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Welcome to the beaded sun circle bracelet pattern instructions! If you have any difficulty following this tutorial, please post a comment at the bottom of the page, and I'll do my best to help!
Before you begin ...
| Materials: 2 meters of fishing line, 152 yellow 4mm round beads OR yellow size 6 seed beads ("E beads") (these are large seed beads); 7 orange or brown 8mm diameter disk beads OR 70 orange or brown size 11 or 15 (small) seed beads : this is for the central disk or seed bead circle (for each of the 7 repeating bracelet units); 250 brown size 15 (small) seed beads for the periphery of the circles and for the clasp Time required: About 2 hours Techniques: Beadweaving, right angle weave Difficulty: Easy |
Step 1:There are two possible ways of making this bracelet. The first way is to make the center using a circle of brown seed beads rather than 1 large disk bead. This method is more convenient if you don't have access to a disk bead of the right size to fit between your round yellow beads. This method is also easier to do if you are accustomed to right angle weave. Start by making the circle of brown seed beads in the center. Weave 10 brown size 15 seed beads onto the fishing line, and cross the last bead added to make a circle. Then start right angle weaving your 10 circles of 4 beads each around that inner circle, using the yellow round beads. As a final step, when you are done weaving around the central circle, thread back through the peripheral yellow beads, adding brown size 15 seed beads between them. Basically make 7 repeating interconnected units to make the bracelet. The units are connected via one of the peripheral yellow beads (that bead is the last bead of one circle and the first bead of the next circle).
Step 2:The other way of making the sun circle bracelet is to use one single disk-shaped bead in the center of each "circle" unit of the bracelet. The diagram shows that this is one single bead in the center of all the other beads. The disk bead should be relatively flattened (ie, not a ball shape), and should have its hole right in the center like a donut. The disk bead should be of the right dimensions to fit snugly between your round yellow beads. Note that in the diagram, the disk bead appears oblong, but should be a perfect circle in reality. If you can't find a disk bead that fits perfectly between ten yellow round beads, then use a larger or smaller number of yellow round beads in the circle, depending on the diameter of your disk bead. The way you make this bracelet is by right angle weave through the yellow beads and the disk bead (wrap around the disk bead with the fishing line, such that the fishing line appears over top of the disk bead). Basically, for each repeating bracelet unit (sun circle), you will be weaving 10 circles of 4 beads each, except that with the disk, you are going to wrap around it rather than thread through it as you would with a normal bead. Then, once you have completed this, string through the periphery a second time to add all the dark brown seed beads. More detailed instructions for this method are coming soon, with step by step diagrams with arrows and bead numbers. The units are connected via one of the peripheral yellow beads (that bead is the last bead of one circle and the first bead of the next circle).
Step 3:These are the steps to the seed bead circle method of beading this bracelet. Now within the seed bead method, you can either use elastic string or fishing line or other thread to string the beads of the bracelet. Any method is good. If you like to avoid clasps, then use elastic string. But just make sure that it's thin enough to fit inside your seed beads or you may regret it later (some beads must be strung through twice). If the holes of your beads are too small to accomodate elastic string (eg. 0.5mm thickness string works well for small beads), then opt for fishing line with a beaded clasp. I recommend either 8lb or 6lb fishing line. I know fireline is popular, but any brand of fishing line will hold the beads quite firmly. Or if you are comfortable using whatever threads you are used to (eg, nymo is popular), go right ahead! Whatever works.
Okay, onto the steps! The diagram shown represents beading from the bottom of the diagram to the top. If you are using fishing line or thread (not elastic string), then start stringing beads where the word "start" is in my beading diagram of step 1. Note that I didn't use the exact number of beads required because it will depend on your specific situation! If you are using elastic string, then skip the small brown beads, and start stringing at the bead labelled "1". This is because that circle of small brown seed beads after the word "start" are going to form the loop of the clasp for the bracelet. So if you are making a clasp, add enough brown beads to snuggly fit your closure bead, which will go on the other side of the bracelet (shown in diagram step 5). Regardless, once you reach bead 1, the whole rest of the bracelet is strung the exact same way until closure. So let's continue.
To be clear, you are to cut a single piece of thread, not two pieces. I am using two colors of arrows to represent the two ends of the same piece of thread (or fishing line or elastic string). From now on, I will refer to the two ends by color (eg, the red string, the green string), but know that they refer to the same piece of thread that was originally threaded through the first beads. So, after threading bead 1, thread beads 2 on the red string and bead 3 on the green string. String bead 4 onto both strings in opposite directions (hence it is marked "cross" in the diagram). At this point, you must string all the beads that will form the central seed bead circle of the sun circle. There are 10 beads that should be strung here. String them all onto the green string, then cross the last seed bead (bead 13) with the red string. This will ensure that the "cross" occurs right next to where we started (at bead 4) so that we can continue stringing yellow beads and going around the bead circle (had we strung 5 beads on one string and 5 on the other, we could have been crossing bead 9, and our threads would be in the middle of nowhere, making it difficult to advance.) Okay onto step 2!
Step 4:Yay, we are now adding the beads that make this bracelet so sunny!! So we are at the same starting point where we left off (bead 13). All beads are numbered the exact same way as the previous diagram to help you follow along. I used different arrow colors just for fun. Don't pay attention to that! Anyways, with one string, thread through bead 3, then add beads 14 and 15. Keep in mind that bead 3 was added in step 1, shown above. You are simply threading back through it. Cross through bead 15 with the other string. Then, continue adding beads 16 and 17 onto the same string. The red string passes through bead 12 (the brown seed bead already in your pattern), crosses bead 17, etc. Continue all the way around the brown seed beads in this manner to complete the "sun circle". Carefully follow all the arrows and bead numbers as shown. All beads are labelled in the order in which they are added to the pattern (the brown beads were already added to the pattern in the previous step!). When you get to stringing through bead 5 with the black string, pass through bead 2 (which is already in your pattern from step 1), then add bead 30. With the red string, you will be threading through bead 6, adding bead 29, and crossing through bead 30. It sounds complicated, but it's quite easy if you think it through slowly! We've now completed the yellow beads portion and will add the peripheral brown seed beads.
Step 5:Starting from bead 30, where we left off in the previous step, we will now string the peripheral brown small seed beads (size 15/0 works best, but you might get away with using size 11/0 seed beads). Rest assured that this is the easiest step! All you have to do is pass the thread through the peripheral yellow beads, while inserting two brown seed beads in between each two larger yellow beads. For instance, pass 2 small brown seed beads onto the yellow string (yes I've changed colors again!) then through bead 28, which was added to the pattern in the previous step. On the other side, string two small brown seed beads then thread through bead 1. Keep going like this all around, and make sure the two strings meet at bead 22. This is very important!!! Don't have them meeting at beads 20 or 24! So in other words, the brown seed beads added to each string will be different (asymmetrical) because you are not in the middle at bead 30, but you want to end up in the middle at bead 22 (ie, directly across from bead 1). Don't forget or you will be lost for starting the next bead sun circle!
