DIY Network

Polymer Clay Ornament Visit DIY's Craft Lab to learn how to create a polymer clay ornament. From "Craft Lab" episode DCLB-165

Guest Karen Hardy joins host Jennifer Perkins and demonstrates how to create a quilt-style cane to apply to ornaments to make your own special holiday ornaments.

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	Guest Karen Hardy cuts and applies quilt-style cane pieces...
	to an ornament to create a special clay ornament.
	Figure A

Project designed by Karen Hardy.

Materials:

polymer clay—green, magenta and yellow
knitting needle
permanent marker
blade
acrylic roller
glass ball
TLS Liquid Sculpey
egg lathe, optional
Polymer Clay Express Extruder Gun and Small Shapes Extruder Accessory
Quilting Disk Sets for Clay Gun (Triangle #20 and Square #17)
work surface
sandpaper
varnish (one safe for polymer clay)

Polymer Clay Ornament

1. Make sure your clay is very well conditioned (squishy). Decide what colors and shapes your finished ornament will be.

2. Load the Clay Gun and extrude the shapes. You will extrude four green squares, one yellow square, four magenta triangles and four green triangles. Put the yellow square in the center and stack one green square on each side of it and one on top in the middle. Put the triangles together (magenta to green) and place these squares magenta side "in" on either side of the center green block. Flip cane over and repeat on this side too. Allow it to rest for a few hours until cool.

3. Reduce the cane to the size and shape you will be using and allow to rest again until cool and firm.

4. Remove the top of the ornament and place in lathe. Mark the guidelines with the permanent marker to help in placing the canes.

5. Apply a very thin coat of TLS to help "glue" the pieces on.

6. Take a scrap piece of paper and measure around the ornament. Then fold in half and then in fourths and keep going until you get the size of the cane you want. Then unfold the paper and you will count how many can squares you will need to cover the center of the ball.

7. Cut fairly thick slices of cane and apply to the center of the ball. Taper the cane and make slices to cover the ends (figure A).

8. Use a blade to even out cane slices on the ornament.

9. Use the acrylic roller and the knitting needle to smooth the surface and remove the join lines.

10. Bake the ornament on a layer of polyester batting per the manufacturer's instructions.

11. To sand the ornament, immerse ornament in water with a few drops of dishwashing liquid in it. Use wet/dry sandpaper starting with appropriate grit depending on the smoothness of your ornament (start with 400-grit). Sand underwater to avoid breathing in dust. Continue using finer grits until satisfied.

12. You can now either buff with a muslin wheel or vanish with a polymer clay friendly varnish, such as Flecto Varthane (water based only) or FIMO Glazes.

    Tip: You can use quilting books for inspiration on what colors and patterns to you for your canes.

RESOURCES :

All Items
Polymer Clay Express
Website: www.polymerclayexpress.com

GUESTS :

Karen Hardy
Karen Hardy Designs
E-mail: hardymama@adelphia.net
Website: www.karenhardydesigns.com