(Part 2) Top products from r/beadsprites

Artkal has the best color selection, but you'll have to have it shipped to you. https://www.bakerskidscrafts.com/ is the only US reseller I know of (I'm gonna assume you're in North America). Otherwise, you'll have to order from their main site https://artkalfusebeads.com/ , and a package typically takes 2 weeks to arrive. Free shipping to the US and a few other countries. Artkal beads come in two types of beads. Hard and Soft. (The soft beads are exclusive to ARTKAL and are a special flexible kind of bead). You can get the beads in two sizes as well; Midi (regular sized, 5mm), and mini (2.6 mm). I personally use Artkal mini soft beads as my main beads, which is the A-series of beads. Though I do also have some C-series beads (the mini hard beads), and perler mini beads. And a small selection of Perler midi beads.

Artkal hard beads (both midi and mini) can be used with Perler brand beads. If you live in the states, you can find bags of perler beads for sell at most craft stores (though limited selection of colors in stock sometimes), and online websites that ship within the US. If you'd like to be able to restock quickly, you might go for the Perler beads, so you can just run to the store and restock when necessary (If you're in North America). You can also take advantage of craft store coupons and sales. And for more variety of colors after you become experienced, you can pair it up with Artkal hard Midi beads (S-series beads).

There are other brands of beads, such as Hama (comes in both midi and mini), and Melty brand beads. I've seen Melty brand beads in some craft stores and even walmarts, but I've never tried them. I just get the feeling they're not going to be as good quality as Perler or Artkal, but I dont know. Hama beads I've never used myself, but I've heard they can melt a bit odd, and while they *can* be used with Perler, they dont melt the same, so they do look off. (again, I dont have personal experience with this)

Overall, if you just want to try the beads, before deciding to commit to the hobby, I suggest you get one or two of the kits. If you're interested in midi beads, I suggest you pick up something like this:

Perler 16 Color tray - $8

if you're interested in the mini hard beads, you can pick up one or more of the Perler mini trays. There are many different trays, each with 8 colors (1000 ish beads each). And they're around $8 to $10 each. The Joanne's Craft store near me sells them.

Perler Mini Tray, Warm colors

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If you want a bigger selection of colors, you can consider these trays:

ARTKAL Mini hard beads, c-series 48 colors kit

or

ARTKAL Mini soft beads, a-series 48 colors kit

or

ARTKAL Midi hard beads, S-series 48 color kit

Whichever kit you get, you'd be best off buying it with an extra bag of black beads, because black is the most used color in beadsprites.

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When choosing mini versus midi, it's just personal preference. I prefer mini, for these reason, 1. they cost less, 2. they take up less space, 3. finished pieces look more detailed. Though for some people, mini beads are too small, and take more concentration to use.

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Sorry for some much text. If you dont happen to live in North America, then possible another brand of beads other than Perler is cheaper and easier to obtain.

I just started beading and am focusing on Pokemon, so here's a long winded write up. Like a lot of other people here, I started with presorted packs like this one, which have about about 250 of each color in them. Amazon has three packs like that and I bought one of each to get a big variety of sorted colors. This does not give you enough of each color to sustain you for that long, but they are a good starting point and you'll quickly get the feel for what colors you need the most. You'll want 1000 bead packs of any color you're going to use more than a tiny bit of. The 250 in those sorted packs won't last long.

For Pokemon, I've found the most important colors to keep a big stock of are Black, Dark Grey, Grey, and White. Black is used to outline all of them, the Dark Grey is used for a lot of the details within the sprite, and a lot of Pokemon have White bits which the Grey shades well. There's a lot of Pokemon so I'm using a very big variety of colors beyond those. Their sprites are always shaded, too, so you really need a mix of lighter and darker colors. If you're using Light Blue on a Pokemon's body, you'll probably need Dark Blue to shade it, and so on.

I bought a lot on Amazon at first too, but now that I'm getting more into it I've placed a couple big orders to Bakers'KidsCraftsBooks&More on Ebay. It's a little cheaper for 1000 bead packs than Amazon if you're ordering several, and they carry Hama and Nabbi too. This chart is really helpful for figuring out what Hama and Nabbi colors are sufficiently unique from Perler to make them worth purchasing. The downside is that it's a little slower than Amazon, since you have to wait for a combined invoice before you can pay and get them shipped, but it's the cheapest way I've found to get 1000 bead packs of all bead brands.

The square interlocking 29x29 peg boards that other people have mentioned are big enough to fit most Pokemon and smaller sprites on, and you can always link them up for more room. They come with ironing paper and you can also use parchment paper.

I bought these tweezers too. I don't think they're necessary, but they're easier to use than regular tweezers if I have to remove beads that have already been placed. I usually just use my fingers when initially placing beads.

I like these tackle boxes for storage. They have adjustable compartment sizes, so you can make big compartments to dump your 1000 bead packs into. They close very securely and the compartments are flush with the lid, so beads don't mix if you turn it upside down. The only downside is I have seven of them and already have almost filled them up, haha.

Quick edit: All the Pokemon I've made have been based on the small sprites you see in the party, so that's what my color suggestions are geared to.

