By: AutumnUpdated: 3/13/21
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Filed In: crafts| Kids Crafts + Activities
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In today’s post: Find over 100 Perler Bead patterns for hours of fun! Princesses, super heroes, animals, video game characters, and more!
One of my kids’ favorite indoor activities is designing with Perler Beads (aka melty beads or fuse beads). Whenever we need a quiet activity that I know will keep them busy for a good chunk of time, we pull out the Perlers and let them go to town! My 3rd and 6th graders will sometimes spend more than an hour dreaming up their own designs or copying patterns they’ve found online.
Since we’ve had lots of extra time at home lately, we’ve been looking for the best Perler bead patterns we can find, and I stumbled across a FANTASTIC resource: Kandi Patterns. Kandi Patterns has THOUSANDS of Perler bead patterns available that kids can use for free to make their favorite characters. We’re talking Star Wars characters, princesses, animals of every variety, video game characters, super heroes, and even Kawaii characters (which my daughter loves!). We spent hours over the past week combing through all the patterns to find our favorites, and I’ve compiled them below.
Where to Find Perler beads
In case you aren’t familiar with Perler beads, they are small beads that come in just about every color imaginable. Kids can set up the beads on a plastic pegboards which keep the beads in place. Once the design is completely, you iron over the beads and they melt enough to fuse together. It’s cool!
You can purchase Perler brand beads at most craft stores and online. When I realized how much my kids enjoyed working with the beads, I decided to order a large set with LOTS of different colors. You can get Perler brand bead sets that have 4000 total beads in 8 different colors, but since I already knew my kids loved melty beads and would use lots of them I ended up ordering a different brand that came with 22,000 beads. It was over 5 times as many beads and colors for about twice the cost. The set I purchased isn’t available right now, but you can browse “fuse beads” on Amazon to see what sets are available. The off-brand beads we purchased work just as well as real Perler beads. If the kit you are purchasing doesn’t come with peg boards, you will need those as well (most kits come with at least a few pegboards – but you can order larger ones here).
One tip – purchase “sorted” beads, that come packaged by color, NOT a huge container of beads that are all mixed up. Sorting that many beads has got to be one of Dante’s circles of hell. Seriously, don’t do it.
Lastly, if you purchase a large set of melty beads, check to see whether a good storage container comes with the set or not. If not, try these plastic organizers – we now have 4 of them full of beads and they work great to keep colors separate!
One last note – I think fuse beads are BEST for ages 7-12. Younger kids will likely get frustrated because it takes a fair amount of hand eye coordination to complete a design.
100+ Melty Bead Patterns
Ok, time for the patterns! I have curated over 100 patterns in 9 different categories for you and your kids to enjoy. All patterns have come from Kandi Patterns and the images are used here by permission. Please click through the links below each graphic to get the individual patterns. Once you click through, you’ll find a print button under each pattern so you can print them if you’d like (my kids usually just keep the pattern open on an iPad and work from there). These patterns work like a cross-stitch pattern: count the squares the add the beads as shown on the pattern. The patterns also have suggested colors, but kids certainly don’t need the exact colors that are suggested – they can use whatever they have that’s similar.
If you’re looking for a specific pattern I haven’t listed, search it on Kandi Patterns and see if someone has created one!
Princess Perler Bead Patterns
Superhero (Marvel) Perler Bead Patterns
Pokemon Perler Bead Patterns
Kawaii Perler Bead Patterns
Animals
Storybook Patterns
Video Game (Mario, Zelda, etc) Perler Bead Patterns
Star Wars Patterns
Meet Autumn
Hello there! I’m a busy mom of five who loves to make things. Crafts, recipes, sewing, holiday projects: I’ve tried them all, and you can too! I love EASY projects anyone can make.
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Jessica says
This is the best thing ever
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Insights, advice, suggestions, feedback and comments from experts
As an expert and enthusiast, I have personal experiences or emotions, but I can provide you with information about Perler Beads and the concepts mentioned in this article.
Perler Beads, also known as melty beads or fuse beads, are small beads that come in various colors. They can be arranged on a plastic pegboard to create designs, and once the design is complete, the beads are fused together by ironing over them. This process creates a solid and durable finished product.
You can find Perler beads at most craft stores and online. The Perler brand offers bead sets with a variety of colors, but there are also off-brand options available. It's recommended to purchase sorted beads that come packaged by color to avoid the hassle of sorting mixed-up beads.
In the article, the author mentions a website called Kandi Patterns, which offers thousands of Perler bead patterns for free. These patterns cover a wide range of themes, including princesses, superheroes, animals, video game characters, and more. The patterns can be printed or viewed on a device like an iPad for easy reference while working on the designs.
Perler bead projects are a popular indoor activity for kids, but it's worth noting that they require a fair amount of hand-eye coordination, so they are generally recommended for children aged 7-12.
I hope this information helps! Let me know if there's anything else I can assist you with.
