DIY Rosaries in few easy steps

In a previous article we largely talked about Rosaries, one of the devotional objects par excellence. Saying the Rosary has always been considered a way to fulfill our Christian duties, praying without tiring ourselves out, as taught by Jesus himself. On the other side, saying the Rosary has always been a way to ask and obtain graces for ourselves or our loved ones, offering our prayers and thoughts for all men and their salvation in exchange.

We talked about a devotional object because we want to linger on how it is made, on what the various parts it is made of mean, leaving the spiritual value of the Rosary aside for a moment.

The Rosary owes its name to the ancient tradition of decorating Mary’s statues with roses wreaths. Form there comes the Latin word rosārium, “rose garden”, and then rosary. The Rosary is made of beads of various sizes, five arranged in sets of ten (decades), which correspond to the Hail Mary that have to be said; other bigger beads, which correspond to the five Mysteries, in conjunction with them we have to say Our father and Glory to the Father; a crucifix, while touching it we say the opening prayer, the Credo.

The structure of prayer

So, the structure of the prayer is more or less as follows:

• Sign of the Cross,
• Touching the cross with our fingers we say the Credo
• Moving our fingers along the bigger bead next to the Cross we say a Our Father
• On the three smaller beads that follow we say three Hail Mary (for the gifts of faith, hope and charity)
• On the following big bead we say the Glory
• Once we reach the crown we say the First Mystery, followed by the First Decade:
• On the first big bead we say a Our Father
• On the first decade of small beads we say ten Hail Mary
• On the following big bead we say a Glory to the Father and the prayer of Fatima
• Going forward on the following beads for all five Mysteries, which change according to the day of the week.
• At the end of the five decades, we say a Salve Regina, a Our Father, a Hail Mary and a Glory.

About the Mysteries, as mentioned above, they change according to the day of the week: on Monday and Saturday we say the Joyful Mysteries; on Thursday we say the Luminous Mysteries; on Tuesday and Friday we say the Sorrowful Mysteries; on Wednesday and Sunday we say the Glorious Mysteries.

Exactly for its ‘physical’ nature and its structure specifically thought to help with prayers running the fingers along the beads, it could be an interesting idea to make a DIY Rosary. Furthermore, making your own rosary, or make one to give it to someone we love, could be a devotion gesture itself, given the commitment, the time and the dedication we will put into making it with our own hands.

How can we make our own Rosary?

As we already mentioned, the Rosary necklace is composed of 53 small beads that stand for the Hail Mary prayers, six bigger beads (or of different color) that stand for the Our Father and the Glory, and one crucifix. Beads are held together by a string of various materials. The most used today is nylon.  You can easily find all you need to make your own Rosary in religious shops. You can even find complete kits to make your own Rosary, containing all you need: string, clasps, metal details and cross.

Create your rosary in a few easy steps

You need a string about 1 meter long. Then you will have to mark one point 15 cm from the edge with a pen or pencil, the starting point for your crown. Tie a knot here, big enough to block the beads you will insert. So let’s begin inserting the ten beads for the first decade, letting them go until the knot, then block them with another knot. Remember that when you’re saying the Rosary, beads must flow among your fingers, so leave some space among them.

After the second knot, insert the bead for the Our Father, which can be bigger or a different color. Repeat for four times, and complete the five decades. Now insert the last bead for the Our Father and close it up with a knot, carefully leaving enough string to finish the Rosary. There are more beads and the crucifix in the ending part to insert, to which we can add the connector medal that will split the Rosary in two parts. Insert now a big bead for the Our Father and fix it with a knot, then three small beads for the three Hail Mary, then another bead for the Our Father. Last, the cross.

There are many beads in stores, of any material and color, shiny or opaque. Beads can be wooden, maybe olive, or paler, like maple; but also colored and polished wood, or even scented wood. A more elegant and refined alternative can be beads made of resin imitating mother-of-pearl, available in many shapes, diameters and colors, spherical or oval. Below we present the products described, available on our site!

