I have finished the cane and have made a bead to show you how it all comes together. The final results (which might be a necklace I think) will have to wait because I have run out of white clay and am waiting on my order! Unorganised!
So here is the process:
I start by putting together my shape (in this case a flower). This is the longest part of the process as your are forming all the individual shapes, a pasta machine definitely comes in handy as you can roll your outline colour into a flat sheet easily. Then you fill in the gaps with the white clay making sure that it completely surrounds the inner flower to prevent any colour mixing on the outer rim.
After that you start the process of squeezing your cane to condense it. While you do this you are gradually blending all the joins together on the outer rim.
Next you start squeezing and pulling your cane from the middle out towards the ends. You cannot roll your cane yet as it will distort the shape in the middle. Once you are satisfied that there are no air bubbles and your cane has been reduced enough, you can start the rolling process until your cane looks like a long cylinder.
Next leave the cane to cool before slicing it in the middle to reveal your shape.
Then you cut thin slices from your cane and start placing them around a ball of clay to cover the entire ball.
You then mould the ball and your cane slices together until there are no visible joins and the bead is completely smooth.
Lastly put a hole through the centre of your bead and you are ready to cook!
When I have completed my necklace I will post some pics of the finished product. I hope you have enjoy seeing how the beads are created, maybe you could try one of your own and let me know how it goes?
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