Ombre Wood Bead Necklace

Today we are going to learn how to make a super cute trendy necklace with just a few basic materials!

SUPPLIES:
-wood beads (any one size, or varying sizes)
-acrylic paint (I used colors that would make a cohesive color palette)
-pencil
-fine tip thin brush
-scissors
-ribbon or string (I used a similar color to my paint colors)
-cup for water
-plastic bowl to mix paint
-optional: paintable varnish/sealer

First thing we want to do is choose how many beads you want to go on your necklace.
I chose 10 because I didn't want the entire necklace to be all beads, I wanted the ribbon to be more a part of the look. Then draw a halfway line around your beads with your pencil. (Don't worry if it's messy you can erase it later.)

Once you've drawn lines on all your beads, string it on your ribbon to see where you want it to fall.

Once you have the length set, you can begin to paint your beads!
To have an ombre look, either start with the darkest color (if going from dark to light) or the most opposite color (if going from one color to another).

I started with my dark Coral.
Putting the bead on the end of the pencil will make painting easier.
When finished, use the stick end of your brush to pick up the bead through the hole and set down on a drying surface making sure to place it wood side down.

As you go from one end of colors to the other, add one drop into the mixture as you go.
Use your cup of water to clean your brush in between colors.

So in this photo I went from dark to light, adding more oranges and pinks and yellows as I went.
By adding one drop of the new color every time I painted a bead, it created a gradient within my necklace.

By no means do you have to make it complicated for your necklace to be cute, but have fun with it! The more you blend your transitions between colors, the more graduated your ombre will be!

Allow to fully dry for an hour before touching.
Once your beads are completely dry, you can erase the pencil markings off and
TA DA!
If you want to seal your paint, you can use a paintable varnish and that will give it a nice shine.
Allow to dry for another 2 hours.
I preferred the matte look to match the wood, but feel free to experiment!

String your beads with two similar colors touching each other.
Painted end to painted end.
Enjoy!

Bethany @ Enchanted Lake