Tidal Pool Necklace

Cindi McGee is teaching an online workshop sharing how she used the Makin's Professional® Ultimate Clay Extruder®, Makin's Professional® ClayCore Adaptors®, Makin's Professional® Professional Clay Tools®, and Makin's® Clay Cutters to create this unique necklace!

Assemblage Under the Sea

Assemblage Under the Sea by Bea Grob

Today I come to you with an assemblage project. I had these artifical fish laying around since a while and I knew that I want to make an assemblage, but just those fish is a little boring, and finding the right things to go with it, seemed impossible. That's exactly when the Makin's Clay®  comes in handy. You can make anything you need with it. So I grabbed some black clay and started to make some underwater flowers to go with my theme.

Materials: 

Makin's Clay® - Black 

Makin's® 

• Sea Shells Push Mold
• Clay Tools 

Cigar box 

Adhesive 

Patterned papers 

Wire

Mica powder 

Faux fish, fabric, beads 

Scissors

Instructions:

I used about a walnut size of black or white clay for my flowers. I formed first a ball and then flattened it to a more or less circular shape.

Next, I placed it on my knuckle to form it into a cup shape and set them aside to dry. I let them dry overnight.

  

I have poked a piece of wire in the middle, just in case I would need it.

The next day I started covering the cups.  I rolled balls and flattened them to make covers for the cups.  Before I added them I added some holes with a ballpoint tool. I simply poked and swirled around a bit.

I made the shape slightly oval and then simply pressed the uncured clay the already cured clay and smoothed it out a bit. No need for extra glue it sticks together just like that.   If you do have issues with fresh clay adhering to cured clay, a bit of clear drying adhesive can be used. 

When everything was dry, I  added acrylic paints, embossing powders and Mica Powders. There are so many ways to give the clay the colors and shine I want.

Next, I prepared the cigar box with some old bookpages, maps and patterend paper and started assembling everything. I usually have more things on my table then what I use in the end.

The starfish you can see I made in May in the claycamp in Goldbar, also with Makin's Clay® of course.

 

I have used modelling paste and/or glue to attach all the flowers and embellishments.  For the hanging fishes and the anchor I did drill holes and then used wire to attach it.

To cover up the wire ends I used the Sea Shells Push Mold to make shells with the clay, and accented with mica powder, and then simply put them still uncured onto the top. 

And, I did apply little balls of black clay to the "anchor“ as those gaffs are quite sharp.

I have also added some fabric and beads to complete the look I was after.

By the Sea ATC's

Cindi McGee recently shared these dimensional mixed-media ATC's on her blog.    Cindi used Makin's Clay® to create her seahorses, starfish and octopus elements.  She also used the Makin's® Sea Shells Push Mold & Sand Texture Sheet from Set A.  Makin's Clay® is great for paper crafting - it is lightweight, flexible and acid free when dry.  It can be die cut (like these seahorses!), molded, craft punched, rubber stamped, and more.

Under the Sea by Patricia Krauchune

Design Team Member Patricia Krauchune recently shared this "sea-tastic" under the sea mixed-media piece here on her blog.   Pat used Makin's Clay® to create her seashell embellishments, and a Makin's® texture sheet to texture her clay waves.