Project designed by Lisa Pavelka.
Materials:
Premo Sculpey polymer clay
- three blocks of black
- one block of white
- one block of violet
Jones Tones decorative foil: "swirl"
Kemper tools - small circle cutter - optional
Deeply-textured button or rubber stamp
work surface - a 12" x 12" or 8" x 8" smooth ceramic tile makes an ideal work and baking surface
pasta machine
scissors
toothpick
ruler - optional
Steps:
1. Condition two blocks of black clay by kneading. Slightly flatten the clay with hands and roll through the largest setting of the pasta machine. Cut the sheet in half. Roll each half through the third largest setting on the pasta machine.
2. Cut several dozen irregularly sized strips of decorative foil. Lay the foil strips (pattern side up) on the clay, leaving black clay exposed between the strips.
3. Press the foil onto the clay and burnish it with fingers or a flat item like a ruler. Be careful not to press fingers or the ruler into to the clay, denting it.
4. Using a blow dryer on a high setting or an embossing gun, heat the foil for three to five seconds. Be sure to hold the heating tool six to eight inches away from the clay. It's important to only "flash" heat the foil. Heating too long or too close will begin baking the clay, making it unusable (figure A).
5. Reburnish the foil immediately after flash heating.
6. Lift one end of each strip and pull away very quickly. This will ensure the best release of foil from the Mylar backing. It's normal to have small speckles, cracks or spots in foil. This contributes to the "Dichroic" effect. If a large area of foil doesn't adhere to the clay, reapply onto the clay and repeat steps 3 through 5.
7. Prepare the second sheet of clay as instructed above and set aside.
8. Lightly press one foiled sheet of clay onto the bottom half of the plate. Beginning from the center, firmly press the clay against glass with fingertips. Work air bubbles out towards the edges as you press, making sure not to press too hard. Too much pressure can create thin spots in the clay, weakening it (figure B).
9. For the clay on the plate, trim a straight edge along the inside length with a blade. Trim a straight edge along the length of the second sheet of clay. Butt up the second sheet to the clay on the plate. Make sure that foil strips on the second sheet are lying in the same direction as the first clay sheet. Press the second clay sheet onto the plate as described in step 8 (figure C).
10. Trim the excess clay away from the outside edge of plate.
11. Mold the trimmed clay against the edge of plate with fingers to ensure a seal against the glass. Trim away excess clay.
12. Turn the plate over and impress the entire surface of the clay with a rubber stamp or button to camouflage finger marks. Turn the plate over and set it on a ceramic baking tile.
13. Lay 1/16-inch thick, triple leaf millefiori cane slices (see cane instructions below) in an overlapping fashion, around the outside edge of plate. Firmly secure the cane slices to the edge by pressing with fingers. This will permanently secure the foiled clay to the plate (figure D).
14. Roll conditioned violet clay through the fourth largest setting on the pasta machine. Cut out small pieces of clay with a circle punch, or roll the clay into very thin snakes, cutting the snakes into even, tiny pieces. Roll the clay pieces into balls. Place one ball at the top point of every leaf. Insert the tip of a toothpick into the center of the violet clay to make a decorative hole, which secures the clay balls to the leaves.
15. Bake in a 265 F degree oven for 30 minutes. Allow to cool slowly in the oven.
Triple leaf Millefiori cane
Steps:
1. Make a black and white skinner Blend cane following directions below.
2. Cut the cane in half crosswise into two equal pieces.
3. Roll a small piece of conditioned black clay through fifth thinnest setting of the pasta machine.
4. Trim a straight edge across the black clay sheet with a blade.
5. Position one of the cane halves halfway over the straight edge of the black clay. This will create the center vein of the leaf. Trim the excess clay from the sheet, away from the bottom and sides of the cane (figure E).
6. Use a clay blade to carefully lift the cane half with the black strip away from the work surface. Reassemble the cane by matching the remaining half of the cane to the half with the black clay strip (figure F).
7. Roll a 1/4 block of conditioned black clay through the fourth smallest setting on the pasta machine. Trim the black clay sheet the same width of the cane. Wrap the trimmed black clay around the entire cane. Use palm of hand to roll the cane on the work surface a few times until the seam is blended together.
8. Reduce the cane by alternately rolling it with palms of hands and stretching it until the cane is approximately 3/4-inch in diameter. Trim away distorted ends and cut it into three equal sections.
9. Line two sections (with the center veins running vertically) side by side. Lay the third section on top of the two sections, with the vein also going in the same direction (figure G). Starting from the center, gently squeeze three sections together, being careful not to distort the design. Roll the combined canes on the work surface with palm of hand to form a cylindrical cane. Wrap the combined cane in black clay rolled out on the fifth largest setting of the pasta machine ( figure H).
10. Continue rolling until the cane is reduced to 5/8-inch in diameter. Pinch the cane between thumb and index finger along the length of the top/center section of the cane to form a leaf shape.
Note: Cane will be very soft after assembly and should be allowed to "rest" for a day or two before slicing. This will make the cane firmer and easier to slice. If you just can't stand to wait and need instant gratification, this process can be rushed by placing cane in a plastic bag in your freezer for a few minutes. Slice with a clean, sharp blade while still cold.
Skinner blend cane
1. Condition one half block each of white and black clay.
2. Roll out a flat sheet of both colors, one on the largest setting of pasta machine.
3. Cut a three-inch square from each sheet of clay. Cut each square into two triangles, slightly offsetting the cut from each corner. Tip: A three-inch square template cut from an index card makes an excellent cutting guide.
4. Stack one white triangle exactly over the other. Repeat this step with the black triangles. Match the stacked, black and white triangle stacks together to form a square. Make sure to butt the edges together closely to keep the clay from separating in the pasta machine.
5. Fold the triangle in half. Make sure to crease the folded edge to help keep the rectangular shape.
6. Run the clay through the pasta machine with the folded side down. Make sure that the edge of the clay completely touches the pasta machine rollers.
7. Fold the clay in half again, always folding it in the same direction as before. The key to the Skinner blend is to always fold the clay in the same direction before each pass through the pasta machine.
8. Repeat this process 25 to 30 times until the clay is uniformly shaded from black to white.
9. Cut away excess clay at the edges to make a uniform, rectangular sheet. Slice the rectangular sheet in half lengthwise. Stack one half directly over the other half, matching white to white and black to black.
10. Roll the stacked sheet of graduated clay lengthwise through the largest setting on the pasta machine. Repeat this step four more times, setting the rollers on the next thinnest setting with each pass. By the fifth and final pass, the sheet will be very thin and long.
11. Trim a straight edge along the white end of the clay.
12. Starting at the white end, carefully roll the clay jellyroll fashion to prevent trapping air in the cane. Trim the black end of the sheet into a straight edge. Finish rolling the sheet. Roll the finished cane against the work surface with the palm of a hand to blend away the seam.
13. Trim away the distorted ends of the cane with a clay blade.
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