Penguin fuse bead pattern

About this design

Real penguins are black and white, but a black body inside a black outline would turn into one dark blob once ironed. Midnight, a very deep navy, solves that: it reads as black from across the room while keeping the outline visible. The white face is shaped like a heart, with a small notch at the top, and the orange beak and feet are the only warm colour, so they jump out. Two Blush beads make the cheeks, and a short row of Light Grey under the belly gives a hint of shadow.

Colour counts: 19 White, 110 Midnight, 74 Black, 10 Orange, 7 Light Grey and 2 Blush.

Placing the beads

At 19 × 23 beads the penguin sits comfortably in the middle of a large square pegboard. Fill the white face and belly first — it is one big block and quick to do — then wrap the Midnight body and flippers around it, and finish with the black outline. The flippers stick out by two beads on each side; check the chart carefully there, because the black line between flipper and body is what makes them read as wings.

Ironing and finishing

Ask an adult to do the ironing. Lay ironing paper over the board, use medium heat without steam, and keep the iron moving in small circles until the holes start to close a little. Peel the paper away once it is cool, flip the piece and iron the back. Cooling it under a book keeps it flat. Finished, it measures around 9.5 × 11.5 cm, a good size for a winter ornament with a ribbon threaded through one of the outline beads.

Colour plan

Perler 80-19001 White does the most work, 41% of the 346 beads, followed by Perler 80-15201 Midnight at 32%. Perler 80-15181 Light Grey (7) and Perler 80-19063 Blush (2) are used only a little: small details worth marking on the chart so you don't miss them. 21% of the grid is left empty.

Working notes

All the beads touch along a full side, so it irons into one solid piece.