Easy DIY Bead Garland Tutorial

I walked into a local boutique a few months ago and spotted the prettiest wood bead garland with gold accents. The only problem? It cost $120! Yikes! Come see how I created the “look for less” in this simple DIY bead garland project.

How to Make a DIY Wood Bead Garland

There are many variations in DIY wood bead garlands. Some have tassels on one or both ends. Some have a wooden charm like a fall leaf or a medallion.

For this tutorial, I put my air-dry clay skills to good use to mimic the garland I had seen in the store. The boutique had wooden garlands with hearts and crosses on the ends. I thought a simple cross would look great with my coffee table decor.

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Step 1: Create an armature for the clay cross

When working with air-dry clay, it’s helpful to create an armature, or base, for your sculpture. In this case, I used household foil to create the cross shape.

There’s no set way to create your shape. Just smoosh the foil together until you achieve the shape you like.

To finish off the structure, you can use the pointed end of your sculpting tools to poke a small hole in the top. This is where you will thread the jute twine.

Step 2: Roll and shape the air-dry clay

Once you have formed the armature, roll out the clay into a sheet about 1/4-inch thick. You can use a tall glass bottle, vase, or plastic rolling pin for this step. I also recommend using a smooth plastic cutting board or parchment paper taped down to protect your work surface.

Once your clay is a smooth, even consistency, wrap it around the foil structure and smooth out any bumps or creases with your fingers.

If the clay begins to dry out, you can add more moisture with your fingertips. Feel free to add more clay to cover any gaps as needed.

Remember to make a small hole at the top of the clay to match the one in the foil. Then allow the clay to dry for 1-2 days until it feels completely dry to the touch.

Step 3: Paint a base coat on the wooden beads

While the clay cross is drying, paint roughly half of the wooden beads with white chalk paint and half with metallic gold paint.

I can’t recommend this gold paint enough! It’s the same one I used for my craft room wireless lights, and it has a beautiful sheen.

Step 4: Paint texture onto the wooden beads

After the first coat of paint has dried (about 1 hour), apply some texture to the wooden beads using the tip of a sponge and the opposite paint color.

Dampen the sponge in water before dipping the edge into the paint. Then, dab off the excess using a paper towel before applying it to the beads. This gives the beads a nice “dry brush” effect.

You can see this technique in action if you watch my YouTube video linked above. I left one wooden bead completely gold for the first bead of the garland.

Step 5: Paint the clay cross

While the wood beads are drying, paint the clay cross with one or two coats of gold paint. Wait about one hour in between coats after painting each side.

Step 6: Assemble the DIY bead garland

Once all of the pieces of the garland have dried, begin assembling them with jute twine. First, thread all of the wooden beads onto the jute twine, leaving the gold bead for last.

Then, cut the twine, leaving 8-10 inches on both ends to thread the last gold bead and the cross. Thread both ends of the twine through the last gold bead before threading the ends through the cross.

It helps to wrap a piece of scotch tape around the ends of the twine if the strands start to unravel.

Decorating with a DIY Bead Garland

Wood bead garlands are so trendy right now as a home decor accent. I like to display mine year-round on my coffee table. I love that it’s perfect for Christmas coffee table decor too!

You can also display beads on a tiered tray, bookcase, or fireplace mantel to add a variety of shapes and colors to your decor.

Let me know how you plan to use (or gift) your garland, and don’t forget to save this on Pinterest!

Pin it for later!

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