# Homemade Clay Beads
> Roll tinted homemade cornstarch clay into tiny beads, poke holes with a toothpick, and let them air dry for a day. Then kids thread their own beads into bracelets and necklaces for great fine motor practice.
- URL: https://www.funlittles.com/homemade-beads/
- Ages: 3–7 yrs · Difficulty: easy · Mess: medium
- Time: prep 10 min, activity 30 min
- Works for: one-on-one, small group, whole class
- Skills: fine-motor, threading, creativity, pattern-making
- Cautions: food-dye, corn, ingestion-risk

## Materials (one batch)
- 1 batch Homemade cornstarch clay
- Gel food coloring
- Toothpicks (household)
- Mini pumpkin table scatter (optional)
- String or cord for threading
- 1 piece Tray or plate for drying (household)

## Substitutions
- Instead of gel food color: Liquid food coloring (Works, but the author finds gel colors more vibrant.)

## Safety
- The beads are small and can be a choking hazard. Supervise closely, especially with kids who still mouth things, and keep them away from babies and toddlers.
- The clay is not food. Don't let kids eat the clay or the beads.
- Toothpicks are sharp. Supervise little ones while they poke holes or stack balls.
- Gel food color can stain hands for about a day. A bath should take care of it.
- An adult ties the knots on finished jewelry. Supervise children wearing necklaces made from string or cord.

## Before you start
- Make a batch of homemade cornstarch clay and tint portions with gel food color (the author made orange, yellow and purple).
- Roll beads, poke holes and flatten medallions at least a day before threading so they can air dry.

## Steps
1. Tint the homemade clay with gel food colors, one ball of clay per color.
2. Roll the clay into tiny bead-size balls.
3. Poke a hole through each ball with a toothpick.
4. Flatten a few balls and press a mini pumpkin scatter piece into them to make flower-like medallions.
5. Stack leftover balls on toothpicks to make little creations, like an ice cream cone.
6. Leave the beads to air dry for a day.
7. Thread the dried beads and medallions onto string or cord.
8. Adult: tie the knots to finish bracelets and necklaces.
9. Wear your homemade jewelry, maybe even trick or treating!

## Tips
- A few beads cracked while drying, but it did not matter since we were primarily using them for a fun threading activity.
- Gel food colors give vibrant colors kids will enjoy. The downside is they stain, but only for a day. A bath should take care of it.
- Even our 3 year old got really into threading, simply because she "made" her own beads!
- With 2 kids under 5 I couldn't finish it in one sitting, so it turned into a fun afternoon family project. Let the kids help roll the beads.

## FAQ
**Is gel food coloring better than regular food coloring?** The author thinks gel food colors give more vibrant colors that kids will enjoy. They do stain hands, but only for a day, and a bath should take care of it.

## The original post by TurkeyMom (2013)

Recently, we whipped up some [**homemade clay**](https://www.funlittles.com/homemade-cornstarch-clay/) using a simple clay recipe the other day. We made **[pumpkin spice fall ornaments](https://www.funlittles.com/homemade-clay-recipe-pumpkin-pie-spice-ornaments/)****.** Continuing with the same theme, we made some fun and cute little beads for fine motor play through threading and jewelry making. We followed the recipe mentioned in our previous post and made 3 gorgeous colors! I used gel food colors to get the color I wanted. The orange, yellow and purple were vibrant!

 Since this was technically "supposed" to be a surprise for the kids { *I was thinking Halloween jewelry on Halloween day!*} I rolled out tiny bead-size ball and make small holes using toothpicks.

 However with 2 kids under 5 I couldn't obviously complete a project in 1 sitting. Since I'm a horrible "hider" of things the project was spotted easily and the children wanted in. Sure. It became a fun afternoon family project. My almost 5 year old used toothpicks to stack her tiny balls and made an ice cream cone and a squid-like looking thing. { shh.. I can't use such a tone- she gets offended when I can't identify her creations properly haha)



We also flattened a few balls and made "flower" like impressions on them. We actually used mini pumpkins table scatter for this purpose.



We left the clay to air dry for a day. A few cracked but it did not matter since we were primarily using them for a fun threading activity.



Even the 3 year old got really into it- simply because she "made" her own beads! Those colorful clay beads were perfect for her to enjoy a such an enriching **fine motor activity.**



My 5 year old was eager to use the pumpkin pressed "medallions" in one of the necklaces.



She made a bracelet and I helped her with tying the knots.



Here are the fine jewelry the kids threaded. Cute!



We are thinking of wearing these when we go trick or treating!



For more [**Halloween crafts for kids**](https://www.funlittles.com/category/halloween/) and other activities visit our category page

Thanks for reading