STEP 1
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| Cut out shapes, arrange on a sheet of clay. Put your sheet on a large, smooth-surfaced tile so you can easily pick up the whole thing and rotate it. The ability to move the whole thing around will come in handy in the next steps. Run an acrylic roller over it gently to press the shapes down into the base layer. (My pieces are a little thick -- a tad thinner would make the flattening process go faster.) Don't use the pasta machine at this stage -- it will warp the design. After you have gone over it multiple times in different directions with the acrylic roller and it's almost flat, you can put it in the pasta machine to make it totally smooth if you want to. Just be sure to turn the sheet 90 degrees with each pass through the machine so your shapes don't warp. |
STEP 2
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| Etch lines into your shapes to define and add interest if you want. |
STEP 3
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| Use cutters on the sheet to make a series of pieces you can use for necklace or bracelet components. Peel away the excess clay from around your pieces. Use a small cutter to make holes or opt to drill small holes after curing. Bake right on the tile for flat pieces or gently peel the pieces off the tile with a slicer and place on a curved surface as shown below. |
STEP 4
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Bake according to your clay's instructions. If you etched designs into the clay, rub your favorite paint into the etched lines and wipe the excess paint off the surface. Then sand and finish as desired.
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