Crazy Maze Cane Pendants

Materials:

black or white Fimo Soft or Fimo polymer clay
scrap polymer clay
pasta machine
Nublade Kato clay knife
cyanoacrylate glue
needle tool
bamboo skewer
knitting needle
acrylic rod
buna cord or other material to string pendant
400- and 600-grit wet/dry sandpaper - optional
buffing wheel - optional

Steps:

Conditioning the clay
1. To condition the clay by hand, simply knead and warm chunks of clay in your hands until the clay is soft and pliable.

2. To condition the clay with a pasta machine, cut it into 1/4-inch slices. Flatten with an acrylic rod to a thickness of 1/8 inch. Roll it through the thickest setting of the pasta machine. Reset the machine to a thinner setting and roll through again. Reset again to a medium thin setting and roll through once more. Finish by folding and rolling the sheet through the pasta machine until the clay is soft and pliable.

Skinner blend
1. To create a Skinner blend sheet, cut two sheets of two different colors of conditioned clay to form right triangles of the same size (figure A).

2. Place the slanted edges of the triangles together offset so that about one inch of each triangle's diagonal edge remains untouched. Cut off untouched ends so that the two triangles together create a rectangle (figure B).

3. Roll the combined clay through the pasta machine at the thickest setting, making certain that both colors physically touch the rollers (figure C).

4. Fold the sheet, same color edge on same color edge. Place the clay on the rollers and roll through (figure D). Repeat until the sheet is smoothly graded and there are no streaks (figure E). This will render a Skinner Blend sheet.

Making the cane
1. Roll the Skinner Blend sheet tightly from one graded edge to the other. At this point, you should have something that resembles a shaded cigar, with one color at one end and the other color at the other end.

2. Roll the shaded "cigar" on the work surface as you move your hands from the ends toward the center. This creates a reverse reduction.

3. Press the ends of the cane in with the heel of your hand, then lightly roll. Repeat until the cylinder is approximately 1-1/2 to two inches tall and resembles a shaded fire plug.

4. Using the two previous Skinner Blend sheets, make each into a "fire plug" (short cylinder) (figure F). This resulting Skinner Blend cylinder is a most efficient way of storing blends for later use. To create a blended sheet, simply slice a piece from the cylinder, and using the pasta machine, flatten and thin the sheet to get the desired dimensions.

Maze cane construction
1. Roll a medium thin sheet of black or white clay. Trim to a finished size of 2" x 10".

2. Cut slices from the Skinner Blend cylinders. Flatten with fingers, then roll through the pasta machine until the blend is two inches wide.

3. Arrange the Skinner Blend slices on the sheet.

4. Randomly place leftover cane pieces on the sheet.

5. Roll the sheet tightly from one end to the other.

6. Compress the cane to squeeze out air pockets (figure G).

7. Force the cane into a triangle shape by pinching a ridge while pressing the sides of the cane to the work surface. Make sure the cane hasn't twisted. Flip to the next side and pinch the top ridge, then flip to the next side and pinch. Repeat, flipping the cane frequently until the ridges are sharp.

8. Stretch the cane to a length of 12 inches. Trim the ends (figure H).

9. Cut the stretched cane in half and press one half to the other.

10. Cut the combined canes into thirds and assemble the three pieces to form a six-sided cane. Using an acrylic rod, roll each side of the cane to refine and sharpen the corners (figure I).

Pendant construction
1. Roll scrap clay into a sheet. Cut thin slices from the constructed maze cane, covering the scrap sheet. Position, lightly press and roll the pieces flat with an acrylic rod (figure J).

2. Place the embellished sheet on second, thicker sheet of scrap clay. At this point, the total thickness should be about 1/8 inch. After each layering, roll with a knitting needle or rod to force air pockets from between the sheets.

3. Place this on a sheet of black clay approximately 1/16 inch thick.

4. Using a craft knife, cut the pendant shape (figure K).

5. Roll a sheet of black clay approximately 1/16 inch thick. Cut the sheet into strips approximately the same width as the pendant thickness. Wrap the strips around the sides of the pendant, lining each strip up with the front side of the pendant. Trim the ends neatly, smoothing the joint. Using the craft knife, cut away excess clay from the bottom of the pendant.

6. Using a skewer or large bore needle tool, drill holes where desired (figure L).

7. Bake the pendant in the oven following the manufacturers curing instructions.

High gloss shine finish
1. Under water, first sand piece with 400- then 600-grit sandpaper. Rub the piece on a soft cloth or paper towel to remove any residue.

2. Using circular motions, sand the piece on an electric buffer to bring out the high gloss shine. If you do not have an electric buffer, you may rub the piece on a piece of polar fleece to bring out a satin finish. If you opt to apply a water-based glaze, sand the piece first, as this will improve the finished appearance.

Pendant finish
1. Insert one end of the cord into the bead hole. If you have a gasket, slide it onto the buna cord so that the cord will not enter the bead more than half way through the pendant.

2. Apply a drop of glue to the other end of the buna cord and insert it into the opposite side of the bead hole until the ends touch in the middle. Hold until the glue "grabs," then slide the other gasket to the bead hole. If you do not have gaskets, just hold one end of the cord in the bead and glue the other end in.