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Friday, July 31, 2015

Flowerpot Fun by Madeline Arendt

Design Team Member Madeline Arendt recently shared this fun flowerpot project she made by
covering a foam pot with rolled & textured Makin's Clay®.  Madeline also made the centers of her flowers with textured Makin's Clay®.  

Thursday, July 30, 2015

Aquatic Pools Necklace by Amanda Phillips


Design Team Member Amanda Phillips recently shared this absolutely stunning necklace made with the Makin's Clay® and the Ultimate Clay Extruder™ here on her blog.   She'll be sharing more about the technique she used to create this piece soon and we can't wait to learn more!

Makin's Clay® to be at 2015 ICES Show

Makin’s® Products Featured At 2015 ICES Show
PRESS RELEASE:  10 JULY 2015

Makin’s USA is proud to announce Makin’s® products will be featured by New York Cake & Baking Supply at the 40th Anniversary of the International Cake Exploration Societe (ICES) at CenturyLink Center in Omaha Nebraska, July 30 – August 2, 2015.  Show attendees are invited to stop by booth #215 & #314 to see Makin’s® product demonstrations and enjoy special discount pricing.  FREE Makin’s® product samples while supplies last.

Loving PMC Pendant by Patricia Krauchune

Design Team Member Patricia Krauchune recently shared this fun pendant she made for a local town clerk who does the Pan Mass Challenge, a biking event that raises millions of dollars for cancer research.  Patricia used our Makin's® Gears Texture Sheet as the background on her clay and we think it was a perfect choice!  

Wednesday, July 29, 2015

Bird’s Nest Shadowbox by Candice Windham

Makin’s Clay® Bird’s Nest Shadowbox
Designed by Candice Windham for Makin’s Clay®

It’s funny how you fall in love with something the minute you see it, and that’s what happened when my BFF Linda Gordon Bradshaw gave me this little pedestal shadowbox. She said, “I knew you could make something good with this.” 

I’ve found that the longer I think about something, the more pleased I am with the outcome. It’s been sitting on my worktable for about three months, because I knew I wanted it to be something special, so I used three of my favorite things: birds, flowers and Makin’s® No-Bake Polymer Clay.

Here’s how I did it:

Supplies:

Makin’s Clay® - one each white, brown, black 120g packages, and one pack of the Earth Tones
                          - Ultimate Clay Extruder™ and Disks
                          - Clay Mixing Ruler™
                          - Clay Roller
                          - Cutting Mat
Patterned Paper (Colorbok)
Pedestal Shadowbox (Hobby Lobby)
Acrylic Paint, Quinacridone Magenta, Metallic Gold, Jenkins Green, Teal
Bird Embellishment (Wendi Vecchi)
Large Glue Dot
Beacon® Quick Grip Adhesive 
Brown paper shred
Thin hemp cording, 24”
Computer and printer
Plastic gloves
Double-stick tape (Scor-Tape)

Instructions:

Measure the inside of the shadowbox and cut the printed  paper to fit. On your computer, set the quotation to fit the paper size.

To make sure the quotations prints straight on the printed paper, draw two lines on the computer printout slightly above and to the right of the measurement, and print it out. 

Line up the printed paper just below and to the left of the printed rules.  
Tape only along the top line.

Place the paper back in the computer and print again. Your quotation will be perfectly aligned on your printed paper.





Custom Coloring Clay

Divide the white clay into six sections, measuring with the largest section on the Clay Mixing Ruler™. Place all the pieces in a plastic bag with a sealable closure to keep it fresh. You will only need four balls of white clay for this project, so keep the remainder sealed for future use.

Remove one white ball from the bag. Knead 1/8 teaspoon of Metallic Gold paint and a drop of Quinacridone Magenta into the clay to crate a peach shade. Be sure to wear plastic gloves and place the ball back in a plastic bag.
Remove a second piece of white clay and mix in ½ teaspoon of
Metallic Gold acrylic paint. Be sure to wear plastic gloves and
place the ball back in a plastic bag.

Remove a third ball of white and mix in ¼ teaspoon of Metallic Gold acrylic paint and about 1/8 teaspoon of Quinacridone Magenta acrylic paint. Be sure to wear plastic gloves and place the ball back in a plastic bag.

