Creating a vibrant, “Pop Art” bug out of Sculpey is a fun, hands-on way for students to incorporate art into their science projects. They learn about different insects, and all their insect parts as they form them from bright Sculpey colors. In the end, kids have beautiful, colorful, Pop Art bugs that they made themselves… Continue reading Sculpey Pop Art Bugs: Easily Infuse Art into Your Classroom
I’ll never learn everything there is to know about working with polymer clay. That’s what I love about it! One of the things I’m still exploring is clay texture. Premo is generally firm, Souffle is dry to the touch and less firm; but maintains shape well, Sculpey III and Bakeshop are soft. All four have… Continue reading Clay Inlay: A New Technique for Your Toolbox
Who here has a clay extruder sitting around gathering dust in their craft room? A year ago, I would have raised my hand sheepishly and said, “I do.” Well, my extruder harbors dust bunnies no more! With some imagination and practice, extruding clay has become one of my most treasured tricks for adding interest to… Continue reading Using Extruded Clay to Make Fun Patterns and Projects
Teachers will find any excuse to get their students to read. This month, with the help of Sculpey clays, we are making Bootiful Bookmarks to get us all motivated to read in class and at home. The students who ranged in age from 10-12 years of age were so excited to create and use their… Continue reading Making Bootiful Bookmarks with Sculpey Products
Setting up expectations with Sculpey clays can be daunting when students become sweet little vultures as they rush to grab supplies and start their Sculpey projects. Even my high schoolers get overly excited to create! Over the many years that I have taught polymer clay in my classroom, I have revised my systems in order… Continue reading Setting Expectations and Giving Choice When Using Sculpey Clay In The Classroom
Have you tried the New Super Sculpey Skin Tone Mixing Kit yet? I recently had the chance to work with this new kit and was amazed by how many different skin tones could be mixed with so few colours! Using the recipe chart that comes with the kit, I was able to mix 30 different… Continue reading Working with the New Super Sculpey® Skin Tone Mixing Kit
I’ve always loved to paint and draw, and before working with polymer clay, I used to fill my creative time by painting in oil and acrylic paints and drawing with charcoal and chalk pastels. When I started using polymer clay, I was thrilled to learn that I could still use all those supplies with my clay,… Continue reading How to Enhance Your Sculpture with Paints, Pastels and Inks
How to Sand Polymer Clay Sanding polymer clay is essential to producing a clear, smooth finish and a beautiful final product. If you’re interested in working with clay, are a craft hobbyist or enjoy making clay products, consider the best ways to sand and polish polymer clay. From the popular wet and dry sandpaper method to polishing… Continue reading How to Sand Polymer Clay
Air bubbles in polymer clay are a common occurrence before and after the baking process. Many methods, such as sharp tools, machines like pasta rollers or effective conditioning, can prevent possible air bubbles. However you choose to get rid of air bubbles, explore all your options before investing in a new machine or extra tools.… Continue reading How to Get Air Bubbles out of Polymer Clay
Marbling clay is surprisingly simple and yields stunning results. Whether replicating natural stone or creating an all-new combination of neon colors, marbling gives your projects a dynamic appearance with subtle gradients and organic twists and turns. You can use marbled clay in many ways, from fashion-forward jewelry to delightful home decor. Let’s take a look… Continue reading How to Marble Polymer Clay: Tips and Project Ideas
Translucent Liquid Sculpey® (TLS) is one of my must-haves to use in conjunction with polymer clay, and for many reasons. It is extremely versatile in that it can be used to make fake sauces and icing, to soften clay, and as an adhesive. A little goes a long way and, like polymer clay, it will… Continue reading My Favorite Ways to Use Liquid Sculpey®
Sculpey Teacher Ambassador, Sharon Nelson is writing to give us a look into her family’s exploration of the Sculpey products for her son’s artwork. I am an art teacher of 12 years and I like to try out new art supplies with my own children first. My son and I have been using Sculpey clays… Continue reading Using Sculpey Products for Your Children’s Art
The top row of the large photo contains the 3 colors that I’m mixing with the featured color on the far right. The bottom 3 colors are the colors mixes created by mixing the color directly above with equal portions (1:1) of the featured color. Sooo, this new Sculpey Premo™ was full of surprises as… Continue reading New Color Tuesday! Introducing Premo Ice Blue Pearl Pt 2
Keeping your clay clean is easily one of the most difficult things when working with clay. You have such a pretty piece then you find a pesky dust particle, annoying right? Your workspace can be spotless but still you find dust in your clay. I’m going to share a few tips and tricks that can… Continue reading Keeping Your Clay Clean
Materials and tools used: Liquid Sculpey® Primary Colors Set and White Sculpey Premo™ or Soufflé™ (White/Igloo or light color) Sculpey Tools™ Etch ‘n Pearl Sculpey Tools™ Mold or similar mold to create the embossed pattern (NOTE: A stamp can also be used) A needle tool if your design includes intricate lines and spaces Empty paint… Continue reading Sculpey Design Squad Challenge: Painting with Sculpey Liquid clay
