Metal Clay Quilt Pendant - Interweave

Photo of finished piece by Frank DeSantis.Metal Clay QuiltPendantHadar JacobsenOriginally published in LapidaryJournal Jewelry Artist, August 2005Metal Clay Quilt Pendant was originally published in Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist, August 2005. Interweave Press, LLC Not to be reprinted. All rights reservedpublishers of Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist magazine . . . join the online beading community at www.BeadingDaily.comVisit InterweaveStore.com/jewelryprojects for more great projects!page 1

MetalClayQuilt8/24/093:22 PMPage 45Metal Clay QuiltPendantPlaying with Texture.BY HADAR JACOBSONPhoto of finished piece by Frank DeSantis.Skill levelWhat you need Standard PMC A rolling pinOlive oil or hand salveA Ziploc bagPostcards or jumbo sizeplaying cardsX-acto knifeScraperStraws or metal tubesin different sizesTileToaster-oven or regularoven3M sponge sandingpads, fine, super-fine,and ultra-fineWhite Sculpey and/oror two-part siliconemoldPaintbrushWax stick or wireNeedle toolClay shaper #0, black,tapered headSlip KilnKiln shelfAlumina hydrateProtective glovesKiln forkLiver-of-sulfurCross-lock tweezersCopper tongsFlex-shaft machine orportable rotary toolCoarse mini-fiber wheelExtra-fine mini-fiberwheelProtective glassesProtective mask3M wet/dry sand paper, 220-grit and 1,500grit, 9" x 11"2 triangular or rectangular wooden sticks, 1'Slotted mandrels,straight headWheel-shaped siliconeburr (green polisher)Once I realized how well PMC lent itself totexturing, I started to look at the world through different eyes. Everything became a texture. I used to a carrypolymer clay in my bag and press it against everythingthat didn’t seem to move: cracks in the ground, telephone poles, rocks, fences, doorknobs, wallpaper, fabrics, ribbons, old printed circuit boards from the recyclestore, notebook covers, broken glass, even food. I eventried to freeze the rain on a slab of glass to get the texture of raindrops running on a windowpane. It didn’twork, of course, but I’m still trying. If you ever succeed,please let me know how you did it.One day, I keep dreaming, I will build a whole silverwall, a collage of all the textures that I have been able tocollect. Since this is not going to happen, I compensateby making miniature silver quilts.Metal Clay Quilt Pendant was originally published in Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist, August 2005.

MetalClayQuilt8/24/093:22 PMPage 46The base layer.Roll out a layer of standard PMC 2 cards thick.Cut a piece 3" x 31 2".1Alternatively, dry the base layer on a tile in the toaster ovenfor a few minutes. When it’s still flexible but not sticky anymore, shape it with your fingers and dry again.Whether you chose the first method or the second, after thebase layer dries completely you can still alter its shape bywetting it a little bit, waiting for it to soften again, and reshaping. This is not recommended after it has been textured, since touching the base layer with wet fingers mightwipe off the texture.3Pull out all straws and all other objects.The frame.Roll out another layer 4 cards thick. Wet the base layerwith a paintbrush close to the edges, avoiding the centralarea. Lay the second layer on the base, following all thecurves. Make sure that there is complete contact betweenthe layers.42To make it wavy, shape the base layer in one ofthe following ways:On a postcard or a jumbo size playing card placestraws or metal tubes of different widths at differentangles, not perfectly parallel to each other. Pick upthe base layer and lay it over the straws, with thelong side vertical, while pushing down the areas between the straws. Keep shaping the base layer withyour fingers. If necessary, insert more small objectsunderneath, such as pebbles, beads, or balled-uppieces of paper towel. When you are satisfied withthe shape, carry the postcard to the toaster oven todry on a tile at a temperature no higher than 220 F.With an X-Acto knife, trim the excess off the outside ofthe second layer, using the dried edges of the base layeras a guide.5Still using the X-Acto knife, cut a “window” in the second layer, extending to about 5mm from each side. Remove the cut-out window and dry.6Seal the gaps between the two layers by pushing in clayand smoothing out with a wet finger, until they look as ifthey were one layer. Dry.7Metal Clay Quilt Pendant was originally published in Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist, August 2005. Interweave Press, LLC Not to be reprinted. All rights reservedpublishers of Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist magazine . . . join the online beading community at www.BeadingDaily.comVisit InterweaveStore.com/jewelryprojects for more great projects!

