USING FUSE BEADS


Why Fuse Beads?

Fuse beads are affordable, easy to use, and widely available. That’s one reason I’ve chosen them as the medium for these collaborative artworks. 

Each 5mm bead plays its part in creating something bigger: a single 14 x 14 bead square contains 196 individual beads, and when combined with the other squares in the grid, those tiny components multiply into a large-scale artwork that truly makes an impact.

Tiny Beads. Big Messages

It’s a beautiful reminder that small efforts, when combined, create something powerful.

Step-by-Step:

  1. Place the beads onto the small prongs of your board to create your design. There are no rules here. Arrange and rearrange the beads until you’re happy with your pattern.

  2. Once your design is complete, cover the beads with a piece of non-stick baking paper.

  3. Iron over the paper using an even, circular motion with the iron set to high and DRY.

  4. You’ll notice the beads start to melt slightly under the paper. Once this happens, pause and allow everything to cool.
    After cooling, gently peel back the paper to check if the beads have fused enough to lift off the board as one piece. If not, simply iron a little more.

  5. Always let the piece cool completely before removing it from the board to avoid warping the beads while they’re still warm and flexible.

Choosing Your Design:

Looking for inspiration?

  • Pinterest is a treasure trove of pattern ideas.

  • I love sketching designs on 5mm x 5mm graph paper, which you can print at home or buy as a notebook — it’s a mindful, creative way to plan your patterns.

  • You can also explore pixel design websites, which are great for creating and testing digital patterns before you start beading.

    Most importantly — have fun with it! Every bead adds to the bigger picture, and your square helps create a collaborative artwork that reminds us how small contributions, fused together, can spark real change.

How to Use Fuse Beads

This quick guide will walk you through the basics of fusing your beads together, with some example images to inspire the (endless) design possibilities you can explore as part of this project.

What You’ll Need:

Fuse beads You can get these at craft stores, Kmart or online. For consistency, I use and recommend IKEA’s PYSSLA beads.

A fuse bead board — Plastic pegboards come in different shapes. For our collaborative pieces, any standard 5mm fuse bead board is suitable for creating a 14 x 14 square (for these collaborative pieces)

Baking paper — Non-stick paper acts as a barrier between the beads and your iron. You can reuse a small piece of paper multiple times. Paper from grocery bags works well too.

An iron — Any household iron is fine. Just make sure it’s set to DRY, not steam.

Tweezers (optional) — If you're making a lot of pieces, tweezers can make handling the beads easier, but they aren’t essential.

Extra Tips:

Keep your iron flat — avoid tipping it to the side to ensure even heat.

For extra strength, once your piece is off the board, you can iron it again on a flat surface, sandwiched between two pieces of baking paper.