Simple Sterling DIY
To encourage further play with metal and polymer, I dug up a very easy tutorial for you that requires no significant metal working skills. Gloria Fort has step by step instructions for creating a fun, modern necklace with nothing more than polymer and metal rings. Easy peasy and quite appealing, you can choose your own color palette and use any kind of metal rings or findings you have on hand. Even large metal aluminum washers will work for this design.
If you don’t have anything on hand or want to create your own interesting shapes, just pull out some thick wire and create open metal forms by wrapping the wire around sturdy items such as tool handles or interesting parts of kitchen utensils. Or form them by hand. I would recommend you give your wire forms a good tap all the way around with a rubber tipped hammer to harden the wire so you can press the clay in and on it without deforming it. Don’t have a rubber tipped hammer? Then just lay the wire forms between layers of leather or heavy felt and use a nail hammer with a moderately gentle touch.
Or just go at it with the nail hammer to flatten the wire. Be aware, however, that the wire will spread and change the form including probably opening the point where you expect the wire to meet. Bending flattened wire is difficult if not impossible. A little overlapping (or a lot if you like!) can guarantee a continuous metal band and a touch of epoxy, if you don’t solder, can be used to hold the ends together. But play around! That’s what this week has been all about!
Gloria has tons of mixed media tutorials on her website so if you want tips and ideas on polymer mixed media or even something completely different, browse her site for all kinds of ideas.
Inspirational Challenge of the Day: You guessed it … try the tutorial or create your own version of the metal layered onto polymer. But mostly, this weekend, just play!
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