Altering Polymer Clay with Inclusions
Bead&Button June 1999

Make sand jade or crayon brights pendants

by Lindly Haunani
Photos by Alice Korach

If you’ve ever dropped an unbaked polymer clay bead onto the floor, you are intimately familiar with the concept of clay-body additives, especially if you have a longhair cat. There are a wide range of possible materials that you can include in your polymer clay mixes. Some of these materials radically alter the working characteristics of the clay, and in certain situations, this can be a distinct advantage. Others can be used to create stunning effects or pigment primaries for color palettes.

base clays

Three major options in selecting a base clay are:

Opaque polymer clay – Inclusions are less obvious, but you can get some interesting changes in surface texture or differences in color.

Special base clays – The Clay Factory (see ad, p. 13) makes a semi-transparent base polymer. It’s similar to a soft bread dough that has room for more flour.

Translucent polymer clay – Inclusions will be the most obvious, but they may not be the best choice if you plan to cane the clay unless design areas are defined by contrasts of opacity or value. inclusions

Look for sparkly, glittery, matte, translucent, or opaque inclusions. Try embroidery floss, thread, salt, mylars, holographic ribbon, play sand, beet powder, kelp, spirilla, dirt, clay, sand, glitter, mohair, dog hair, Easter grass, or ribbons; the possibilities are endless.

Shredded and flaked mylars make marvelous imitation opals. When mixing for color, think pigment primaries or tertiary mixes. Rather than buying a full range of colors, start by buying the primaries and mixing your colors; this adds cohesion to your color palette.

Consider color-fastness and UV protection. Some materials such as dried herbs, flowers, and spices are likely to fade over time. Golden Paints has a matte acrylic glaze that offers UV protection (sunscreen for your jewelry).

Remember, particle size is a crucial factor in determining whether there is the illusion of even pigmentation or optical color mixing. This contrast may be exploited to add interest to a color. For example orange and green sand make an olive green.

One teaspoon per ounce is a good starting point for your experiments. Different pigments have different tinctoral strengths. For best results, make several test mixes to determine the concentration of the additive that will work best for your specific project. In general, I have found the smaller the pigment size and the heavier it is, the less is required in a mixture. Iron oxide affects pigmentation at 1 part to 1,011 parts translucent.

Finely ground artists’ pigments such as alizarin crimson can make for dramatic pigmentation with as little as 1⁄63 tsp. Heavy materials such as the Eberhard Faber bronzing powders in concentrations greater than 1⁄4 tsp. per ounce of clay have a tendency to create cracks and fissures in cooled pieces.

Lighter-weight materials such as rubber stamp embossing powders, chopped mylars, glitters, and sands seem to work better at concentrations of 3⁄4 -1 tsp. per ounce.

When using pigment primaries of the same category of material, you’ll need more yellow than red and blue to effect even pigmentation. Gradually fold in inclusions, 1⁄32 tsp. at a time. Trying to speed the process will result in a stringy mess.

Experiment with sanding and buffing. Many inclusions are highlighted by the enhanced translucency, others may create delightful craters in the surface. These could be back filled and rebaked if you are looking for an ultra-smooth surface with added dimension.

Test strength alterations if you plan to use sheets or slabs. A tablespoon of dirt might make for a spectacular terra cotta that crumbles more easily than chocolate chip cookies.

Experiment, have fun, play, and document your results. By taking the time to make color scales or samples of your experiments, you will have an invaluable reference on hand.

step by step

To get you started, here are two recipes that feature inclusions. While the stacking and cutting on the two pendants is straightforward, they offer a myriad of possibilities, especially in terms of incorporating patterned base colors into beads. The sand jade reminds me of a Mayan jade temple, and the crayon brights pendant suggests twisted metal andirons or candles.

For a jade end cap, I blended together both colors of the jade. If you wish to add architectural interest to your pendant, stack discs or tabular shapes at the top.

mixing crayon brights clay

Brilliant, luscious, scrumptious bits of color from chopped crayons added to translucent polymer clay provide interest to this colorful pendant. When chopped crayon is added to translucent clay and baked, the resulting colors are not always predictable. Some colors, such as “macaroni and cheese” intensify when baked. Many of the darker colors offer a greater contrast to the lighter valued translucent clay.

