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Make a cheerful Christmas tree keychain with colorful pony beads and this free Christmas tree pony bead pattern! Decorated with bright beads that resemble Christmas ornaments and twinkling lights, these little beaded trees are a fun way to bring handmade holiday cheer to your Christmas crafting.
Christmas ornaments with pony beads are fun to make and even more fun to share! Turn your finished tree into a handmade Christmas ornament, backpack charm, zipper pull, gift topper, or stocking stuffer. Choose your favorite shades of green and add colorful beads to give your tree its own festive decorations.
This Christmas pony bead craft is a wonderful project for family craft nights, classroom activities, scout groups, and holiday parties. Make a few for gifts, hang them on your Christmas tree, or attach one to your keys as a festive Christmas tree keyring. However you use them, these colorful little trees are sure to spread some Christmas spirit!
If you make this project please share your photos with us. With your permission we'll add it to the page and credit it to you.
Here is a fun idea for taking these easy to make characters to another level. Combine several Christmas pony bead characters into a handmade garland, holiday swag or ornament strand. Mix Santas with elves, reindeer, grench, Christmas trees and other holiday designs, then hang them from ribbon or cord, place them into greenery, or space them along a strand of Christmas lights. A beaded Christmas garland can drape across a mantel or doorway, decorate a wall or window, or wrap around a Christmas tree. It could even become a group project, with each person making a different character to add to the finished Christmas decoration.
People were sticking things together long before there were bottles of craft glue. Some of the earliest adhesives were made from natural materials such as tree resins, plant gums and animal proteins. Over thousands of years, adhesives evolved from these natural mixtures to the synthetic glues we use today. Modern crafters can choose from white glue, tacky glue, hot glue, fabric glue and many specialty adhesives—each developed to bond particular types of materials or suit different kinds of projects.
1 - Lanyard Hook
OR
1 - Key Ring
Cord - Approximately 5 feet
There are lots of different types of cord you can use for your beaded Christmas ornament. We prefer cord about 1 1/2mm to 2mm thick because it helps your Christmas tree keychain keep its shape. Alternatively, you can use a thinner cord and weave a little wire or a pipe cleaner into your ornament for extra support. Either method works, so experiment to see which you prefer.
Monofilament Cord
OR
2mm Metallic Cord
1mm Jute or Hemp Cord
OR
1/8" Satin Ribbon
Helpful Hint: If your cord end frays easily, try dipping the end of your cord into a little melted wax and smoothing it out with your fingers. This helps prevent fraying and creates a stiffer end for threading through your beads.
38 - Green Pony Beads (We used several different shades of green pony beads for the tree.)
7 - Assorted Pony Beads (Used as colorful ornaments on the tree.)
6 - Brown Pony Beads (Used for the tree trunk.)
1 - Star Pony Bead (optional and omit 1 green bead if you use a star bead)
Glue (We used super glue.)
Scissors
Ruler or Measuring Tape
1. Find the halfway point of your cord or lacing and fold it in half. Attach the folded cord to your key ring or lanyard hook using a lark's head knot, as shown in the photo. You should now have two equal lengths of cord hanging from the key ring.
2. Using the Christmas tree bead diagram at the bottom of these instructions as your guide, begin at the top of the tree with the star bead. Thread both cords through the star bead, then begin weaving the remaining rows. For each row, string the beads onto one cord, then pass the other cord back through the same beads from the opposite direction, as shown in the illustration. Gently pull both cords until the beads rest snugly against the row above.
3. Continue weaving the beads one row at a time, working downward through the Christmas tree pattern. Follow the bead arrangement and cord paths shown in the diagram, or using the row guide below to help you keep track of the number of beads in each row. Pull the cords evenly after each row, keeping them snug without pulling so tightly that the tree curls or loses its shape.
| Row | Number of Beads | Suggested Beads |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 bead | Green |
| 2 | 2 beads | Green |
| 3 | 3 beads | Green with 1 optional accent bead |
| 4 | 4 beads | Green with 1 optional accent bead |
| 5 | 5 beads | Green with 1 optional accent bead |
| 6 | 6 beads | Green with 1 optional accent bead |
| 7 | 7 beads | Green with 1 or 2 optional accent beads |
| 8 | 8 beads | Green with 1 optional accent bead |
| 9 | 9 beads | Green with 1 or 2 optional accent beads |
| 10 | 3 beads | Brown trunk beads |
| 11 | 3 beads | Brown trunk beads |
4. Continue adding the green pony beads and colorful ornament beads according to the diagram. The accent beads represent Christmas ornaments and lights decorating your tree. Feel free to substitute different ornament colors to give your finished Christmas tree its own festive appearance.
5. When you reach the bottom row of 9 beads, string 6 beads onto one cord. On the other cord, string 3 beads, then pass the cord with the 3 beads through the last 3 beads on the first cord (with 6 beads), going in the opposite direction. You will now have 3 beads on each end of the row, with both cords passing through the center 3 beads. Pull the cords until the beads are positioned evenly and the row lies flat. Too much slack will cause your row to sag, too tight and your row will curl.
Next comes the trunk. Thread both cords through 3 brown beads from opposite directions. Add another row of 3 brown beads in the same manner. Then take one cord and pass it back through the previous row of 3 brown beads. Both cord ends will now be on the same side of the trunk. Doing this will bring the cord ends closer together and make the knot less noticeable. If your cord is too thick to pass back through the beads, or you'd prefer not to finish your cord this way, you can tie a separate knot on each side of the trunk instead. Otherwise, tie the two cord ends together using a surgeon's knot or double knot. Apply a small drop of glue to the knot or knots to prevent them from coming untied. Allow the glue to dry before trimming the excess cord.
Your pony bead Christmas tree ornament keychain is now complete! Add an ornament hook and hang it on your tree, latch it onto garland, or attach it to your keys, backpack, purse, or gift package.
The Christmas tree bead diagram below uses red and blue lines to show the path of each cord as it weaves through the beads. Follow these colored lines to see how the rows are connected and how the trunk is formed. Click the diagram to open a larger image for easier viewing.
Have fun decorating your Christmas tree with different bead colors and finishes. Try translucent pony beads to create a Christmas ornament that allows light to shine through the beads. Pearl, glitter, metallic, and other decorative finishes can also give your tree a different holiday look. Choose traditional Christmas colors, bright multicolored ornaments, or beads that match your holiday decorating theme. Make several trees in different color combinations for handmade gifts, Christmas ornaments, or festive keychains.
Decorated evergreen trees became popular Christmas symbols long before electric lights were invented. Early Christmas trees were often decorated with fruit, nuts, paper ornaments, candles, and other handmade decorations. Your colorful pony beads can represent the lights and ornaments found on modern Christmas trees, making this little beaded tree a fun way to continue the tradition of handmade Christmas decorations.
Looking for more Christmas pony bead projects? Here are more free patterns to make for ornaments, keychains and handmade Christmas decorations.
