How to use Hama beads in crafts this Halloween

I love crafting with Hama beads, and I also love remembering some of the many Hama bead crafts that I've shared here on the blog over the years. Today I'm revisiting some of my favourites, all of them Halloween themed crafts.

If you haven't used Hama beads before then you might find this post helpful - Ironing tips for Hama beads.

Start small

If you are new to working with Hama beads or you don't want to purchase too many supplies, start by practising with some smaller pieces. I've created a set of small Halloween art pixel designs which are perfect for all sorts of projects - Halloween party place cards, keyrings, party bag gifts and favours, mini bunting, magnets, pendants...all sorts of things! They are easily made using the basic square pegboard and whatever beads you might have lying around.

Work with what you have

If you already have some Hama bead supplies then it's easy to do some Halloween Hama bead crafting just using what you already own. 

These Hama bead witch designs are made using the princess pegboard. With a bit of imagination the board can be used in lots of different ways to create some spooky witches.

I also repurposed the Hama bead house pegboard to create a Hama bead Halloween house. I just chose colours that worked with a Halloween theme and added a pumpkin and some bats.

If you have a selection of Hama bead pegboards already lying around, think about how they could also be used for Halloween themed designs. Even the basic shapes like circles, hearts or stars can become perfect Halloween decor if you use a spooky colour scheme or glow in the dark beads.

Halloween themed tableware

Following on from the above, another use for the basic circle shaped pegboard is to make some Halloween Hama bead coasters. You can find designs to copy, like the ones in my post, or just work on stripes or concentric circles in Halloween colours.

For your Halloween table you could also make some Halloween themed Hama bead napkin rings. These designs are really simple, using only the square pegboard, and by shaping them slightly when they are still warm from ironing they fit perfectly around a rolled napkin.

Halloween decorations

If you already have some suitable finished Hama bead crafts lying around the house then maybe there is a way that you can re-use them for some Halloween decor. For example, I used the Hama bead witches mentioned above to create some Hama bead witch displays using shoebox lids. We painted the lids black and used glitter and sequins to decorate before mounting the Hama bead witches.

I also used a pattern which I developed for Hama bead sugar skulls to make some Hama bead sugar skull bunting. I love how the sugar skulls use the same template yet they are all individual, and it's also a great way to use up small quantities of leftover beads.

Think about wearable accessories

This same sugar skull pattern can also be used the the tiny mini Hama beads to craft some gorgeous little sugar skull earrings. Great for Halloween themed parties!

You can also use the mini Hama beads to make some little Halloween themed pin badges. All you need to do is create the design and then add a pin badge backing. 

I hope that you liked my ideas for some Halloween themed Hama bead crafting!

Felt leaves for Autumn craft, styling them as bunting

A couple of years ago I made these embroidered felt autumn leaves. I love them! I really like the contrasting autumnal colours, the little beads that look like dew drops, and the varied shapes of the leaves. Usually I display them for autumn in a bowl on the sideboard, but this year I had a think about some different ways to style them as part of my autumn decor.

I decided that this year I would use the felt autumn leaves as bunting over my mantlepiece. I have some miniature wooden pegs in my craft stash so all I did was hang a length of thin ribbon and use the pegs to clip the leaves at intervals. 

My autumn decor is a little minimalist, but here's what it could look like, with a little help from ChatGPT!

Hama bead Christmas kit inspiration for adults

This post contains Amazon affiliate links

I love a festive craft project, even better if it's something that I can display in my home as I celebrate the Christmas season. At this busy time of year sometimes you just want a simple project that you can work on when you have some quiet time, and Hama beads are the perfect craft that's both relaxing and satisfying. Working from a kit means that you have everything you need in one place without having to spend time gathering materials from around the house, and I've hunted down some gorgeous Hama bead Christmas crafting kits which would be fun to work on during those long dark evenings.

You'll notice that they are all official Hama bead branded items. While they can be a little more expensive than the cheaper options, I've learned the hard way that the imitation beads are just not as good!