I actually found that using pins from a turkey lacer works great for me!

Dump a bunch of beads in hand, take 10 seconds loading the pin (can fit 20 beads), then use my other hand to release the beads from the pin one at a time, it actually works surprisingly fast.
I'll have to try and make a video of my method sometime.

This is what it looks like loaded: http://imgur.com/6AhQ8lc

Depending on how many different colors of beads you have, small drawer organizers are a great way to sort, store, and retrieve beads.

This organizer comes with 39 drawers and this one comes with 60. You can use a label maker to label each drawer with the name of each color, which makes it way easier to restock beads since you can easily identify the exact color with the labels.

I currently use this ArtBin organizer, which is great to take with you on the go. It comes with removable dividers so you can make the spaces as little or big as you want. The downside to this organizer is that once you add all the colors, it's a huge pain to resort the colors, if you like to sort them rainbow-style.

Here are some links for the product in the above comment for different countries:

Amazon Smile Link: Here you go


|Country|Link|Charity Links|
|:-----------|:------------|:------------|
|USA|smile.amazon.com|EFF|




To help add charity links, please have a look at this thread.

This bot is currently in testing so let me know what you think by voting (or commenting). The thread for feature requests can be found here.

Well, I use a tiny travel iron, but even it has some holes for steam. I'm honestly not sure if any modern irons don't have holes. I like the little one though because less weight means I can move it around easier on large projects without having to worry about dislodging any beads. I always just keep my iron moving in small circles and that seems to do the trick!

You might try something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Rust-Oleum-1906830-Lacquer-Spray-11-Ounce/dp/B0009XCKGA

Krylon brand also makes lacquers like this, so really any clear-drying one i think would work. But test it out on a random perler creation you signed yourself first, and see how you like it.

https://www.amazon.com/Akro-Mils-10124-Plastic-Hardware-6-5-Inch/dp/B003TV3NL0/ref=mp_s_a_1_6?keywords=organizer+bins&qid=1566174263&s=gateway&sprefix=organiser&sr=8-6

:) Have fun spending on Amazon ! Hehe

I have big fat clumsy hands so I use these utility tweezers. Love them. They make picking up beads easier due to the curved end.

General Tools & Instruments 415 Utility Tweezers, Curved Point https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00004T7TU/ref=cm_sw_r_other_awd_cmc-wb09KK38M

Any craft store (Michael's, JoAnn, the dreaded Hobby Lobby, and probably even Lowe's or Home Depot for some things) will do as well as Amazon if you can wait a few days for shipping.

I've not made keyrings yet but for magnets you'll probably want some kind of magnetic tape like this:

http://www.amazon.com/Magnum-Magnetics-Corp-Adhesive-Magnetic/dp/B00114LU8K/ref=pd_sbs_indust_3?ie=UTF8&refRID=0F9T34N0C12XGK1T5QZ6

Or a magnetic sheet like this:

http://www.amazon.com/Flexible-Magnet-Adhesive-Length-rolled/dp/B005HY990G/ref=sr_1_1?s=arts-crafts&ie=UTF8&qid=1404232861&sr=1-1&keywords=magnet+sheet

The adhesives on those are usually kinda crappy so I'd suggest maybe pulling the tape off and adding your own adhesive of choice.

Also the flexible magnets tend not to be super strong so you might need to use a bit more than you would think.

What "can" are you referring to? I'm wondering if I didn't overdo it and spend more than I had to.

I started with the "lot" from the Hama website here and the first batch of 48 from Artkal here

For the really simple ones with obvious colors that I can easily match, I just opened it in Paint.Net and turned on grids. For the more complex ones with shades I used BeadMaster found here to get me pretty close and I'd manually change the colors if I felt they were off (and were in some cases)

Perler makes a plastic tweezer/scoop combo tool that works great. Michaels or whatever craft store you go to should have them.
(Edit) Amazon link:
Perler Bead Tweezer Plus https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004T1UGDC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_Nff3xbPEFK2BK

I have a mini iron like this:
https://www.amazon.com/Clover-Mini-Iron-II-Adapter/dp/B001CEAMH4/

However you have to be very careful with it, it's very easy to accidentally melt a spot too much and end up with a divot. But if you don't display the melted side that's not even a problem.

You can also try a "travel iron":

https://www.amazon.com/Sunbeam-Hot-2-Trot-Non-Stick-Soleplate-GCSBTR-100-000/dp/B0057UMYAW/

I would suggest this one. You can put essential colors in the big ones (black, white, etc.) and other colors in the small ones. The small ones hold a bag of 1,000 perfectly, while the big ones hold around 4,000. I got mine for around $18 at Lowe's.

I have done large projects with Hama Minis. Don't tape method with Hama Minis. The height is way too inconsistent for this to work.

Do be sure to double check the height of every single bead you place. Especially with the lighter colors, some beads can be shorter than the actual pegs. Be sure to buy more of these than you need. I found about 10% of mine to be too short or too tall.

Make sure your iron is set really low. I mean really really low. The boards warp too easily, though they also easily flatten under weight.

