How to Make a Felt Flower Lei Necklace

Learn how to make a simple flower lei with this easy lei flower necklace tutorial! The step by step directions make it easy to make a graduation flower lei, or, a whole bunch of flower leis for a wedding, Hawaiian luau, or birthday party. Beaded felt flower lei necklaces make great party favors and gift ideas that kids can make!

Learn how to make a beaded felt flower lei for your favorite graduate, or make a whole bunch of flower leis (in any color combination you like) for a wedding, Hawaiian luau, or birthday party!

Making a beaded lei flower necklace is a wonderful fine motor activity for both kids and adults. Young children can develop the muscles in the hand to prepare for writing, while older adults can build hand strength and keep their joints moving smoothly.

Stringing beads is also a fun STEAM activity, find out how below!

Make some beaded felt flower leis for graduation, or, a Hawaiian luau, wedding, or birthday party today!

Related: Easy Felt Flower Craft

How to Make a Flower Lei Necklace

Learn how to make a flower lei with felt flowers and beads with this easy flower lei necklace tutorial! Flower leis are a great gift idea perfect for graduations & weddings and make fun birthday party favors.

You will notice there are a few different beaded felt flower lei craft and jewelry making supply options listed below. This is because there is more than one way to make a felt flower lei.

We like to provide lots of supply options for multiple age groups and abilities!

They type of jewelry making and craft supplies you choose will depend on the supplies that you have available, personal preference, and the age (or jewelry making experience) of the children that you will be working with.

Read the step by step directions below the flower lei craft supplies to learn more about the different flower lei supply options so you can choose the type of craft and jewelry supplies that you would like to use to make beaded felt flower leis.

The rainbow lei flower necklace pictured below was made with rainbow colored pony beads and felt flowers.

Related: How to Color Wooden Beads

Flower Lei Necklace Jewelry Supplies

Monofilament line (finishing string) OR waxed cotton cord OR needle and waxed cotton beading thread
Felt flowers – we liked these, these and these)
Colored wooden beads, unfinished wooden beads, and/or pony beads
Craft scissors
Bead board (optional)
Leather hole punch (optional)

Note: Unfinished wooden beads can be left raw, or you can color them by dying them or painting them. Learn more in How to Color Wooden Beads.

Felt Flower Lei Necklace Step by Step Tutorial

As mentioned above, there are a few different methods you can use to bead felt flower leis. Some of the felt flowers in each of the packs listed above have holes punched in them, while other felt flowers do not have holes.

If you use felt flowers without a hole, you will need to use a needle and waxed cotton beading thread to string your flower lei necklace together. Or, you can use a leather hole punch to easily make a hole in the felt flower before making your lei necklace, so the flower necklace is easy to string without a needle.

There is no need for a needle when you use felt flowers with a hole. Felt flowers with a hole punched into them are easy to string with waxed cotton cord or fishing string (monofilament line).

We chose to use a leather hole punch to punch holes into the few felt flowers that did not already have them instead of using a needle and thread. It works the same way a paper hole punch works with lots of hole size options.

Make sure that you have the craft and jewelry supplies that you need to make flower necklaces using the method that you choose from the flower lei necklace supplies listed above.

The flower Leis pictured below were made with felt flowers and colored wooden beads.

Related: Wooden Bead Bracelet Tutorial

Step 1 – Create a bead and flower pattern for each felt flower lei necklace

Choose beads, flowers, and colors and create a pattern that you would like to use to make a beaded felt flower lei necklace. We like to use a beadboard to help plan and make beaded necklaces.

The length of each flower lei necklace should be between 26 and 42 inches. Shorter flower leis (26 – 32 inches) are best for toddlers, preschoolers and kindergarteners, while longer flower leis (32 – 42 inches) are best for older kids, teens, and adults.

Personally, I like my felt flower lies to be about 34-36 inches long, while my kindergartener likes them about 28-30 inches long, and my husband likes them 38-42 inches long.

Step 2 – Cut a thread, cord, or string

Cut a strand of monofilament line (fishing string), waxed cotton cord, or waxed cotton beading thread at least 10 inches longer than you need to make your flower lei.

