A Creative Paperclay® Christmas

 Hello, 

Welcome to another blog post. I can't believe that it is the holiday season again. I have been so busy that I didn't realize it was December! Instead of making another ornament, I have put together a list of past tutorials that I have done using Creative Paperclay® or Delight Clay™.  I am sure you can find something to get you in the holiday spirit.

 

A Church for Your Christmas Village

Christmas Cookie Cutter Ornaments

A Vintage Snowman Ornament

A Santa Ornament 

Creative Paperclay® Christmas Trees

And finally, here is a bonus video -  a full tutorial on my YouTube channel.

I hope I have inspired you to get started on your Christmas decorations. Have a wonderful holiday season and I will see you in the new year. 

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 Paper Mache Patch.

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

Happy Crafting!

Suzette

Blog/website: https://www.papermachepatch.com

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

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

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

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

3D Chrissy Tree ... by Cindy Porter

Hi Creative Paperclay® fans, it's Cindy here, I am excited to share with you my latest project a "3D Chrissy Tree" just in time to decorate your table for Christmas in July.... keep reading to see how to create your own.

Supplies:

Creative Paperclay®

Papier-mache  cone

Silks Acrylic Glaze Pretty Peridot 

Silks Acrylic Glaze Mallard Green

Silicone tipped tools & Ball tools

Homemade Creative Paperclay® tool

For the how to... I created a little video...

One last look at the completed piece...

thank you for stopping by and joining me here today

Till next time

Happy Creating

xC

Tori's Tip - Cookie Decorating Fun for Kids of All Ages

For my tip this month I'm reminding you that Delight™ Air Dry Modeling Compound retains color well when mixed with acrylic paint, it is very light weight, and can be easily rolled out and cut with cookie cutters!

For a fun way to make ornaments,  mix up a batch of gingerbread or cookie dough colored clay, cut out shapes with cookie cutters and allow the pieces to dry.  When the clay pieces are dry, decorate them with puffy "shiny"fabric paints to create the look of icing.

This will be my last post of the year, so I'll wish all of you a HAPPY NEW YEAR! - looking forward to the new year ahead and creating more projects with Creative Paperclay® and Delight™

Thanks for joining me here again!  As always, play, experiment, and have fun!

Tori

Find me on Facebook, or peruse & ponder pics with me on Pinterest

Holiday Spinners

The year has gone by so quickly!  I am getting ready to celebrate the holidays and so happy to be back in Arizona where I belong.  Don't have my tree up yet but decided to try making some ornaments to hang in the windows or wherever they seem to fit.

If you'd like to try creating some of your own, you will need -
Delight™ air dry modeling compound
pattern
scrap piece of board or cardboard, about 4" x 8"
acrylic paints
a fishing swivel
plain paper
white glue
rolling pin
plastic wrap
masking tape
pliers
monofilament or thread
round toothpick
craft knife
decorative bead or beads, as desired

Here is the pattern I designed for this project:
if you click on the image it should take you to a page where you can print it.

Print the pattern, but out the semicircular shape with the tabs.  Use the guide at the edge to mark 2 pairs of parallel lines onto cardboard, then mark line perpendicular to those at approximately 2" intervals, as shown.

Roll clay out to 1/16" thickness.  place circular pattern cutout lightly on clay and trace around it with a craft knife.  Gently lift out the cut out piece and place it onto the cardboard, aligning the top tab with the top line as shown.  Press the tab portion onto the cardboard just enough to make it stick, then add a piece of tape to hold it in place.

Now carefully lift up the bottom edge and turn it to the other side, creating a twist in the piece.  Align it with the marks on the cardboard, press and tape into place.

Repeat the process for the next piece -

you will need two for each ornament (or, you can try adding one or more extras onto a single ornament if you like).
Set the clay curves aside to dry.

Remove the clip on the fishing swivel, if there is one, and use pliers to pinch one of the end loops on the swivel to make it smaller than the ball in the center, as shown.

Cut a strip of paper the width of the top tabbed section on the pattern and about 1" to 1 1/2" long.  Roll the strip around a toothpick, then place the swivel inside and tighten or loosen the strip so that it fits snugly onto the swivel.  Glue the paper roll into a tube, but do NOT glue it to the swivel.  Make another paper tube for the bottom tab.

Prepare the string for your ornament by putting a stop bead on the end.
cut a strip of paper the same size or just slightly smaller than the hole in your bead.

Fold the paper in half, tie the end of a length of monofilament around the paper (12" to 14" of monofilament should be more than enough - it's better to have it longer than you need it at this point, so you have room for tying off the ends later).  Fold the paper in half again, keeping the monofilament in the fold.  Pull both ends of the monofilament up through the bead, put glue on both sides of the paper and pull it up into the bead to hold the monofilament snugly.  (clip off the ends of the paper if it is sticking out below the bottom of the bead.  Trim the extra "tail" off the monofilament so you have a single strand coming from the top of the bead.

When the clay pieces are dry, trim the tabs off in line with the marks on the cardboard.  Glue a paper tube to each end of the curved clay as shown, making sure that the tubes are in line with each other.

When the glue is dry, attach another clay twist to the other side.

It should appear to be a figure eight when looking through the lined-up tubes from the top or bottom of the ornament.

Allow the glue to dry, then paint as desired.

To string the ornament, put the monofilament with the bead on the end that you prepared earlier up through the bottom tube.  If desired, add a center bead in the center of the ornament by either knotting the monofilament where you want the bead to sit and gluing the bead in place, or by wrapping a piece of tape around the line and securing the bead to it with glue.

Thread the monofilament through the top tube of the ornament, through the bottom (squished) end of the swivel, then back through the top tube of the ornament.  Pull the swivel snugly into the tube, then make a knot in the monofilament to hold it in place.

