DIY Polymer Clay Gumball Garland

I am going to start this post by saying making felt balls sucksssss.  Earlier this week I had this not so awesome idea to try and make a giant felt ball garland.  So I went to Hobby Lobby and picked up like $20 worth of felt.  I got home, got all my supplies ready and after a billion attempts I was left with little soggy, soapy shapes that did not even slightly resemble balls.  Plus one ball takes like 10 minutes to make...so ya that idea was axed. And to be honest I like the polymer clay version so much better!  You have so many more options with colors since you can blend them together and it takes like 1/100th of the time it would to make a felt ball garland.

I was going to wait until after Thanksgiving to post this but I just couldn't wait that long.  Plus I figured this is a great craft to do with the kids or just by yourself if you have any time off next week.

What you will need:

• An assortment of polymer clay (found at any craft store) 
• Waxed cotton cord
• A bead making tool or a toothpick 

Directions:

1. Start by conditioning your clay to soften it up. 
2. Decide how big you want to make your gum balls and rip off a small chunk and roll it into a ball in between your hands.  Continue to do this with all the colors that you decided to use. 
3. Once all your gum balls are made (I made 60 to reach from one end of my mantel to the other), use the bead making tool to poke a hole into the center of each ball. 
4. Place all of the balls into a designated craft baking sheet and bake at 275 degrees for 30 minutes. 
5. Let the gum balls cool and then string them onto the waxed cotton cord in whatever color pattern you like. 
6. Hang your garland on your tree or on your mantel.
7. Have fun! 

Have fun! The color and pattern options are endless!

See Also:

DIY Polymer Clay Star Garland 

DIY Polymer Clay Beaded Necklace

DIY Polymer Half Circle Beads
DIY Gold Bar Beads 

How To Make Gold Bar Beads With Polymer Clay

The boys both woke up yesterday with little colds, which meant it was going to be a sucky day for sure haha just kidding (sort of)... it meant that we were staying home and relaxing and not doing much.  I decided to get out my clay stuff and try to recreate the gold bar look, which I have wanted to do for the longest time.  I love how this turned out and the ways you can wear these are endless.

What you will need:

• Translucent polymer clay 
• Gold powdered pigment 
• Razor blade
• Waxed cotton cord for either bracelets or necklaces  
• Bead making tool or toothpick

Directions:

1. Rip off a little chunk of clay and condition it in between your hands so that it is soft and pliable. 
2. Pour a small amount of gold pigment into a dish.  Place the ball of clay in the dish and roll it around thoroughly coating it.  Then mash up the little ball and repeat.  Do this until the translucent clay is evenly a rich and vibrant shade of gold. 
3. Roll the piece of clay into a ball and then using your hand roll it into a tube bead (see picture instructions here)
4. Place the tube of clay onto the bead making tool, use the palm of your hand to roll out any imperfections and to make it smooth. Wiggle the metal tool around until you have a nice size hole.
5. Take a tiny bit of gold pigment and gently rub it onto your bead on last time to give it a little extra boost of gold color. 
6. Place your beads on a designated craft baking sheet and bake according to your clay directions.
7. Before beads completely cool, use the razor to slice off each end of your beads to give them a more finished look.
8. Attach the beads into the waxed cotton cord and wear them as a necklace or bracelet!

I love how these turned out.  You can make one and keep it simple or make multiple beads and layer them up! 

See also:

DIY Ombre Polymer Clay Beaded Necklace

DIY Half Circle Polymer Clay Necklace

DIY Braided Polymer Clay Bracelet 

DIY Simple Heart Polymer Clay Earrings

For the most part I tend to overthink things.  I also tend to make things that are best suited to be simple waaaaaay overcomplicated.  Take these little heart earrings for example.  Today I got this great (not so great) idea to dip the hearts in gold paint.  Long story short I hated them.  They looked all goopy (it's a real word according to Urban Dictionary) and I got gold paint freaking everywhere.  I loved them plain and simple so that's how I ended up leaving them.

This is literally the easiest polymer clay project ever and if you are in need of a little last minute love in your ears for Valentine's Day then this is the project for you.  I just proofread this little sentence to my husband and he said it sounded really creepy and I probably should not say that.  I decided to leave it anyway :)  

What you will need:

• A small chunk of red polymer clay
• A heart cut out (found in the clay section of a craft store) 
• earring front and backs (found at a craft store) 
• E 6000 glue 

Directions:

1. Condition the polymer clay up in between your hands so that it is easier to work with.   
2. Using a thick marker or a clay roller, roll out an even piece of clay.
3. Take your heart cutout and make two hearts.  To get the hearts out use the eraser part of a pencil and gently push it out. 
4. Place your hearts on a designated craft baking sheet and bake according to your clay's directions. 
5. Once your hearts have cooled apply a small amount of glue to each heart back and press the back part of your earring into the glue making sure it adheres to the clay. 
6. Let the glue dry and enjoy your new pair of earrings!

This project took a whole ten minutes, minus baking time.  So easy and I will be wearing these year long because I love hearts regardless of Valentine's Day or not.

DIY Polymer Clay Star Garland

One thing I love about our new house is that we actually have a fireplace mantle! This is exciting since our old house had a mantel-less fireplace, which I always felt was a sad looking sight once Christmas time rolled around each year.  So the fact that I can now do amazing things like hang stockings and garland makes me beyond happy :)

I wanted a somewhat simple garland for the fireplace and something that added a little hint of Christmas cheer without being too loud.  Not sure if that even makes sense but half of the decorating thoughts in my head don't make sense.  This turned out exactly like I visioned (almost never happens) and I love the little sparkle it gives my living room.

