Woven Beaded Bracelet

Materials:

To make a Torres Strait Islands (TSI) flag colour bracelet:

• EC Spaghetti String – Blue – 60 Metres – 17610

• Pony Beads – Torres Strait Islands Colours – 250g Pack – 19821

To make an Aboriginal flag colour bracelet:

• EC Spaghetti String – Black – 60 Metres – 17614

• Pony Beads – Indigenous Colours – 250g Pack – 19137

• Other materials required: Scissors, a ruler and a fold back clip (or similar).

1. Start by cutting three 45cm and two 60cm lengths of spaghetti string. Straighten the strings and arrange them as shown - the 45cm strings in the middle and the 60cm strings on either side. Align the ends.

2. Lay the strings so that the top 20cm of each string hangs above a ruler. Fold the strings over and behind the ruler, clipping them in place with a fold back clip.

3. Move the folded ends at the back out of the way. You should have five lengths of string. The middle three are the shorter lengths and will become the walls for the beads. The outer two lengths will be used to thread through the beads.

4. Create a pattern using rows of four beads. Thread the first four beads onto the string on the right. Push them up so they sit close to the clip. You can use the same colour pattern as shown or create your own.

5. Place the beaded string over to the left, so it is laying across the middle three strings. Thread the left string through the left bead as shown.

6. Once the string is through the bead, bring it under the first of the middle strings, then back up and through the next bead. This will hold the string in place between the two beads.

7. Bring the long string from the left under the middle string and then up and through the third bead, then under the final middle string and up and through the bead on the right.

8. Pull the left and right strings to tighten the row, bringing the beads up towards the clip and securing in place. This is your first row.

Experiment

by creating different patterns with the beads!

10. Gather all the strings at the bottom and tie a simple knot as close to the beads as possible. Remove the clip at the top and tie another knot to secure your beads in place at the other end. Trim any of the shorter strings if needed.

11. Decide how you wish to tie your bracelet. You could tie it onto your wrist with a simple knot or create an adjustable sliding knot. To do this, simply tie the left strings over onto the right strings near the beads then tie the right strings over to the left strings.

9. Thread the next four beads onto the right length in your chosen order. Repeat steps 5-8 to add another row, continuing in this way until you have 11 rows in total.

12. Your Woven Beaded Bracelet is now ready to wear! You can create a variety of bracelets in di erent lengths and colour combinations to gift to your family and friends in celebration of NAIDOC Week.