Tidbit Tuesday - Custom Color Beads!

DID YOU KNOW???

If you are in need of just the right color beads to match an outfit, or don't want to buy 5 packs of multicolors just to get enough of a few colors to do a whole head of braids, then here's something to try...

...painting the inside of clear beads with paints/stains for plastic!

Having the color on the INSIDE of the bead gives the bead a totally different look. They seem to glow and the color is a bit more subtle. I opened up a pack of Snapaholics' Medium Clear Barrels and chose a few colors from my craft paint box, and went for it....about 1 minute later, here is what I had:

Look at how beautifully they glow! The pink ones were painted with a frost type of paint.
I gave it a coat and let it dry, then gave it another coat. Otherwise the paint was too thin and spotty. Now, I was using plain old acrylic craft paint. I did a bit of research and they do make paints that are designed for plastic. I would highly recommend using this type of paint so that it bonds to the plastic. Because of course the key to this trick is will the paint stay on in the presence of hair products? If the right paint will stay on, then a whole new world can open up to you for customizing your hair bling! You can also try using the acrylic paints (available at any craft or big box store in a zillion colors) and then spraying them with a sealer.

One thing you can try is the stains that are used with kids' craft "stained glass" kits,

which are suncatchers actually made of plastic. I saw this nifty set of stains in Michael's right next to the above suncatcher kit:

So one need only try a couple beads on a test braid. If the stain holds up, voila!!! I have never seen packaged hair beads with the color on the inside of the bead, so this would be something original. I bet your little one gets lots of compliments on her custom colors!!!

If you try it and it works, send us photos!