Framed Art Deco with the CaBezel Molds

We have been creating more snap designs using the CaBezel molds.  These ones are a smaller size made from the Geometric CaBezel.  I recently discovered that my Art Deco designs work beautifully in these!

I found that even though the design was slightly smaller than the cabochon part of the CaBezel, it actually increased the size of the pattern without distorting it!

Since we make a lot of snaps at a time we like to be organized and we make batches of the Bezel Frames at a time in the basic colors (black, purple, blue, etc.) and bake them.  They go into a bin ready to fill with the clay designs and they are even handier now with the snap added to the back!  This way I can see which shape and color frame goes best with the design I am working on.

These CaBezel with the Art Deco Snaps are on the Softglass cord (mini tutorial here) and is cool how you can rotate the snap to create your own look.  This is something you cannot do with a fixed bail.

I like the Softglass cord but sometimes we want a pop of color.  We finally found some beautiful polished cotton wrapped cord in an assortment of rich colors.  We have added a magnetic clasp and snap pendant with the tube bail to create a gorgeous choker style necklace.

These snap necklaces are now available in our online store in a wide assortment of colors.  They are perfect for adding larger size snaps as well as the regular ones.

New CaBezel Designs in a Snap! - mini tutorial

I love working with the CaBezel Molds that are created by Wendy Orlowski.  It is such a unique concept where you can create a bezel frame from clay and then a clay pattern cabochon to fit inside -- thus the name Cab -- (Cabochon) -- Bezel.

These molds are sold through Shades of Clay and there is a wide selection of shapes and sizes.  I have just about all of them and now, Wendy has created some new designs -- CaBezels with holes which will be available at Shades of Clay very soon!  Wendy sent me some to test out and play with and I had fun creating some new stuff.  Apparently she is working on some smaller shapes that coordinate with these and I can hardly wait until they are out!

I have been wanting to incorporate the CaBezels into our Snap Decisions Collection and finally worked it out.  I don't know what took me so long as frankly, it was a lot easier than I expected and so want to share it with you as an addition to my published tutorial.  And in case you missed it, my tutorial is on sale for this month which you can read more about here.

One note is that it works best with Kato clay as I have tried this with both Premo and Fimo clay and found they were too soft.  So here is how you can add a snap to the back of your CaBezel design to create a piece that is interchangeable:

Step 1 - Place your clay onto a ceramic tile and stick it down really well so it will not move.  Spray your clay with water (for a mold release) and burnish the CaBezel (Bezel part) until you get a nice deep impression.

Step 2 - Trim around the outside of the Bezel with a scalpel or sharp blade.  This is where the ceramic tile comes in handy as you can turn it as you trim.

Step 3 - If you want the hole in your design, trim out the center portion as well.  I will be showing here 2 methods - with the hole and filling in the hole.

Step 4 - Smooth all the outside edges of your shape, if necessary.

Step 5 - Now slide your tissue blade under your bezel to remove it from your tile.  Pick it up and place it back into the CaBezel mold, placing it face down.  Here it is shown face up so you can see.

Step 6 - To add your snap, make sure it has been prepped first using method A (page 4) in my Snap Decisions tutorial and then add some liquid clay to the inside.  Push the snap firmly into the back of the clay bezel.

Picture A shows the bezel without the hole and I am inserting a snap with a bezel and picture B is with the hole and I am inserting a flat snap.

Step 7 - If you need help pushing in the snap, you can use a small shape cutter that fits just inside to give you more leverage.

Step 8 - The snap should be well embedded into the clay and flush with the back of the bezel as shown in the photo below.

Step 9 - While the clay is still in the mold, you can texture the back with a sponge, sandpaper or whatever you prefer.

Step 10 - I also like to add our signature stamp at this point as well and then you can clean up the edges by pushing against the side with your tissue blade.

Step 11 - Carefully take your piece out of the mold and poke a few holes with a needle tool into the clay above where the snap is to release any trapped air when baking.  Bake the piece flat using the snap support boards shown on page 21 of my tutorial.

Step 12 - Make your cabochon part of the CaBezel with your clay pattern by following the same method as in steps 1 - 4.  If you are filling in the center, you can use a solid color of clay or here I am saving the piece that I cut out and using that.

