Product Review: Cousin Beads

I have the privilege of reviewing these beautiful beads sent to me by Cousin.

This family owned and operated company began in 1970 as Enterprise Art, a retail company in Largo, Florida. The success lead the way for Cousin, a wholesale division. Today they are a premier wholesaler of jewelry making supplies.

You may have seen the Cousin brand displayed at fine stores such as Michael’s, Jo-Ann’s, Hancock Fabrics, and Wal-Mart, just to name a few.

Cousin has a wide variety of beautiful beads to choose from. Take a look at the beads they were so kind to send me.

Blue is my favorite color, so naturally these are my favorite of the beads I was sent. Look at the stunning color of these glass beads. They remind me of a deep blue lake with the sun shinning upon it making it sparkle like diamonds underneath its warm rays.

These glass beads are stunning in both color and detail. They make me think of a bride. I can see a beautiful bracelet made out of these beads adorning the wrist of a bride a she walks down the aisle to be united with her awaiting groom. These beads would be perfect for wedding jewelry.

I like the shape and color of these beads. These are glass beads, but they resemble delicate chunks of stone.

Look at how beautiful these are! They are gray and transparent, but, you can seen a variety of colors, depending on how the light hits them.

I like the red and black colors of these glass beads. The petite size is perfect for making jewelry that will sit gracefully on the neck or wrist depending on if you want to make a beautiful necklace, or bracelet.

I am very impressed with this brand of beads. A supply catalog was included with the beads. It is filled with all kinds of beautiful beads in various colors, and styles, as well as charms, and jewelry making components. I can see this being a brand I add to my favorites of brands to use in my jewelry making projects. Speaking of, do you want to see what I make with these lovely beads? I will post a second blog post and show you!

You can find all of the beads in this post, plus many more by visiting the Cousin website. Take a look for yourself and see what beautiful beads awaits you!

Special thanks to Cousin for supplying these beautiful beads for the review!

These DIY Christmas earrings are festive, giftable, and fun to make, with tutorials using beads, polymer clay, wire, resin, faux leather, paper beads, and jingle bells.

Christmas earrings are one of those tiny holiday crafts that manage to do a lot of heavy lifting. They use up little bits from the craft stash, they make sweet handmade gifts, and they add just enough festive cheer without requiring you to wear a full tinsel jumper to the school concert, office lunch, or Christmas market. Though, let’s be honest, I do admire anyone brave enough to go full tinsel.

I have always loved handmade Christmas jewelry because it feels personal without becoming a giant project. You can sit down with a cup of tea, a small tray of beads or clay, and make a pair of earrings in an afternoon. They are also brilliant for last-minute gifts, stocking stuffers, teacher presents, market stall makes, or those “oh no, I need something festive for tomorrow” moments we all pretend not to have.

This roundup brings together 10 DIY Christmas earring tutorials using different jewelry-making techniques, including polymer clay earrings, beaded Christmas earrings, wire-wrapped earrings, resin studs, faux leather earrings, paper bead earrings, and jingle bell earrings. Some are playful and cute, some are more elegant, and a few are perfect for beginners who are still getting comfortable with jump rings and ear wires.

For basic earring construction, the simple bead-and-eye-pin style in this Elegant Easy Earrings tutorial from CraftBits is a handy refresher before you start adding Christmas trees, bells, snowflakes, and candy canes.

DIY Christmas Earrings To Make, Wear, And Gift

1. Santa And Candy Cane Christmas Earrings

These faux leather Christmas earrings are a lovely one for Cricut crafters, especially if you like earrings that are lightweight but still big enough to make a festive statement. The tutorial includes Santa and candy cane designs, so you can make a matching pair or create a little batch for gifts. I like this one for teenagers, teachers, and anyone who loves a bold Christmas accessory without the weight of chunky beads.

