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Place your beads in the oven and bake them for about 30 minutes.  When they are done baking, keep them in the oven to cool for 30 minutes.  I have found that if you let them cool in the oven, your beads will be stronger and less likely to crack.

My beads are cool and I have taken them out of the oven and they are now ready to paint.

You can see much detail from the design from the rubber stamp that I used, but I think it would much more beautiful to accent the relief design.

My choice in paint is acrylic.  It dries fast, it's waterproof, and it gives me instant gratification.  I have chosen the color "burnt umber" because it will give my beads a rustic, rich quality.

Squeeze out a small amount of acrylic paint and cover your bead with it.  You can use a brush but I think using your finger is much faster and it really gets into the crevices of the design.  It is easier to do if you place your bead on the needle tool.  Since acrylic paint dries so fast I usually only do a few beads at a time.

Get out your paper towel and rub the paint off of the surface of your beads.  You will find that the paint has slightly stained the raised surface and has set into the recessed areas of the beads and have made them much darker.  The design really pops now.

After your beads are all dry you will want to protect them.  I recommend using Clear Acrylic Sealer.  It comes in different sheens, from matte finish to high gloss.  If you are using these beads for use in a necklace you should seal them just to be on the safe side and if you sell your work your customers will be much more content to know that your homemade beads will not stain their clothes.

Here is the result of this tutorial.  You can really see the stamped image and it is ready to be implemented into your next creative venture.

The next part of this tutorial will show how to make a "Roll-up" bead.