Using Mixed Media with Polymer Clay Design by Lynn Krucke Many Crafters Have Discovered the Fun and Excitement of Combining Stamps, Papers and Inks with Polymer Clay
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FREE Using Mixed Media with Polymer Clay Design by Lynn Krucke Many crafters have discovered the fun and excitement of combining stamps, papers and inks with polymer clay. Now let’s take the partnership to the next level! The products and supplies used here are available at your local stamp, craft or art store. Polymer clay is so versatile —- the possibilities truly are endless! The Basics: Your work area - Tools (cookie cutters, pasta machines, baking sheets…) should be dedicated to crafting and not used again for food. Polymer clay contains pigments that may stain surfaces or damage finished wood surfaces. Do not place unbaked clay on furniture, flooring, carpeting, upholstery or fabric. A sheet of glass, freezer paper, a large ceramic tile, or a dedicated marble cutting board are all good work surfaces. Condition the clay - For best results condition clay before use. “Conditioning” means that the clay has been kneaded and warmed so ingredients are evenly mixed and the clay is flexible. If you have a pasta machine dedicated to crafting, great! Cut the bar of clay into thin strips and run it through on the thickest setting several times. Conditioned clay is warm, pliable, and has a soft sheen. It doesn’t crack along the edges when rolled in sheets. To condition by hand, cut clay into small pieces: knead and roll one of the pieces in your hands until it is soft and pliable; set aside, and condition another chunk —- then add to the first. Continue this way and you will soon have an ample supply. Don’t try to condition the whole bar at once. Tools and supplies - You don’t need a lot of fancy tools Here is a list you will want to have on hand. Other specific supplies needed are listed with each set of instructions • Craft knife • Clay blade (Sculpey Super Slicer) • Needle tool, awl, or toothpick • Pasta machine, acrylic roller, or clay-dedicated rolling pin • Coffee straw (in fact, straws of all sizes make great holes!) • Small spray bottle with water • Unlined index cards or baking parchment • Wax paper • Oven thermometer (yes, this really IS important!) • Baking tray dedicated to crafting • Timer • Oven mitt, pot holder Embossing Powder “Inlay” Pendant Additional materials: • Premo! Sculpey polymer clay- Black (5042), Gold (5303) • Translucent Liquid Sculpey (TLS) • Mini Molding Mat (I used Colorbox® Totem Blanket, 8759) • Embossing powders (I used Ranger® Adirondack Moss, Clay, Ginger) • Foam sanding block or wet/dry sandpaper • Shallow dish with water • 20g wire- black • Small beads • Stringing material (satin cord, ball chain or rubber cording) • Knitting needle or skewer • Round-nose pliers • Wire cutters Instructions: 1. Condition black and gold clay. 2. Roll sheet of black clay about 1/8” thick. 3. Spritz molding mat lightly with water. Place clay on the mat and press with fingers to impress the clay. Remove clay and place face up on index card. 4. Use Super Slicer to trim clay into pleasing shape. 5. Sprinkle first color of embossing powder into impressed areas. Add second and third colors. Use fingers to smooth surface. Make certain impressed areas are filled. 6. Bake image at 275 degrees F (130 degrees C) for 20 minutes. Use an oven thermometer! 7. Remove piece and let cool. 8. Wet clay and the sandpaper or sanding block. Keep sandpaper level with clay surface as you sand, so that embossing powder is not removed from impressions. Rinse frequently. Image will become “sharper” as excess powder is removed. Dry clay when sanding is complete. 9. Roll out a sheet of gold clay slightly less than 1/8” thick. Place baked image on the sheet of raw clay. 10. Tear around the image, pulling gold clay into an irregular border. Remove baked piece. 11. Texture the gold clay with a dry piece of sandpaper. Spread small amount of TLS on the back of the baked image; replace it on gold clay. 12. Make holes with needle tool on either side of baked image near top. 13. Bake entire piece at 275 degrees F (130 degrees C) for 25-30 minutes. Remove from oven and cool. 14. Wrap wire around knitting needle or skewer to make a coil that spans the distance between holes on your piece. Leave long tails at each end of coil. 15. Thread tail of wire through hole in clay from back to front. Place clay on work surface to bend the wire, and position coil across top of pendant. 16. Add beads to each wire tail and trim if necessary. Coil each tail snugly against its bead to secure. 