"Super Simple Shimmery Snowflakes" by Linda Hess

The East Coast was hit with a snowstorm this past weekend.  What better way to spend my snow day off from school than by bringing the snow into my studio!  Of course, real snow would be a bit messy, so I grabbed my Delight Air Dry Modeling Compound and set to work.

I recently purchased snowflake cookie cutters when they were marked down after Christmas.  At $.40 each they were a steal of a deal!  As soon as I saw them I knew they could be used with air dry clays as well as my polymer clay creations.  Naturally I bought one of each...in hindsight I should have purchased more!

I cut open a package of Delight clay and set to work (NOTE: Be sure to rewrap any leftover clay in a plastic baggie or plastic wrap).  I have a pasta machine in my studio, so I used it to flatten the clay into an even sheet.  However, if you don't have a pasta machine you can use an acrylic roller or rolling pin to flatten the clay. (TIP:  To achieve an even thickness, place the clay between 2 parallel popsicle sticks or 2 parallel pencils and roll flat with the acrylic roller or rolling pin).

Place the clay sheet on your work surface.  Press cutter firmly into clay sheet, pressing down along all of the edges.  Then press the plunger to transfer the texture to your snowflake.

Be sure to use enough pressure or the design will not transfer evenly.  If you look at the above snowflakes, the snowflake on the right didn't receive enough pressure (it was in all honesty my first try).  

The next "issue" I discovered is the plastic cutters sometime left a rough edge. 

This was easily taken care of by rolling a beading pin carefully along the edges.  If you don't have beading pins, a turkey lacer will also work (they're not just for lacing turkeys!)

Anyone who follows my work knows that I can't stop with plain, white snowflakes.  That would be too easy.  I have a huge draw full of powders and glitters.  The perfect additional touch for snowflakes?  A little Pearl Ex shimmer.  

This first one has Interference Violet.  

A little goes a long way, so the best way to use this powder is straight from the lid.  I turn the container upside down...tap, tap...and then turn it right side up...tap, tap.  Remove the lid carefully, then rub your pointer finger over the powder residue in the lid. 

Gently rub the powdered finger over the snowflake to transfer color to the snowflake.  I chose "True Blue" for the second snowflake.  Remember that a little goes a long way.  If the color is too light, then it can be darkened by adding another layer of powder.  Squelch the desire to dip your finger directly into the powder pot as this will result in a cloud of powder going into the air as well as powder falling into the snowflake crevices!

For my next snowflake I thought the introduction of some ultrafine glitter might work...I was wrong!  The glitter didn't spread smoothly over the surface.  It collected heavily in some areas and left other areas blank.  Chalk this one up as my learning experience for you 😉

For my last snowflake I returned to the powders and chose a purple shade.  The snowflakes still needed a little "something".  Luckily I had some crystals and silver spacer beads sitting on my table, screaming to be used.  I pressed a silver spacer into the center of my first snowflake, a blue crystal into the center of the blue, and a purple crystal into the center of the last snowflake.  PERFECT!

Allow the snowflakes to dry.  Once dry, gently remove crystals and spacers and then glue back into place.  

If hanging the snowflakes: A hole can be drilled after drying OR use the beading tool/turkey lacer to create a hole in the top before drying.  Once dry, add a string/ribbon and hang.  Create multiples in a variety of colors and use them for a mobile.  Super lightweight...these would also make great earrings!

For jewelry: Do not create a hole in the snowflake!  Instead glue a pinback on after the snowflake has dried.  By running a chain through the pinback, you can also wear the snowflake as a pendant! 

Enjoy!   

Valentine's and Snowmen do go together!

I love to make snowmen and I love to make Valentines. This project just seemed to put them together quite nicely.

Supplies Needed For This Project:

Styrofoam balls and round circle

Creative Paperclay

Plaid Paint - Folk Art Multi-Surface/Ocean View

Plaid Paint- Folk Art Color Shift/Red Flash

Plaid Mod Podge-Glossy

Gesso- White

Ribbon - I used a small piece that was ruffled with pearls in it

Pipe Cleaner - I used a metallic red one

Skewers 

Clay embossing plate

Terri Sproul Ultra Fine Glitter
Plastic Coated Freezer Paper

Super Glue

These are a few of the items that I used for this project. I decided against the wire and used the wooden skewers instead. I didn't want his arms or legs to collapse. The paints weren't all used either, I used the red and also the blue. I went over the red that I used on his cheeks with the Plaid Folk Art Color Shift Red Flash because I thought the Red was too bright. The Plaid Folk Art Color Shift- Red Flash was used in all the other places that you see Red.

