I'm going to share a few of the other designs I've created, giving you a brief outline of what I did and which colours I used.

I'd love it if you did the same... Just leave a comment below, explaining what colour scheme and design ideas you used, adding a photo of your finished box, so we can all admire it.

Hopefully this will inspire others to try out something different too!

So, here are my other designs...

Candy Cane

For this variation, I took inspiration from Candy Cane red and white diagonal stripes. But I added in a bit of gold to fit my personal Festive colour scheme.

To create this diagonal striped pattern you will need:

17g white DB201 (A)

5g red DB295 (B)

5g gold DB042 (C)

6g red DB654 (D)

You will start by using all (A) beads for row 1.

Then, in EVERY subsequent row, you will add 1(A), 1(B), 1(C), 1(D) and repeat that colour sequence throughout the row. Each row has a number of beads that is divisible by 4, so you should always cycle through all four bead colours repeatedly to the end of the row.

Let me explain how this works on the increase cycles. Let's imagine you are working on the first row of your cycle, with 3 beads in each corner (row 3 of the project). In the first stitch you will pick up 1(A), 1(B), 1(C). In the second stitch, you will pick up 1(D), 1(A), 1(B). In the third stitch, you will pick up 1(C), 1(D), 1(A). In the fourth stitch, you will pick up 1(B), 1(C), 1(D). See how you have cycled through the colour sequence continuously?

On the next row, you would do the same thing. So, your first stitch will add 1(A), 1(B). Then, you have a single bead along the side - 1(C). In the next corner, you will have 1(D), 1(A). Then your single (B) along the side... and so on.

Throughout the increase sections, your colour order on the beadwork will appear disjointed. There will be places where it is forming regular diagonal stripes, and places where the stripes turn into blocks, or change colour.

Once you get to the tubular Peyote sides, you will see this colouring creates regular diagonal stripes.

A word of warning: this idea is very similar to Cellini variation where the bead you add is the same as the bead you are exiting. If you're used to working that way, you will be tempted to start following that kind of pattern. BUT DON'T DO THIS!...you must resist that temptation and stick to cycling through your (A)-(D) beads on every row.

Then, you can use your (A) beads to make the bow.

Snowflakes or Stars

This design uses a charted pattern for the parcel, combined with a plain bow. If you would like the full instructions, you can download them in the next lecture, 'Additional Patterns'.

Holly Leaves Design for Ribbon

I created some patterned ribbon, using a holly sprig/leaf theme. I have given you all the details, with pattern charts, in the next section (Additional Patterns), if you want to try this.

I found this ribbon looked good on my basic spotty box. You can try other designs, or maybe even a plain parcel to make the ribbon stand out even more.

Holly Sprigs Parcel

I took inspiration from the holly leaves on my ribbon to create a holly design for the parcels. You can pair this with a plain red ribbon, or with a spotty ribbon.

In the additional patterns section, I have given you the pattern for both the parcel and the spotty ribbon. You might like to use the spotty ribbon for one of the other parcel designs.