Bead-by-bead guide
Bead colors
- D Dark Brown 62 beads
- B Light Brown 83 beads
- W White 15 beads
- K Black 2 beads
- P Pink 2 beads
- R Red 2 beads
Written rows
Work the rows from the top: row 1 first. Each row lists its beads from left to right. "skip 3" means leave 3 pegs empty. Row 1 (5 beads): skip 5, 5 D, skip 5 Row 2 (7 beads): skip 4, 1 D, 5 B, 1 D, skip 4 Row 3 (9 beads): skip 3, 1 D, 7 B, 1 D, skip 3 Row 4 (9 beads): skip 3, 1 D, 1 B, 1 K, 3 B, 1 K, 1 B, 1 D, skip 3 Row 5 (9 beads): skip 3, 1 D, 1 P, 5 B, 1 P, 1 D, skip 3 Row 6 (9 beads): skip 3, 1 D, 1 B, 1 W, 3 B, 1 W, 1 B, 1 D, skip 3 Row 7 (7 beads): skip 4, 1 D, 1 B, 3 W, 1 B, 1 D, skip 4 Row 8 (13 beads): skip 1, 4 D, 5 B, 4 D, skip 1 Row 9 (15 beads): 1 D, 1 W, 5 B, 1 R, 5 B, 1 W, 1 D Row 10 (15 beads): 1 D, 1 W, 11 B, 1 W, 1 D Row 11 (13 beads): skip 1, 4 D, 5 B, 4 D, skip 1 Row 12 (7 beads): skip 4, 1 D, 2 B, 1 R, 2 B, 1 D, skip 4 Row 13 (9 beads): skip 3, 1 D, 7 B, 1 D, skip 3 Row 14 (9 beads): skip 3, 1 D, 3 B, 1 D, 3 B, 1 D, skip 3 Row 15 (10 beads): skip 2, 1 D, 3 B, 1 D, skip 1, 1 D, 3 B, 1 D, skip 2 Row 16 (10 beads): skip 2, 1 D, 3 W, 1 D, skip 1, 1 D, 3 W, 1 D, skip 2 Row 17 (10 beads): skip 2, 5 D, skip 1, 5 D, skip 2
This gingerbread man perler bead pattern is a smiling cookie with a dark brown outline: black eyes, pink cheeks, a white icing smile, white icing at the wrists and on the feet, and two red buttons. It is 15 pegs wide and 17 rows tall, so it fits on one large square pegboard, and it uses 166 beads in 6 colors.
Place the beads row by row, from row 1 at the top of the head: the small dots with no symbol on the chart are pegs you leave empty, like the peg between the two legs. The bead count for every color is in the list, so you know how many to set aside (keep a few spares).
Preview of the ironed gingerbread man
These pictures are previews made on the computer from the chart, bead by bead: they are not photos of a real piece, and nobody has ironed this gingerbread man yet. Each bead sits exactly where the chart puts it.
Up close: the eyes are 2 black beads on row 4, the cheeks 2 pink beads on row 5, and the smile is 5 white beads on rows 6 and 7. The white icing is 2 beads on each wrist (rows 9 and 10) and 3 beads on each foot (row 16). The red buttons are on rows 9 and 12.
How to start the gingerbread man perler bead pattern
Row 1 is the top of the head: skip 5 pegs, place 5 dark brown beads, skip 5. The face is on rows 4 to 7, and the arms stretch to the edges of the chart on rows 9 and 10.
Other colors
The PDF gives the classic brown cookie. The same chart works in other colors: pick your own beads for a light cookie or a dark chocolate one, one color for each letter of the chart.
How to use this perler bead chart
This chart is 15 pegs wide and 17 rows tall, with 6 bead colors: 166 beads in all. Every colored square is one bead on one peg; a grey dot is a peg you leave empty. Row 1 is the top row of the chart, and the written rows list their beads from left to right.
What you need
- Standard size fuse beads (Perler, Hama or similar) in the colors below
- one large square pegboard (29 x 29 pegs)
- Ironing paper and an iron (ask an adult to do the ironing)
Bead count by color
- D Dark Brown: 62 beads
- B Light Brown: 83 beads
- W White: 15 beads
- K Black: 2 beads
- P Pink: 2 beads
- R Red: 2 beads
Steps
- Place the beads of row 1 on the top row of pegs, from left to right.
- Continue row by row to row 17, checking each row against the chart.
- Cover the beads with ironing paper and iron them as your bead brand explains, until they fuse.
- Let the piece cool flat, then lift it off the pegboard.
This chart was checked by software, and nobody has ironed it yet. The colors on screen are close matches, not exact ones: compare them with your real beads before you start.