MetalClayQuilt8/24/093:22 PMPage 47Using sponge sanding pads, smooth the frame on thesides and the front. Start with fine grit and finish withultra-fine.8Texturing.With a pencil, mark the cut-out space into 9 squares. Ifyou have enough space you can go up to 12 or 16 squares.910Pick up as many texturing molds as the squares youhave drawn. I like to combine textures that bear some relation to each other. I picked textures of walls and fences.Other options are different fabric textures, geometricshapes, a combination of symbols, figures, letters, orwords. Almost any combination of textures can yield apleasing result, but it is also nice to have a theme. Whenyou pick a texture, though, remember that it is going to becut in small squares. Make sure that enough of the texturestill shows after cutting.Keep in mind that when you press the clay onto a texturingmold, the resulting texture is always the reverse of the original one. This is the case even when you use rubber stamps,which are already reversed. When using ink with rubberstamps, what you see on the paper is the raised parts of thestamp. However, when pressed into clay, the raised partswill become indented areas. It is not always important tohave the positive side as a texture, since a reversed texture(the negative) can be just as nice. However, if you are interested in the positive — as with bricks or screens, for example — you need to make a reversed mold first, and use themold for texturing.For most texturing molds I use white Sculpey Iprefer it because it does not require conditioningand can be bought in bulk. Roll a thick layer ofSculpey , powder it with baby talc to prevent sticking, and roll it again over the texture. Do not go backand forth with the rolling pin; try to get a good texture with one stroke. Bake the Sculpey according tothe manufacturer’s instruction and let it cool down.Whenever possible save the original from which youmade the mold, because the Sculpey molds willeventually break.For very deep and detailed textures, or for softones such as potpourri, I use a two-part siliconecompound. Unlike Sculpey , which you can roll overand over until you reach the desired effect, the silicone compound dries quickly and you have to workfast. Once the two parts are well mixed, roll a layerand press it onto the texture with your fingers, covering the whole area without missing a spot. Thesemolds are durable, and since they are flexible theycan be used for making three-dimensional molds.Tip: To make sure that you mix equal parts of the2-part mold, roll each part 2 or 4 cards thick, anduse a scraper to cut equal squares.11Roll a layer 6 cards thick. Roll it again over a texture or a texturing mold. If the texture is verydeep, oil the mold first with olive oil or hand salve toavoid sticking. Cut a right angle at the top left sideof the textured layer. Now, on the base layer, wetthe top left square and gently lay the texture on it,so that the top and left side of it are touching theframe.Metal Clay Quilt Pendant was originally published in Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist, August 2005. Interweave Press, LLC Not to be reprinted. All rights reservedpublishers of Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist magazine . . . join the online beading community at www.BeadingDaily.comVisit InterweaveStore.com/jewelryprojects for more great projects!page 4 7

MetalClayQuilt8/24/093:22 PMPage 48With an X-Acto knife, cut the right and bottomsides of the square, following the pencil lines.You may have to lift the textured square a little bit tosee the lines.1213Repeat Steps 11 and 12 for the rest of thesquares using a different texture for each square,and dry the whole piece.than the top of the quilt. Wrap the layer around the wax stickstarting from the straight bottom line. Where the ends meet,cut off the excess and smooth the joint with your finger.Bend the stick to fit the top side of the pendant. You can letit air dry, but if you are in a hurry, place the stick in thetoaster oven on some object to elevate it above the tile, sothat the wax can melt down without dripping on the bail.Raise the temperature to 250 F.14Smooth the back of the quilt, first by rubbing ithard with a wet finger to eliminate bumps anddents, and then by sanding it with sponge sandingpads, starting with fine, and continuing with extrafine and ultra-fine.16Once the bail is dry and the wax has melted, sand thebail with sponge sanding pads, starting with fine grit andfinishing with ultra-fine.1715The bail.To make a tube that is not perfectly straight, use awax stick from a toy store or wax wire from castingsupplies. Roll a layer 2 cards thick. With a scrapercut a straight line at the bottom of the layer. Thencut two parallel lines on the left and right side. Thedistance between these lines should be a little widerTo make the loops from which the quilt “hangs,” roll alayer 2 cards thick. Cut it into 4 strips, 3–5mm wide. Wetthe bail with a paintbrush and wrap the strips around it atequal distances. Cut off the excess of the strips and smooththe joints. Dry again and sand them with the sponge sandingpads.Metal Clay Quilt Pendant was originally published in Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist, August 2005. Interweave Press, LLC Not to be reprinted. All rights reservedpublishers of Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist magazine . . . join the online beading community at www.BeadingDaily.comVisit InterweaveStore.com/jewelryprojects for more great projects!