Hang it up and blow on it gently to watch it spin, or place in a breezy doorway or window.

I hope each of you have Marvelously Happy Holidays, whichever ones you celebrate!

Thanks for joining me here again!  As always, play, experiment, and have fun!

Tori

Find me on Facebook, or peruse & ponder pics with me on Pinterest

Christmas Project Joy!

Today I will share pictures of projects that I created with some of my students at school.  This is my 2nd Christmas season teaching art to K-8th grade in Triangle, Virginia.  I say on a daily basis that I have THE BEST job in the whole world as I get to experience art through the eyes of children.

I decided to use Creative Paperclay with my 6th graders and Delight Air Dry with my 2nd graders.  Both groups were thrilled to be working with clay and listened intently to instructions (or so I thought).  One of the first instructions I gave was to roll the creative Paperclay flat between 2 pencils before starting to design their individual angels.  A few of my students heard the pencil part, but translated it to "roll the clay as long as a pencil"  Of course the mistake wasn't discovered until they had created gorgeous angels and went to put them on the drying racks.  Hmmm, okay...kind of skinny, but I am used to adapting.

My second graders used Delight air dry to also create angels for a mixed media canvas.  Their instructions were a bit different though.   Each student had already created a halo from construction paper and metallic markers.  With that glued down to a painted canvas they were given a piece of Delight air dry clay and a damp paper towel.  They could use the clay to make an entire angel or combine components of clay with paper elements.  As you can see from the pictures that follow, no 2 were the same and each child had a definite vision of what he or she wanted to accomplish.

I couldn't be more proud of what they all made (both classes) and I think there will be many happy parents or grandparents when packages are opened on Christmas day.  Now for the pictures...some are process and some are finished projects.

6th graders at work.  Each student had a damp paper towel to keep the clay moist.  Each table also had a cup of water to help adhere details.

A dab of water to attach pieces of clay angel together.  

Best "tool" I ever bought for my classroom!  Stackable cookie racks from Ross.

The finished projects.  The backing is a wood board which they collaged with paper and music and inspirational passages.  The backing was not a part of the original project, but became necessary after some of the angels became a bit too skinny to stand alone.

Angels were painted with metallic paints before gluing to covered board.

The angel on the left is one of the larger, skinnier angels.  I am in love with the one on the right!  The student chose her board specifically because of the knot at the top and then used that in her design.  FABULOUS

Students used construction paper, tissue paper, magazines, calendars, and much more to create a backdrop for the angel.  I love the variety.  No 2 are alike.

2nd grade Delight angels.  

The students were given the option to add words to the canvas.  Some place the words on top and some worked the words around the edges of the canvas!

I love the expression on this one.  The student worked very hard to get her eyes "just right".  Paint wouldn't work the way she wanted, so she painted the white, added brown paper for the color, and then a dot of white in the center of each...perfect!

See the angel, top left?  The child wanted hair for her angel.  We found a bag of doll hair in a box of classroom supplies...gave her the perfect curly hairdo.

I hope you have enjoyed these and can see how easy it is to use Creative Paperclay and Delight Air Dry with children.  Have a very Merry Christmas and Happy Creative New Year

Easy Holiday Lights by Tori West

I've always loved the look of candle lights, especially for winter holidays, and with the advent of LED tea lights just about any material can be used for decorative displays without the worry of them catching fire!

This month I'll be showing you how I created an easy votive candle holder using:

a jar
plastic wrap
tape
scissors
craft knife
thin cardboard
Creative Paperclay® modeling material
transparency film (for printing transparencies on an inkjet printer)
Delta Ceramcoat gloss varnish
Rust-Oleum® "Hammered Gold" spray paint
gesso
paintbrush
sandpaper
paper, pencil, tracing paper





I had a set of small mason jars so I decided to use those, the jars are slightly tapered, and had a decorative textures, so I created a cardboard collar to straighten and smooth the sides.

Next I covered the jar with plastic wrap, including the bottom.

I designed a pattern based on the measurements of my jar, rolled clay out to and even 1/8" thickness and wrapped it around the covered jar, than transferred the pattern.

  (for information on transferring patterns click here)


(for information about smoothing seams click here)

Next I cut around the pattern lines, using the knife in an up and down motion.  The pieces were left in place so the edges wouldn't curl up during the drying process.

oops ---I accidentally stuck my thumb on the edge when I moved the piece.  Thankfully, Creative Paperclay® is so easy to fix I'll just let that dry and then add fresh clay later to repair it, rather than trying to smooth it out now and risk stretching out the clay at the top.






When all the clay was dry, I finished cutting out the design, repaired an dings or dents, and sanded as necessary.   I covered the entire piece inside and out with white gesso, and when that was dry, sprayed on two coats of  hammered gold spray paint.

While I was waiting for the spray paint to dry, I created a frosted lining for the inside of the light cover.  I started by dribbling gloss varnish over the surface a sheet of transparency film.

Next I textured it by using a piece of wadded-up plastic wrap and dabbing gently to spread the varnish.  When using this method, the texturing needs to be done fairly quickly before the varnish starts to dry, or dabbing the sheet will result in the varnish sticking to the plastic wrap instead of the transparency film.

When the entire sheet was mottled I set it aside to dry.












Once the sheet was dry I cut strips to the length and width necessary to fit inside my light cover, placed it inside with the shiny/smooth (untextured) side facing inward to reflect more light, then added the LED light - Done!

This project was so quick and fun I decided I needed more lights for a holiday display.  Happy Holidays, friends!

I'd love for you to join me for more projects & art adventures on my personal blog

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