I'm so excited about this new shape for making paper beads I discovered, and my first idea for how to use them. I love this pendant. I made it from 8 horn-shaped paper beads and hemp cord.
First I made the beads. I cut my paper into tapered triangles that were 1/4 inch wide and 12 inches long. I rolled them around a toothpick as usual, but instead of keeping the paper centered as I rolled it, I kept moving it slightly to the left as I rolled, creating a horn shape. The last couple of inches I rolled on top of itself to create a little lip at the edge. I glued the end down, then carefully pulled the bead off the toothpick and bent it into a slightly curved shape before I coated it with polycrylic finish.
After I had eight beads with three dry coats of polycrylic, I strung them on a bit of elastic beading thread. I formed them into the circle shape I wanted, tied the elastic, then adjusted the shape until it was perfect. Then I dunked the entire pendant into the polycrylic and hung it up to dry.
I used three, one-yard lengths of hemp for the necklace. I attached the paper bead pendant in the middle, tied an overhand knot, then braided the hemp to the ends and tied another overhand knot. Voila! I think this is a fun, casual paper bead pendant. I'm looking forward to making several with different colors of paper.
