Haab - Clay so cute!: 21 polymer clay projects for cool charms, itty-bitty animals, and tiny treasures

Copyright 2009 by Sherri Haab

How- to photography copyright 2009 by Sherri Haab

Model photography copyright 2009 by Sonya Farrell

All rights reserved.

Published in the United States by Watson-Guptill Publications, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.

www.crownpublishing.com

www.watsonguptill.com

All model photography by Sonya Farrell.

All how-to photography by Dan Haab.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Library of Congress Control Number 2009 920538

ISBN 978-0-8230-9899-6

eISBN: 978-0-307-96563-9

Design by Dominika Dmytrowski

Art Director: Jess Morphew

Senior Editor: Julie Mazur

Project Editor: Laaren Brown

Production Director: Alyn Evans

v3.1

For my husband,
Dan

Thank you to Dan for your loving support and help with photography. Thank you also to Michelle, Rachel, and David, for all of your creative ideas. Special thanks to our models, Nicole Duquet, Ami Park, Khadijah Tucker, and Madeleyn Valenzuela, and to our hand model, Courtney Lafevre. Many thanks to the manufacturers who supplied products and technical help.

Its a colorful sculpting material made of PVC (polymer polyvinyl chloride) and a plasticizer. Polymer clay can be shaped, rolled, and sculpted. It does not dry out, which means you can change your mind and change your project as you work. When youre happy with your creation, you bake the polymer clay in an ordinary oven at a relatively low temperature. The heat hardens the clay, and wow, you have some cool jewelry or a nice gift for a friend. Polymer clay is sold in block form at craft stores or online and is ready to use right from the package.

Polymer clay does not require special skills or lots of fancy equipment. A few basic tools are all you need to make most of the projects in this book. And if you dont have the exact tool shown, you can probably substitute something you have lying around at home. If you think youll be doing a lot of polymer clay projects, you might want to invest in products such as clay cutters, molds, rollers, and cutting tools. Many stores carry these items.

The projects in this book are super-quick and super-simple. You can make several in one afternoon! Make a necklace to wear with your favorite outfit or a gift for your best friend, or just have fun making whatever your heart desires. These projects are a good place to startonce you get the hang of it, youll be designing your own one-of-a-kind creations. Get started, and get clayful!

Of course youll need polymer clay for all of the projects in this book. Youll also need a few basic tools and supplies for most of the projects, plus some special supplies for only a few of them. Always read through a projects What You Need list before starting and make sure you have everything on hand. Theres nothing more frustrating than discovering halfway through that youre missing something!

ACRYLIC ROLLER You can get a roller like this at a craft store. (A roller with a handle is called a brayer. Use whichever type of roller you prefer.) Its used to roll and smooth sheets of clay.

WAXED PAPER Always work on a sheet of waxed paper, to protect both your clay and your work surface. Waxed paper wont react with polymer the way some other plastic products do, so you can store the clay between sheets as well.

BABY WIPES These work better than any other method for cleaning polymer clay off your hands and tools. Keep them handy to wipe your hands between colors, which will prevent one color from staining another.

Basic supplies include (clockwise from top) baby wipes, waxed paper, acrylic roller, glass baking dish.

GLASS BAKING DISH These are the best for baking clay. Find an old baking dish (Pyrex is one brand name) you can use only for clay (not food). These can be found inexpensively at thrift shops if you dont want to use a nice one from your kitchen. The directions for the projects in this book sometimes call for a lined glass baking dish. That just means you should take a plain piece of white paper and put it in the bottom of the dish, then set the clay piece on the paper to bake. Trim the paper to fit into the dish if you need to.

TOOTHPICKS Used to pierce holes, make attachments, and blend clay, toothpicks can also be used to provide support for a figure, such as when you are attaching a head to a body. Round toothpicks are stronger than the square-ish kind, and they make a neater hole. Toothpicks can be baked in place.

WOODEN SKEWERS Like toothpicks, wooden skewers can be used to pierce holes. They can also be used to suspend beads during baking.

CLAY KNIFE A knife with a pointed tip is very useful. Choose one knife for your polymer clay work and keep it, covered, with your clay tools. Your knife can be plastic or metal. It doesnt have to be sharp, but it does need a pointed tip. Knives should be used with caution! Always make sure you have the help of an adult when you use a knife.