Triple Treat Donuts

I've had this little project kicking around for a bit - it's really more of a technique than a specific project - so I decided to blog it here instead of listing it with the InspirationFXs.

This works best, so far that I have found, with Firepolish donuts, the 8 mm size - but there's naught to say that it won't work with some other sizes and shapes too. It would look cool with some other shapes too, I think, like some of the drop beads.

It's a super easy project, fairly quick and fun - good cottage project with the kids, as the supplies required are limited.

You'll be stringing this on stretchy stuff. - you will need a wire needle to get it through the holes. You can purchase these, or make your own. I used the Opelon to string it.

• To make a wire needle, take a piece of wire, light gauge, i.e. 24 gauge, about 4 - 6 inches long.
• Fold it in half, around a pencil or pen, and holding the two loose ends in one hand, rotate the pencil so that it starts to twist the wire.
  
• Hold those ends tight, and twist until the wire is twisted most all the way to the ends.
  
• Slip the pencil out, and you have a loop (the eye of the needle). Put your stringy stuff through the loop - which currently looks way too large to get through the bead hole. You may need to trim where the ends were if they didn't come together too neatly.
  
• Proceed to use it as a needle - the first bead you go through - you may have to tug it through - but the eye will squash to fit and, bonus, it will be flat enough to hang onto the stuff you are stringing with - so the needle doesn't keep unthreading itself.
• If that seems like too much work, you can just buy a pack of them!
  

Start by stringing enough donuts as if you were making a single strand bracelet. I used a couple of different colours to make a blend, actually.

I used 40. Then, tie a knot to secure.


Now, you are going to go around again,

• add two more beads,
  
• skip over three, and
  
• go through a bead from the first, original course,
  
• and continue the same way all around. Looking at the picture is probably clearer than anything I can write.

Ok, once you have done that, you are going to go around again, doing the same thing, adding two and skipping three and going through the fourth.

So ultimately, you will have one bead with 3 strands through it, that separates out into 1 strand with 3 beads, another strand with 2 beads, and a third strand with 2 beads.

So

• 1 bead
• 7 beads
• 1 bead
• 7 beads, etc

Here's some more pics, to either clarify or confuse. ;-P






I did try it with stone donuts and the holes are too small for 3 strands through the one bead in the pattern that needs 3 strands through it. However, if you changed this bead to something with a larger hole, then it could work. And you would have a new look too!

Overall - I used about 80 beads per bracelet. They are fun to make and easy to wear!