More on Paper Beads

Paper Bead Art 

By: Diy maven Mar 13, 2007

When we were kids, my sister Joyce and I rolled paper beads; little did we know we were doing something girls a hundred years earlier had done. Although Joyce and I made funky necklaces with our beads, our Victorian counterparts used the fruits of their labor to fashion curtains for doorways. Nowadays, I like to use paper beads to create 3D art, including greeting cards.
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Here's another take on this fun craft:


i rolled my beads onto a piece of wire, as you can see from the pic. you want to roll from the wide side, as tightly as you can, ending with the teeny skinny side and make sure that that end is glued down well. i put about a dozen beads per foot long piece of wire. they will come off pretty easily. i tried using wooden skewers coated in vaseline, but the beads stuck to that. no good. so that is it. you could leave them at that point as is,this is what they look like unsealed... or seal them with mod podge, as many coats as you want. or you could paint the beads, add sparkle or ink or whatever you like. at that point, i antique some of my beads, jacquard has really great sparkly pigments that can be put right onto the bead, or, in my favorite way, added to UTEE which is thick embossing powder and then the bead can be rolled in it and heated or heat the utee in a pot and dip your beads in. the more coats of this you put on, the thicker. this stuff is amazing. use different finishes to make the beads look like metal, gems, or pearls, even...these are a bit lumpy and bumpy, but you get the idea. head over to my flickr bead set to see some of the other ones, and new things will be added all the time.
once you are done, you can sand the edges a bit, or sand the whole thing for another look altogether. the options are endless. make small beads that are more plain, or big ones to use as pendents, and make them into any shape. if you wanted to just layer them, you can cut out a form and go from there, or decoupage over something and drill a hole later. so many options! oooh, and photos! you can make a photo bead or pendant. i am going to!

don't be afraid to try different things. this is inexpensive and fun. anyone can do it, and it is a great project for little kids. for those of us that save every little scrap, this is perfect. i am planning to try yarn and fabric, but keep an open mind and have no fear!
a couple of tips: use either a non-stick cookie sheet or some waxed paper so you don't get glue and paper and gunk all over your table or whatever you are using. also, if you use the utee, it can burn you, so be careful with it. baby wipes are a great thing to have handy so you can get the glue and smutz off of your fingers in between beads, as well as cooling off your fingers if your drip hot stuff. roll a really long bead and after it is dry, cut it into several smaller beads with a utility knife...read the entire tutorial

Twisted Dolls - Creepy Little Sweeties (play at your own risk)

Here is a really great blog entry that describes why these types of art dolls are so popular.  We have always liked gross and scary--why else do scary movies make so much money? I found this post on the blog, HandMadeNews.  I enjoyed reading it and I hope you will, too.  The pictures are great and I even recognized the artists!  Be sure to check out the links to the various artists' sites for even more wonderful art dolls.

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March 22, 2010 | By

Twisted Dolls - Play at your
own RISK!

The trend of dolls made to
reflect their owner'sinner child
may not be a new one. Handmade
dollswith that idea in mind have
been seen on the marketfor some
time now. However, the people
makingand purchasing horror dolls have inner children
with teeth and that is a totally, different story.
These dolls are truly like no other. They are
influenced by horror movies, books, music,
twisted childhoods, imaginary friends bad dreams
and so forth. One of the originators of this trend could be
said to be,The Living Dead Dolls. They were originally
handmade in 1998 and are now produced and available in
mainstream venues. Some handmade horror dollmakers
distance themselves from these
origins through theoriginal concepts
surrounding their dolls, as well as,
the distinction of being, "art dolls". 
Art dolls are typically just as their
name implies pieces of art. They are
individual in concept, execution and
display. These dolls are not toys.
They are expressions of ideas and
imagerythat speaks to their creators
and to those that purchase them. There are other differences
between horror art dolls and other art dolls.  These dolls embody
such things as sideshow freaks, horror victims and monsters,
disfigured children and adults.  They are truly some of the terrors
of humanity.  So you ask, why would anyone want a doll the
likes of these?  The resurgence of Victorian styles is a huge
trend that crosses over into a million others. Including
this one.  The Victorians had a real need to see and collect
oddities. There is also the in growing interest in places such as the
Mutter Museum, which is full of medical examples of naturally
occurring strangeness.  Another area of growing interest is the
history of carnivals and freak shows.    Add all of these things together
and you have all the reason you need for horror art dolls to have all the
adoring fans they're makers can handle.

These dolls are made from everything
you can imagine! You do not
have to be a traditional doll maker to
enjoy this trend!

For example
Polymer Clay - missmillificent 
Recovered/Recycled Dolls -
Sweetbutnotsourscreations 
Assemblage Art - readbetweenlines
Resin - Creepydolls


For generations dolls and sweet little girls have been like peanut
butter and banana sandwiches and bacon. They just to go together.
Well, just like little girls, dolls have changed. They aren't cute and
sweet anymore. There are little girls with skull hair bows and
black nail polish and there are dollies with stitches in their faces
and mix matched eyeballs. They are both creepy and neither
would look out of place in a cemetery. That being said, I for one
am glad to see them! Of course, I'm not the only one. This trend
has dug in its claws and won't let go no matter how much we
scream! (Scream for more that is!)











IMAGES in order of appearance
Ghost Doll Porcelain Repaint Gothic Horror by kittykatsue
Warrior Gothic Dead OOAK Horror Prop Doll Dark Art by DLMarian
Unique OOAK Hand Stitched Rag Doll Original 
Creepy Gothic Folk Art By Jodi Cain/ TatteredRags
Octowoman by mealymonster

LINKS to the world of unique art dolls
Strangedolls.net
Gail Lackey
Strange Moonart 
Demon Kids
INFLUENCES for your consideration
Jon Beinart
Morbid Anatomy 
The Human Marvels
Underbunny flickr
The Quay Brothers
Natural History Museum

Xane Dravor Likes the darker side of crafting. If it is dark, full of teeth and covered in stuff best left to nightmares, she might have it on her shelf somewhere. Sculpture and paintings being her primary mediums. Come by and see what we mean at - House Morbid Ltd