Melted Plastic Bead Suncatchers

Who, with daughters, doesn't end up with a big bag of random plastic beads from jewelry kits? We certainly have a bunch of those.

Saturday morning brought one of Squirt's favorite activities; staring over my shoulder while I browse Pinterest. When we saw these suncatchers, I new we had to do them. We had everything on hand and she could do most of it herself. It's a great still-in-pajamas project. 

Picture Source

When I went to the source I was disappointed that it wasn't a great explanation of what to do. Granted, it is pretty simple to figure out. The gist of it is this: 

1. Gather plastic beads and oven-proof dishes (glass or metal).
2. Preheat oven to 400.
3. Fill each dish with a single layer of beads making sure the bottom is completely covered. If there are gaps in the beads, there are likely to be gaps in the finished product.
4. Melt beads in oven for 20-30 minutes. Larger beads require longer time, while smaller take less.
5. Take out of oven and let cool completely. 
6. Drill a small hole about 1 inch into the shape. 
7. Thread string (or fishing line) through hole and hang. 

Pretty straight forward, don't you think? 

There are a few things we figured out in process that I'd like to pass along. 

• Transparent beads will remain transparent after they are melted, opaque will remain opaque (this was more a discovery for Squirt than for me).
• Coated beads (i.e. fake pearls) have a coating that doesn't melt. 
• Don't heat the oven above 400 or the plastic will reach a smoke point and start to burn off. 
• This stinks to high heaven. Seriously, there's bound to be some serious toxins and carcinogens going on here so pick a day where you and the kids can hang out outdoors while they melt and about a half hour afterward. Melting plastic can't be high on the list of good things to be breathing.
• As they start to cool expect to hear some crackling sounds. I figure this is the plastic pulling away from the dish as it cools. 

Here are the two sizes we made. As you can tell the clear beads are better at "suncatching," but Squirt is so happy to have made these by herself that it's worth it for them to be imperfect. If we were to do them again I think I'd only give her transparent beads to work with so the end result would be more sparkly.

They were definitely fun though, and a good use of otherwise ignored craft supplies.