I began with the top part of the snowman and after connecting the two balls together with the skewer and Super Glue, his arms and legs were also created using the skewers and Super Glue. Here's where the fun began as the body and arms were covered with Creative Paperclay. The face was formed as was his hat. The arms were covered with the Creative Paperclay also and the snowman was left to dry overnight. I did have a space heater and a fan on it overnight also.

Once the top half was dry the bottom was detached at the legs and they were glued thoroughly and put back together again. The bottom styrofoam circle was covered with Creative Paperclay as was the snowman's legs. The hearts were created by rolling out the Creative Paperclay using an embossing plate and pressing it into the clay and then using a heart shaped clay cutter (like a cookie cutter) to cut all of the hearts out. They were placed around the bottom and then glued in place with the Super Glue. Then the snowman was left overnight in the same situation as before to dry.

Once the clay was dry the next day the finishing touches were put on. The piece was gessoed, the hearts were painted with the Plaid Folk Art Color Shift - Red Flash, the shoes and hat had the Plaid Folk Art Multi- Surface Paint/Ocean View used on them. I then used the Plaid Mod Podge-Glossy and spread it on the snowman and sprinkled the Terri Sproul Ultra Fine Glitter on it, worked great. The pipe cleaner was glued around the bottom of the hat and the ribbon with the pearls were glued around his neck. This piece turned out so awesome! And it was a lot of fun. I now have another piece to decorate with for Valentine's Day. The picture really doesn't do the snowman justice when it comes to the glitter as it really really glitters! I hope you'll give Creative Paperclay a try or the Delight Clay cause I think you'll be so happy with how easy they are to work with and the amazing things that you can create with these awesome clays.

Barbara 

How to Mend a Broken Heart

Hello everyone! My name is Cinnamon Willis and I am going to walk you through the steps on how I created this mended broken heart sculpture. With Valentine's Day quickly approaching, I decided to create a broken heart for those who may be in need of some healing at this time. The gold split in the heart was inspired by the Japanese art of Kintsugi where broken pottery is repaired with lacquer that is dusted with powdered gold to join the pieces back together. These repair lines become a beautiful reminder of the item's resilience, the same can be said about the heart and the scars that are left on it by others. The scars will only add to your brilliance, learn from them, and wear them with pride.

Supplies:

• Creative Paperclay®

• Wooden skewer

• Masking Tape

• Newspaper

• Acrylic paint

• Pencil

• Sanding paper

• Exacto Knife

• Aleene's Original Tacky Glue

I began this piece by balling up newspaper and taping it around my skewer. I start on one side of the heart and then get to work on the other side. I tape them together and wrap them until they begin to resemble the rough shape of a heart.




Once the shape of the newspaper is as close as I can get it to a heart, I began my first thin coat of paperclay around it. I allowed the clay to dry for about 24 hours and I begin to add more clay with a little dab of water until it gets to the shape that I would like it to be for the heart.

After allowing the second coat of clay to dry, I map out with a pencil where I would like for the split to be for my broken heart. I used a pencil because I always struggle with making zig zagged lines, it usually takes me a few tries.




I am just cutting out my lines with my excato knife here, a utility knife can work as well.

After the lines were cut out, I began to sculpt the front and back end of the arrow. I didn't do as much sanding down with this piece because I wanted the heart to be a little rough looking as if it had a rough journey. I also put a little bit of glue on both ends of the arrow where they join with the heart to keep it in place.

I painted the heart black so that I could blotch some red paint on it with a sponge as shown here. I didn't want the heart to have an even bright red coat of paint, I wanted it to look weathered.




I used gold paint here for the break in the heart to mimic that of the Kintsugi technique that I mentioned above.




