Textured Tube Tips

I have received a lot of positive feedback on the tutorials I've written and I'm always happy to answer any questions.  I've had some people ask if they can sell the beads or buttons they make using my tutorials and my answer is a definite "yes".  When you purchase any of my tutorials, you are free to make what I teach and sell it wherever you like.

I want to share with you a few new tips on making the textured tube beads from my tutorial.  Some people prefer not to have as large a hole in their bead and I explain in step 4 on page 3 how to prevent this.  Softer clays like Premo or Fimo tend to make a larger hole so if that is the case, then I recommend allowing your beads to rest for a few hours to firm up before texturing them.

The large holes are nice if you want to string them on thicker cords but if you want to string your beads on a thinner wire, you can "fill" in the hole at each end with some attached clay rondelles or embed some beads into each end before baking.

  

Here are a couple of examples showing finished pieces with metal and glass seed beads embedded into the end of each tube.

I've been experimenting with some new textures and if you find that a texture sheet is too flimsy, then try making a reverse texture plate from clay.  I had this scrap piece of fabric that was not going to work so I used the Sculpey Bake & Bend to create a texture sheet from it.  You can see my previous blog post on how to do this.   I am now able to use the texture sheet to create my tube beads.

I will show you my finished beads and more on this later...

Out of Space

I was working on a blog post today on some tips for making texture tube beads.  While uploading some photos I received a message saying we were out of space and I have to buy more.  They said it takes 24 hours to take effect so I won't be able to share it with you just yet.  In the meantime, wishing you a nice relaxing weekend....

Blog Debris Thursday

I cannot believe it is Thursday again already!  Sometimes I'm up in the night and can't sleep so I catch up on computer time.  I hate to admit it but Dave keeps reminding me it is more likely an age thing.  I came across this funny video on a friend's facebook page and thought I would share it with you today.  Dave and I laughed and felt she was singing about us.  I wonder how many hours I spend looking for things (especially in the studio) and he is the one trying to keep his mind sharp with all the crosswords!

New Lizard Tail Pieces

I have some tips to share with you on my texture tube beads but I'm not quite ready yet so in the meantime I thought I would show you some of our new pieces we created for our Country Charm Collection.  These boot bracelets are made using the Lizard Tail technique Julie Picarello taught at a workshop I attended.

I was also experimenting with some matching scarf slides using the same technique.

I love the "lizard tail" look and am excited to discover more designs using it.

Make Your Own Flexible Texture Plates

This is how to make your own flexible texture plate so you can use them right in your pasta machine afterwards.  For this technique I use ....

That's right ... Sculpey Bake & Bend.  It has some really good uses other than making bendable animals...  I found they make great texture plates -- and flexible ones at that.

I found these paper heart doilies at the dollar store.  I want to use them to make a texture sheet.

1.  First of all, make sure the Sculpey Bake & Bend is well conditioned.  I find some of the colors aren't quite as soft so I like to mix them until I get a nice consistency.

2.  Roll out enough clay in your pasta machine on the 3rd thickest setting (I used the #3 setting on my Atlas) that is slightly larger than the doily.

3.  Making a texture plate from one of the paper doilies won't make a deep enough impression so take a stack of about 4 - 5 that are "stuck" together and do not separate them.  This will add depth and make a better impression.

4.  Lightly dust the clay sheet with some cornstarch to prevent the doily from sticking.  I generally use water but with the paper that won't work so well.

5.  Change your pasta machine setting to the 4th thickest setting (#4 on an Atlas).  Lay the doily face down onto the clay sheet and carefully insert the two together into the pasta machine and roll through.

6.  Place your clay sheet facing up on a clean ceramic tile making sure there aren't any air pockets trapped underneath.  Lightly tap it so it sticks to the ceramic tile.  Carefully peel away the paper doilies and trim the edges all around so they are nice and neat.  Bake your texture sheet right on the ceramic tile following the temperature and time on the package.

7.  Allow your sheet to cool completely before removing it from the ceramic tile.  You now have a texture sheet you can use with your regular polymer clay over and over and it is flexible so can be used right in your pasta machine at your thickest setting.

These are a few pieces I made from my new texture sheet that I highlighted with mica powders.

You can use this method to make other texture sheets.  Here is one I made from a piece of vintage lace.

And some pendants I have made from it:

Oh yes, and another cool thing I found is the container from the Sculpey Bake & Bend works great for storing canes afterwards!

Hope you enjoyed this little tutorial and have fun with it!

Blog Debris Thursday

Today I thought I would share a fun blog I came across the other day.  It is Mich L in L.A.  Michelle creates fun jewelry pieces from recycled objects and has fun with it.  Whenever she finds a new object to create something cool she plays a game with her blog followers to see if they can guess what the item is.

Her latest piece is this cool "box" with a totem salmon fish on it.

It caught my eye as that totem symbol is very common here in British Columbia, Canada.  I have no clue what the object was originally used for.  Can any of you guess?  Hop on over to her blog and give your answer if you do.  I'm sure you will find it very entertaining!

More Feather Canes

We're getting ready for the Cowboy Festival and making more feather canes in different colors.  I made these using Donna Kato's technique in her book, The Art of Polymer Clay Millefiori Techniques.

Want to know what color combinations I used for these?  You will find the recipe numbers listed below in my new tutorial:  Carolyn's Clay Color System.

1.  Black Mix # 1-8 and White Mix # 1-2  (Silver clay for trim)

2.  Dark Golden Brown (see recipe below) and Ecru Mix # 2-8  (Gold clay for trim)

3. Olive Mix # 7-8 and Ecru Mix # 2-8   (Bronze # 2-16 for trim)

4. Teal # 8-4 and Ecru Mix # 2-8   (Shiny Copper # 2-15 for trim)

5. Grape # 10-4 and White Mix # 1-2  (Silver clay for trim)

6. Emerald (see recipe below) and White Mix # 1-2  (Silver clay for trim)

Recipe for Dark Golden Brown:
     7 x Mix 3-2
     2 x Gold
     1 x Black

Recipe for Emerald:
     2 x Mix 7-2
     1 x Pearl

I'm working on some new Bargello designs and will share those with some more color combos next time.