First up is something that you can get a start on ready for next year! The Hama bead Advent Calendar (affiliate link) is a really fun Advent craft, and then when it's finished it can be re-used year after year. The kit contains 24 festive designs and shaped pegboards which can be kept for future Christmas projects.

If you want to make something simple which you can use to decorate your home then the simple Hama bead ornaments (affiliate link) or simple Hama bead decorations (affiliate link) are perfect. The designs are quick and easy to make, and can also be worked on together with small children for some family crafting fun.

I love these Hama bead Christmas trees (affiliate link) because once you have the included small Christmas tree pegboard you can really get creative with different designs. You could even make the trees in different colours to match your festive decor, for example in red/white or purple/silver. Then the completed trees can be used as Christmas tree decorations or turned into bunting.

Finally this Hama bead Santa Claus pegboard (affiliate link) is really fun, and again could be customised to suit your own decor. You could mount him on a stick to prop up in a flower pot, hang him inside a wreath, or prop him up on the mantlepiece.

Alternatively, you could just treat yourself to a big bucket of coloured Hama beads (affiliate link) or a selection of mini Hama beads (affiliate link) and browse my Hama bead Christmas crafts and projects which is packed with ideas for both simple and more complex Hama bead crafts which are perfect for this time of year!

Hama bead fairy light bunting

Simple Christmas felt garland craft

I love crafting with felt, it's so easy to work with and I love the soft texture and bright colours. This Christmas I made a really simple felt Christmas garland to add to my collection of homemade Christmas decorations.

I the same method that has worked well for two previous projects - my simple felt heart garland and my Halloween themed felt bunting. Using scraps of felt and a sewing machine it's a quick way to make some simple bunting that can be switched out according to season. 

This was a stash buster project for me, so I was limited by the felt colours in my stash. I've run out of red which is a bit of a disaster for Christmas crafting! But I had some pre-cut red circles left over from another project which worked perfectly, and I chose shapes based on the colours that I had available. 

I ended up with a red circle, a green Christmas tree, a golden bell and a brown gingerbread man, with each shape measuring around 4cm in height. I cut 10 of each shape and for this project I attempted to keep the shapes in the same pattern throughout. 

Tips for cutting out the shapes - I made a paper pattern for each shape which I pinned to the felt while cutting. Use small, sharp scissors, and don't worry too much about perfection!

When all the pieces are cut then I sewed them together. If you want to keep to an order make sure you know what you are doing, as once you start sewing it's easier if you can have the next one ready to go at all times. Before starting to sew, make sure to pull out a decent length of thread and then again at the end so that the felt garland will be easy to hang. 

Then just line up the shapes and sew them together! It's a bit of a fiddly job but it gets easier as you go along, I had several false starts! Just get the next piece ready to sew before you've finished the previous one, and squish them together a little bit as you sew each end.

The finished garland adds a lovely Christmas hint to the festive decorations, whether hung on the tree or elsewhere around the house!

Halloween crafts using Hama beads

This is a collaborative post

A few years ago I published this post - Hama bead crafts for Halloween. But that was a long time ago, and since then I've published many more Halloween crafts using Hama beads on my blog, both the usual midi size and also the much smaller mini sized beads. So I thought that I would publish an updated post containing all of the Halloween Hama bead crafts that I've shared to date! Make sure that you click the link to the original post for the full tutorial and patterns.

Small Halloween Hama bead designs

These pixel art Halloween designs would also work really well for cross stitch or other digital art. The small designs don't use too many beads and can be customised to use the colours that you have.

Hama bead sugar skull bunting

This Halloween sugar skull bunting uses a very simple pattern that can be made in lots of different ways. It's a great craft for using up odds and ends of colours and looks fantastic hung up on a mantelpiece or across a window.

Hama bead witch designs using the princess pegboard

I used the versatile princess pegboard (you can find a link at the bottom of this post) to make some Halloween witches. I used lots of purple and black beads!

