Making beaded jewelry can be a fun and even profitable hobby. However, nothing quite compares to the satisfaction and admiration that can come from making your own customized beads. But, exactly how do you make your own beads?

One of the most popular styles of beads today, is the fimo bead. Fimo beads are made from polymer clay that is molded and baked. With the right tools and techniques, you can create a large variety of shapes and designs for your beads. This article is going to focus on the basics steps needed for all fimo bead making.

• Prepare the Clay

Soften your clay by kneading small portions with your hands until it is warm, stretchy and moldable. This is also the right time to mix any colors together if you are trying to make a custom color or marbled effect. Make sure to work out any air bubbles. A good way to do this is to roll your clay flat using an acrylic rolling pin.

• Shape the Clay

Using your hands or a sheet of plexiglass, shape your beads. You can make them into balls, squares, logs of multiple colors rolled together and sliced, or any other shape you can think of. You are only limited by your imagination.

• Make the Hole

Assuming you plan on stringing your beads, you are going to have to make holes in them. You can do this before or after baking. The easier method is to make the hole beforehand. To do this, gentle twist a skewer back and forth into your beads. Place multiple beads on one skewer for baking and make sure they don’t touch one another. Alternately, you can drill holes in your beads after baking. Drilling is more difficult, but won’t distort the shape of your beads.

• Bake the Beads

Again, making sure that the beads don’t touch one another, suspend the beads on skewers over a metal pan or tray. If you are drilling holes afterwards, place the beads gently between two pieces of cardboard. Bake the beads according to the instructions for the type of polymer clay that you purchased. This usually takes about 30 minutes in your own oven.

• Finishing Touches

Once your beads have cooled, slowly remove the beads from the skewers and sand any rough spots that may have developed from making the holes. Spray them with a coat of varnish to make them shiny, if desired.

There you have it: the basics for making your own fimo beads. Have fun!

About the Author:
 Kathleen Gagne.  For supplies, tools and instructions on more elaborate bead designs, visit How to Make Fimo Beads.