DENVER -- Even though I've been out of school for a number of years, at this time of year I can't help but pick up some "school supplies" when I'm out shopping. There's something about buying packs of notebook paper and pens that makes me feel organized and ready for fall.

What I'll do with a ream of notebook paper remains to be seen, but I've already figured out a fun project that utilizes the pens. The ones I bought, and you'll use for this project, are plain stick ball point pens. Be sure to buy the plain ones, not the ones with a built in clip.

I loved the idea of covering the pens in tiny seed beads, but not the reality of spending hours with a pair of tweezers placing individual beads on the narrow pens. If necessity is the mother of some inventions, more often than not, laziness comes into play for me when I figure out how to make something.

I realized that beads that come from a bead store, such as Denver's Bead Trader on South Broadway, are sold in "hanks." A hank is a number of strings threaded with beads and then tied together. The reason the beads are sold in this way is that for many types of beadwork it is much easier to transfer the beads directly from the strings onto a beading needle than it would be to pick up the beads one at a time as you would if they were loose. Therein lies the key to this project. Since beads are already strung, I reasoned there must be a way to take advantage of that. Here's what I came up with.

To Make One Pen

What You Need:

Stick pen
Several hanks of seed beads in colors you like together
Scotch tape
Elmer's glue
Junky brush

What To Do

1. Choose the color of beads you'd like at the top of the pen. Cut the end of one of the threaded strands from the hank of beads. Do not cut the other end of the string or you will defeat the whole point of the beads being threaded. Remove about 1" worth of beads from the one open end of the thread, set aside for another project. Use a small piece of tape to tape the thread end of the string of beads (which is still cnnected at the other end to the hank) in place at the top of the pen. Brush a thick coat of glue as fardown on the pen as you'd like that color of beads to go.

2. Simply wind the thread of beads around the pen, pushing the rows of beads snugly together as you go

3. When you reach the point that you'd like to change colors, simply cut the thread and remove a few beads as before. If necessary, wipe any extra glue from the pen, and tape thread end in place as before.

4. To start the next color, repeat as in step 1, making sure that the beads of the new color will fit snugly up against the beads of the previous color.

5. Continue until about 1" from the end of the pen. For the last section, begin beading at the bottom edge of the plastic part of the pen, taping the thread down as in step 1, and wind the beads up to the beads from the previous color.

6. Finish by cutting a 1/2 " length of thread as above, laying the beads in place. Let dry and then trim that last thread.

7. If there are any little gaps in your beading, use a tweezers and single beads to fill them in.

Variations

Starting at the top of the pen, taping the end of narrow ribbon in place wrap the ribbon all of the way down the pen (turn the ribbon slightly on a slant to get a tight fit) and then all the way back up. Tape the end in place. Then, bead a section or two of beads up towards the top of the pen, being sure to cover the end of the ribbon that is exposed.

Proceed as above, but first, tape to the sides o f the top part of the pen a cluster of small feather butterflies, a tiny artificial bird, some feathers, etc. Wrap pen with ribbon, adding another embellishment or two an inch or two down from the top of the pen by wrapping the wire end of the butterflies or ends of the feathers into the ribbon.