Klutz Beaded Bands product reviews

I was really excited to get this set and thought it would be brilliant for Little Miss Six to make bracelets for her friends. Well upon opening the box I very quickly realised that this would be something to get out for her at the recommended age ten years or older. This is an activity that takes time and patience! Having read the previous reviewers comments I prepared myself with a needle threader thing that I find invaluable when using needles and a thimble! Even with my needle threading thing (not sure what it's actually called) it was difficult to thread the needle. They are sharp so be careful. I like that three needles are included.

I like the new Klutz packaging of the kits and find these sets much easier to use than the previous packaging. So, the main premise of this kit is the little foam loom, that you use to hold the cord in, which is actually a pretty cool idea. You then get the threaded needle and thread the beads in between the two bits of cord in your chosen pattern and 'viola' after some time and patience you get a cool bracelet. The instruction book is very good and each step is numbered, illustrated and well explained. I imagine the more you make of these the easier it gets as well as you become more practised and build up in difficulty.

I did find the instruction book really good and a great base so when you run out of the beads included in the kit you can buy your own and you still have the loom and book to use. I think that these bracelets are pretty cool and would be a great little enterprise if your young teen wanted to make them to sell as there are some great patterns and endless options if you are creative.

A good Christmas present for a creative teen.

I got this book recently and I decided to give it a go this afternoon while my baby was asleep. I love crafts, and I am usually keen on jewellery making and needle work. So this product kinda combines the two nicely. I was really impressed with the beads included. They look really good quality and not cheap. Having done a fair bit of jewellery making and especially beaded jewellery I know they can go for a lot of money. Getting 900 beads is great because you will have plenty of beads to try things with. Afterwards, the fun doesn't have to stop because you can get replacements from craft stores.

The loom as really easy to put together. The instructions for everything were printed really clearly with lots of great photos and tips and tricks throughout the book. I decided to make just a simple band to start with. I popped the bead tray open to get started. All the beads went POP and a few of them hit me, the floor and the table. I was a bit annoyed by that because I was being careful. I then had to crawl on the floor to pick them up because I have an almost mobile baby so it was a safety issue. Once I got back to the table, setting up the loom was easy enough. I measured the cord out and the thread. I then followed the starter instructions which were easy.

Pushing the needle through the cord was relatively easy. Sometimes I didnt get a good grip on the needle and that took more time to push it through. In general though, the work was easy and once I got on a roll I finished the bracelet in approximately an hour. Unfortunately, I made it too small for myself, so my daughter will be thrilled. I had some challenges with the making of this. it took some keen patience on my part, setting things up. Especially threading the needle because the eye was tiny. Maybe I have old lady eyes, but it was a real challenge. The other thing was I managed to poke myslf with the needle part way through. It hurt immensely and after that I was extra careful and maybe a little gun shy.

Overall I was really pleased with the result though and I'm excited to make some more, maybe for Christmas. However, I would say this is definitely a craft for a teenager/young adult. I can imagine the mess a younger child would make, with beads everywhere. A younger child would generally not have the patience required for something like this either.