ beach ball

Layer Three: pencil pouch with school supplies, comb, leggings, three pairs of underwear, pencil sharpener

Because we want to send as many gifts as possible, the pencil sharpener has three pencil cap erasers stuffed inside, along with two stretch headbands.

The pencil pouch contains: 6 pencils, 10 markers, 10 colored pencils, 1 highlighter, 2 large erasers and 1 pair of scissors

Layer Four: toothbrush, tee shirt, bag of jacks, toy turtle, toy fish, bar of soap, box of 24 crayons, smooshed Minnie, 2 glue sticks, 2 pairs of socks

Layer Five: washcloth

Layer Six: composition notebook

The lid snaps on flat (mostly!) and because the box is filled to the gills, I placed rubber bands around it. Godspeed to the fantastic volunteers in the processing center who have to unpack and re-pack these boxes to go through customs!

So, that’s what fits! I hope this post was helpful to you. If you have ideas to share about how to pack shoeboxes, please let me know in the comments. Click to learn more about Operation Christmas Child.

This post is not sponsored. I only endorse charities that I personally support, and I hope you will consider supporting them too.

Copyright 2019-2020 © Arthurized Home – All Rights Reserved. This post is the original content of Arthurized Home. If you’re reading this on another site, it’s unArthurized.

Make an Easy Beaded Bracelet

September 25, 2019create, gifts, , , , , , Leave a comment

Each year at the beach, the whole crew goes souvenir shopping at Callahan’s of Calabash. It’s tradition. We load up on tees, hoodies, ball caps, beach totes and usually buy a blown glass Christmas ornament or two. We try to find an ornament that commemorates a special occasion, accomplishment or event during the year. For the past several years, my cousin Ruby and I have selected a piece of costume jewelry so that we can ‘twin’ across-the-miles when vacation is over.

This beaded bracelet with wooden buckle clasp was our pick a few years ago. Over time the elastic has become slack on a few of the strands, so it’s time for a restring. While I’m repairing mine, I thought it would be fun to show you how to make these easy bracelets. This project is simple enough that older kids can make them, with a little adult assistance in tying the knots.

Here are the materials you’ll need:
Buckle Clasp
Beads
Jelly Cord – I’m using 1mm
E-6000 – optional, to secure knots
Scissors
Ruler
Toothpick, or other small implement for applying glue – if using E-6000
Beading tray or kitchen towel – I don’t have a beading tray, so I use a terry cloth kitchen towel to stop beads from rolling off my work surface.

Now it’s time for math class! To calculate the length of beads needed: Using your favorite bracelet length, subtract the length of the buckle clasp when closed and multiply the result by the number of strands in the bracelet. (If you are using very chunky beads, make your bracelet a little longer than normal because of the larger bracelet circumference. The cord will sit farther away from your wrist. Does that make sense?!)

I like a 7.5″ bracelet. The buckle clasp is 1.5″ long when closed, so my strands of beads would be 6″ long. I have 5 holes in the clasp, and 6 x 5 = 30, so I need 30″ of beads. I bought a little extra in case there are any wonky beads. Make sure the bead strands will be narrow enough to fit into your clasp without crowding – I’m using 6mm beads, but I could have gone a little wider. Okay, class dismissed. Now it’s time for the fun stuff!

Taking your bead length measurement from above, cut a generous length of jelly cord. Keep in mind that you will need extra cord to feed through the clasp ends and for knot tying. I cut mine at about 40″.

Slip one end of the jelly cord through an end hole in one of the clasp pieces. Tie a large knot in the jelly cord, and pull it tight. Tug on it to make sure that the knot will not pull through the hole in the clasp. String the first row of beads, measure for length, then weave the jelly cord through the other clasp piece.

Repeat the process for each row. Before tying the final knot, lay the bracelet flat and make sure that the rows are uniform in length, and the cord is pulled firmly through, but not stretched. I used the toothpick end to tighten the jelly cord loops, row by row. Tie a large knot at the end. Trim the excess cord off of each end, and place a dab of E-6000 on each knot to help secure it. Your bracelet is complete!

To shop the post: Jelly cord / E-6000 / Buckle clasp / Beads

Love the beads, but not up for a crafternoon? I got you.
Multicolor / Turquoise / Lavender Multi / Red

Do these beads look like Sixlets to you, too? Don’t you think this is the adult version of wearing a candy necklace? This bracelet is a fun way to perk up weekend denim or a plain jersey and would make cute, girlfriend gifts. Happy Crafting!

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