Jelly Bean Bracelet

Who doesn’t love those candy necklaces and bracelets that let you wear a sweet snack? Anytime you feel the urge, you can just reach down and bite off a piece of candy! These jelly bean bracelets are made with the same idea and would make a nice little gift tucked into an Easter basket. Wrap in a cellophane bag tied with a ribbon and you’re done!

Here is what you need:

Jellybeans (Make sure they are regular sized ones, and not the little Jelly Belly ones.)

Elastic cord (found in the jewelry aisle of craft stores)

Large needle (It needs to be a thick, heavy duty one that won’t bend when you go through the jelly beans. You can get an idea of the size from the photo below — sorry I don’t know what size mine is…)

Damp paper towel (not shown)

(Optional) Ribbon

Here’s how to make it:

Cut off about 18-24″ of elastic cord. It’s more than you will actually need but you want to have enough to easily tie the ends when you are finished. Thread about 4″ through your need as shown below.

Hold a jelly bean so it’s longer from top to bottom and stick the needle all the way through it. Sometimes this gets a little tough, but you can stick it in there to start and then put the needle head (eye) on a piece of cardboard and pull the jelly bean down and through the needle. Do not stab yourself. Blood and jelly beans do not go well together.

Thread the jelly bean all the way to the other end of the cord, leaving about 4″ to tie it and still leaving that 4″ from the needle. (Does that make sense?) Now grab your damp paper towel and wipe the needle. You want to wipe the needle after every jelly bean you add. It’s gets too sticky otherwise. Make sure the jelly beans are close together without gaps. You don’t want to see the elastic cord.

I added ribbon to mine, but you don’t have to do that. For a larger bracelet, I used 12 jellybeans and tied a ribbon after each set of 4. For a smaller bracelet, I used 9 jelly beans and tied the ribbon after each set of 3. My daughter is 8 years old and the smaller size was good for her.
Small – 9 jelly beans, 3 ribbons
Large – 12 jelly beans, 4 ribbons

When you have them all strung and there are no gaps, you are ready to tie the ends together. I just tie it together with a regular knot and then repeat it 3 times so it’s nice and secure.

My daughter barely let me take a photo of the finished project before she claimed it
and ate it.

What do you think? Will you make one? How many jelly beans will you eat in the process?
(Those speckled pastel ones are mighty tasty, by the way…)

Happy Jelly Bean Stabbing!
~Micha