Mokume Gane
Design by Kris Richards

Materials and Tools:

• Three 2-ounce bars translucent Premo
• ½ bar red (or your choice of color) OR bottled ink*
• ½ bar blue (or your choice color) OR bottled ink*
• 1 Altoid tin (minimum)
• 8 sheets slilver or gold leafing (NOT FOILING!)
• Sculpey Super Slicer clay blade
• acrylic roller or brayer
• shiny work surface
• pasta machine
• shallow box larger than Altoid tin to carry work home in oven set to bake reliably at 265 degrees Fahrenheit**

*Can be fiesta inks, Ranger's Heat Set Inks, Doctor PH Martin's inks, Pantone Tria Inks, or any other INK. ie: MUST be a transparent color of some sort -- NOT acrylic-based paints.
**note baking temperature change for translucent clay is 10 degrees LOWER than other clays. Use external thermometer to check oven's accuracy.

Directions:

• Divide translucent clay into 8 equal parts (1/4 block for each part out of two blocks of clay), and condition all but the last piece of clay. Take tiny pieces of your choice color of clay and press into each piece-be sure each piece of clay is slightly larger than the last. Set this one aside for now. NOTE: transparent inks can be used instead of clay for this step.

• Mix all clays well until colors are fully blended using pasta machine.

• Roll clay thinner on successive settings on the machine. Stretch the clay as thinly as possible w/o breaking it. It should end-up approximately the same size as a sheet of leafing

• Lay THE SHEET OF CLAY ON TOP OF the foil, trim with clay blade to size. STACK the colors gradated from lightest to darkest on top of one another.

• Roll several different-sized balls of colored and clear clay (can have leafing in them)

• Press the colored balls into the clay back FIRMLY.

• This is how the outcome should look (bottom and top, left, right.)

• Using a shiny surface to work on (VERY SMOOTHLY-GLAZED tiles are GREAT for this,) press down between the little hills made by the balls of clay, so that the clay adheres to the work surface. Shave the tops off the little hills. Sit the shavings aside for now.

• Once the original block of clay has had several shavings taken, it will look similar to this.

• Tint the largest sheet of remaining clay you set aside in step 1. Roll it thinly on the pasta machine and set the tin on it.

• Use an Xacto knife or the clay blade to cut around it (for the bottom and top of the tin.)

• Be sure there are no bubbles between the surfaces of the tin and the clay. Trim around all edges with blade.

• Begin laying on the trimmings and cuttings from your Mokume Gane (step 8).

• Once you've covered the entire top with shavings and arranged them to your liking, use your brayer or roller to press the shavings flat.

• The resulting top should resemble this close-up.

• Cut a ribbon of leftover clay to trim out the sides of the box-bake at 265 degrees for ½ hour, allow it to cool.

• OPTIONAL:If desired, carefully sand with 600 grit automotive wet/dry sandpaper, and buff using a bench grinder or a Foredom buffer fitted with loose-leaved muslin buffs.