Beaded curtains
Even very little kids enjoy threading beads on to a string. AJ and I sat down together to make this beaded curtain for her door way and it held her attention span briefly, then she was off doing her own free-form beading experiments (her stuffed dog got a new collar, bracelet and watch) leaving me to finish the curtain – but it was a peaceful way to spend an hour or so. Older children might stick to it until the end and would probably need very little assistance.
You will need:
2-3 packs of brightly coloured drinking straws (we used about 100 straws altogether)
String
Medium sized plastic beads (optional)
Scissors
I started by cutting about 10 doorway lengths of string and tying a bead to the bottom of each to give them a bit of weight for when they are hanging. I then cut the straws into lengths of around 4cm although as you can see from the photo the lengths vary giving it a bit of a crazy, haphazard look, which I quite like. We then threaded the bits of straw on to the lengths of string and tied off the ends.
I threaded all of these lengths on to one long string at the top which spanned the width of the doorframe, and then crudely stuck each end of this on to the doorframe with tape. It’s a rough little project but quite cute and easy. I have seen a similar curtain that also included plastic beads and artificial flowers amongst the straw lengths.
Another great idea; Rosa sent us these beautiful photos of a bead curtain she discovered made of plastic bottle caps:
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Claire I LOVE this…one of your best! I have this down for a school holiday activity for my 6 y.o. boy and 8 y.o. girl… thanks.
Andrea August 25th, 2006 22:03
If you use red and green straws you have Christmas decorations . I didn’t say GOOD decorations but you can keep A LOT of kids going. It becomes hypnotic..like paper chains and eating the popcorn that group 3 should be threading !!!!!!!
mrsmacgyver1 August 25th, 2006 22:54
Great for the fine motor coordination too…cutting up the straws and stringing them. Thanks for the idea!
Liane August 25th, 2006 23:25
Oooh, these would make wonderful additions to a shower curtain!
loo August 26th, 2006 04:21
Wow! So cool. My niece loves beaded curtains, so I’ll have to do this with her soon. Thanks for this.
-That picture of the bottlecap curtain is so cool! I’m all for recycling..and it actually looks pretty!
Amy August 26th, 2006 16:40
This is great! My children have Dutch doors so they can see out at night and it also keeps the dogs out of their rooms. This is my project for my little girl in a few years (she’s 3)! I just can’t wait. For us, it will be a shorter curtain. Too cool!
Toochmerli August 27th, 2006 04:57
I like the caps one best. Thanks !
MC August 27th, 2006 17:17
The company that makes all the foamy craft stuff has started making beads. I think those would be a cool curtain, not cheap, but neat.
Lady S August 28th, 2006 11:09
claire,
you are so magic! this is one of my favorite posts (the other is the crayon cookies). i will be certainly be making a curtain for satchel’s room.
collecting straws and bottle caps,
wendy
(also at wendycook.com)
wendy August 28th, 2006 23:43
Would painted styrofoam balls work too?
Kat September 6th, 2006 09:42
Great idea! My daughter and I just finished one and it turned out great. We had just ordered a beaded curtain from http://didyousay.com before stumbling upon your idea, so now we have two wonderful beaded curtains.
Joshua December 29th, 2006 09:13
[...] Kiddley ” Blog Archive ” Beaded curtains Beaded curtains. Even very little kids enjoy threading beads on to a string. … I started by cutting about 10 doorway lengths of string and tying a bead to the … [...]
Doorway Beads Curtians » Blog Archive » … doorway beads imported from India and hand-painted February 8th, 2007 04:58
Thanks for the article…it gave me an idea to do an all metal beaded curtain with my craft & coffee club. I searched on google and found a site selling the whole curtain (custombeadedcurtains.com). Hopefully they just sell the beads so we can use it as a project. I’ll let you know how it turns out. : )
Suzanne October 10th, 2007 14:15