Thank you to American Girl for providing the doll used in this post.
During our visit to American Girl Bistro, we had two little girls who were dying for their own Lea Clark. It took some clever maneuvering to convince Kyns to wait for the one was already on it’s way to her. So much for keeping surprises! To reward her patience, I created these easy, Lea Clark-inspired doll and me bracelets.
I used the Lea Clark earring set as a starting point for inspiration. I also spotted sea turtle charms at the craft store and knew they had to be included!
You’ll need:
- Orange Beads
- Pink Beads
- Jewelry Elastic
- Sea Turtle Charms
- Bead Clips
- Scissors
Measuring around Lea’s arm, cut two pieces of jewelry elastic. It’s important to give yourself enough extra length to tie off your work after you’re finished beading. It’s always better to have too much rather than not enough.
It’s handy to have a bead clip holding the ends of the elastic. This is especially true if you’re letting children string their own bracelets. After adding beads of each color, slide a turtle charm over both pieces of jewelry elastic. After adding the turtle, continue beading. The turtle will act as the connector, holding both strings of beads together when it’s worn.
Once you’ve added enough beads to create a bracelet that is the right length for your doll, move the bead clip to hold both ends of one color’s elastic. Use multiple knots to tie together the first bracelet, then tie off the second. Trim the excess elastic from each.
So cute, right?
Of course now that Lea Clark has her bracelet, you’ll want one of your own.
Just repeat the process, except add more beads to make it a little longer. You can customize it for the wrist size of the wearer. If their wrist isn’t handy, 6 inches is a good estimate for most young girls.
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