How to Bead a Barbie Doll

Barbies can be accessorized with beaded jewelry.

Barbie was created in 1959 by Ruth Handler. Ruth and her husband, Elliot, partnered with their friend, Harold Mattson, to form the Mattel company. Ruth and Elliot named Barbie after their daughter. Memory wire is easy to use and perfect for creating bracelets, a choker and a hair band for a Barbie Doll. Utilizing seed beads with memory wire will create the perfect jewelry look and size to enhance and celebrate that special Barbie Doll.

Things You'll Need

• 1 foot of memory wire
• Wire cutters
• Needle nose pliers
• Seed beads
• Flat nose pliers

Instructions

1. Grip the memory wire with the needle nose pliers and cut two, 1-inch pieces of wire. Grip the memory wire with the needle nose pliers and wrap the wire around the entire joint of the needle nose pliers from the top of the joint to the bottom of the joint forming a coil. Press the needle nose pliers closed tightening the coil against the joint and then release the wire from the needle nose pliers.

2. Grip the end of the wire with the needle nose pliers and rotate the wire forward bending it into a slight curl with the small joint of the needle nose pliers (this will hold the seed beads on the wrap bracelet). Grip the memory wire with the needle nose pliers and thread seed beads onto the wire and then rotate the end of the wire bending it into a slight curl with the small joint of the needle nose pliers. Coil the wrap bracelet around the Barbie Doll's wrist by pulling open one end of the memory wire using your fingers.

3. Cut two inches of memory wire to make the choker using the wire cutters. Wind the memory wire around the fat joint of the needle nose pliers, keeping the coils tightly together. Press the needle nose pliers tightly closed and then remove the memory wire.

4. Grip the end of the memory wire with the needle nose pliers and rotate the wire forward bending it into a slight curl with the small joint of the needle nose pliers. Thread seed beads onto the memory wire. Grip the memory wire with the needle nose pliers.

5. Rotate the wire forward bending in into a slight curl with the small joint of the needle nose pliers. Coil the choker around the Barbie Doll's neck by gently pulling open one end of the memory wire using your fingers. Press the memory wire gently closed using the flat nose pliers.

6. Cut three 1-inch pieces of memory wire with wire cutters to create the hair band. Bend the end of each wire up, creating a slight curl with the needle nose pliers. Press the 3 pieces of memory wire gently together using the flat nose pliers.

7. Thread each piece of memory wire with seed beads. Bend each end of the memory wire up, creating a slight curl with the needle nose pliers (this will hold the seed beads in place). Pull the memory wire coils slightly open to fit the hair band on the Barbie Doll's head using your fingers.

References

• Wire Wrap Jewelry - Making Chains with Beaded Loops
• BARBIE'S BEGINNING