Place your clay design into the Cabezel (add liquid clay first) by following the CaBezel instructions.

Step 13 - To fill the hole and (A) to measure the size for the center, place the Bezel portion over the clay and lightly burnish to mark it.  Cut it by using the inside lines as a guide.  (B) Turn it over (right side facing down) and cut a shape out of scrap clay slightly smaller and place it in the center.  (C) Turn it over and with your finger, bevel the edges all the way around.  You can round the corners by pushing a blade up against them.  (D) Add some liquid clay to the Bezel center.  (E) Place your piece into the center and smooth the inside edges.

I decided I wanted the center to pop a bit more so added a Swarovski crystal before baking.  Bake again using the  snap support board to keep it flat.

And here are my finished pieces, added to a snap base on a cord.

Or you can add it to the chain style necklace shown in my previous tutorial here.

The beauty of creating your pieces on a snap is that they can be worn so many different ways making your design very versatile!  Imagine wearing them in other ways such as a brooch, on a shawl stick or even in your hair!

And here are a few more pieces that we created using the CaBezel molds with a snap:

Left-over Mokume Made into Interchangeable Jewelry Pieces

After making the buttons for my new sweater coat from KLA Originals (see my previous blog post here),  I had some mokume patterned clay sheets left over from making the buttons so I had to make a few jewelry pieces and snaps to coordinate!

From the same mokume stack I ended up with an end piece that had more of the navy and golden bronze and another sheet with more of the turquoise green.  I made a pendant out of each of the sheets to create two different looks.  I mounted a snap on the back so they can interchange on the snap pendant (with tube bail) on a braided leather cord in navy blue.

I could have made a separate pair of earrings to match each of the pendants but since my earring beads and ear wires are all interchangeable, I decided a set that was reversible would be best.  I can interchange them on several different ear wire styles and just flip them around to the side I want to wear.

And of course a navy clutch purse to add some interchangeable snaps finishes off the whole ensemble.

Creating an Interchangeable Snap Base Necklace

A little while ago, my friend Joanne and I got together to clay.  We made some textured rollers like the ones we learned to make from Bettina Welker at her workshop last summer.  I made two new ones (left and center) and the one on the right was the one I made earlier in the class.

The textured sheets (below) were made with the three rollers and I think I still like the first roller I made the best but now I have some ideas to make some more and will try again when I have a bit of free time.

In the meantime, I was experimenting with some different shapes to make into larger size snaps to use in a necklace.  These are some of the snaps I made from the clay sheets shown above.

I then figured out a way to make a multi-snap base necklace to arrange the decorative snaps on by simply combining some softglass cord, rubber o-rings and several snap pendants with tube bails.

To do this, cut the cord to the length you want your necklace to be.  I like to make mine a little longer and then trim it after if it is too long rather than accidentally making it too short.  Thread on an o-ring.  Because the cord is hollow and slippery, it is a little tricky to get them on so I insert a piece of heavy wire and hold it tight with the cord while pushing on the o-ring.  Next slide on a tube bail snap base pendant and then another o-ring.

Repeat this two more times.  Arrange the center pendant with the o-rings nice and snug against it to hold it in place.  Position the other snap bases on the cord the same way so they are evenly spaced. 

You can use Buna cord instead but I love the feel and look of the softglass cord.  I also like the interchangeable plug like clasps or joiner charms which are available at Shades of Clay.  Because the softglass cord is hollow, the clasps have a plug at each end that fit inside and hold tight by friction,

Here are the decorative snaps on the necklace arranged two different ways.  I am really excited about this and opens up more ways to wear our snaps!

The decorative snaps can be worn individually as well by adding only one tube bail snap pendant to a cord with an o-ring on each side to hold it in place.

When working with larger clay designs, our flat snaps work well for these so they do not add extra bulk and they fit nice and flat onto the snap base pendant.  If your pieces are very large (1-1/2" or larger), I recommend baking them on a curve and using the bezel snap for a tighter hold.  I share how to do this along with extra tips in Part 1 of my tutorial.