A beaded Christmas tree star ornament – tutorial

I’ve been making these for the last 14 years or so – with success smaller or bigger, but they do make a charming tree decoration and they are rather easy (and relatively cheap) to make.

The star I’ve made as the example for this tutorial looks like this:

So, to count what you’d need for a similar one:

6 bigger faceted beads for the center (here: 5mm brown)

6 medium seed beads for the center (here: 2mm pearly white)

36+36+6 small seed beads for filler/spacer and tips (here: 1,5mm bronze)

6 bigger faceted beads for the “arms” (here: 5mm brown, again)

24 smaller faceted beads for “arms” sides (here: 4mm lighter brown

6 smaller faceted beads for tips (here: 4mm lighter brown, again)

copper wire, about 50cm

So, now for step by step:

1. Thread one “tip” seed bead more or less in the middle of the wire. Bend the wire so that the bead is at the tip of that bend. Thread one “tip” faceted bead on both ends of the wire – closing the loop with the seed bead.

2. On each end of the wire thread the same set of beads:

• three spacer seed beads

• two smaller faceted beads

• one bigger faceted bead

• three spacer seed beads

…and then pick the “centre” seed bead and thread the wire ends through it from opposite sides, creating a smoothed “X” (with the seed bead in the center of it)

Now ignore one wire end for the time being and on the other, thread:

• one faceted centre bead
• one white centre bead
• three spacer beads…

• bigger faceted bead
• two smaller ones
• three spacer beads

• one smaller faceted bead (“tip”)
• one smaller seed bead (“tip”)
• and now take the wire back through the faceted bead, from the same end, thus creating a shape like “—o” with the seed bead sitting in that “o” part
• make sure there is some slack in the way the wire is tightened, but not too much; just enough for it to bend a bit

Now add the same set of beads from the tip down:

• three spacer beads
• two smaller faceted beads

And now thread the wire back through the bigger arm bead that is already there on the first star arm created

Add the three small seed beads

And thread the wire through the white centre bead added at the beginning of this arm, thus closing the arm.

Repeat the operation of adding new arm until you have 5 arms.

In order now to create the last arm and close the star, the wires have to be again threaded in symmetry. First, add a bit centre bead on each.

Then add the white centre bead on one of the wire ends, and thread the other one in opposite direction (creating an X).

Add three seed beads on each wire and thread the wire ends through bigger faceted bead on respective arms.

Now, build the rest of the adm, adding two smaller faceted beads and three seed beads on each.

Thread them now together through the tip faceted bead (in the same direction)

And now thread them through the seed bead, in opposite directions

Tighten the end up

Now, with the wire ends hanging free, you can make them into a nice loop that may be used to hang that star. Wrap one end around the cover of a lipstick (creating a bunch of nice little loops) and then wrap these loops with the other end of the wire to make it stay in shape.