| Materials:
- ¼ package
of each of the following Premo Polymer Clay colors:
- White # 5001
- Cadmium Yellow # 5572
- Cadmium Red # 5382
- ½ package of Raw Sienna # 5392 (or brown colored scrap clay)
- 1/8 package of Black # 5042
- Small amount of cornstarch powder
- 6 inch piece of 16 gauge copper wire
- Buna cord, leather or jewelry cord, approx 24 inches depending
on desired length of pendant
- Small piece of textured fabric about 4” by
4”
- Small piece of plastic canvas about 4” by
4”
- Sculpey glaze if a shiny finishing coat is
desired
Tools:
- Clay dedicated pasta machine
- Brayer or roller
- Super Slicer
- Craft knife
- Needle tool, knitting needle or skewer
- Small bore straw
- Mandrel or round metal tube (I used a screwdriver)
- Wire cutters, jewelry pliers
- 600 grit sandpaper (optional)
General
Supplies:
- Paper and heavy card stock (cereal box cardboard is fine)
- Pencil, scissors, masking tape, ruler
Directions:
Begin by making a copy
of the flip flop pattern and cut out a template from the heavier
cardboard. Adjust the size if you wish to make larger
or smaller flip flops. The ones here are roughly 1 ¾” by
5/8”.
Then, lightly condition the polymer clay, starting with the lightest
color, working to the darkest, by rolling earlobe-thick pieces on
the #1 setting of the pasta machine 4 or 5 times. Set all colors
aside.
Modified spiral cane:
Using about ¼ package of white clay, roll on the pasta machine
on setting #1. Set this aside. Use about 1/8 package of black clay,
roll on settings #1 through #6 until you have a thin sheet of black
clay. Set aside a small amount (about 1” by 2”). Place
the white sheet of clay on top of the larger black sheet. Cut out
a 2” by 4” rectangle of the two thicknesses, sandwiched
together. Using a pea sized amount of conditioned red clay, roll
a thin snake, about 1/4 “ in diameter.
Wrap this red snake in
the reserved smaller sheet of thin black clay. Roll the sandwiched
white and black sheets around the thin
snake to form a spiral cane about ¾” thick. Cut off
about 1” from the end of this spiral cane and reduce the smaller
bit by stretching it lengthwise until you have a cane that is ¼” in
diameter. Reduce the other part of the cane to a diameter of approximately ½ inch.
Fashioning the Flip Flop:
For the sole of the flip
flop, condition about ½ package
of brown (raw sienna) clay. Divide this into two parts. Roll one
part through the pasta machine on #1 setting. Coat this sheet with
a light dusting of cornstarch. Lay this sheet of clay on a small
piece of paper, and impress the sheet of plastic canvas onto the
coated side of the clay. This will create a waffle-like texture for
the underside of the shoe. Using the cardboard template and the craft
knife, cut out one sole from this waffled sheet of clay. Roll the
other part of the brown clay to #3 thickness on the pasta machine.
Cut another identically shaped sole from the untextured clay.
Making the pendant attachment:
To make the bale of the
pendant, use the wire cutters to snip off roughly a 5-6 inch piece
of 16 gauge copper wire. Coil this around
a mandrel (the screwdriver in this case), leaving about 5/8” extending
on each end. Use the jeweler’s pliers to turn the ends so that
they will fit between the two parts of the sole. The shape of the
ends is not important, as long as they will both be covered completely
by the two parts of the sole and not extend beyond the soles’ outer
edges.
Imbed the wire between the two parts of the sole, so that the coil
emerges just at the top center of the sole. Gently press the two
layers of clay together, smoothing any edges that may distort. Set
your sole aside to rest.
(side view of sole with copper bale imbedded between two brown
layers
forming the sole) The upper portion of the sandal:
Now it is time to work on the visible portion of the lining of the
flip flop. Roll the yellow clay at # 1 setting a few times. Similarly,
roll the red clay on #1. Cut two equal sized right angled triangles
of clay which are two thicknesses in depth. Set the hypotenuses of
the triangles beside each other to form a rectangle. Insert this
two-colored piece into the pasta machine with the yellow to your
left. Roll it once on #1, then fold it in half, and reinsert in between
the rollers, still with the yellow part on the left. This is the
beginning of a gradated sheet, often referred to as a Skinner blend.
