Seed Bead Stretch Bracelet with a Simple Stripe Pattern

A seed bead bracelet on elastic is thin, light and quick to wear in multiples, and a stripe pattern makes it look planned rather than random. This version uses size 8/0 seed beads in three colors on 0.5 mm stretch cord, with a repeating block of ten beads. Because seed beads are small, the counting matters more than in a bracelet of large rounds, so the repeats are worked out below for four wrist sizes.

What you need

• Size 8/0 seed beads in a main color (navy in the example): 35 beads
• Size 8/0 seed beads in a metallic color (gold): 14 beads
• Size 8/0 seed beads in an accent color (white): 21 beads
• Clear elastic cord, 0.5 mm, about 12 in (30 cm)
• A big-eye beading needle, or clear nail polish or glue to stiffen the cord end
• Scissors, a ruler, a bead mat and a binder clip or piece of tape
• Optional: flexible jewelry glue for the knot

Seed beads are sold by weight, and even a small tube or bag of each color holds many times the 70 beads used here, so spares are not a concern. If bead sizing is new, the bead size guide explains why a bigger number means a smaller bead. Seed beads are very small parts; keep them away from young children and pets.

The stripe pattern

One repeat is ten beads, strung in this order:

• 5 main color
• 1 metallic
• 3 accent color
• 1 metallic

Because the repeat ends on a metallic bead and starts on the main color, the pattern continues unbroken across the knot when the strand is closed into a circle.

Finished size and bead count

A size 8/0 seed bead is about 3 mm across, but it is shorter along the hole than it is wide, so about 11 of them fill one inch of cord. Seed bead sizes are approximate and differ between makers, which is why the first step below is a check against a ruler.

For ease, add about 0.25 to 0.4 in to the wrist measurement; a slim strand needs much less than a bracelet of large beads. The arithmetic for the example: a 6 in wrist plus 0.35 in of ease gives a strand of 6.35 in. At 11 beads per inch that is 6.35 × 11 = 69.85, so 70 beads, which is exactly 7 repeats of 10. Those 7 repeats contain 7 × 5 = 35 main beads, 7 × 2 = 14 metallic beads and 7 × 3 = 21 accent beads.

Other sizes are reached by changing the number of repeats or the length of the main block, so the total is always a whole number of repeats:

By color, the 72-bead version uses 32 main, 16 metallic and 24 accent beads; the 77-bead version uses 42, 14 and 21; the 80-bead version uses 40, 16 and 24. For a wrist between two rows, choose the nearer row and test the fit before knotting. One extra main bead added to two opposite blocks changes the length by under a quarter inch and does not show.

How to string the bracelet

1. Check the beads against a ruler. String 22 beads and measure them. If they cover close to 2 in (51 mm), the table applies as written. If they run longer or shorter, multiply the target strand length by the measured beads per inch and round to the nearest whole repeat.
2. Prepare the cord. Cut about 12 in (30 cm) of 0.5 mm elastic, which is the strand plus roughly 5 in (13 cm) for knotting. Pull it gently along its length a few times to pre-stretch it.
3. Make a stringing point. Thread the cord through a big-eye needle. Without a needle, coat the last half inch (12 mm) of the cord with clear nail polish or glue, let it dry hard and cut the tip at an angle.
4. Block the other end. Fold tape over the cord or attach a clip about 2.5 in (6 cm) from the end.
5. String the repeats. Pick up 5 main, 1 metallic, 3 accent, 1 metallic. Slide the group down and repeat. Count the repeats, not the beads; it is much faster and mistakes are easier to spot.
6. Check the stripes. Lay the strand straight and look along it. Every long block should have five beads and every short block three. Fix a miscount now by sliding beads off the open end.
7. Test the fit. Wrap the strand around the wrist with the ends held together. It should close without stretching and slide slightly when the hand moves.
8. Tie and trim. Tie a surgeon’s knot (wrap twice, pull closed, then wrap once the other way and pull all four strands), add a tiny dot of flexible glue if wanted, and trim the tails to about 1/8 in (3 mm) once dry.

Finishing the knot

The holes in size 8/0 beads are too small to hide a knot in thin elastic reliably, so the aim is a compact knot that sits flat between two beads. Pull the first double wrap tight enough that no cord shows anywhere around the circle, then lock it with the second pass. Other options are compared in the guide to tying off a stretch bracelet.

If the pattern does not work out

• The strand is the right length but ends mid-repeat. Remove the partial repeat and add one main bead to several blocks spaced evenly around the bracelet instead.
• The cord frays at the tip. Trim it at an angle again, or re-stiffen it.

Variations

For another look with the same count, keep the pattern and change the colors; the article on bead color combinations suggests how to choose a dominant color, a second color and an accent.