Silver clay is a fun new thing that anyone can use. All anyone needs is a little bit of patience and a little bit of time and they can be making some great looking silver jewelry In no time.
Supplies
There are a few things that the jewelry artist will need in order to create some wonderful little pieces of jewelry. The first is the clay itself. Most can find this kind of clay at the local hobby store or online. The prices on silver clay can vary by the size of package is bought, but it usually ranges from $20 on up to over $100. The smaller packages are good for one or two pieces tops, but the larger packages can be used to make more pieces for the artist to wear or to sell at the local craft show.
The next thing that you will need is a brush to take the fired clay off. When the clay has been fired, it still has a clay look to it until the piece has been brushed free of the first coat of clay. A wire brush can be used to do this.
A place to fire the jewelry is also needed. There is no need to buy an expensive kiln from the pottery store, but some kind of hot pot or way to fire the piece. There is a kit that allows an artist to use their gas stove for firing. This method is easy and the kit can be bought for less than $20 without the clay included. There is also a mini kiln called a hot pot that can also be used. For this, the pot is loaded with a fuel and the piece is sat in the top of it. Then the hot pot is lit and it begins to fire the piece.
Designing The Jewelry
There are a few different ways that artists can design their jewelry with silver clay. One of the easiest ways is with cookie cutters. Small ones are available where traditional clay is sold and can be used with the silver clay to make jewelry. They come in many different shapes and sizes and can make some interesting jewelry.
Carving into the clay is also effective for designing jewelry. Tools can be picked up at any place that clay is sold and usually run around $20 for a set. They can also be found in metal or in plastic.
There is also a product that is liquid silver. This can be used to make snakes on the jewelry and to add designs that are hard to do in any other way. These can be found where silver clay is sold and for around the same pricing as the silver clay that most work with.
Creating a wonderful looking piece of jewelry with silver clay is really not all that hard. All anyone needs are the basics and an idea and then they can be off and running.
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