17. String pendant and enjoy! TLS Transfer Greeting Card Additional materials: • Translucent Liquid Sculpey • Image for transfer (see note below) • Paintbrush (optional) • Container with water • Coordinating shades of cardstock • Rubber stamps (I used “Thank You” from A Muse Artstamps®, “Berry Sprig” from Hampton Arts®, “Lines and Dots” from Magenta®) • Fluid Chalks Inkpad (I used Colorbox® Dark Moss) • Stamp cleaner • 1/16 inch hole punch • Tiny brads (4) • Copper leafing pen (I used Krylon®) • Glue Dots or adhesive of choice • Craft knife and cutting mat or scissors • Ruler • Paper towels Note about TLS transfers: Transferring images with TLS opens up a world of possibilities. Transfers created this way are flexible and strong. Thickness may be varied depending on needs. Images (including original artwork, clip art and photographs) copied with toner on a color photocopier work well, as do images from some magazines. Inkjet images also work, but paper choice is important. For my inkjet transfers I use a matte photo paper from Great White® and a Hewlett Packard® printer. Be mindful of copyright restrictions where rubberstamped images are concerned. Many companies do not permit images to be electronically reproduced (scanned or photocopied). However, images stamped on plain paper with many inks do transfer. Color the images before transferring with Berol Prismacolor® pencils and the color will transfer too! A partial list of inks that work include: Memories®, Staz-On™, Fabrico®, Brilliance®, and Versafine®. Test your favorite ink before beginning a project. Instructions: 1. Select image. Print or copy as directed above. Cut out image. 2. Apply TLS to image. Thicker transfers will not be as flexible as thin ones. Note: I use my finger to spread TLS, but a brush may also be used. TLS can’t be cleaned with water, only rubbing alcohol or paint thinner. I keep one cheap brush dedicated to TLS and clean it with paper towels. 3. Bake paper at 275˚ F (130˚ C) for 15-20 minutes. Soak baked paper/TLS in water. 4. When paper is saturated, begin rubbing it away from the TLS. If paper remains, the fibers will appear whitish. Re-moisten those areas and rub again. 5. Cut coordinating pieces of cardstock to desired sizes for layering. Stamp images on cardstock with Dark Moss Fluid Chalks pad. Stamp “thank you” on scrap; trim, and edge with leafing pen. 6. Layer transfer onto stamped cardstock. Punch holes in each corner with 1/16” hole punch. 7. Secure layers with brads. 8. Use Glue Dots or adhesive of choice to adhere layers to front of card. Post-It Note Cover Additional materials: • Translucent Liquid Sculpey (TLS) • Rubber stamp (I used “Flowing Maple” from Hanko Designs) • Craft stick • Inkpads: I used Colorbox® Fluid Chalks in Burnt Sienna, Dark Peony, Deep Green, Colorbox® MetaleXtra Copper Swift • Stamp cleaner • Metallic Rub-Ons (I used Craf-T Products) - Color Kit#1 • Heat tool (optional) • Cardstock • Scissors • Ruler • 1/16 inch hole punch • Decorative fibers • Pad of 3” square Post-It™ notes • Glue Dots or adhesive of choice • Small piece of adhesive-backed Velcro® Instructions: 1. Place rubber stamp rubber side up on your work surface. Squeeze TLS directly onto stamp surface. 2. Use craft stick to spread TLS in an even layer over stamp, (don’t worry about perfect edges!). Make sure TLS layer is thick enough to cover highest parts of the rubber. You should be able to see the stamp image through TLS. 3. Let stamp sit uninterrupted for a few minutes. Check for air bubbles, and pierce with craft knife. Trapped air can lead to imperfections after baking. 4. Bake the stamp at 275 degrees F (130 degrees C) for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool slightly. 5. While stamp is still warm, gently insert needle tool between rubber and TLS along one edge. Push down gently against the rubber and slide the needle tool along. The TLS impression should loosen like it is being “unzipped.” Remove impression from stamp. 6. Dab inkpads directly onto the baked TLS. I used burnt sienna first, then dark peony and dark green. Use a heat tool to dry the inks, or re-bake for 5 minutes to set the inks. 7. Pick up a small amount of copper rub-on with your finger and smooth across TLS to further highlight texture. Buff away excess with a paper towel or tissue. 8. Cut a piece of cardstock 3-1/8” x 7-5/8”. 9. Ink the leaf stamp with copper ink and stamp cardstock. Re-ink and repeat as necessary. Let dry. 10. Remove backing paper from pad of Post-Its; position the pad 1.25” from one end of the cardstock. With stamped side out, wrap cardstock around pad, creasing folds well. Longer end of cardstock should overlap the smaller end on front. 11. Add Velcro® closure at overlap. 12. Punch holes in TLS and thread decorative fibers through holes. Tie knot and trim. 13. Use Glue Dots or choice of adhesive to attach the TLS motif to front cover. Bonus Technique #1 - Punching Premo! Polymer clay Additional materials: • Premo! Sculpey- Pearl (5101), other colors of your choice, including scraps • Craft chalks (I used those from Craf-T Products) • Alphabet stamps (I used Hampton® Art Stamps) • Black inkpad (I used Ancient Page from Colorbox® but others work as well!) • Clay-friendly adhesive • Paper punches • (optional) 12 inch ceramic tile Instructions: 1.