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Single-Strand Necklace with Kato Polyclay™ and Black Rubber Cord

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Design Idea 6B35

-- Designer --

Judy Belcher

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Inclusions are a fun way to add flair to polymer clay. You can achieve a gemstone-look by incorporating embossing powder (usually used in paper crafts) into the clay. The beads in this geometric necklace combine this stone-look with fresh pops of color.

STEP 1
Polymer clay must be conditioned prior to use. Knead chunks of clay in your hands or fold and roll sheets of clay through the Polymer Clay Press until clay is soft and pliable. Mix an ecru color by combining 1/2 package of white clay with 1/12 package of yellow and a pea-sized ball of brown. Mix until the color is consistent and no streaking appears.
STEP 2
Roll out translucent clay into a 7x2-inch sheet, with the Polymer Clay Press on the thickest setting.
STEP 3
Cut the sheet into 4 pieces: one measuring 4x2 inches and the other three 1x2 inches.
STEP 4
Sprinkle the larger sheet with 1/8 tsp. of Antique Linen Embossing Powder. Sprinkle the remaining sheets with a pinch of Peeled Paint, Mustard Seed and Cobalt embossing powder for three accent colors. Barely cover the surface of the clay with the embossing powder.
STEP 5
Mix in the embossing powder by folding the clay in half, pinching the sides to making a pocket and rolling through the Polymer Clay Press.
STEP 6
Roll out the Antique Linen clay into a 4x2-inch sheet on the thickest setting of the Polymer Clay Press. Roll each of the other colors by hand, rolling them into small logs of clay measuring 2 inches long and 1/4 inch in diameter.
STEP 7
Roll out black and ecru clay into 4x4-inch sheets on a medium setting of the Polymer Clay Press. Stack the sheets and use the clear plastic roller to roll across the surface, adhering the layers together. Lay the Antique Linen sheet on top, with the black layer on the bottom. Because the Antique Linen sheet is made with translucent clay, it is best to have white clay in between it and the black clay. Trim so the edges are even and set aside the excess black and ecru.
STEP 8
Texture the front and back of the 4x2-inch stack by placing the black side down onto a sheet of 60-grit sandpaper and pressing a smaller sheet of sandpaper randomly across the Antique Linen side.
STEP 9
Roll the black and ecru sheet (made in Step 7) through the Polymer Clay Press on a medium setting, to thin the stripes. Cut the sheet into 8 equal sections and stack to form a striped cane.
STEP 10
Cut 6 thin strips from the striped cane and line up side by side, making sure the black and white stripes are alternating. Adhere the slices together by gently rolling over the sheet with the clear plastic roller. Roll the striped sheet through the Polymer Clay Press on incrementally thinner settings, making sure the stripes are perpendicular to the rollers of the press. This will lengthen the sheet without distorting or widening the striped pattern.
STEP 11
Wrap each of the 3 logs of clay (formed in Step 6) with the striped sheet running the length of the log. Set aside the excess striped sheet.
STEP 12
Cut each log into 3 sections. Reduce the various sections by rolling and stretching to make different size canes (small, medium and large diameters) out of each of the colors.
STEP 13
Cut 2 - 3 thin slices from each cane and apply to the textured sheet formed in Step 8. Cut the sheet into randomly-sized square and rectangle-shaped beads.
STEP 14
Cut 1/4 inch strips of striped clay from the sheet formed in Step 10 and wrap each of the beads to form a nice striped bezel.
STEP 15
Drill through the top of each bead with a needle tool. Bake for 30 minutes at 275 degrees Fahrenheit.
STEP 16
Once the beads have cooled, string them onto the rubber cording, using Oh! Rings as spacer beads. Glue or crimp the sterling crimp tubes to finish.

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The pieces featured in the Gallery of Designs are copyrighted designs and are provided for inspiration only. We encourage you to substitute different colors, products and techniques to make the design your own.

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