One of my favorite diy projects to date, these diy beaded ball earrings are inspired by Rebecca De Ravenel’s Bon Bon Earrings. With an extra beaded twist, my ombre version brings a little more sparkle and festive holiday spirit. The base of these earrings are glitter mini Christmas ornaments! They make for a really fun holiday craft, not to mention the perfect accessory for any holiday outfit or to jazz up an everyday look.
Maker be wary: these earrings are a little heavier than the Bon Bon ones, because they are embellished with so many beads. You can always substitute sparkle embroidery thread or plastic seed beads to make more lightweight earrings. Since the foundation of them is styrofoam, they are literally quite buoyant.
DIY Beaded Ball Earring Materials
4 Mini Styrofoam Balls (Mini Ornaments)
2 Slightly Larger Mini Styrofoam Balls (Mini Ornaments)
2 (or 6) Headpins for Beading
4 1.5-Inch Lengths of Beading Wire
2 Earring Hooks
Rose-Gold Seed Beads
Silver Seed Beads
Clear Seed Beads
Needle
Quilting Thread
Fast-Grab Crafting Glue
Round Nose Pliers
Wire Cutters
DIY Beaded Ball Earring Directions
Thread the quilting thread, and send the needle exactly through the center of one of the mini ornaments. Coat the bottom length of the thread with glue before pulling it through the ornament, and tie the thread back on itself around the ornament. Let the glue dry, and snip off the loose thread.
Take the needle of the thread, and begin to add the small glass beads. After adding a couple of inches of beads, use a toothpick to apply a thin layer of fast-grab crafting glue to the part of the ornament where you want the beads to lay. Carefully wind the beaded thread in a spiral over the glue. Then start beading again. Continue in this way until the entire ornament is wound up with beads.
After the glue is dry, thread the needle again. Send it exactly through the center of the bead. Before pulling the thread tight, coat the end of it with craft glue. This will help secure the beads better.
Repeat this with the other two ornaments.
To connect the ornaments together, start by pushing one of the headpin wires through the center of the spiral on the bottom of the largest ornament and out the center of the spiral on top. The pin part will catch the bottom of the ornament.
Use the round nose pliers to make a little loop at the top of the bead, and trim off any excess wire.
For the other two beads, you’ll use the shorter wire lengths. You can either trim the headpins off extra headpin wires for this or cut a length of beading wire. Make a loop in one end of the wire with needlenose pliers.
Send the other end through one of the smaller beaded ornaments, from the center of the bottom spiral to the center of the top spiral.
Trim off any excess, and make a loop in the top of the wire. Repeat this for both smaller beaded ornaments.
Next, you’ll link the three ornaments together in a nice ombre pattern. Use pliers to open one wire loop by pulling the loop sideways, not apart. Thread the loop of the next bead through the opening, and close the loop back up with your pliers. After the three beads are connected together, hook the earring top on in the same manner.
Repeat for the second earring.
Ta-da! That’s it! These beaded drop earrings are so cute and ready for any holiday outfit, and I’m happy to say they’ve carried over so well to Spring.
Here’s a handy how-to to save for later! Let me know how it goes 🙂
They do ask for a bit of a time investment. If you’re not up for it, you can find some similar festival holiday ball earring styles here:
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