Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Making Clay Beads At Home

Polymer clay is used in the creation of clay beads. Once you get the hang of working with the polymer clay you will be able to craft clay beads easily for use in your jewelry beading projects, and other decorative projects.
You have to soften a small amount of the polymer clay when you begin the process of maing the clay beads. Take a square of the material and soften it before flattening it with the palm of your hand. Once you have the material flattened you can use a pasta machine to create sheets of the substance that are uniform in thickness.

To make your clay beads different colors you should use several colors of polymer clay and make sheets out of each color. Stack the different colors on top of each other, and then roll the entire stack into a tube, like a snake.
You have to make the sheets of polymer clay thinner as you increase the number of them that will be included in the creation of the beads. Once you have the stack of sheets rolled up you can slice the polymer clay to make the individual clay beads.

You should use a piece of twenty two gauge wire to create a hole in the center of each of your new beads. You must make sure that the wire is inserted completely through each of the clay beads you have created. As you complete the making of the holes in the center of the pieces set them on a cookie sheet.
You will need to preheat your oven to 275 degrees before you bake the pieces. Once the oven has reached the correct temperature you will bake the clay beads between twenty and forty-five minutes, or until they dry out, and harden.
You cannot use the beads until they have been coated in a special clay glaze. You need to apply the glaze to the portion of the beads that is showing, and then allow them to dry completely before you roll them over to coat the other side in the glaze.

Once you have completed the creation of the beads you will be able to make many different jewelry items, and other craft items out of them. Because you control the thickness, the color, and the shape of the beads you will have unique items unlike anything anyone else in your area is using for jewelry creation.

Learning to make your own polymer clay creations, and wood beads, and other types of beads, for use in your jewelry designs, will give you a great sense of accomplishment. You will be proud of the pieces you create, and you will feel as if you have truly been the designing architect behind the pieces.

You can use the techniques that you know to help children design their own beads. Once they have designed their own beads they can help you to fashion them into pieces of jewelry. They will learn a skill that is quickly being replaced by plastic creations, and they will carry that knowledge with them throughout their lives.

Most clay beads that are made at home are made from polymer clay. You can use an old pasta machine to help you create thin sheets of the material, and then combine the sheets to create the clay beads. You can get more information at www.pandahall.com.

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