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How to make a brass framed clay pendant |
I love combining wire with polymer clay. I think metal and wire can really add a polished and finished look to polymer clay pieces. And when applied just so in certain situations, wire can add strength as well as a nice finish. For several reasons, brass wire is my thing. It's readily available (most hardware stores carry some brass wire) and soooo less expensive than gold and silver. I have also found many cool brass things I like to use for decoration, such as tiny brass nails and swivels. Just try finding a gold or sterling silver swivel! ;-) Many experts recommend beginners start with brass or copper to learn how to handle wire, then transition to the more expensive metals. Well, I guess I'll stay at the beginning stages for a while, 'cause brass is my thing! To make the above pendant... |
Supply list
* this tute will not be teaching soldering techniques. If you already have basic soldering equipment and supplies, the soldering steps required for this frame are extremely simple. |
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Push the curled ends past each other just a bit so when you align them to touch each other, they actually push into each other. The wire's inherent springiness will make sure this happens. You have two options to join the ends of the frame - brazing (aka hard soldering) or wire wrapping. (what's brazing?) |
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Brazing:
Not into torches and flames? Try wirewrapping the ends together. |
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Wire wrapping: Clamp the frame into a bench vise. It helps if there is a small gap between the end of the curl and the frame, in this situation, so you can get the wire up as close to the top as possible. Using the 24 gauge wire, leave about a 1/2 tail to hold on to with your chain nose pliers, grab the other end of the wire with your hand; begin at the top most spot inside the curls and start wrapping. Pull snugly. Wrap 3-4 times. Snip the end, leaving just enough to tuck end of the wire into the coiled section. Snip the other end leaving enough to tuck that into one of the curls. |
5. | Place your clay stack on a piece of waxed paper, double thick sheet on top. Set your frame on top of the stack.
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7. | Use your tissue blade to trim away all the clay that's on the outside of the wire frame. Use a toothpick or something similar to poke out the clay trapped in the loop and curls. |
8. | Place
the trimmed piece on the final sheet of clay. Press firmly and evenly. (Don't
push the frame down!)
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10. | Now, you can decorate the piece anyway you like. For the piece shown here, I used a bit of 20 gauge brass wire, some brass nail (escutcheon pins), and a bit of red clay on the front. Then I used my pointy fingernail file to make little triangular dents in a few spots. However, don't be afraid to do your own thing. Let your muse take over. I did something a little different on the back. As you work with the raw clay, gently press the clay so it ever so slightly spreads beyond the wire frame. This will help to the clay embrace the wire frame and prevent the frame from getting loose. |
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11. | Bake at 275 degrees for 60 minutes. Don't worry about your piece not being perfectly smooth. A bit of carving and/or sanding will take care of any 'warts' and other unsightly bumps. ;-) Brace yourself for the boring part. sanding Calm down. It must be done. Resistance is futile. Start with the lowest number grit you feel you can get away with. If you successfully smoothed your pendant prior to baking, you could probably start at a 400 grit. If you want to really shape the piece or alter its shape, start with a lower grit like a 200 or 300. Regardless of which grit you start with, work your way up the number ladder. If you think you're going to want to skip from 400 to 1000, then don't bother sanding at all. |
12. | After sanding, it's time to antique... or something. One of the cool effects of embedding wire, pieces and indenting the clay with tools is all the dents will be highlighted by the paint that worked its way into the nooks and crannies. The piece shown here was antiqued using burnt umber acrylic paint. A different color might work for you, depending on the color clay you used on top. Be generous with the paint. Smoosh it into any indents, etc. As the paint begins to dry, wipe off the excess with paper towels. Either rebake at 200 for 10 minutes or blast it with a heat gun for a few minutes. The heat helps the paint bond to the clay much better. Resand with just the final grit to remove the surface paint. Buff! Done! |
Enjoy clayin' and wirin'. Desiree |
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Last update to this page: 2 Apr 06. Send comments, questions or suggestions to Desiree McCrorey. |