Beaded USA Flag KeyChain Pattern - Free Beaded Patriotic Flag Keyring Pattern - Fun Beaded Key Rings

Materials Needed:

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You will need one connector such as a
Lanyard hook,
or any type of
Key Ring.

Cord:
You will need about
3 yards of cord for your flag.
There are lots of different types of cords you can use. We prefer a cord that is 1mm to 2mm thick because it helps your flag keychain critter keep it's shape better. Alternatively, you can use a thinner cord and weave a little wire or a pipe cleaner into your keychain flag to help it keep it's shape that way. Either way works just fine but you can experiment with it to see which method you prefer.

One good choice is
Monofilament Cord
or
2mm metallic cording. Other great choices would be jute or hemp cord, leather necklace cord, rattail cord, shoelaces, ribbon, paracord, or a strong jewelry cord like tigertail.

For ours, we used a white jute cord.

Beads needed:
 20 - Blue Pony Beads. (Blue Glitter Pony Beads would be spectacular).

 37 - White Pony Beads.

 33 - Red Pony Beads.

Other Things Needed:


Glue

Optional: For a stiffer flag you can include a little wire or a pipe cleaner with your cord to help keep it's shape
 Beading Wire
OR
 Pipe Cleaners

Instructions

1. Find the half way point of the cord or wire you are using and attach it onto the keyring using a lark's head knot (shown in photo).

2. Begin threading the beads onto the cord following the pattern. Because the flag is so wide some sagging is likely to occur. To prevent this from happening we compensated in the following way. Add 5 beads to a row and then with 1 of your cords, go back up to the previous row, wrap around a cord from the previous row, and then add the next 5 beads. The diagrammed image below may help you understand what we mean. You can click on the image at the bottom of the page for a larger, better resolution photo.

3. After finishing the pattern tie a double knot or surgeon's knot in the cords at the bottom and apply glue to secure.

(Optional but recommended to keep your flag looking it's best.) 4. Weave your wire or pipe cleaner through the first row of your beaded flag keychain to make it stiffer and hold it's shape.

(Seed beads or E beads can be used in place of pony beads to create smaller characters.)

The illustration below uses green and pink to show you how each cord side is threaded into the beads. Your cord, of course, will be all the same color.