Until you become familiar with the changes that happen when the crayons melt, bake a small test tile of each color combination.

To create richness in the colors I’m creating, I select several variations of a single hue or an analogous color combination.

To make the green clay for the bead cap on top of the pendant, I used five different greens. Another option would have been to expand the range and select crayons from the adjacent hues to green on the color wheel. By using yellow, yellow green, green, and blue green, the resultant analogous combination yields a more complex greenish color. Generally, 1⁄2 tsp. of chopped crayon per ounce of translucent clay is a good ratio. I use 00 Art Translucent Fimo because I enjoy its resilience. Sculpey Premo or Sculpey III translucent also work.

Using a single-edge razor blade, slice thin cross sections off the crayons. Then roughly chop the slices crossways (photo a). Aim for varied chip sizes. Condition the clay thoroughly.

Divide it into 3 pieces: 1 oz. (28g) for half the pendant, 1 oz. for the other half and 1⁄4 oz. (7g) for the top cap.

Measure 1⁄2 tsp. each of your two main color mixtures and gradually mix into the 1-oz. pieces.

Measure 1⁄8 tsp. of the third color and mix into the 1⁄4-oz. portion. If you have warm hands, you may want to let the clay rest after mixing in the chopped crayon.

mixing sand jade clay

Divide the clay into two 1-oz. portions (reserve the extra 1⁄4 oz.). To one portion, add 1⁄2 tsp. of green sand and 1⁄4 tsp. orange (photo b). To the other, add 1⁄2 tsp. of green and 1⁄4 tsp. of purple.

making the pendants

Form each ounce of the mixed clay into a round ball, pressing firmly to eliminate any bubbles. Gently roll each ball into a log 2 in. (5cm) long. Using your acrylic rod or brayer, gently roll on four sides until you have formed a square plug of clay with sharp corners (photo c).

To make sure that the plugs are the same size, place them both under the brayer, roll, and check. Trim the ends if necessary and set aside.

Stand each log on end and slice through on the diagonal to form two sets of triangular wedges (photo d).

Combine two different color wedges to form two square rods again and gently roll with the brayer to seal the edges and articulate the corners.

Set the combined piece on end and slice through on the opposite diagonal.

For the sand jade pendant – lay the plug of clay on its side on your work surface and slice through it four times, making five pieces (photo f). Flip every other piece a quarter turn so that the colors alternate. Carefully press together to re-form the log. If you are planning to buff this piece, it is a good idea to articulate a channel between the different colors using your pin tool (photo g).

To taper the piece, grasp opposing faces of the clay plug with your thumb and forefinger. Gently pull to reduce the end (photo h). If you alternate the most intense pressure to all four sides, the end will taper evenly. Trim the untapered end.

After the top has been trimmed, further articulate the edges by pinching with your fingers.

For the crayon brights pendant –omit step 8.

For both pendants – open a paper clip and clip off a bend with wire cutters. Holding the top of the bend, insert it into the pendant straight down without wobbling (photo j).

Line a baking pan with paper towels or rice paper and place underneath the pendants to catch the melted crayons. Bake according to manufacturer’s directions.

After the pendants have cooled slightly, wipe off the excess crayon. With the leftover clay from step 5, make a flat bead with a hole in its center large enough to fit over the cord and the paper clip; a size 13 knitting needle works great (photo k). Bake.

To add the brown line of color to the sand jade pendant, condition 1⁄4 oz. of clay. Gradually fold in 1⁄2-3⁄4 tsp. gold embossing powder. Form the clay into a long, thin snake. Place it in the channels on the pendant (photo l), bake.

If you wish, sand and buff the sand jade. For a light polish, use a brown paper grocery bag. If you are using a buffing wheel, go very lightly and take care to keep the clay cool, or you’ll be on to another polymer clay innovation – the sandpaper pendant!

Put the parts together with super glue gel, as shown above.

Lindly’s video, Tantalizing Translucents is available from Mindstorm Productions (800) 400-7099 or www.mindstorm-inc.com.