Bead Keychain Gifts for Valentine’s Day

I had a very long bead necklace I loved layering over white t-shirts and skirts back in high school, but of course through the years my taste matured, yet I could never fully allow myself to throw out the necklace, knowing someday I would find a use for all those beads. While planning the details for my upcoming Galentine’s get-together, I wanted to do something with the beads but couldn’t quite figure out what I wanted to do. It was until I went through my craft supplies, found some beaded chain keychains, I was for some reason keeping too, that I became inspired. You can say I’m a hoarder of certain things, but they all come into good use, even if it’s a few years later.

But back to this super easy how to…I wanted to give the gals sweet little favors for Valentine’s, and I wanted one of the items to be handmade. Inspired by those chain keychains saved from handbags I donated long ago, I thought I could string a few pretty beads on different colored strings. Originally I thought to use a marsala hued string to go with the decor for the party, but then felt some of my gals would like different color choices, plus it’s a lot more fun creating different combinations with all the beads. I was going to just make one for each gal, but I got a little ahead of myself and made a bunch of these keychains. That’s how simple and fast these are.

I think Valentine’s day is about sharing love towards everyone in your life, and I always like to give something small yet sweet to those I love. Chocolate, candy and flowers are always great but giving friends something handmade that they can use, is a Valentine’s day gift they will always cherish.  

You’ll Need

• Beads {with opening to string through}
• Thread in different colors {I used thread used for cross stitching}
• Chain Closures {found at Michael’s Craft stores}
• Ruler
• Scissors
• Jewelry Pliers {use a cutter if using beads from a necklace, use rounded pliers to help secure string tightly when knotting}

Cut the string to 12 inches, then fold in half. Determine the layout of your beads, and which strand each will be strung through. 

String thread through needle, and line up edges together. Double knot the end, leaving about a 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 inch at the end. String beads through needle and thread.

Cut the string in half, at the edge of needle, and make a knot that lands right at the top of the last bead. Depending on the size of the bead’s opening, you might need to make a double or triple knot. 

Make a very tight double knot around the chain closure, you can use rounded jewelry pliers to pull the knot tight. Cut to make the string edges even.

You can leave the string ends as is, but I choose to create more of a fringe look by separating each strand.