K and I first picked up Fuse Beads crafting in June this year when I was planning for some indoor activities to keep him busy during our bi-annual visits to Manila.
What are fuse beads?
Fuse beads are soft, plastic beads that can be arranged on pegged boards to form various designs. The pegged boards keep the beads upright and allows the crafter to arrange patterns using a varied range of colors, and they can be fused together (using a hot iron and baking paper) to bind the design permanently. The beads expands and melt together under the heat, binding the beads together.
After being left to cool for a while, the final fuse bead craft can be used as a table/shelf/wall decoration, made into a key rings, gift wrapping decoration or coasters.
There are 2 brands of fuse beads available in Singapore, namely Hama and Perler. Both brands have beads in different sizes, which cater to the developmental needs of children for different ages.
I am more familiar with the Hama branding as I have been purchasing this brand for K and myself from the local retail shops in Singapore.
These are the sizes that are available from Hama beads;
Maxi beads – largest sized beads in the range measured at 10mm in diameter designed for the nursery aged child, 3-4 years old
Midi beads – medium sized beads at 5mm in diameter for the pre-school aged child, 4 years old and above (photo above shows Midi beads on the left).
Mini beads – smallest sized beads at 2.5mm in diameter for age 10 and above, and including adults (photo above shows Mini beads on the right).
Mini Hama Beads (left) and Midi Hama Beads (right)
Not Just for Kids Only!
K started out with Midi beads, but now he creates designs with Mini beads.
For children above 7 and below 10 years old, mini beads can get rather challenging due to the tiny size of the beads, but with patience and a tweezer, it is possible for them to make their fuse beads creations with the mini sized beads.
See the photo below between the scale difference from a Midi Size (left) to Mini sized Hama beads.
Fuse beads are not just limited for children. Apart from purchasing sets available from the shops in either Maxi or Midi beads sizes. You can buy multicolored beads and find plenty of ideas for making ‘Fuse Beads‘ designs on Pinterest.
I have found that mini beads are the best size to be used for making key rings, gift wrapping deco, embellishments for stationery (notebooks) and coasters.
Where to purchase Fuse Beads :
Hama Beads Online Store Perler Beads Growing Fun
To get you and your child started on crafting Fuse Beads, I will be giving away two sets of Midi Hama Beads for children from 4 – 8 years old, 1 set for each giveaway winner.
To participate in this giveaway, just leave a comment with this post with your name, email address and gender and age. Giveaway closes on 31 December 2014.
I would like to win the one for boys..so that my boys can try it out
Dominique Goh
dominiquegoh(at) gmail(dot) com
For Boys age 8 and 10
Dominique Goh´s last blog post ..Happy 8th Birthday Doggie Boy
Nice creations that you have! Thanks for the giveway!
Waiwai
mami(at)peipeihaohao(dot)com
Waiwai´s last blog post ..3 Simple Christmas Cards Ideas
Great for brushing up motor skills.
Evonne
lee_evonne@yahoo.com
For my 8yrs old girl.
I would love to win one for my children to train their patience and have fun!
Christy Wong
christy.krs@gmail.com
Girl 9yo; Boy 7yo
Thank you for hosting this giveaway!
Christy´s last blog post ..A working mum’s woes
Would love to win a set for my boys aged 4 and 6 yrs to practice their patience and creativity in craft work
Great activity to keep my active kids focus & fingers busy!
Chantal Lee
nana_lee8@hotmail.com
Boy 7yo; Girl 4yo
Thank you for hosting this giveaway!
Lilium Day for a 5yo girl.
walk_of_life(at)live(dot)com
Thanks for your generosity! Would love to win a set of the vehicles design, if possible. Merry Christmas to you and K!
robert_sim@yahoo.com
Robert Sim Reply:
December 17th, 2014 at 2:04 am
boy, 3.5 yrs old
Boys age 2 and 5.
Thanks for the giveaway!
Thank you for hosting this giveaway .. hopefully I could be the winner so that my kiddos would have the chance to create some masterpieces with hama beads
Thanks for sharing this. Wld love to get this started with my special needs child to train her motor skills and attention span.
Thanks for the giftaway! I’ll like to let my boy try it and train his patience too.
My boy is 6yrs old.
Judyfoo@me.com
Hi, I would love to win a set for my 8-year-old son. Cheers!
name: Diana Lai
email address: denhana@ymail.com
gender: Female
age of my daugther: 4
Thanks for the give away. My gal age 4 coming 5 would love to win this as she like art n craft.
Cheers
Thanks for hosting the giveaway! Kids will be 7 & 4 next year!
Angie´s last blog post ..Hanging at The Cliff
Cynthia Lau
edenie98@yahoo.com
Female
5 years old
Thanks for hosting this giveaway.. I would like to win this for my 7 year old son.
hellomrsmom@gmail.com
Karis
hellokaris@yahoo.com.sg
5 year old daughter
Hi, I would like to win a set for my girl age 6.
elainemummy@gmail.com
Ling Dawn
mrsdawngoh@gmail.com
6 year old daughter
Dawn Goh´s last blog post ..Perspective
Christina
christinatpl@yahoo.com
5 years old girl
Thanks for this giveaway. I would like my six years old gal to try out this craft.
God bless !
Thanks for this giveaway.
I am sure my 7 year old gal will be happy to try this.
Hope to win this for my girl aged 7.
Amie Chen
amycpj@gmail.com
Quiet activities sound nice 😉 I like the bird! So pretty! I can imagine the small girl sorting out colours as the big girl creates some designs….. While I kick back and relax with a glass of wine. (Ya right)
Adora´s last blog post ..Now they are small, and Christmas trees are tall