The idea is to make sure that there is enough room to finish beading the felt flower lei necklace, and, enough string remaining to tie the flower lei necklace together once it is finished.

Remember, when there are holes in the felt flowers, use monofilament line, waxed cotton cord, or a needle and waxed cotton beading thread to string felt flower leis.

If there are no holes in the felt flowers, use a needle and waxed cotton thread to string flower lei necklaces. Or, use a leather hole punch to make a hole in the felt flower before stringing flower leis.

Step 3 – Tie a bead on one end of beading string

Tie a bead to one end of beading string. This bead will stop the beads and felt flowers from falling off of the beading line as you string them, and will be cut off after you tie the flower lie necklace together.

Step 4 – String beads and felt flowers onto beaded felt flower lei necklace

Invite children to string felt flower necklaces. Use the pattern created in step 1, or string them onto the beading string at random. If you choose to string the beads randomly, a good tip is to keep the flowers evenly spaced.

Count the number of beads between each felt flower if the beads are the same size, or, measure each beaded section to make sure that they are about the same length. We recommend leaving an inch to no more than 3 inches between each flower.

Step 5 – Tie ends of monofilament line together to finish flower lei

With one hand grab onto the open end of the felt flower necklace, with the other hand grab a hold of the bead at the end of the beading line that you first tied onto the string in step 3.

Being careful not to drop either end, gently shake the beads far enough away from the bead tied to the end in order to have enough room to tie the flower leis together.

Be careful not to tie the flower necklace too tight. Make sure there is enough room for the flowers and beads to slide around a bit so the lei drapes comfortably. About 1/2 to 1 inch of space left between the beads should be about right.

Flower Lei Necklace Examples Made with Felt Flowers and Wooden Beads

The flower lei necklaces pictured below were made with felt flowers and colored wooden beads. Remember, you can also paint or dye unfinished wooden beads any color you like using 3 easy methods. Click the link to learn how!

Lei Flower Necklace Examples Made with Felt Flowers and Pony Beads

Each of the lei flower necklace examples pictured below is made with felt flowers and pony beads.

Rainbow Flower Lei Necklace Idea

We used felt flowers and rainbow colored pony beads to string the rainbow flower lei necklace pictured below.

Related: Frozen-Inspired Olaf Ornament

Frozen-Inspired Lei Flower Necklace Idea

My daughter and I thought blue felt flowers looked a lot like snowflakes when strung with light blue pony beads, so we made a lei necklace inspired by the movie Frozen.

You may also like our Frozen-Inspired Snowstorm Sensory Bottle!

How is Making beaded felt flower Necklaces Educational?

Creating, measuring, and stringing beads is a pre-literacy and STEAM activity for Kids.

As far as pre-literacy goes, making a beaded felt flower lei is a wonderful way to help young children (toddlers, preschoolers, and kindergarteners) to develop the fine motor muscles in the hand to prepare for writing while working with and recognizing patterns can help children learn to read.

STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Math) activities are projects that combine at least two of the disciplines listed. Combining types of learning activities into one project, such as stringing flower leis, can make learning more fun for kids from toddlers to teens!

Why not invite children to measure, count beads, create patterns, and string beads as a part of their homeschool education!

Making a lei necklace can require children to count and measure (math), create and recognize patterns (literacy, math, engineering, art), and string beads (literacy, math, engineering, art, science).

Did I stump you when I mentioned that stringing beads has a science component?

Don’t forget gravity… Stringing beads is really hard without it! As they work, ask your children to imagine stringing beads in space. I got a good laugh out of my daughter. 🙂

Shh… don’t tell them that they are learning. It’ll be our little secret. 😉

More STEAM Projects and Activities for Kids

More Homemade Necklaces and Bead Stringing Ideas for Kids

Homemade Felt Flower Lei Necklace

Make a beaded felt flower lei for your favorite graduate, or make a whole bunch of flower leis (in any color combination you like) for a wedding, Hawaiian luau, or birthday party!

Making a beaded felt flower lei is a wonderful pre-literacy and STEAM activity for both kids and adults. Young children can develop the muscles in the hand to prepare for writing, while older adults can keep their joints moving smoothly.