How to Make Polymer Clay Bead Characters
Colorful clay bead characters add a whimsical touch to jewelry designs. To make your own bead characters, begin with malleable polymer clay and small, flexible clay molds. Reusable clay push molds are available in most craft stores with a variety of designs built into one soft plastic mold. Decorate the soft clay characters with seed beads for added color and sparkle, or coat the hardened clay piece with glaze for a shiny finish.
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Things You'll Need
- Polymer clay
- Character push molds
- Clay roller
- Cookie sheet
- Tin foil
- Baking bag
- 22-gauge craft wire
- Wire cutters
- Clay glaze
- Paint sponge
Instructions
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1
Condition a section of your choice of polymer clay color by manipulating it with your hands. Conditioning the clay softens it to make it more malleable and activates the polymer particles that add strength to the bead.
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2
Pinch off a small amount of the conditioned clay, and press it into the character push mold. Fill the push mold with clay. Roll a clay roller across the top of the clay inside the mold to smooth the top edge.
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3
Cover a baking sheet with tin foil. Pop the soft clay character from the push mold and place it on the tin foil, flat side down.
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4
Follow the same process to mold as many clay characters as you need for your jewelry design.
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5
Cut a 3-inch strip of 22-gauge craft wire. Insert the end of the wire through the top of each character to make an attachment hole for the bead. The wire should pierce the clay character completely. Remove the wire.
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6
Insert the baking sheet inside a baking bag. The bag protects the inside of your oven from polymer particle residue. Bake the clay characters according to the clay manufacturer's instructions. Typically, baking temperatures range from 275 degrees to 330 degrees. The baking time averages between 15 and 30 minutes, depending on the type of clay you selected.
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7
Remove the baking sheet from the oven. Allow the baked clay to cool to room temperature.
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8
Cover one side of each hardened clay character with clay glaze. After the glaze dries, flip the characters and cover the opposite side with glaze. Let the glaze dry completely.
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Tips & Warnings
To decorate the clay characters with glass seed beads or glass microbeads, sprinkle the beads onto the soft clay, after you remove them from the push mold. Press the beads in the clay with your fingers or by rolling over them lightly with a clay roller. Bake the clay according to the package directions.
After baking, insert a jump ring through the attachment hole to join the clay character bead to your jewelry design.
