so what is kandi?

kandi are bracelets, necklaces, or anything else generally made with brightly colored pony beads. they vary in sizes, from small singles to huge cuffs! they may also have 'perler' attatchments, charms made by flatter beads called, you guessed it, perlers! which get ironed together.

the most common kandi type is the single- because it's just a single row tied together. they may or may not feature lettered beads with some sort of word or phrase! kandi ranges from simple singles, to complex or tedious projects like gigantic cuffs or panels. in general, 9mm pony beads are considered the basic bead for kandi, but really as long as you make it with PLURR in mind it can count!! (more on that later!)




how to start

to get started, you'll first need some materials. i recommend going to Michael's or any local craft store. There you can get string (get the elastic cloth type, never plastic as it rots over time!!), and they usually sell containers with a variety of colors as well as individual color bags. if you absolutely must, Amazon has some options as well-- but if you're going online, there are a few good kandi suppliers out there which i'll link!

it's good for you to get a few singles under your belt before starting anything else, but feel free to jump right in to the fun stuff! i'd recommend kandi lizards, an x-base cuff, or learning the peyote stitch! the latter two will help you when moving on to regular or 3D cuffs! Ginger Cand-e and Hazel Muffins have some good tutorials on youtube.


suppliers

beadtin

the beadery

bass head beads

jellibead

beadtin and the beadery are great for buying in bulk, while bass head beads and jellibead have really cool and unique beads! some other places to look include etsy, and im sure instagram has other specialty bead shops like those!

kandipatterns

kandipatterns.com is a great site if you're looking for ideas. they have many types of patterns, as well as a pattern creater. theres also a few tutorials and a forum if you have any questions! an active, albeit mainly young, community can be found there.


trading & plur

kandi has its roots in rave culture, in which PLUR is a set of principals and way of life that ravers follow. it stands for Peace, Love, Unity, and Respect. In recent years, Responsibility has been another key aspect that's sometimes added, making it PLURR. it's important to keep this mentality in rave spaces so everyone can look out for one another and have a good time! this can be extended to other areas of life. in general, it's important to be inclusive and unified.

PLUR is also the handshake used when trading kandi at raves or any other sort of event! tradeable kandi is worn on the right arm. when you go to trade, you form your hand into a peace sign and connect the tips of your fingers with the other person's-- "peace". then you both make half a heart, forming a whole one together: "love"! finally, you slightly spread your fingers out, keeping all fingertips connected for "unity". interlace them, and you get "respect". you can now trade! each person chooses one piece from their arm, and slides it over to your arm with your hands still connected. it's etiquette to not ask for a certain piece, unless they ask you first.