Perler Beads

So, one of my favorite things to do as a kid was to make perler bead art.  Remember?  Those little, colorful, plastic things you put on a peg board and iron?  I'm pretty sure I had forgotten about them entirely until, lo and behold, I found a whole bucket at the craft store!  Aprille tried her darndest to talk me out of it, but I bought them anyhow.  For $6 imagine all the good times!

The big question: what do I make with perler beads now that I'm older and more artistically capable?

That's right.  A hexagon.

But layer after layer it got more interesting, resulting in this nifty "piggy bank".

So, theoretically this is how I should have made it (according to 3D instructions on the perler bead website):

1. Fill in entire pegboard to create the bottom of your bank.
2. Iron both sides under parchment paper, until melted together, but not too flat.
3. For each layer fill in only the outer perimeter of the peg board.
4. Iron each layer on both sides as you go.
5. For the top, leave a slot large enough to fit in coins.  Iron both sides.
6. Glue the layers together.

This is what I actually did:

1. Fill in entire pegboard for the bottom.
2. Iron both sides under parchment paper, until melted together, but not too flat.
3. For each layer fill in only the outer perimeter of the peg board.
4. Iron each layer on both sides as you go.
5. For the top, leave a slot large enough to fit in coins.  Iron both sides.
6. Stack all of your layers.  
7. Iron each side of the hexagon until the colors mush together and the surface is smooth.

Can't say my method was all that successful (not to mention a little dangerous), but in the end I'm pretty happy with the checker-box look.

If the box seems like too much work, make a 2D shape! Reconnect with your inner child - you'll feel much more relaxed after sifting through thousands of beads to find just the right color.