The bead-along view is a physical crafting assistant for fuse bead patterns. It takes the chart you have open in the studio and walks you through it one color at a time, so you can place real Perler, Hama, or Artkal beads on the pegboard without losing your place.
How the Bead-Along View Works
The view splits your pattern into color steps, starting with the color that covers the most cells. The current color is drawn bright with a circle outline, and every other color is dimmed to a ghost of itself, so your eyes only track one bead code at a time. Row and column numbers run along the edges like the printed sheet.
Click a bead on the chart after you place the real bead, and the cell gets a checkmark. When a color is finished, the complete-step button marks the rest and jumps to the next color. You can step back and forth between colors, and a reset button restarts the whole project. A progress counter and a small trophy tell you how far the piece is from done.
Tips for Placing Beads by Color
Sort your beads into cups before you start, one cup per color code, labeled with the code rather than the color name. The bead-along order goes from the largest color group to the smallest, which is also the fastest way to cover a board: fields first, details last.
Red dashed lines cross the chart every 29 beads. Those lines are the edges of standard pegboards, so a multi-board pattern shows you exactly where each board ends. If you are not sure how many boards the pattern needs, the pegboard calculator does that math, and the free perler bead patterns has ready-made charts you can load and follow here. For charts that start from a picture, use the image to perler bead pattern converter first.
Bead-Along Questions
Does the bead-along view need a pattern loaded?
Yes. Draw a pattern in the studio, convert a photo, or open a template from the gallery first. The bead-along view follows whatever chart is currently open, so it works on any pattern you can load.
In what order does the bead-along place colors?
Colors are ordered from the group with the most cells to the group with the fewest. You can also step forward and back between colors at any time if you prefer a different order.
Can I track which beads I have already placed?
Yes. Click a bead cell to toggle its checkmark after you place the real bead, or use the complete-step button to mark the whole current color and advance. A reset button restarts the progress if you want to place the piece again.
Does the bead-along view work for multi-board patterns?
Yes. Red dashed lines mark every 29 beads, which is the edge of a standard square pegboard, so you can see where each board ends on patterns wider or taller than one board.
Open the pattern studio, load or draw a chart, then come back to the bead-along view and place beads one color at a time.