Full 58 by 58 Perler bead pattern grid for shiba portrait, large grid, 9 colors

Advanced build

Shiba portrait, large grid Perler bead pattern

A 58-wide shiba. The pointy ears and cheek fur need the extra resolution to not turn into a blob.

dog pet portrait large advanced

Grid: 58 × 58
Colors: 9
Beads needed: 3,364
Boards: 4 boards, 58×58
Build time: 11½–13½ hours
Color card: Perler

The full chart is above, at actual size. Printing it, or exporting it as a PDF with a shopping list, is a separate step in the Studio — you do not need either to build from this page.

Make your own from a photo

Colors and bead counts

Sorted by how many of each you will need, so the biggest pile goes down first. Codes are Perler codes.

Code	Color	Beads
P249	Honey	2,309
P57	Cheddar	635
P01	White	263
P18	Black	143
P21	Light Brown	6
P12	Brown	4
P85	Gold	2
P02	Cream	1
P17	Grey	1
Total		3,364

Buy a little extra Honey — at 2,309 beads it is the deepest pile on this chart, and it is the shade you run out of first if you sort a few early. A handful of spares covers the bead that slips under the pegboard.

The shiba portrait, large grid bead pattern rendered on the Perler color card at 58 by 58, showing the finished grid — The finished shiba portrait, large grid on the Perler card at 58 by 58 — this is the exact chart the color table above is counting.

Building it

This is an advanced build by the usual bead-count thresholds — more than 600 beads and more than ten colors. Budget an afternoon, sort every color before you start, and do not leave it half-placed overnight.

Sort before you place. Make a pile per color using the table above. Seven to nine colors is the middle of the road — a handful of labelled trays keeps the build moving without much back-and-forth.
Work from the top-left corner. The grid orientation is fixed, so there is no mirroring to figure out. Row by row beats jumping around.
Iron with parchment. Not wax paper — wax melts and bonds to the beads. Perler beads fuse clean on medium heat around 150 to 170°C, steam off, slow circles, and lift the paper after 10 seconds to check. You want the holes starting to close but still visible.
Flip and repeat. Both sides means a sturdier piece, which is what a framed wall piece wants.
Mount it while it cools flat. If it is going on the wall, the back gets a short strip of double-sided tape or a small D-ring at each board corner once it is fully cool.

How this chart was color-matched

The photo was matched to real Perler beads using the CIEDE2000 formula in CIELAB space, then dithered with Floyd–Steinberg so gradients break into a bead pattern instead of banding. Plain RGB distance fails badly on skin tones and pale shadows, which is where most photo converters give you a flat beige face. Everything here was produced by the Beadful Studio converter — the same tool you can point at your own photo.

How the four boards come together

At 9 colors the four boards stay simple to manage — sort them into four piles labelled by quadrant, and you will not have to keep re-sorting mid-build. The seam between boards is the one place a large piece fails, so before you iron, press each board's edge against the next until the pegs click, then run your thumb along the join. Perler beads sit a touch loose in the pegs, so press each quadrant down with a fingertip as you place.

The shiba portrait, large grid bead pattern on the Perler card at 58 by 58, the four-board version — This 58 by 58 perler version is where the fur and shading finally separate — the single-board chart reads flatter at the same subject.

Questions about this pattern

How many beads do I need for the shiba portrait, large grid pattern?

3,364 beads in 9 colors. That fills the 58 by 58 grid almost completely, because the background is converted along with the subject. A standard 29 by 29 pegboard holds 841 beads and a 58 by 58 four-board layout holds 3,364.

Do I need a specific bead brand?

No. This chart was generated on the Perler color card, but every 5mm fuse bead brand — Perler, Hama, Artkal, MARD, Nabbi — fits the same grid, and the square boards interlock across brands. Match by color rather than by code, because Perler P01 and Hama H01 are both white but not the same white.

Which pegboard do I need?

Four 29×29 boards interlocked in a 2×2 layout, giving a 58 by 58 grid. Any standard 5mm square board works, including mixed brands.

How long does it take to make?

Roughly 11½ to 13½ hours of placement at 250 to 300 beads an hour, plus ironing. The larger versions are several hours of work. If this is your first build, do one board in a single session and leave the multi-board pieces for later.

What ironing settings should I use?

Parchment paper rather than wax paper, a dry iron on medium heat around 150 to 170°C, steam off, moved in slow circles. Check after about 10 seconds: the holes should begin to close but still be visible. Fusing both sides gives a sturdier result. Cool it flat under books for five minutes.

Can I change the size?

Yes, and you will need to if your board does not match. Load the photo in the Studio and set the grid width to 29 or 58 — the converter will rebuild the pattern against that grid and recalculate the color list.

Are these patterns free to use?

Yes. Viewing the chart and building from it is free. You do not need an account to look at any pattern on this page.

Other patterns

Corgi portrait 29×29 · 10 colors

Bead pattern for golden retriever portrait

Golden retriever portrait 29×29 · 11 colors

Shiba portrait 29×29 · 5 colors

Bead pattern for corgi portrait, large grid

Corgi portrait, large grid 58×58 · 10 colors

Bead pattern for golden retriever, large grid

Golden retriever, large grid 58×58 · 13 colors

Bead pattern for corgi portrait in hama colors

Corgi portrait in Hama colors 29×29 · 12 colors

← All patterns

Still deciding what to buy?

The bead size guide covers 5mm versus 2.6mm, the color guide explains what 72 and 168 colors really give you, and the board size guide lists every pegboard layout with its bead count and build time.