These designs can then be used as Halloween decorations, maybe to make a Halloween witch display.

Hama bead Halloween coasters

I love using Hama beads to make coasters, the small circular pegboard is just the right size. These coasters all have a Halloween theme.

Hama bead Halloween napkin rings

If you are planning a Halloween party then these Hama bead Halloween napkin rings would look amazing on the table!

Halloween house using the Hama bead house pegboard

I used the Hama bead house pegboard (there's a link at the bottom of the post) to make this Hama bead haunted Halloween house, complete with bats and pumpkin.

Hama bead sugar skull Halloween picture

Remember the Hama bead sugar skull bunting I shared earlier? I used the same pattern to make sugar skulls which I arranged on black cardboard to make a spooky Halloween picture.

The following crafts use mini Hama beads. These tiny beads can be fiddly, so it's a craft better suited to adults, but the results can be very intricate and satisfying. “Crafting with such detail allows you to bring out creativity in small but powerful ways. It’s the patience and care in these tiny projects that make them so rewarding, transforming simple materials into meaningful Halloween decor." says John Webber of Carved, a handmade goods company.

Halloween pin badges using mini Hama beads

These little pin badges don't take long to make and would make a great subtle Halloween accessory.

Mini Hama bead sugar skull earrings

I used the Hama bead sugar skull pattern once again but this time with the mini Hama beads to make some little Halloween earrings.

Phew, I didn't realise that I had shared quite so many Halloween Hama bead crafts over here! I do hope that you found something to inspire you!

Felt crafts for Halloween - a round up

I love crafting with felt! It's such a versatile material, you can cut it easily, it doesn't fray, it's easy to sew and it comes in a range of gorgeous bright colours and pretty pastels. I've shared a few Halloween crafts using felt on my blog over the last couple of years and I thought I'd bring them all together here in case you are looking for some Halloween felt crafting inspiration.

Last year I made this Halloween felt bunting using scraps of felt and other bits and pieces from my stash. 

Each pendant has a different theme, alternating black and orange along with plenty of embellishments like buttons, sequins, ric rac and ribbon. I love the variation in the pieces!

This year I made a really simple Halloween felt garland which I'm going to string up next to the bunting. All you need are small scraps of felt in Halloween colours like black, orange, grey and purple. The pieces are cut into small shapes about 3-4cm across and quickly sewn together using a sewing machine. I added some sequins to make them sparkle. 

Another great Halloween felt craft for using up scraps are these embroidered felt sugar skulls. My skulls measure about 10cm in height so they are a good size to use as hanging decorations. You can use a range of coloured scraps along with sequins and small beads to make each one unique. I used white for the background of the skulls but I'm also very tempted to make some in vibrant pinks and purples!

For my next Halloween felt craft I'd like to try a Halloween themed picture. I found this full video tutorial linked below for a circular piece which I love, so I might attempt something similar:

Finally, if you are looking for more beautiful felt craft ideas then I love Bugs and Fishes as a source for inspiration and tutorials.

I've shared many Halloween crafts on my blog over the years, if you are looking for more then you might also enjoy these last minute Halloween crafts for children. 

Embroidered felt sugar skulls craft for Halloween

I've really been enjoying crafting with felt lately. After I sewed these felt Autumn leaves my thoughts turned to Halloween, and seeing that I had plenty of white felt in my stash I decided to make some felt sugar skulls. I also took the opportunity to sort through my sequin collection and discovered some fantastic flower sequins which I knew would be perfect for the eyes, and that gave me my starting point. I made four skulls, each one measures about 10cm in height and each one is different.

They were so easy and quick to make. I made paper templates for the different pieces, cut them out and then sewed them together, sometimes using matching thread and sometimes using contrasting colours. I tried to spread the colours out across the skulls so that they work well together as well as on their own. 

If like me you have various scraps of coloured felt and a collection of sequins and beads this is the perfect craft for a bit of stash busting! They would also make great hanging decorations with a loop of string or ribbon, or could be strung onto bunting. I always make a window display for our house on Halloween and these sugar skulls will definitely be making an appearance!

