Perler Power

Today, Heather shares a cool craft that encourages independent play:

We recently discovered Perler Beads and absolutely love them! My 5-year-old Emma adores any and all arts and crafts. Perler Beads are small, colorful plastic beads that fuse together when ironed. Your child creates a design by placing the beads one by one on a reusable pegboard template. The kit we purchased came with 5 pegboards (circle, square, heart, star, & hexagon). Kids can either follow example patterns or simply let their creative juices flow.

Once the design is complete, a grown-up lays a sheet of the included ironing paper on top of the beads and gently applies the iron for about 10-20 seconds to fuse the beads. Let the design cool, peel off the ironing paper, and remove the design. Emma has spent countless hours making picture frames, holiday ornaments, nametags, and all kinds of fun designs.

The design possibilities are endless, and Perler’s website is also loaded with project ideas. Perler also notes that their beads are safely made in the USA using LDPE, a food-grade plastic free of harmful chemicals. They state that all materials are obtained in the United States and are routinely tested to meet all required safety standards.

+ + + + +

Editor’s Note: We also recently were introduced to Perler Beads and Laurel shares Emma’s addiction. We have the same shapes kit that Heather mentioned, as well as the Flower Power kit (shown). This project has been so fun that we had to get the 22,000 bead bin (11,000 bins also are available).