If you have never done this before, it is suggested that you practise
a few times to be sure of the technique.
Keep feeding the folded clay in between the rollers of the pasta
machine at the thickest (#1) setting. Always insert folded side first,
with the same color against the left side. If the sheet is getting
too wide, place a barrier like a wooden block on the right side of
the rollers, to prevent the blend from widening. Continue rolling
the sheet through about 20 or more times, until the colors have merged
continuously, and there are no streaks in the sheet. Then roll this
sheet to #3 on the pasta machine.
Texturing the lining of the flip flop:
At this point, impart a texture to the blended sheet by impressing
the textured cloth into the clay. Fabrics that are particularly good
for this are coarse weaves, like bark cloth, slub linen or knits,
although many different types of fabrics may be used. You can texture
the clay manually, by rolling the brayer on top of the cloth covered
clay. Or, you may wish to roll it through the pasta machine with
the fabric against the clay. You might need to adjust the setting
of your rollers, (make the setting wider) depending on the thickness
of the fabric. A bit of practise here on scrap clay will help you
determine what settings to use.
Then, using the cardboard template, cut out the lining of the sandal
from the textured clay using the Exacto knife.
Next, coat the end of a small-bored straw with cornstarch and pierce
a hole into the lining of the flip flop.
Making the straps of the flip flops:
Use some of the reserved conditioned yellow or gradated clay as
a backing for the next part, the top of the sandal. This should be
rolled at #2 or #3. Slice three or four thin slices of the larger
spiral cane using the tissue blade. Butt these slices together and
place them on top of the yellow clay. Trim the sides using the tissue
blade.
Next, cut a V-shape
at one end of the patterned part you have just made. About 5/8” from
the point of the V, insert the tissue blade to divide the piece
into two parts. This will separate the
two parts of the pattern. Make sure you do not cut it completely.
At this point, the patterned clay should look like a capital letter
Y.
Gently, twist
and slightly lengthen the stem of the “Y”.
Insert this stem into the hole you made in the sandal’s lining.
Use a small piece of paper rolled and taped into a small cylinder
as a support for the upper part of the flip flop.
Push the other ends of the patterned piece under the lining, trying
not to distort it. Tuck the ends under a bit, and smooth the clay
neatly at each side. You may need to trim a small amount away.
Then, place the flip flop on the backing part (the brown sole you
made earlier) with the coil of wire at the top and the waffled
part underneath. Wrap the texturing cloth around your finger, and
gently press the two components together. This eliminates any fingerprints
and imparts texture to any places that may have become smudged.
Continue to secure the two parts together by going around the entire
perimeter of the sandal using the cloth on the finger.
Use the remainder of the blended clay to make beads. Roll them on
a needle tool. Cut thin slices of the spiral cane, and roll these
slices onto the surfaces of the beads. Transfer the beads to a skewer
or knitting needle, and ensure that the holes are sufficiently large
to accommodate the jewelry cord of your choice.
You may leave the small roll of paper as a support for the upper
part of the shoe. Prepare the items for baking by placing the sandal
on a sheet of cardstock. Place the skewer of beads on card stock
that has been accordion pleated. Bake at the recommended temperature
on a tile in the preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes.
After the beads and sandals have been removed from the oven and allowed
to cool completely, you may choose to sand them gently under a
dripping tap with 600 grit wet/dry sandpaper. If you wish to polish
the beads, you can buff them with a soft cloth to produce a sheen.
Alternately, for a more lustrous finish, you could glaze them with
a thin coat of Sculpey Glaze or other finishing product. String
your pendant and beads as shown in the illustrations. Enjoy your
pendant on your next day out during the summer, at a sunny vacation
spot during the cold of winter, or while taking that long-planned
for ocean cruise.
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