I took a piece of nylon and tied it onto both ends of the arrow so that I could hang it on a nail. I sealed it with varnish so that the paint wouldn't chip off.

Here's the piece in it's new home on one of my walls with two of my favorite masks.

Thank you all once again for stopping by, and I hope that you enjoyed today's tutorial! You can find Creative Paperclay® at the following retailers Creative Paperclay® Online Store, Michael's, Amazon, Joann's.

See more of my work at Melandolly.com and be sure to catch updates on my Instagram page!

A Fun Tropical Trio by Jenn

Hello everyone!! Jenn here sharing a fun trio of tropical fun projects created using both Delight™ air dry modeling compound and the original Creative Paperclay®!!

This set includes a vase made from an altered bottle, A trinket dish and an incense burner!

These were created using a variety of silicone molds and some real live leaves from my own yard!

All of the flowers and ferns were molded using Delight™ air dry modeling compund.

The larger leaves were created using real live leaves, a rolling pin, and the original Creative Paperclay®.

Here are some closer views.

To create the leaves above roll out some Creative Paperclay® on to a non stick surface. Lay your leaf flat and roll over it with a rolling pin or brayer. Gently pull the leaf away and drape the piece over something rounded to dry so it dries with a shape like a dish. Dry the longer leaf flat. Add molded flowers and paint!

Two of the long flat leaves were created using the Delight™ and wrapped around the bottle to dry. Once dry, add glue to secure them to the glass. Add molded flowers and coat all with heavy gesso. After gesso dries add paint!

Here is a photo of the set in use as a trinket dish, vase, and incense burner.

Creative Paperclay® is moldable and sculptable!

Delight™ air dry modeling compound is lightweight when dry so it is great for creating projects such as these. It takes very well to inks and sprays when dried and gessoed as well.

Thanks so much for viewing my post today! I hope that you are inspired to give this amazing clay a try and create something amazing!

Creative Paperclay® and Delight™ are conveniently available for you to purchase online and at the below listed retailers.

Creative Paperclay® Online Store

Michael's

Hobby Lobby

Joann's

Until Next time Stay Creative!

Make Beautiful Cat Ornaments with Creative Paperclay®

Happy new year! This is my very first post for the year. How exciting! Today I want to share with you an up cycling project using Creative Paperclay®, some toilet roll middles, used gift tissue and a beautiful napkin. What are we making today? Some beautiful cat ornaments!

Aren't they beautiful? They are quite simple to make and I have made a video for you to follow along.

The supplies you need are:

• Creative Paperclay®
• toilet roll middle 
• used gift wrap tissue
• cat litter, sand or gravel to prevent the sculpture from toppling over 
• masking tape
• white glue
• decoupage glue
• napkin
• sculpting tools, paintbrush, water etc

Follow along in the video below:

You can share your creations with us on our Facebook page. We would love to see them! For more inspiration have a look around the blog. There are tutorials for many levels using Creative Paperclay®. You can also visit my blog www.papermachepatch.com.

You can find Creative Paperclay® online at Creative Paperclay Co and also at Michaels, Hobby Lobby, Dickblick and Amazon. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Suzette

Blog: https://papermachepatch.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/papermachepatch/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/papermachepatch/

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/suzettehussey/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/PaperMachePatch

Skillshare: https://skl.sh/2QyIn93

January 2019 First Friday Fan Day

Need some inspiration for your next Creative Paperclay® project? Check out what folks are making with Creative Paperclay™.

	Heart Tree Napkin Holder
	Clay House Ornaments Key Chains
	Clay Pot for Succulents
	Snail Magnet Tutorial Heart Pendant

HELP US FIND YOU!!

1. Use the hashtag #CreativePaperclay on all your social networks.
2. When using Facebook, be sure the your posts and images using the #Creative Paperclay hashtag are set to public, otherwise we won't be able to find you.
3. Share your projects on the Creative PaperClay® Facebook page.

I'm always trolling the web, looking for great Creative Paperclay® projects. If you find something, post it on our Facebook page.

GOT QUESTIONS???

Find the answers to your paperclay questions. See what other folks are creating. Stop by our Facebook group and say, "Hi!" Creative Paperclay Q&A

Carole