Grains in round olive tree to make DIY Rosaries. Pack of wooden beads for the realization of 12 rosaries. The grains are available in 4 different sizes. Buy on Holyart Spherical maple wood beads for DIY Rosaries. Wooden beads package for 12 rosaries. Beads are available in diameter of 10 mm. Buy on Holyart Black wooden beads perfect for DIY Rosaries. Wooden beads package for 12 rosaries. Beads are available 4 different sizes. Buy on Holyart Blue spherical mother-of-pearl style beads. PVC beads packs for 12 rosaries. Beads are available in diameter of 7 mm. Buy on Holyart Red wooden beads with peculiar rose scent. Wooden beads package for 12 rosaries. Beads are available in diameter of 6 mm. Buy on Holyart Rosary beads, pink oval mother-of-pearl imitation. PVC beads packs for 12 rosaries. Beads are available in 2 sizes. Buy on Holyart

Besides string and beads, to assembly a Rosary you will need golden or silver jump rings, and of course head pins for a safety clasp.

The center of the Rosary can be a connector medal. There are many types, silver or golden, with carved images of the Madonna of Fatima or the Merciful Madonna, with Saint Francis and Saint Chiara, with Father Pio portrait or the picture of Pope Francis. Below we present the products described, available on our site!

Oxidized metal Rosary Cross, Father Pio DIY Rosary oxidized silver metal Cross. With color image of Saint Father Pio on one side, and Mary's face on the rear side, metal. Buy on Holyart Ancient galvanic silver Cross, with carving of Pope Francis on one side, and Merciful Jesus on the other side. Buy on Holyart DIY Rosary golden metal Cross. Cross with color image of Madonna of Lourdes. Buy on Holyart Cross for DIY Rosary. Entirely made of antique galvanic silver with the image of the apparition of Mary to the shepherds of Fatima on one side, and the crowned Madonna of Fatima on the other side. Buy on Holyart

Of course, a big relevance is given to the metal cross,  maybe with golden finishings if you chose resin beads, or a wooden cross if you chose wooden beads, with or without Christ body on it, decorated with a dove or a Tau cross, or a polished silver galvanic cross. If the Rosary is meant as a Communion gift, for the Godfather or Godmother at Confirmation, you can find beautiful communion crosses that are perfect for that purpose.

Rosary case

If the DIY Rosary you plan to make is a gift, or even if you’re doing it for yourselves, it could be nice giving it a finishing touch with a rosary case. What is it? There are many types. It can be a wooden or filigree box, a leather case resembling a chest, or a coin purse. Other rosary cases are statues representing Jesus or Mary, Theresa of Calcutta or the Pope, to which you can hang the Rosary letting it fall into the case. A way to give more value to your DIY Rosary and to have it always in front of you, or to give it as precious gift to someone we love.

Here we will show you the described articles available on our website!

Rosary Case Silver 800, oval shape. 3.5x3 cm Box with filigree conveying an elegant openwork effect. The Rosary case can contain rosaries up to 3 mm. Buy on Holyart Table Rosary Case, natural wood heart-shaped, with statue of God's servant John Paul II. The statue is hand-painted and is an original product of the artisans from Val Gardena. Suitable for any environment, to store your precious rosaries or as a gift idea. Buy on Holyart Pretty Rosary Case with hand-painted statue of Mother Teresa of Calcutta. The Rosary case is made of natural wood and is heart-shaped. Ideal as gift, available in two sizes. Buy on Holyart Madonna seating with sleeping baby, in white porcelain, created and signed by Francesco Pinton, To be used as Holy Water Font or Rosary Case. Available in two sizes. Buy on Holyart White Rosary Case with printed image of the Miraculous Madonna. Practical Rosary Case pouch with zipper, perfect as gift idea. Buy on Holyart Rosary Case chest-shaped, handcrafted in real leather, with Baby Jesus image in the center. Available in multiple colors, practical and convenient, with zipper. Perfect as a gift. Buy on Holyart