Most crafters are savers; and, if you’re like me, you feel a little guilty about all the pretty little leftovers lying about. For one thing, even though they’re still perfectly good, they’re odd and small and they take up way too much valuable crafting space. That’s why I’ve stared a new plan. One day a… Continue reading The Joy of Odd Bits and Extra Pieces
Hi Clay Friends, my name is Amy Tanner I teach Middle School Art in Farmington NM. I use Sculpey in and out of my classroom. My students and I really enjoy blending colors together to create gradations to use on their own and to use in cane. Over the winter months we love to create bright, bold cane… Continue reading Breaking Winter Blues with Sculpey
Polymer clay didn’t enter my world until I was 55 years old; but, when it DID, it hit me like a tidal wave. I first saw a millefiori cane on the cover of a craft book. (I’d love to know which book that was; but I’ve never seen it since.) I was at a friend’s… Continue reading Exploring the Humble Cane
This post is from Sculpey Teacher Ambassador Theresa Nguyen- To start the school year, I like to create a collaborative piece that embodies what a safe space looks or feels like. At the least, it should be filled with a diversity of personalities, cultures, and perspectives. A collaborative mosaic is a great project to make… Continue reading Creating a Class Collaborative Project
How to Smooth Polymer Clay Polymer clay is forgiving, but fingerprints, bumps, smudges and hairs have a sneaky way of embedding themselves on the surface of your piece. Many clayers and crafters have a toolkit of techniques for smoothing oven-bake clay and keeping pesky imperfections at bay. Most of these strategies are pretty easy and… Continue reading How to Smooth Polymer Clay
The top row of the large photo contains the 3 colors that I’m mixing with the featured color on the far right. The bottom 3 colors are the colors mixes created by mixing the color directly above with equal portions (1:1) of the featured color. Ohhh, this color is fun to mix with, so (of… Continue reading New Color Tuesday! Introducing Sculpey Premo™ Berry Pearl- Pt 2
The top row of the large photo contains the 3 colors that I’m mixing with the featured color on the far right. The bottom 3 colors are the colors mixes created by mixing the color directly above with equal portions (1:1) of the featured color. I can finally reveal the Mystery Color for this month!… Continue reading New Color Tuesday! Introducing Sculpey Premo™ Berry Pearl- Pt 1
Sculpey Teacher Ambassador, Robyn Crawford, loves using metallic mica powders in her Sculpey clay creations to give it some shimmer and bling. She says, “There is no wrong way to play with these powders, but here a few things to try.” You can mix in mica powders directly into the clay. You can see in… Continue reading Suggestions for Using Mica Powders with Sculpey Clay.
by Sculpey Teacher Ambassador Katherine Steiner To begin, take equal amounts of Sculpey in two or more colors. Start with two, then build up to more as you get better at twisting the clay. Then roll each piece of clay into a rope with your hands, making them the same length. Begin to twist the… Continue reading Techniques to Try – Twists and Spirals
To save you time! Creating and using silicone molds for your clay projects helps speed up your process by not having to hand sculpt multiple of the same pieces over and over. Keep reading to learn how you can make your very own molds at home. Step 1: Gather Your Supplies Step 2: Create Your… Continue reading Make Your Own Silicone Mold
What Are Clay Canes? Have you ever seen those candies with the teeny tiny images in them? Or clay work that looks like there’s an image built right into it (not just painted on)? These are probably using a technique called cane making! It’s essentially the process of building a larger image with your material… Continue reading Creating Clay Canes
I have never really painted on clay a lot in my career. I guess I’ve always tried to achieve the end goal through the colors of the clay itself. With that said, I have called upon a couple of my claying friends to shore me up in the areas of clay painting where I am… Continue reading How to Paint on Polymer Clay
Whether you’re looking to decorate your home, craft a stunning pair of earrings or add creative accents to your scrapbook, polymer clay provides the ultimate way to unlock your artistic side. In addition to its range of uses, polymer clay is soft, flexible, fun and easy to use. You might have questions about this one-of-a-kind… Continue reading What Is Polymer Clay and How Is It Used?
Every creative person has their secrets, techniques, and tips for making what they do appear even more impressive. A motto I live by is “work smarter, not harder”, which is why I am excited to share the following polymer clay hacks with you. Most of these techniques use everyday household items, so anyone of any… Continue reading 5 Hacks for Working With Polymer Clay
Techniques for Making Polymer Clay Jewelry Sculpey® Kits for making jewelry have everything you need to create beautiful pieces. For some, making polymer clay jewelry may be preferred over other claying techniques. On the other hand, you may be completely new to the art of jewelry making and want to know more about how to work… Continue reading Using Sculpey kits to Make Clay Jewelry
