Beading with Kids

I started beading when I was a teenager, stringing beads together to make long necklaces, bracelets and sewing beads onto my jeans. Sometimes my friends and I would get together and sit around someone's kitchen table and bead and talk and share ideas hopes and dreams. As we got older life's distractions came along and our get-togthers fell by the wayside.

Now that I have children, two daughters in fact, I am passing on the love of beading to them. Beading is a wonderful way to spend time with your children. In the evening in our house the TV is rarely on. After chores and homework is done we sit around the kitchen table and each work on our bead project. The girls make necklaces and bracelets and earrings for themselves and as gifts for their friends. While we bead we listen to music and sing and even talk - yes talk! They often talk about their hopes and dreams, the social problems at school with friends and stresses of homework and everything else on their minds. This alone is worth more than anything you can imagine - forming a bond and trust and an openness that will lay the foundation which I hope will continue through the drama of the teen years and on!

If you are just starting to learn about beading for yourself or as something to do with your children, here are some tips that worked for me.

It is best to introduce beads to children when they are past putting everything in their mouth! When my girls were little I started them beading with pony beads and wool. Pony beads are large plastic beads with a large hole. They come in a variety of colors. I would wrap tape around the end of the wool so it could easily be passed through the beads, or you could use a darning needle (which is a blunt needle with a larger eye). This helps the children develop their small motor skills and gets them used to handling the beads.

As your child gets older you can start introducing them to seed beads, which are tiny beads. They come in a huge variety of colors and finishes. Making things out of seed beads does require some finer motor skills for children and can cause some frustration for them and you! Keep the projects really simple so they can build up their skills and confidence. Over time they will be able to master it. But at the same time realize that it may not be the craft for them at the moment. My oldest daughter who is twelve, doesn't really have the patience for beading and usually sticks to simpler patters that don't take much time, while my younger daughter who is 10 is an amazing beader, with an incredible amount of patience and perseverance to conquer quite difficult patterns.

There are many great resources on the market. I have found these books to be useful on my journey through beading. I have also included links to my other pages which include beading materials in more details. Start with simple patterns and easy instructions. Then as you and your children master techniques expand into more complex patterns and introduce different styles of beads and beading threads and wires. Try loom beading, three dimensional beading, use beading to embellish clothes and scarves, or embellishing pillows or making beaded tassels for lamp shades. This list is endless!

Doing regular activities with your children forms a special bond that will last a lifetime. Make it positive and fun and you will be amazed how satisfying your time is together.

My Other Beading Pages - Getting Started with Beading , Beading - What to Bead With , and Beading - Tools for Beading will all help you along your beading journey

Enjoy and happy beading!