Supplies and Tools
Various canes made from translucent and opaque clays
Scrap clay
Inclusions (metallic leaf, micro beads, glitter…get creative!)
Translucent Liquid Sculpey (optional)
600x wet/dry sandpaper (optional, put recommended)
Finish (acrylic floor polish)
Lucite square or other small flat piece
(plexiglas, glass with taped edges, CD case)
Tissue Blade
Smoothing Tool
Toothpick
Unlined index cards
Aluminum Foil
Drilling Tool and/or Needle Tool
Oven and Thermometer
Ice water
Roll a log of conditioned scrap clay and cover with a layer (medium thickness, about 1/16”) of a selected base color. Before continuing, be sure to press out any air bubbles, this is crucial. Fig 1
Next, press your selected inclusions down the length of the log. I used green micro beads, metallic leaf and a tiny bit of iridescent glitter. Fig 2
Apply very thin slices from your canes randomly along the length of the log, making sure to cover your included areas with translucent canework. Fig 3 After applying as many of the slices as you like, roll them in and smooth along the length of the log with your fingers. Remember, any smoothing you do now, will save you sanding time later. Fig 4 Now, cut your log into pieces and pinch the ends together so that no scrap clay is showing. Fig 5 Before beginning the swirling step, further smooth in the cane slices as you roll each piece into a ball in your hand.
Take your first piece and flatten down gently on the top with a square of lucite (some people use a CD case).
Gently begin rotating your arm in large circles to begin forming a bicone shape. I rotate counter clockwise - I like pulling the swirl toward my body instead of away, but do whatever works best for you. As I swirl, I pull the clay in towards the center, and I tilt the square down a few degrees towards my work surface to help. Continue swirling your clay until you have a bicone shape with a nice point. Fig 6
Gradually decrease the size of your rotations as you slightly begin to flatten the shape into a lentil. Don't flatten too much or you will not have a nice lentil shape. If you don't like the pattern of the swirl, repeat the steps of large rotations to a sharp point, then smaller rotations as you flatten slightly. Fig 7
When you are satisfied with your swirl pattern, pick up your bead and gently push the points in. Fig 8
Roll the lentil on its side between your index finger and your work surface to gently take the sharp edge off of the bead. Don't do this too firmly or you will create a ripple in the clay. Fig 9
After you've swirled yourself silly, you have a decision to make regarding the bead holes. My current preference is to completely drill the hole before curing. I use a simple thick sewing needle. Make sure that the raw bead is cool and firm (refrigerate), so as not to distort the lentil shape as much. If you completely pierce a raw lentil, you may need to gently re-shape with your Lucite square or even gently roll again on its side. As with any technique, practice makes perfect.
If you prefer not to drill completely through, just lightly press pilot holes into either end of your lentils and finish drilling after curing with a drill bit imbedded and glued into a scrap clay handle. Fig 10
Set your lentils on unlined index cards and cure for at least 40 minutes or longer at 275 degrees (use an oven thermometer to insure proper curing). You may want to tent your beads with aluminum foil to prevent any browning of the translucent and lighter colored clays. Fig 11
After the curing is complete, dunk your beads into an ice water bath for approximately 30 minutes. This step seems to help make the translucent clay more clear. At this point, sanding with at least 3M 600x wet/dry sandpaper and buffing is advisable.
After all of my beads have clean bead holes, I brush on at least one coat of finish. I let the beads dry completely and then set the finish in a 200 degree oven for 10 minutes.
The next step is the bead caps. Use a very small leaf or petal cane for these (about ½”). You want the shape of your cane round at this point, so that you can roll it in some metallic leafing. After you’ve done that you will want to roll the leafing in a bit, so that you end up with about a ¼” cane. Cut into two pieces. Pinch each piece into a leaf shape and line up the two pieces together by pinching a little more. They won’t stick together very well because of the leafing, but just work with it. Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes before slicing. Fig 12
Take some thin slices from your bead cap cane and apply gently at the ends where you’ve drilled your bead hole. It is recommended that you use some dots of liquid clay where your bead caps will be applied. Fig 13 After you have each side of the bead set with your bead caps, gently smooth with a smoothing tool. I don’t sand the caps at all, so make sure you have them nice and smooth. Fig 14
Then pierce the bead hole again with a toothpick or your needle tool. Press/smooth down the top of the raw clay if it rises up from piercing. Fig 15 String your beads on some wire and place on the edges of a baking sheet. Fig 16 Cure the bead caps at 275 degrees for 20 minutes. I have never had any problems with the acrylic finish going into a 275 degree oven, but you may want to tent your pieces. After your beads have cured and cooled, with a very small bristle brush, put one last coat of finish on the bead caps only (paying special attention to any leafing that you used). Let this coat dry thoroughly and set the finish one last time (200 degrees for 10 minutes).
Now enjoy the lovely “capped” lentil beads you’ve made! Experiment with exciting color combinations that are out of your comfort zone, inclusions, leafing and foils, bead shapes and caps. With a little of this and a bit of that, you will have your own wonderful combinations of color and style.