Mix half of the fourth ball with ½ teaspoon of Jenkins Green acrylic paint. Mix he other half with Teal acrylic paint. Be sure to wear plastic gloves and place the balls back in a plastic bag.

Roses

Roll each of the balls into a long rope and flatten each onto the Cutting Mat with the Clay Roller.

Pinch the top edge of each roll.

Begin at one end and roll the strip. Push the edges out to make the petals and pinch the bottom to
keep the roll together.





For the rose buds, just make small flowers with fewer layers. Press a pinch of the Jenkin’s Green mixed color into a small oval and wrap it around one side of the bud.

For the color blended rose, roll out two equal pieces of acrylic-mixed yellow and dark pink clay. Place them on the Makin’s Measuring Mat so that the edges are touching and use the Makin’s Clay Roller to flatten the pieces.

Use the ball tool included with the Clay Mixing Ruler™ to drag
the pink into the yellow clay.

Roll again with the Clay Roller and then roll into a flower as above.


Nest

Measure one piece each of black and brown in the largest circle on the Clay Mixing Ruler™.

Roll the two balls together into a log and place it in the Ultimate Clay Extruder™ with the seven-hole disk in place.


Extrude the clay and shape it into a nest.







Eggs

Create three pieces with the Teal mixed clay using the third largest circle one the Clay Mixing Ruler and shape them into into oval egg shapes.

Note: I made three, but only had enough room for two
At this point, I felt that the nest needed some lighter colors so I mixed the beige and tan clays from the Earth Tones pack and extruded using the same disk. I then placed this extrusion on top of the dark brown extrusion.


Vine

Using the green clay from the Earth Tones pack and the small circle disk with the Ultimate Clay Extruder™, extrude a vine as long as you wish. Wrap the hemp cord around the vine and secure the ends with a drop of Quick Grip Adhesive.

Note: To make it easier to handle, I made my cord in two sections, one about 6” long and one about 18” long. The short piece is behind the nest and the longer pieces goues across the bottom, loops and goes up the left side.

Note: Remember, Makin’s Clay® stays flexible in thinner pieces, so this vine will be useful for future projects if you don’t use it all for this one.

Set all pieces aside to dry.

Assembly

Place the printed paper in the back of the box, adhering with double-stick tape. 

Attach shredded paper in the right corner of the shadowbox with Quick Grip Adhesive and place the nest on top. Place more shredded paper in the nest, and then attach the eggs with Quick Grip adhesive. Place the short section of vine in place behind the nest.
Place a glue dot to the back of the bird embellishment and attach it to the shadowbox just above the nest.

Place shredded paper along the inside base of the shadowbox. Attach the longer piece of vine under the nest. Make a small loop and
then attach it along the left side and over the top of the quotation. Attach two rosebuds at the vine top and arrange the remaining roses and buds along the inside base of the box. 

I’m not sure what I will do with this box, but for the time being, I’m going to enjoy it and remember Henry Van Dyke’s advice. Maybe I’ll make it a gift to my BFF!


Tuesday, July 28, 2015

Interference Paint Jewelry by Kim Hale


Design Team Member Kim Hale recently shared this stunningly colored Makin's Clay® jewelry embellished with interference paints here on her blog.

Butterflies Are Free Wall Art by Patricia Krauchune

Design Team member Patricia Krauchune recently created this fun set of mixed-media Butterflies are Free Wall Art - we love how she took advantage of the lightweight and flexible nature of Makin's Clay along with the different elements she combined with Makin's Clay® to bring them to life!  You can find out more about how Patricia created these amazing butterflies here on her blog 

Monday, July 27, 2015

Escape to Paradise Necklace featuring Makin's Clay - A DIY Video from the WCK All-Star Designers Summer Series


Makin's Clay® is a sponsor of the When Creativity Knocks All-Star Designers Summer Series.  In this week's episode, Cindi Bisson McGee is sharing her Escape to Paradise Necklace which is a mixed-media necklace featuring two elements made with Makin's Clay®.  

