I'm thinking of starting a new craft making polymer clay beads. I'd like anyones suggestions or helpful info about this craft. I've gotten a toaster oven that I'm going to dedicate for clay use, am getting a pasta machine, and next weekend a small assortment of clay and a blade. Is there anything else that I should look for or you think would be helpful in starting with this new craft? I'm hoping to make plain round beads to start off with. Are there any books that you've found helpful or websites? Thanks in advance for any insight you may have.
forgive my ignorance, but why a pasta machine? when I return from my deployment, I plan to play with polymer clay as well....
From what I've read it's to help condition the clay and to help blend different colors of clay together, but I may be wrong.
I love the polymer clay, but I never thought of using a pasta machine! I just wing it. My husband says I am too much of a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kind of girl, that just winging it gets me in too much trouble, but that's how I like it.
I've been wanting to mess with polymer for a while... I saw this REALLY kick ass way of making "carved" beads. Get some of those biodegradable corn-based packing peanuts that fall apart in water. Roll 1-2 into a small tight ball, and cover them in thins strips of the clay in designs and such and harden them. Then just run water over them and the packing peanuts dissolve and leave the center hollow!!!
Never heard of polymer clay before - after a quick search and finding a local supplier it looks like interesting stuff... thanks!