Be very careful prying your sprite off of the board after you iron it. Whatever you do, don't over-iron.

Big sprites behave VERY differently from small sprites.

The pegs on the board snap off very easily, especially at the corners. ALL of my boards were missing at least one corner when I received them; presumably this happened during shipping.

Regular tweezers are a horrendous pain. Get yourself a pair of really nice, needlenose tweezers like these. The investment is worth it, even for single board sprites.

That's all I can think of for now. I'll edit if I think of something else.

Hi! I am also brand new to this. I haven't even got my Amazon order yet. But I'll show you what I got.

I got one multi-pack of coloured beads. It's about 250 beads of each colour included. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008HCN0HI/

I got a package of ironing paper. www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0001DUB8W/

I got this set of peg boards. http://www.amazon.com/Perler-Beads-Clear-Square-Pegboards/dp/B005HZ35FK

I got a thingy for storage. www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001B0S2H6/ (This won't fit 1000 of each colour into it, I'm pretty sure, but it can keep a bunch handy while the rest stay in bags in a box).

And then what I did was I decided what my first project was going to be, and I bought extra 1000 packs of beads for the colours I would be using more of. I'm going to be making Minecraft things, so I got a pack of dark green and pack of green for creepers, and a pack of Peach for Steve's face. Anddd I just realised I forgot to get a dark brown colour for Steves hair, so I'll do that now too.

So, for example, if you decided you wanted to make Pikachu, I'd probably get a pack of yellow and a pack of black, but if you buy a multipack then you won't need to buy red for his cheeks because you'll only be using a few of them.

I also bought a pack of black and a pack of white, because I figure I'll use them a lot in any case.

Parchment paper isn't too hard to come by, but I
just ended up buying the perler branded paper from amazon, 6 sheets is about $5. I wouldn't risk trying wax paper or other similar-but-different solutions, esp. on a large project.

Sorry about that, I assumed it did from the picture. Usually those big tubs do come with them. This one for sure has them. There are even disney, and marvel themed kits, but they obviously cost more.

I have more or less the same thing, 4 organizers with movable compartments to hold all my beads minus black, white and red. Those 3 colors are in 2 giant Rubbermaid canisters (21 cups size) and a Tupperware container from when you buy sliced deli meat, respectively.

All the extra perler 1k count bags I have stored away as extra are in a storage box in my home office.

Here you go

in UK too and i use: http://www.craftmerrily.co.uk/section/15/1/hama-beads
they seem to be the cheapest delivery and average price for beads. boards are reasonably priced too and can somtimse get discount for buying in bulk.
bought from them 4 or 5 times now and always quick delivery (within 3 days usually)
EDIT: or to get started: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Hama-Beads-10-000-Bucket/dp/B00005LADI

Sorry it took me so long to reply. Haven't been on in awhile.
http://www.amazon.com/Environmental-Technology-8-Ounce-Casting-Craft/dp/B000XAR0DM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1417157386&sr=8-1&keywords=resin

That's a link for the resin I used. Then it's just perler beads and glitter.

I don't know for sure. but I know perler sells this. https://www.amazon.com/Perler-80-11125-Nintendos-Pattern-Multicolor/dp/B07PD2LMRG/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=master+shield+perler&qid=1564799972&s=arts-crafts&sr=1-1


I bought their mario one and mine was 2x2 boards.

I started using the same type of container that you listed. I will never go back. It was so annoying to use for me. It was difficult to get the beads out that I needed without spilling colors into each block around it.

That being said, I use one similar to this. Well, I use two of them...one about that size and one that's larger.

When I do my pieces, or am sorting large containers of mixed beads, I can just pull out the drawers I need to bring over to my work area. It's also relatively thin and not very tall so it would easily fit in the top area of a closet or something tall and out of reach from the little kiddo.

As far as moving with it goes, the beads will come out of the back if you lay it on it's side...when we moved, I took each drawer and put dumped it in a plastic bag labelled with the color name. When we arrived and I was unpacking, I was able to just dump the bag back into the drawer and reuse the bag.

Edit: Looked it up, Big one...Little one

These are the exact two that I use. On the larger one, I use the big drawers on the side for two different things. The left side houses my black, white, and red beads since those are the ones that I always have the most of. The right side houses a drawer for "unopened packs" a "to be sorted" drawer, where I dump either mix packs or messed up projects so I can sort the beads out later, and the bottom drawer holds my tools...so it has a few pairs of tweezers, some masking tape, and some tiny paint bowls that I used to use for beads when I had them separated a different way. I've been doing Perler for a couple of years now and this has by far to me been the most useful and least expensive way to house my beads. :)

I got mine off of Amazon, not sure how that differs between canada and the states.

Edit: I guess it's 6000, my mistake.

http://www.amazon.com/Standard-Fuse-Beads-000--Black/dp/B000ZDKJUI/ref=sr_1_2?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1426883337&sr=1-2&keywords=black+perler+beads+6000

Found this? Keep in mind this isn't the price I got or the same vendor, but I ordered mine years ago.

I use Scotch Mounting Putty. As long as you don't use too much, it comes off of walls with no residue or damage left behind.