How to make seed bead bracelets

This tutorial completes our Egyptian jewellery set - how to make seed bead bracelets!

Try our magazines – get 6 issues from just £9.99!

Holly Spanner

Published: July 8, 2024 at 11:57 am

After a number of years of silver jewellery, gold has stepped out of the shadows and is now taking centre stage.

Classic colours such as ivory and turquoise work really well with bright gold and will catch the eye of shoppers who love to accessorise.

Our Egyptian-inspired jewellery is made primarily with seed beads, which are really cheap to buy, and is so on-trend it's bound to turn a profit for jewellery makers everywhere!

The set uses basic techniques such as using jump rings and making plain loops and bead links, so is suitable for beginner jewellers, although the necklace is more challenging to make.

It is essential to use the correct technique for making plain loops so that the elements hang straight – remember to ‘break the neck’ so that the loop and stem look like a lollipop rather than a ‘p’ shape and make sure that both loops in a bead link face the same way for a perfect finish.

These Egyptian inspired seed bead bracelets are part of a three-part series, where we show you how to make a matching set of seed bead jewelry – seed bead earrings, a seed bead necklace and seed bead bracelets (this post).

We love seeing what you make, so don’t forget to share your seed bead bracelets and other jewellery making projects with us on Facebook and Twitter, too!

To make seed bead bracelets you will need:

Gold seed beads
Ivory seed beads
Turquoise seed beads
11 x 4mm gold-plated heishi washer beads
2 x 7mm turquoise fire polish beads
1m (391⁄2in) of gold-plated rollo chain, 2.5mm links
Gold-plated jump rings
12 gold-plated 10mm coin charms
Gold plated lobster clasp
Bead stringing wire
Jewellery making tools

How to make seed bead bracelets

Size

17.5cm (6¾in)

Step 1

How to make seed bead bracelets

The first step in this tutorial, how to make seed bead bracelets, is to cut three 25cm (9¾in) lengths of bead stringing wire. Measure your wrist size (17.5cm (6¾in) is the standard) and take off 1cm (¼in) for the clasp. Pick up mixes of size 8 seed beads with some heishi beads on one of the strings to create three different strings of beads 16.5cm (6½in) long (or to fit).

Step 2

How to make seed bead bracelets

Make two bead bars using seed beads, heishi beads and a 7mm turquoise fire polish bead. Add a short length of rollo chain to each end of the bead bar so that the bead bars are off-centre and the completed chain strands are the same length as the bead strings.

Step 3

How to make seed bead bracelets

Add 4mm jump rings to three coin charms and attach to the middle of one string of beads, spaced every three beads. Thread a crimp onto one end of the bead stringing wire, pass through an end loop in the clasp and back through the crimp and several beads. Push the crimp up to the loop and flatten with snipe-nose pliers.

Step 4

How to make seed bead bracelets

Repeat at the other end pulling the wire through the seed beads so that everything is taut. Secure the crimp and trim the wires. Add the beaded strings to each of the other loops in the same way. Use small jump rings to attach a chain to the outer loops inside the bead strings at each end to complete your seed bead bracelets!

How to make seed bead bracelets

Once you’ve made your seed bead bracelets or any of our other jewellery making projects, be sure to tag us in a picture on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook – we love to see when you’ve made one of our projects!

Staff Writer, BBC Science Focus

Holly is the Staff Writer for BBC Science Focus and looks after the popular Q&A section. She holds an MSc (distinction) in Geoscience (Space and Climate Physics) from UCL, and specialises in astronomy and earth sciences. Before joining Our Media, she worked as a geoenvironmental consultant and engineer, informing on ground risk and remediation in the north of England, while hunting for exoplanets in her spare time. Alongside this, she was regional editor of a popular theatre website for nine years, and has a solid background in curating and developing content for the digital space. Holly is also an artist and illustrator, and regular contributor to the craft website, Gathered. She has previously worked with the RSPB, English Heritage, Disney, Pilot and Brother, as well as on BBC Good Food magazine, Home Style magazine, and Papercraft inspirations magazine. She enjoys photography and has a sustained interest in antiques.