6 Expert Tips for Creating Marbled Polymer Clay Beads

re: 6 Expert Tips for Creating Marbled Polymer Clay Beads

alisa1956 — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 17:28:21 GMT

mai sentito argilla polimerica :-( la si trova facilmenmte?

re: 6 Expert Tips for Creating Marbled Polymer Clay Beads

GwendolynsDesign — Sat, 23 May 2009 22:41:38 GMT

I just atarted working with polymere clay... My daughter & I took a class at JoAnn's. We are both hooked! She is awsome at createing the two-domed beads(?!?!) I cant get the nack - so i give her the clay & let her make those. I have been looking into more sculpted beading ideas. 1) I have searched my local library for books... if I really like them I write them down on my 'wish list' or go to my Amazon account & put it on that wish list... more likly to find it again there. LOL : Just snagged some 'bead magazines' for .50 cents each at a yard sale & always check out the thrift store book shelf! 2) I too have arthritus in many of my joints. On days my hand just will not cooperate I sew or read or design ideas. IF I am just itching to get to a project, I warm my clay (sitting on it works great - really LOL Remember to sandwich bag it - of course). LOL 3) OR I have my kids kneed it a bit for me. 4) Just purchased a pasta roller to do the work for me! Expecially when they are not around & want to create. See inspiration in everything - I found the clay to be rather forgiving... so just go for it!

re: 6 Expert Tips for Creating Marbled Polymer Clay Beads

tonjal — Mon, 18 May 2009 16:07:00 GMT

I have Ronna's book on must "Must Have It" list :) Love her work style.

re: 6 Expert Tips for Creating Marbled Polymer Clay Beads

Ronna Sarvas Weltman — Tue, 12 May 2009 23:36:20 GMT

I love using gold and silver leaf. It needs to be sealed or it will wear off. My favorite technique for capturing gold or silver leaf on polymer clay is to put it on a sheet of polymer clay (whatever color you wish), then cover it with a sheet of translucent clay that is rolled on the thinnest setting of the pasta machine. Then I run it through the pasta machine again or roll over it with an acrylic roller, so the translucent clay gets even thinner (and therefore more translucent) and the leaf gets a crackled effect. Using leaf in a marbled blend is more problematic, because as you're marbling it, it will break up. It can end up looking like little pieces of glitter. If that's the look you're going for, then go for it. But you'll also need to seal it or the leaf will wear off eventually.

re: 6 Expert Tips for Creating Marbled Polymer Clay Beads

RendaW — Tue, 12 May 2009 21:11:45 GMT

Any tips on adding gold or silver leaf? I hear opposing opinions, i.e. it burns away during baking, it bakes up brassy or tinn-y (?) but I think if it is safe to use, it should blend in and make beautiful marbled effects. Anyone tried it yet?

re: 6 Expert Tips for Creating Marbled Polymer Clay Beads

Ronna Sarvas Weltman — Tue, 12 May 2009 15:39:35 GMT

Hi Lindy. There is more in the book, but it's really simple. After the clay has been cured (baked) you can put it in ice water. You can do it while the clay is still warm, or wait for it to cool -- it doesn't matter. It will make the translucent clay more transparent.

re: 6 Expert Tips for Creating Marbled Polymer Clay Beads

LindyS@6 — Tue, 12 May 2009 14:57:20 GMT

Point 4 is interesting ! At what point do you put the translucent clay into the ice water.....?Do you have more on this in your book?Hmmm need to try this!

re: 6 Expert Tips for Creating Marbled Polymer Clay Beads

Ronna Sarvas Weltman — Tue, 12 May 2009 12:59:14 GMT

Hi all. What fun to have an opportunity to connect, chat ... and help. So let me just jump in and answer your questions ... Ellena, who is no doubt a sweet young thing but whose hands keep reminding her she's closer to 60 than 50, wanted to know about working with polymer clay without getting stiff hands. Ellena, have you tried working with Premo clay? It is softer than most of the other clays. Studio by Sculpey is the very softest polymer clay, but it is so soft that some people find it frustrating -- every little fingerprint shows up. Also, the more you condition the clay (squishing/rolling it with your hands or with a roller or pasta machine) the softer it gets. Finally, warmer temperatures yield softer, more malleable clay. Hopefully, these tips will fix it, but if your hands are particularly sensitive, maybe you want to save your clay play days for summertime? Heather asked whether my book is suitable for beginners. Although I wrote it intending it to be a guidebook for people looking to make art jewelry with clay, it certainly includes the basics, and the projects start with basic techniques and then move on to more advanced techniques. I was chatting with a woman the other day who got an advance copy of my book, even though she had never used polymer clay before. She said that although she was just looking at the book out of curiosity, she ended up running to her local craft store and buying polymer clay, and was able to not just get up and running, but was thrilled with what she created (and was already percolating about her next project). I think one of the happy byproducts of my style being primitive and organic is that most of the techniques are also quite simple. That being said, if you still find yourself reluctant to jump in, consider taking a polymer clay workshop, searching "polymer clay" on youtube or buying a polymer clay DVD. Sometimes just watching someone doing it can give you the jumpstart you need. Watching someone else do it gives you the "scaffolding" that enables you to then easily digest what you read and see in how-to books (and that goes for any medium) Let me know if you have any more questions! All the best, Ronna Sarvas Weltman

re: 6 Expert Tips for Creating Marbled Polymer Clay Beads

HeatherH@68 — Tue, 12 May 2009 00:29:39 GMT

Wow ! I love what I see. I have been making jewelry for a number of years & have sold much. However I do get bored & I have been buying clay & have a shoe box getting pretty full. My husband bought me a toaster oven BUT I have been unable to find a book or magazine that starts you out from scratch. Anything I have seen so far makes it sound like I know what I'm doing. I need some very basic advise to just get me started. Is your book for real beginners? Heather

re: 6 Expert Tips for Creating Marbled Polymer Clay Beads

VirtudeJ — Mon, 11 May 2009 19:32:53 GMT

You make polymer clay sound very intriguing, and as soon as I can I'll have to give it a try- and not just as a remedy for "Bead Guilt". But then "Bead Guilt" isn't always a bad thing: once the gulilt gets too much it forces me to pick out those old beads and make something- then usually it works out great as I re-discover the reason for buying them in the first place!

re: 6 Expert Tips for Creating Marbled Polymer Clay Beads

EllenaA — Mon, 11 May 2009 17:56:48 GMT

I've long been intrigued by the possibility of making my own faux "gemstones" w/polymer clay, especially as I often can't find what I want for a certain project. My last experience w/clay was so painful, however, that I haven't picked it up for years. Is there anything to make it easier to work for hands getting more arthritic as they get closer to 60 than 50?

re: 6 Expert Tips for Creating Marbled Polymer Clay Beads

marymedlin@hotmail.com — Mon, 11 May 2009 16:14:45 GMT

I would really like an example project to try out this technique. Mary Ann

re: 6 Expert Tips for Creating Marbled Polymer Clay Beads

Bonewear — Mon, 11 May 2009 13:28:16 GMT

Very informative, I'll have to give it a go!