 What you will need:

• 1 large block of white Sculpey polymer clay 
• Gold glitter
• Small star cookie cutter (I found mine at Hobby Lobby in the clay section) 
• String 
• Clay roller
• Hot glue gun 
• Small bowl

Start by conditioning your clay so that is is pliable.  Roll a large chunk of clay into a ball and then use the roller to flatten it out like the picture shown above.

Use the cookie cutter to cut out all of your stars.  I made about 34 stars for my garland.  When you run out of space to cut out additional stars, mash up your clay add a little more to the ball and roll it out again.

Pour a little gold glitter into a bowl and give each star a dunk in the glitter until it is thoroughly coated on each side.

Once all the stars are covered in glitter, place them all on a designated craft baking sheet and bake at 275 degrees for 25 minutes.

Let your stars cool and get your glue gun nice and hot.  Apply a good amount of glue on the back of a star.  Press the string into the hot glue and then quickly (it dries FAST) place another star on top making sure it is laid on top of the other star in the same direction. The string will be sandwiched in between the two stars like shown above.  Press hard to make sure that stars are tightly adhered to the string.

Evenly space your stars along the string.

 Hang your garland and you're done! 

DIY Mint Polymer Clay Statement Necklace

New trends are always an interesting thing.  Take those new moon walker high top tennis shoes with Velcro that are popping up everywhere.  Hmmm.  I tried on a pair at Target just for kicks and I have come to the conclusion that I am just not cool enough for high top moon shoes.  If you have a pair of moon shoes, go you.  BUT I am loving all the mint that has been popping up for spring, that is a trend I am on board with for sure.  I wanted to make a new fun statement necklace that had a pop of color for spring so this is what I came up with.

What you will need:

• Mint polymer clay.  I actually made this color by combing equal parts light blue and emerald green. 
• Toothpick or bead maker tool if you want longer tube beads. 
• Razor
• Waxed leather or cotton cord

Here is what you do...

Condition your clay before starting.  Roll various sized peices into balls and then place them on a flat surface and roll them into tubes.  Pierce each tube with the toothpick.  If you want to make longer sized tube beads, use a long bead making tool or a wire hanger.

Roll out as many tubes as you want to put on your necklace, making each a little different in size. Place your tube beads on a designated polymer clay baking sheet and bake for ONLY 10 minutes.

Carefully remove each tube bead off of the baking sheet and slice off each end with the razor blade and discard.  Then use the razor and begin slicing up each tube to make different sized beads, or keep the same size and just remove the ends to make them flat.  Make sure you work quickly.  Place the beads back into the oven and bake for the remainder of the time according to your clay directions.

Place your beads onto the waxed cotton cord.  For the middle bead I used this technique.  Attach whatever closure you like and you are done!

DIY Ombre Polymer Clay Beaded Necklace

Nap time is pretty awesome. As I am typing out this little diy both boys are snoring away and that is happiness :) Nap time is also when I can be a girl and do things like paint my nails, try on "fall" outfits (yes I have fashion shows that include only me) and play with my most favorite thing...polymer clay. This ombre polymer clay beaded necklace is SO easy to make and it has quickly become my favorite piece of jewelry to wear.

What you will need:

• Maroon polymer clay (you could use whatever color you want actually)
• White polymer clay
• Toothpick
• Waxed leather cord
• Some kind of necklace closure (not shown)

Here is what you do...
Condition both pieces of clay so they are easier to work with. Take a big chunk of the maroon and add a tiny bit of white. Mix the two colors between your fingers until they are completely blended together.

Rip off two pieces and make two round balls. One for each side of the necklace. Take the big chuck of clay that you previously had and add a little more white. Rip off two chunks just like you did before and make two more lighter colored beads. Keep doing this until you are satisfied with the ombre effect...each time adding a little bit more white.

Use the toothpick to poke a hole in each bead. Lay your beads out in the order they are going to be strung on your necklace (this makes it easier in the end) and bake according to your clay directions.

String on your beads and wear your homemade ombre necklace! The awesome part about this project is it costs less than $5 to create...Yeay right?!

For more ways to create jewelry using polymer clay see here, here and here.

DIY Half Circle Polymer Clay Necklace

I was recently browsing around on Etsy and I spotted this beautiful necklace. I was instantly inspired and since it was made out of polymer clay I knew I wanted to recreate it myself. Here is how I did it...

What you will need:

• 2 polymer clay colors
• Waxed cotton cord
• A metal bead making tool. You can find this at Michaels or Hobby Lobby.
• Razor (not pictured)

Start by conditioning your clay. Roll out two skinny tubes and attach them at the middle by rolling them together until they "fuse."

Poke your clay bead in the center and begin squishing your bead onto the metal tool. Don't worry if it looks all limpy and weird, it will all come together in the next step.

After you get the clay all the way onto your bead making tool, use the palm of your hand to roll out any imperfections and to make it smooth. Wiggle the metal tool around until you have a nice size hole. Carefully remove the clay bead and shape it into a half circle shape. Bake your bead according to clay directions. Once the bead is done, use the razor to slice off a tiny bit of each end to make it look clean. You will want to do this before your bead completely cools.

Such an easy and simple statement piece! I had so much fun making this that I think I will make a few more with bright and bold colors next.