Light the Night Tea Light by Carole Monahan

Design Team Member Carole Monahan recently shared her idea for a quick and easy housewarming gift made with Makin's Clay® here on her blog   We love the way the clay extends off of the tea light on her Light the Night Right Tea Light!

Sunday, July 26, 2015

Summer Sipper Straws by Suzann Sladcik-Wilson


Summer Sipper Straws
Designed by Suzann Sladcik-Wilson 

It’s Summer and that means it’s time to party! When it is time to break out the drinks, there is nothing worse than not knowing which one is yours. Avoid the confusion by creating these easy to make Summer Sippers for your guests. You can also use them as place cards at the table. 

Just follow the simple instructions below to make ones of your own!

Materials:

Makin’s Clay® - Neon Orange, Neon Yellow, Neon Green, Neon Pink, Blue, Red 
                        - Cutting Mat
                        - Clay Cutters Large in Star, Fish, and Sun Shapes
Roller 
7 Festive Straws
Staz On Ink Pad in Jet Black
Impress Art Metal Stamp in Bridgette Font
Beacon™ Quick Grip Glue
Crystal Katana
Rhinestone Crystals in various colors

Instructions: 

Step 1
Roll out the Makin’s Clay® on the back of your Clay Cutting Mat.

Step 2
Cut out your desired shape using the Clay Cutter.

Step 3
Use a spare straw to cut holes to insert your straw through in your Makin’s Clay® shape.

Step 4
Take your metal stamps and ink and stamp the name of the person on the center of your clay shape.
TIP - Press stamps extremely lightly onto clay to get the best impression.

Step 5
Insert straw through your holes and allow clay to dry 24 hours.

Step 6 (optional)
Glue your rhinestones to your Makin’s Clay® shape using the
Beacon Quick Grip glue and Crystal Katana.



Vintage Bottle Re-Do by Martha Lucia Gomez

Design Team Member Martha Lucia Gomez shared this pretty altered vintage bottle here on her blog
recently.  Martha added a Makin's Clay® flower accent and we think it's the perfect finishing touch.  

Saturday, July 25, 2015

It's a Boy Canvas by Steph Ackerman

Design Team Member Steph Ackerman recently shared this mixed-media canvas project here on her blog.  Steph used custom colored Makin's Clay® to create some of her project accents - the great dimensional lettering and the baby feet are punched from sheets of dry clay!

Pencil Bookmark by Amanda Phillips


Pencil Bookmark
Designed by Amanda Phillips 

Supplies:

Makin's Clay® - Earth Tones, White 
                        - Ultimate Clay Machine™
                        - Cutting Mat
                        - Clay Mixing Ruler™
                        - Texture Sheet Set A 
                        - Roller & Cutter Set
                        - Oval Clay Cutters 

Instructions:

Roll 1/2 package of Straw clay from Earth Tones set on the Ultimate Clay Machine™ to setting #3.  Make sure your strip is at least 5" long, cut your strip at the end with your crimp roller.

Mix 1 ball the size of a quarter (largest hole on Clay Mixing Ruler™) of white clay with a pea sized ball (second hole on Clay Mixing Ruler™) of black to make the metal eraser tab and lead. 

Mix 1 quarter sized ball of a color that you would like your wood shavings to be, I used a small amount of the Light Adobe from the Earth Tones set and a pea sized ball of white mixed, roll this too #2 thickness on your Ultimate Clay Machine™ and then using your crimped roller cut across.  Place the piece very snug into the grooves of your Straw strip slightly upon and gently secure with roller. 

Using your Clay Mixing Ruler™, mix red and white for eraser. Roll out to #3 thickness on Ultimate Clay Machine™ and cut with oblong oval cutters trimming across to secure snuggly/slighty atop your Straw clay. Secure again with roller. 

Take your gray clay and roll into the Waves texture sheet and cut into 1/4" strip.Place atop attaching the eraser and pencil to each other.  Add tiny impressed dot accents as shown.

Now using your Clay Mixing Ruler™ as a straight edge, cut entire pencil straight on one side and when cutting other side assure that your pencil is at least 2" wide.  Place a small dollop of the gray at the end of your pencil and clean cut the wooded area in an angle. 

Add accent line indentations to the Straw portion of the pencil.   Let dry 24 hours. 

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