Materials:

• Sculpey III or Premo in pastel mix combinations (see Spring Summer Forecast 2006)
• Small circle cutter
• Jewelry elastic
• Glass beads
• Index card or unprinted paper
• Bamboo skewer
• Clay dedicated pasta machine or clay roller
• Cookie sheet
• Sculpey Oven Thermomter
• Timer

Directions:

1. Roll a cylinder of the green clay that's about ¾ inches in diameter, and 2 inches long. Lay this cylinder on a very thin sheet of Black Premo! (mine is a #5 on my pasta machine). Trim the back and the edges of the Black to match the cylinder.

2. Slowly roll the cylinder over the Black, wrapping the green clay in the black clay until the edge of the black touches the sheet. Roll the cylinder back just a bit and you'll notice a dent across the sheet of clay. This is where you cut the sheet.

3. Now when you finish wrapping the green with the black the edges of the black will just meet, but not overlap, making a nice smooth black outline in the finished bead.

4. Repeat steps 1-3 with the peach color, and another black layer. My peach color is rolled out on a #3 on my pasta machine.

5. Repeat steps 1-3 with the turquoise color and a final wrap of black. My turquoise was rolled out at a #4 on my machine.

6. Now the fun part - making the whole thing smaller. We call this "reducing the cane". Start by placing the roll of clay between your thumb and your forefinger - tucking it up right against the base of the thumb. Now squeeze right in the middle. Turn the clay and squeeze again. (I'm wearing gloves out of habit - too much paints and inks on my clay!)

7. You actually should have a dumbbell shape now. Pick the clay up and repeat this thumb/forefinger squeeze all the way out to each end. It won't be nice and smooth, but it will be much smaller now.

8. Lay the clay on your work surface and gently roll it with both hands to smooth it out and to continue to make it longer and smaller. My "cane" was about 1/2 inch in diameter when I stopped.

9. Slice your cane in half by slicing quickly and firmly (try to imagine that you are cutting all the way through the table).

10. Cut a slice that is about ¼ inch thick. Cut this slice in half. Turn the two halves 90 degrees and gently press them together.

11. Repeat steps 9 and 10 to create your beads.

12. Use a large needle to drill the hole in the beads by spinning the needle halfway through the bead and repeating from the opposite side. I find it easiest to drill these type beads by holding the bead on the tip of one finger and drilling down through the bead - I can feel the tip of the needle and can then stop and repeat from the other side. Bake as directed on your clay package.

You may want to leave some of the slices intact for a different look to your bracelet. String the baked beads on jewelry elastic, adding some small glass beads for accent. This project works with either the Premo or the Ul/S3 mix! In fact, can you guess which beads are which in this photo?