alisaburke: creating with jules- galaxy necklace

Tuesday, January 24, 2017

creating with jules- galaxy necklace

Galaxy Pendant Necklace

Hello! Today I have a craft project for you that would make a great last minute gift for someone stylish in your life. If there are a few people in your life that would like one of these you could make a few at the same time like I did. It really does not take much more time to make six than it does to make one!

Materials:

Royal blue polymer clay

Acrylic paints in colours aqua, black, pink, white & silver

Liquid Polyclay (I use the Kato Polyclay brand)

One large jumpring 3/8” (10mm) diameter

2 smaller jumprings

Fold-over end crimps

Necklace cord (I used a waxed cotton cord)

Lobster clasp

Tools:

Scalpel

Old toothbrush

Paintbrushes

Sharp tool for making a hole in pendant; such as a wool needle

Round object such as small bottle to trace around

Jewelry pliers (inexpensive to buy from craft stores)

Other items: Baking tray, baking paper, tile/ glass, paper.

Find yourself a round object to make a template from in your desired size. I used the bottom of a bottle of paint that was 1 1/2” (4cm) in diameter. Trace around the bottom of the object onto a piece of paper to make a template. Cut out.

Take your polymer clay and condition until soft. If you use a brand such as Sculpey it should already be soft enough to use. Roll out to about 1/8” (3mm) thickness.

Tip: A smooth tile or piece of glass is a good surface for working with polymer clay on.

Place your template onto the clay and cut around the shape with the scalpel. Smooth out any rough edges with your fingers or the back of your nails. Use the needle to make a hole in the top. Wiggle the needle a bit so the hole will be a bit bigger than the thickness of your large jumpring. Bake according to the clay manufacturer’s instructions on a tray lined with baking paper.

Once cool, take your aqua paint and dab on here and there with a paintbrush. I used a scruffy one that is round but is fairly flat at the bristle end. Next dab on your pink, then black, leaving to dry in between layers. Remember to leave some of the original blue clay colour showing through.

Once those layers are dry, water down some white acrylic paint until you have a runny cream consistency. Dip the old toothbrush into the paint and splatter over the pendant, flicking the bristles with your finger. Using a fine paintbrush, dot some bigger ‘stars’ onto the pendant.

Once this is dry you can take your silver paint and brush over the bottom third of the pendant and paint the sides with the silver too.

Once it’s dry cover the whole pendant with the liquid polyclay.

I use an old paintbrush for this but some people just use their finger. This stuff makes your piece really durable and scratch resistant. Bake according to the instructions on the bottle.

Tip: You may want to test this out on a practice piece first! If your oven runs too hot you may get bubbles. I learned this from experience!

Once it’s all baked and cooled you can place your big jump ring in the top of the pendant. Trim your cord to desired length. Thread pendant onto cord and crimp the end clamps over the ends using the pliers. Add the smaller jump rings and lobster clasp and it’s good to go!