The short answer: every 3D bead object is the same recipe: flat panels, one-sided melting, folds, and seams. Once you can build a cube and a box, you can build almost anything useful around the house.
Start with objects that are mostly straight lines, because curves are the only tricky part. Everything below is straight-edged and forgiving.
Useful things to build
- Pen holder: a box with no lid, walls about 10 beads high. Stands on any desk.
- Phone stand: a rectangle folded into a Z shape: one panel tilted back, one base panel, one front lip.
- Napkin holder: two side panels and a U-shaped base, like a small animal base.
- Card holder: two low walls on a base, perfect for business cards or recipe cards.
- Storage box: the box from our box guide, sized for the shelf it will sit on.
- Coaster holder: a small tray with two-bead walls and a lip in front.
The build order for any object
- Draw the unfolded net on grid paper and check every seam closes.
- Iron one side only and cool flat.
- Fold along the lines while warm, bending toward the un-ironed side.
- Fuse or glue the seams, then square everything while still warm.
- Add a second ironing pass on the outside if the object needs stiffness.
All the techniques, from nets to seams, are in our 3D patterns guide, and the pattern library has grids for boxes, trays, and stands. Beads, boards, and paper are in our shop.