2. Polymer Clay Candy Cane Earrings

These polymer clay candy cane earrings are cheerful, colourful, and very beginner-friendly. The classic red and white version is perfect for Christmas, but the tutorial also shows how easy it is to play with non-traditional colours if you fancy something a bit brighter. These would be a cute project for older kids or teens to make as handmade Christmas gifts.

3. Whimsical Wire Candy Cane Earrings

If you enjoy wirework, these candy cane earrings are a clever little holiday project. The tutorial uses wrapped wire to create a striped candy cane effect, and the result looks much more polished than the supply list suggests. This is a good one for using up coloured craft wire and making earrings that are festive without being overly bulky.

4. Christmas Tree Earrings Using A Triangle Bead

These stylised Christmas tree earrings are a lovely option if you want something a little more elegant than novelty earrings. The design uses a triangle bead, bicones, chain, eye pins, and a star bead to create a tree shape that still feels jewelry-like. I can see these being beautiful in emerald green and gold, or even icy silver and clear crystal for a winter party look.

5. Wire Wrapped Christmas Tree Earrings

These wire-wrapped Christmas tree earrings have that handmade artisan look without being too intimidating. The tutorial uses wire, beads, headpins, ear wires, and basic jewelry pliers, making it a good next-step project for anyone who has already made simple dangle earrings. They would be lovely with gemstone beads, glass beads, or even sparkly crystal cubes.

6. Paper Bead Christmas Tree Earrings

Paper bead earrings are such a sweet stash-busting idea, and these Christmas tree earrings are a clever way to turn holiday paper into wearable jewelry. You only need scrapbook paper, glue, glaze, head pins, decorative beads, and ear wires, so it is inexpensive and very accessible. This is a lovely one for crafters who enjoy recycled or low-cost Christmas projects.

7. Christmas Glitter Resin Stud Earrings

These glitter resin stud earrings are perfect if you prefer small festive earrings rather than big dangling ones. The tutorial uses resin and glitter to create a polished, giftable finish, and it also includes pendant ideas if you want to make matching pieces. These would make pretty handmade gifts for co-workers, sisters, nieces, or anyone who loves a bit of Christmas sparkle.

8. Jingle Bell Cluster Earrings

Nothing says Christmas quite like jingle bells, and these cluster earrings are quick, cheerful, and beginner-friendly. They only need a few basic jewelry supplies and are ideal if you want something festive you can make in multiples. These are fun for Christmas parties, market stalls, or those days when your earrings need to announce your holiday mood before you even speak.

9. Jingle Bell Jewelry Set Tutorial

This tutorial includes jingle bell earrings as part of a matching jewelry set, which makes it especially handy if you like coordinated handmade accessories. The earrings use chain, jump rings, bells, and ear wires, so it is a simple construction project with a big festive payoff. I like this one for handmade Christmas party jewelry because it has movement, sparkle, and sound.

10. Snow In The Forest Christmas Tree Earrings

These snow-in-the-forest earrings are a pretty beaded Christmas tree design using green crystal beads, snowflake charms, ear wires, and sterling silver wire. They feel more winter woodland than novelty Christmas, which makes them easy to wear throughout December and even into January. This tutorial was also featured on CraftGossip’s Jewelry Making section as a lovely handmade gift idea.

More Christmas Jewelry Making Ideas

Once you start making Christmas earrings, it is very easy to fall into the “just one more pair” trap. One pair for Christmas lunch, one pair for gifting, one pair for the neighbour, one pair because the red beads were already on the table… and suddenly you have a full festive jewelry collection sitting next to your coffee mug.

If you are new to jewelry making, start with the jingle bell earrings or simple candy cane bead earrings. If you already enjoy wirework, try the wire-wrapped Christmas trees or the wrapped wire candy canes. And if your craft room has a little bit of everything, this is a wonderful excuse to pull out the polymer clay, resin, faux leather, paper scraps, beads, and findings.

Handmade Christmas earrings are small, useful, and full of personality, which is exactly the sort of Christmas crafting I love most. They do not take over the dining table for three weeks, they do not require a storage tub of supplies, and they make people smile the moment they are worn.

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