Trying New Things: Sculpey Clay

Clay and Lace

I worked with Sculpey clay for the first time this weekend. For a first go, I was pretty happy with the results. I made few pendants and a couple of small dishes that can hold jewelry or such.

First of all, I broke of a chunk of clay and worked it until it was a little softer and could form a ball.

Then, depending on whether I was making a pendant or a dish, I rolled it out to desired size and thickeness. I have to say, if it was too thin, it didn't work as well as if it was a bit thicker. Could have been me though since it was my first time working with it.

Then I'd lay my vintage doiley over the top and roll that into the surface to make an imprint.

If you're making a pendant, make sure you poke some holes in the piece prior to baking to accomodate a chain, wax cotton or leather cord, or ribbon for wearing.

I put each piece in a glass dish and baked in the oven at 375f. The directions said 15 minutes per 1/4 inch- I'd say a bit more. However, my oven is gas and I think the fluctuation in temperature due to that had something to do with needing extra time. Now, perhaps some of you have worked with sculpey and can give me some feedback here.......I thought it would be hard upon baking for this time. It really wasn't though. It most certainly harder than when I put it it, but it could still be bent to some extent. I took each piece and and let sit overnight and everything was much better. Also, it seemed that pieces that were 1/4" thick or more came out of the oven harder. Anything thinner never seemd to harden completely. 

I love that you can press anything into the sculpey and get pretty texture. I even used starfish and shells on one.

I wore the first pendant I made to my grand-niece's birthday and my family made fun of me.  My mother said, "I like your necklace, where'd you get that?" and I told them I'd made it that morning. The reply was a little joking sarcasm from my niece...."What'd you do this morning? Oh nothing much....made myself a necklace." My mother wouldn't even believe me that I'd made it so I guess it came out pretty good.

I just strung it on some pretty gray ribbon and viola. I haven't sealed it with anything yet. Just left it plain. I'd be a bit afraid to get it wet, but I don't see that being a problem.

I like the ribbon too, because I can adjust the length depending on the neckline of what I'm wearing and that's nice to be able to do.

This project was not high on the difficulty scale. I was happy with the results and will be trying more.

Let me know if you've worked with it before and your results, and if my issues sounded unusual. If you have any tips for working with sculpey, I'd love to hear them.

Good News

The lovely ladies over on adorningschemes where nice enough to feature me yesterday!!! There are just so many nice people in blogland. Thank you so much Llora and Rachel. Hey guys, if you get a chance, stop over and show these two young ladies some blog love and tell them I sent you! 

Have a great Tuesday,