Calendar Fuse Bead Templates
Use this free template to create this adorable fuse bead calendar! When you’re done, check out these fuse bead keychain ideas. This post contains affiliate links.
New Year’s is such an exciting time! I love looking at the blank new calendar waiting to be filled with special occasions. This year’s calendar will be extra fun to look at because we’re decorating it with fuse beads!
I have a confession to make about that.
I love fuse beads (also known as Perler or Hama beads). I love when my kids do fuse beads. It’s excellent for their fine motor skills, visual coordination, and focusing ability. I love making magnets, key chains, accessories, and toys out of fuse beads.
Here’s a totally fresh craft you can use your fuse beads for (assuming you already got some good use out of our last fuse bead tutorial – Fall/Thanksgiving napkin rings). We’re going to use fuse beads to give our new year calendars a major upgrade!
Each month will really pop with a cute, colorful, seasonal fuse bead symbol. Just follow the provided patterns to create the pictures, then glue them onto the calendar template. If some of the pictures aren’t relevant to your personal or family culture, feel free to swap them out for another design – you can create your own or find one online.
If you’re fuse bead fans, you might want to even give the Smart Pixelator a go – it converts any image into a fuse bead design (you can also use their images). Their beads are a bit smaller (it allows you to get more detail) so it’s not compatible with regular beads, but it’s totally cool if you want to make things like this without needing my templates!
We’re providing you with a free mini calendar of the whole year to go with the mini fuse bead icons. But you can also find a larger, monthly calendar to stick each picture to, if you find that type of calendar more useful. You can even do both! The calendar provided is for 2024, but you can reuse or re-do this project for any year by finding and printing a calendar with the correct dates and simply attaching your fuse bead projects to that.
You can do this project all at once, or you can print the calendar and then add the new picture each month. Or you can do the opposite – take one down each month, as a new “prize” to use each month for a magnet, keychain, bookmark topper, or what-have-you.
You’ll want to print the calendar on something firm like cardstock and/or glue it to a cardboard backing to make it strong enough to hold up the fuse bead icons. You could also consider laminating it for extra strength.
Because the individual pieces are small, they won’t take up a whole pegboard. That’s totally fine, just leave the extra pegs empty. If you’re using a large pegboard, you can even do a few shapes on the same board – but you’ll need to be more careful when ironing because it’s easy to knock over neighboring beads by mistake. It’s totally doable, though.
Let’s make it a great year!
What you need
- Fuse bead board, any size
- Fuse beads in assorted colors
- Parchment paper
- Clothes iron (or heat press)
- Glue or double-sided tape
- Templates (download and print at the end of this post)
Craft your fuse bead calendar
1. Print the template. If you’re planning to place your bead tray directly onto the pattern, make sure to print it at 100% scale and print a copy for each person doing the craft.
2. Using the dots on the template as a guide, copy the design by placing beads onto the little pegs. You can copy by matching the pattern, or you can lay your tray on top of the pattern sheet and place the beads directly on top of each colored dot as shown.
3. When all the beads are laid out, carefully cover them with a piece of fuse bead or parchment paper. It is helpful to cut the paper down to a size just a little larger than the peg board.
Preheat the iron to a medium setting, or the level indicated by the instructions on your bead package.
4. Place the iron carefully on top of the paper. Apply very gentle pressure while moving it in small circles to heat the entire project evenly. Do this for 30 seconds OR as indicated by the instructions on your bead package.
5. Gently lift a corner of the paper. Observe if the tops of the beads have become stuck together. If they seem loose, put down the paper and repeat the ironing for another 10 seconds, and check again.
When the tops of the beads seem to be stuck together, turn the project upside down and carefully lift off the peg board.
6. Cover the exposed side of the pattern with another sheet of the paper. Iron it the same way you did the first side. When done, the beads should be firmly fused together. Allow it to cool on a flat surface.
7. After completing all the patterns, glue or tape them to the calendar in the indicated spaces. Glue the calendar to a piece of firm cardboard for added strength.
Download the Fuse Bead Calendar Template
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Who will you be making this calendar fuse bead template with? Will you be replacing any images? Comment below!
