Shamrock
designed by Evelyn McDermand

Level: Advanced

Materials:
1 1/2 yards cord or plastic lacing
48 green pony beads

Special Instructions:
We recommend using a stiffer string such as Darice Plastic Canvas Metallics Cord, Enterprise Art's black cord (that comes with their Beady Kits or can be ordered separately), or wire to do this project, or it will be limp and not look like a shamrock. Plastic lacing may also be used.

Begin without a lanyard hook. If you want a lanyard hook on the piece, after following steps 1-2 for the first petal, loop one cord up above bead 8, hook a lanyard onto it, and then weave the cord back through bead 8 one more time.

First Petal:
1. String 14 beads on the cord. They should be in the middle of the cord. Put the end of the cord back through bead 1.
Note: These cords have been drawn different colors so you could see the string path more clearly, but they are all the same cord.
2. Skip beads 2-7 and weave both cords through bead 8. This is the point where you can add the lanyard.
3. One string will go through beads 14 and 1, the other string will go through beads 2 and 1.
4. Pull together, forming a heart shape. You decide how tight you want to pull it so it still looks like a heart.

Second and Third Petals:
1. String 14 beads on one cord. Make a circle by weaving the same cord back through beads 1 and 2.
2. Weave the same cord up through bead 8.
3. Weave the cord through beads 14 and 1.
4. Pull together to form a heart shape.
Repeat this with the other cord for the third petal.

From this point it is just simply weaving one bead on at a time for the stem of the shamrock. 5-6 beads should make an adequate stem.