Decorations For Your Headphones

Perler Beads come in so many color combinations you’ll be able to design your headphones 100 different ways.

This bag is what was left after I finished! Great value!

I decided on beads that glow in the dark.

You can decorate the top, the bottom or the entire cord. I chose to do the top. When I wear them they look like a piece of jewelry and I love that.

So let’s get to this project review:

First step: cutting the beads.

Sounded super easy until realize how many you have to cut and the cutting was the hardest part. The tutorial didn’t say what to use to cut so I tried 3 different options-

• Knife: The beads turned into little missiles and flew everywhere(I proceeded to put on safety glasses at this point).
• Scissors: I have a small pair of scissors that fit about half way into the bead hole and ended up cutting it really well but, like the knife, the beads wanted to fly. To hold the bead in place I ended up using my finger while cutting. After about 10 beads I couldn’t feel the tip of my finger anymore and had to take a break.
• Wire Cutters: So much better. I had to cut on both sides to make the cut all the way through but there were no flying beads or sore fingers.

Second Step: Putting the beads on the cord.

Getting the beads on is, again, a little tricky. You have to pull the bead apart enough to get the cord in. Usually using your nail would be enough but that doesn’t always work, esp. if you don’t have long nails-like me. What I ended up doing was using my wire cutters and pulling it apart a little.

The plastic bends so it stays open for a few seconds. Just enough time to pop it onto your iPod cord. And once the plastic relaxes back into place, the cut is almost impossible to see.

What was really great about this project is that the beads fit perfectly on the length of your cord. No gaps mean your beads wont be moving all over the cord when you move.

I’m already planning on decorating another pair of my headphones and kid’s headphones. I wonder what else I could decorate with these beads……?

PROS:

• Inexpensive
• Lots of variety for colors and patterns
• Durable
• Can be used on any kind of cord to decorate
• Plenty of beads left over to decorate more items or to make other projects

CONS:

• Getting beads on can be tricky
• Time consuming
• Cord can’t be rolled up again for storage
• Because of tools needed–Not kid friendly

See you next time!

ps……

totally used my soda bottle lid as a spout to collect these beads! Worked great! Not sure what I’m talking about? Visit my DIY Plastic Bottle Bracelet Tutorial.