Making Glass From Polymer Clay

Glass is formed when sand, limestone and soda are heated over 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit.

Recreate the qualities you love about glass with polymer clay, which is a vinyl-based modeling clay that cures, or hardens, in a conventional oven. Though you are not fabricating true glass, which is made from silica, polymer clay can be used to form crafts that have characteristics of glass, such as its translucent nature. The clay also can be used to decorate glass objects.

Beads

Recreate the look of real glass beads by using translucent polymer clay. A simple way to fabricate beads is to form a cane. Roll out translucent clay into a tube-shape that is 1 inch thick and 4 inches long. Form another tube with red polymer clay. Twist both tubes together to gently swirls the colors. Roll the tube with your hands until it is 1 inch thick. Slice 1-inch pieces and insert a bamboo skewer into the center of each piece to create the hole in the bead. Bake the beads at 275 degrees for 20 minutes. Bring out the shine by sanding the beads underwater and then buffing them with a soft cloth.

Stained Glass

Utilize plain glass for a polymer-clay stained glass craft. Form 1/8 inch thick snake-like coils from black clay. Lay them onto the glass into shapes to recreate the lead in traditional stained glass. Mix together pinches of colored polymer clay with liquid polymer clay, and paint the colors onto the glass in and around the areas with black. These colored areas form the colors of the stained glass. Bake the glass on top of polyester fiber fill at 275 degrees for 15 minutes. Allow it to cool completely before handling.

Wine Glasses

Decorate wine glasses with colorful polymer clay. Mix together several colors of polymer clay so the colors swirl together but do not completely mix. Flatten it with your hands and then roll the clay through a pasta machine at a medium setting. Roll the clay through the machine several times, using a thinner setting each time. Once the clay is roughly 1/4 inch thick, slice it into smaller pieces. Cover the bottom, stem and lower bowl of a wine glass with the clay. Leave the areas around its opening free of clay because polymer clay is not food safe. Bake the wine glass on top of polyester fiber fill at 275 degrees for 15 minutes. Allow the glass to cool in the oven before removing.

Vase

Mix together colored polymer clay with liquid polymer clay to form a paint-like material for a vase craft. Lay a rectangular glass vase down and brush on the colored clay using a fine artist's paintbrush. Create more colors with the same technique and brush them onto the vase. Bake the glass vase on top of polyester fiber fill at 275 degrees for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat, and keep the vase in the oven until it is completely cooled.

References

• NASA: Glass from Space