5 Must-Make Holiday Projects With Wooden Craft Beads

This basic craft supply can be used in so many unique ways to make chic Christmas decor.

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November 27, 2019

Love modern, Scandinavian style? It’s a popular aesthetic for the holidays because it’s both rustic and woodsy and super chic. But buying all those wooden gnomes and snowflake stars can get pricey. Fear not. HGTV producer and host Marianne Canada has created five modern holiday projects using basic wooden beads from the craft store, from a tassel napkin ring that looks like it came from Anthropologie to the most adorable snowman gift topper. Take a look at these how-tos below and deck the halls with these oh-so-easy wooden bead crafts.

5 Wooden Bead Holiday Crafts
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Wooden Bead Napkin Ring

Place Setting With Napkin Ring With Tassel and Green Foliage in Background

Wooden Bead Napkin Ring

Make a chic, tasseled napkin ring this holiday season with wooden craft beads.

Photo by: Cassidy Garcia

Cassidy Garcia

Start by cutting a piece of embroidery thread about shoulder width. Place the rest of the thread to the side and try to keep it in a bundle. Thread nine beads onto the thread, alternating sizes. Set one small bead aside. Tie the string of nine beads into a circle. Take both ends of remaining thread of the circle and thread it through the remaining small bead. Set this aside while you make the tassel.

To make the tassel, start by clipping off a piece of thread. This piece should be long enough to wrap around the tassel. Then, take the rest of the thread bundle and cut the looped end. Fold the thread in half. Next, take the thread from the top of the wooden ring and tie the tassel to the ring. Cut off loose thread after tying. Then, grab the remaining piece of embroidery thread and wrap around the tassel at the top to give it that tassel shape. Tie tightly. With the scissors, trim any loose threads at the bottom of the tassel to keep all threads even.

Wooden Bead Hanging Snowflake

5 Snowflakes Hanging From Rod With Garland

Rustic Modern Wooden Bead Snowflakes

Love modern, Scandinavian-inspired Christmas decor? Use wooden beads from the craft store to make rustic-chic snowflakes. Hang from a mantel, top a gift or display as a Christmas tree ornament.

Photo by: Cassidy Garcia

Cassidy Garcia

Materials Needed

  • 22-gauge wire
  • wire snips

Start with a long piece of wire. Depending on the size of your snowflake, you’ll need a fairly long amount. String five beads onto the wire. Next, bend the top of the wire over the five wooden beads. This will secure the beads and keep them from rolling off. Take the rest of the wire and thread through the second bead. Add two more beads to the wire. Next, take the end of the longer piece of wire and thread through the bead at the base of your snowflake point. Repeat these steps five more times to make six snowflake points. But for the remaining five snowflake points, thread six beads instead of five. To finish off the snowflake, take one more bead and thread through to close off the circle in the center. Twist wires together to secure. Using your wire snips, cut off excess wire and tuck in ends. To hang the snowflake, attach yarn to the top of any point.

Wooden Bead Snowman Gift Topper

Box With String With Three Beads Forming the Shape of a Snowman

Wooden Bead Gift Topper

Embellish holiday packages with this cute snowman gift topper.

Photo by: Cassidy Garcia

Cassidy Garcia

Materials Needed

  • fine-tip permanent marker
  • low-temp hot glue gun
  • glue sticks

Wrap twine around a wrapped package to determine the length you need. Cut piece of twine. Set gift aside. Find the center point of the twine and tie a knot just a couple of inches over. Slide the largest bead all the way through the twine to the knot. Then, slide on the medium-sized bead. Finally, slide the smallest bead through to make a snowman shape with the three beads.

With the permanent marker, add buttons, eyes, nose and mouth to the wooden beads. Cut a small piece of ribbon for the snowman’s scarf. You could tie the ribbon but to make sure it stays in place we recommend using a low-temp hot glue gun to secure. Tie the twine onto your package and make sure the snowman is in the middle on top.

Wooden Bead Gnome Ornament

Wooden Bead Gnome Figure With Hat and Scarf

Gnome Christmas Tree Ornament

Make an adorable gnome for your Christmas tree with just a couple of wooden beads from the craft store.

Photo by: Cassidy Garcia

Cassidy Garcia

Materials Needed

  • piece of scrap felt
  • low-temp hot glue gun
  • glue sticks

Using scissors, cut about 12 inches of twine. Thread the twine through the embroidery needle. Take the largest bead and thread the needle through. Make sure you have equal lengths of thread on each side of the bead. Take the smaller bead and thread both ends of the twine through so the smaller bead is sitting on top of the larger bead. Tie the twine in a knot at the top of the bead.

Cut a piece of scrap felt for the gnome’s scarf. Fit the piece around the “neck” of the gnome and secure with a low-temp hot glue gun. For the gnome’s hat, cut a piece of felt in the shape of a large piece of pie. Fold the corners around in the back and secure with a low-temp hot glue gun. Thread the hat through the twine and slide down to sit on top of the wooden bead head. Secure with hot glue.

Wooden Bead Garland

Close Up of Wooden Bead Garland Hanging From Mantel

Holiday Garden With Wooden Beads

Make this modern, rustic-chic holiday garland with wooden beads from the craft store.

Photo by: Cassidy Garcia

Cassidy Garcia

Materials Needed

  • embroidery needle

To start, thread an embroidery needle with twine. For the twine, use something fairly sturdy as the garland will be heavy. Thread five of the smallest beads onto the twine. Then, slide one bead in the next smallest size on the twine. Repeat with one bead in the next smallest size. And again with one bead in the largest size. Mirror the pattern on the other side of the large bead with one medium bead, one small bead and five tiny beads so the garland looks dynamic and gradually increases and decreases in bead size. Thread 10 more of the smallest beads on the twine. Repeat the same pattern as many times as you like to create whatever length of garland you need – we used about 10 feet of garland to cover a mantel.

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