I loved making these felt sugar skulls and I'm filled with ideas for making more. I have some lovely bright colours of felt in my stash so I think that next time I might use brighter colours for the background rather than the white. I quite fancy having a big bowl on display filled with tiny felt sugar skulls in a rainbow of colours!

I've made several different sugar skull crafts over the years as Halloween approaches. If you enjoyed this craft then you might also like these:

Hama bead sugar skull bunting

Halloween picture with Hama bead sugar skulls

Mini Hama bead sugar skull earrings

Painted wooden sugar skull craft

Last minute Halloween crafts for children

Over the years I've shared lots of Halloween crafts on my blog so I thought I'd re-share some of my favourites. These Halloween crafts are simple, fun, and are a great way to keep children busy as well as add a spooky flair to your home. They can mostly be made with things from around the home or your craft box. 

Click on the individual links for full instructions.

Really simple spooky window pictures

A really simple craft for very young children using clear contact paper and tissue paper.

Paper plate spider web

Use paper plates and white yarn to create some creepy decorations.

Toilet tube monsters

This monster family is made from painted cardboard tubes and bits and pieces from the craft box.

Hama bead Halloween coasters

These Halloween coasters are made using the small circle pegboard design and make great Halloween decorations for your party table.

Laminated battery candle covers

For battery powered candles only, these candle covers use Halloween sequins for some spooky lighting.

Jam jar spider Halloween lantern

This simple lantern is made with a spray painted jam jar and paper template, and it looks great on a Halloween themed mantelpiece or windowsill.

Happy Halloween crafting!

This project was featured by Twinkl as part of their Halloween campaign: Crafts and Decorations

A year of Hama bead crafts

I've shared lots of my Hama bead crafts on this blog over the last few years (you can find them all listed on my Hama beads page!) and because so many of them have a seasonal theme I thought that I'd share some of my favourites, with a Hama bead craft for every month of the year.

January - Mini Hama bead Russian Dolls picture

This design is made using mini Hama beads, tiny beads which are placed into position using tweezers. Because they are so small you can make some really detailed projects.

February - Hama bead heart hanging decoration

A lovely decoration for Valentine's day which can be hung on the wall to add some interest to a narrow space.

March - Mini Hama bead Easter Eggs

These mini Hama bead Easter Eggs can be used as cupcake toppers or as embellishments for cards or decorations.

April - Hama bead Easter coasters

These coasters are made using Spring coloured Hama beads and are a lovely way to brighten up your Easter drinks!

May - Hama bead hair clip holder

This ribbon holder for hair clips is really useful to keep hair clips on display and accessible, but still neat and tidy. You can use some Hama bead projects that you have lying around to make it.

June - Hama bead quilt picture

This picture is made using a really simple design and is a great way to use up odds and ends of colours that you have left over from previous projects.

July - Minecraft Hama bead keyrings

We made these Minecraft keyrings to use as party favours for a Minecraft themed party. They are really simple to make, and a great activity for the summer holidays

August -Hama bead jam jar pen holders

These pen holders are stylish and fun and a great way to corral pens, paintbrushes, knitting needles and so on.

September - Autum Hama bead candle holders

These candle holders are designed to hold battery tea light candles and bring a lovely Autumnal feel to your decor.

October - Hama bead haunted house

This Hama bead haunted house is a great craft project for Halloween and makes a lovely decoration, perhaps displayed in the window to spook trick or treaters!

November - Large Hama bead Rangoli

These Hama bead Rangoli are a great Diwali craft and can be used as decorations around the home or as mats underneath your Diwali food and drink.

December - Hama bead Christmas baubles

These baubles can be hung from the tree and are a great craft for children at Christmas - you can make them in all different colours to match your colour scheme.

I hope that you enjoyed looking at my Hama bead projects, and perhaps found something to inspire you!

You can find all my Hama bead crafts on my Hama bead page.