Stamped Clay Jewelry

OK, I have to admit polymer clay is not the first art material I choose to use on a regular basis, but my kids love it so of course I get it out from time to time and while they are making dinosaurs, monsters and germs (yes, I said germs, I have a 6 year old boy you know) I take time to make some jewelry.

Stamps: About Art Accents, Clay: Premo (Sculpey), Paint: M. Graham

Brooches are my fave to make because the sky is the limit, it’s like a mini collage with a pin on the back! Here I rolled out Premo Ecru clay and trimmed it with a needle tool (you may want to use an X-Acto knife but I don’t like to have them at the table if my kids are crafting there too), then I placed the cut shape on a 1/8″ slab of Premo Black and trimmed the black leaving an 1/8″ border and finally I stamped my Geisha from About Art Accents on it with black pigment based ink (versacolor). I baked the clay per package instructions. After it was baked I painted it with M. Graham & Co. acrylics. The colors are intense but still transparent so my stamped art shows through. And I added silk flowers sequins, beads, cons and metallic thread because I wanted to, that’s why 😉

Stamp: About Art Accents, Paint: M. Graham, Clay: Premo (Sculpey)

I also made a couple of pendants in the same manner although I used a ball end stylus to make dots around the center stamped image then I filled them with paper-glaze and clear microbeads. I had intended this to be a mother’s day gift but I think I will give them to my daughters instead…maybe I can make a germ lariat for my son 🙂

Design By Lindsay Weirich, Stamps: About Art Accents, Clay: Premo, Paint M. Grahm Acrylic mixed with a bit of paper glaze and pearl ex

Sorry about the glare in this pic, the pearl-ex adds a lovely shimmer but makes it hard to photograph:)

Polymer clay tips: Always condition you clay before using even if it feels soft. You can do this by kneading it in you hands for a few minutes (if your hand are warm this works great) but I use a clay dedicated pasta machine to do it. They go on sale for $10 a a lot at Jo Anns.

Sculpey 3 is easier to knead and comes in fun bright colors. It is fine for beads and for the kids to use but Premo is much stronger and if you are making things that are going to be rolled thin and require durability go with Premo.

Check out yard sales and thrift shops for a toaster oven to bake your clay in to keep the toxic fumes out of your home oven (unless you really want to clean your oven every time you do a clay project…yup, I have a toaster oven:) And bake your projects on index cards or a clay dedicated pan.

My kids made these creatures using Sculpey 3 clay, I'm a proud momma!

Thanks for stopping by and until tomorrow happy crafting!

I spoke too soon…

Well, my superior vegan immune system didn’t completely protect me from the stomach bug the rest of the family got but at least I’m making a swift recovery! My friend, and fabulous photographer Tracy, tagged me yesterday (And since I didn’t get a chance to finish the craft I was going to share today due to an ill household) I figured today would be a good day to play along. So, to play tou go into the folder on your computer where you store your photos, go to the 6th folder and pick the 6th photo in there, here’s mine:

the 6th photo in my 6th folder on my hard drive

That is several sheets of polymer clay from a project I did a couple years ago. I was commissioned to make polymer clay leaves to go on a wedding cake. OK for everyone who is having heart palpation’s because I was using polymer clay near food calm down. The clay is non toxic AFTER cured. That’s why they say to use baking sheets that are clay dedicated on raw clay but after it is cured it should be as safe as any other plastic…bad point huh.

Polymer clay leaves by Lindsay Weirich

Since I have no new craft today  I thought I woulds share the leave with you. First condition the clay (knead it in your hands or in a pasta machine until soft) then roll it out 1/8" thick. Press a real leaf into the clay and cut out with an x-axto knife. Pinch around the edges with the leaf still attached to make it look like a delicate thin leaf and trim again with the knife. Remove the leaf and bake at 275 for about 10 minutes *Correction, these are very thin and will burn easily so bake them for about half the time the package says 8-10 minutes for Sculpey3, or 15 minutes for Premo at a slightly lower temperture on a bed of cornstarch (see comments) with a dusting of cornstarch on top.

So, want to play along? Post the 6th picture from the 6th folder on your blog and leave me a link so we can check it out!. To see Tracy’s beautiful photo click here.

Have fun and happy crafting!