Wearable Vessel
Design by Nanetta Bananto

An unusual pendant that can be used to store little stones, charms or notes. Consider a rolled note of inspiration for a child, friend, or relative in need of a lift, a reminder, a kind word or thought worn close to the heart.

Materials:

Directions:

Vessel Base:

• From scrap clay, form a block. Roll dowel or bottle back and forth into the center to create a baking trough that will maintain the rounded shape of the vessel. Otherwise, you can end up with flat spots from the baking surface. (Another technique is to nest polyester fiberfill that will support the vessel. Note: It will not burn.)

• Bake and Cool. Powder with baby powder, removing all but the residue that will work as a resist.
• Smooth foil over the dowel or glass bottle. Cover the foil seam with masking tape to secure.

• Roll black clay through pasta machine, #1 setting. With glass cutting board as your work and bake space, lay clay sheet flat, using the dowel or bottle to size. Cut clay sheet with Super Slicer top and bottom, then gently wrap around form. Where the end meets the sheet, mark lightly with fingernail, unwrap.
• Slice the end where indicated and re-roll. If the ends do not completely meet, work the joint together by gently rolling. Lightly score the surface joint with fingernails and smooth together. Roll to finish smoothing. Trim top and bottom with Super Slicer.

• Bake according to package instructions on glass. Let cool.
• Remove form from the tube by pushing object with finger. Foil will easily release. If tape sticks to the vessel, twist at each end and it will release. Remove.

Caned Clay "Fabric:"

The Background

• Roll a snake of Red Hot Red clay, add a hand-formed sheet of Raw Sienna, wrapped in a thin sheet of black, (#5 on pasta machine).

• Reduce by rolling and pulling. Flatten with a roller, slice into small pieces, (about 2" long). Stack and press together.

The Flower

• Roll a snake of Red Hot Red, tip with Raw Sienna, forming a teardrop. Slice in half.

• Cut #5 black sheet to strip placed 1/2 length of the teardrop.

• Wrap in black sheet.

• Reduce by pulling gently. It helps to let the cane rest 12" or so under a lamp a few minutes to warm before reducing. This is your petal cane.
• Make the center by rolling a snake of Raw Sienna, wrapping it in #5 black, reduce by rolling and pulling.

• Cut into 4 lengths. Roll 5 small snakes of Raw Sienna. Place one in center of the 2 wrapped lengths.

• cover with remaining two wrapped lengths. In between each black-covered roll, place a Raw Sienna snake.

• Roll the entire assembly in a #5 black sheet and reduce slightly by rolling.
• Further reduce petal cane and cut into 8 or 9 pieces, lay these around the center.

• Make a snake of gold, covered in black and reduce very small. Place the gold rolls in between each petal, then finish with small solid snakes of black on either side of the gold. Wrap all in black and reduce to two sizes.

• Slice all canes approx. 1/8" thick. Use the rolling motion to cut the slices to help maintain the round shape. To do this, you place the slicer on the top of the cane, and roll back and forth as you slice through the cane.

Creating the "Fabric" -

• Roll 1/4 package of black through the pasta machine on #3 setting, making sure you have the length and width to cover your vessel. Lay on glass. Pick up cane slices and apply to the black sheet in a pattern, like laying little tiles. Fill in gaps with the tiny gold/black canes slices.

• The slices should be able to be picked up flat with a fingertip. Lightly roll over surface with roller. You may need to shimmy the Super Slicer under the sheet to lift from glass. Then, slowly and carefully run through pasta machine on #1 setting. Repeat on #2, then finish at #3. You will have a lovely fused clay "fabric".

Vessel Construction:

Body

• Cut and roll clay "fabric" onto the base, as you did the base over the form. Again, roll to even clay and trim ends.

• Set aside, upright. Smooth out any fingerprints.

Bead Tray

• Make a bead tray with a round of scrap clay. Flatten slightly. Take the wooden ball or large marble and, using a turning motion, indent a large divot in the clay.

• Bake both pieces and cool.
• Fill a bowl with water. Wet sanding block. Sand ends of vessel over the bowl, in a circular motion until smooth and even.

Bottom

• Roll a bead of clay a little smaller than the bottom of the vessel. Flatten slightly with fingers. Apply baby powder to one side only. Flip over, so the powder is against the glass. Flatten, using the wooden block, a little at a time, until the disc is a little bigger than the vessel. With the Super Slicer, slightly score the disc in half, then quarters, then sixths. (I carefully use the dull side of the blade). Where the points meet you will cut a hole using the tiny cutter or a skewer.

• Apply a thin coating of TLS with plastic craft brush to the end of vessel body. Carefully position into place, taking care to note the size of the lip as it goes around the body. Look at the piece from above to check for symmetry. When you are happy with the placement, use gentle pressure and a slight turning motion to secure body to the bottom disc. There will likely be beads of TLS that push out from this joint. Roll a tiny snake of gold clay and lay over the joint. If any TLS is still showing, remove with finger. Where the snake meets, add a tiny, flattened ball of gold clay. Place another on the opposite side and then between these points for a total of four. Finish with a tiny dot of black clay on top of each ball.

• Bake and cool upright.

Top

• Roll a snake of black clay on #1 setting of pasta machine. Stamp with a rubber stamp. (I used the floral design included in the Asian Stamplets set.) Trim to a bit under 1/2". Apply around vessel base to determine length. Mark with a fingernail, unwind and trim at that point. Turn piece over and apply baby powder to back side, avoiding ends where the joint will be. Reapply top lip to vessel and secure the joint as previously described.
• Use the skewer or the back of your fingernail to even the bottom of the lip.

• Bake and cool, with vessel upright, bottom against glass. When cool, turn lip to make sure it is loose from the base. Make another disc as for the bottom, but a little bigger. Apply TLS to lip only. Position, place and trim with gold as for bottom. Leave on glass and place vessel into the lid so the lid bakes on glass.

Components:

Bead and cord

• Powder the bead tray and brush away so there is only residue left. Roll scraps of clay "fabric" into a ball. Pierce with skewer to make a large hole that only goes 1/2 way through.

• Take cording and knot in the center, twice. Place the knots into the ball of clay.

• Take another pinch of clay and place over knots to seal them into ball. You can use the side of the skewer or fingernail to make a good seal. This will carry the weight of your vessel, so be sure the cords are secure. Place bead in bead tray.

Beads

• Make flat, gold discs slightly smaller than top and bottom. Make a complimentary bead to top the vessel from the "fabric" scrap. Use skewer to pierce from both ends. Slightly flatten ends with fingers. Make cylinder beads for cord ends if desired. Make a black disc a little bigger than the patterned beads.

• Place beads on a blank index card. Bake the components. Cool. Apply fingernail polish to cord ends and let dry.

Assembly:

• Beginning with beaded cord, thread one cord through gold disc, hold taut and thread second cord through. Continue with remaining pieces. Bead, gold disc, vessel, top, gold disc, black disc and patterned bead. If any holes are too small, carefully ream by turning a craft knife in the hole to enlarge. Once assembled, knot cord and wear!

The sky is the limit with this design. Try different colors, patterns and sizes. My ten year old son wants a smaller one. So I will use a small dowel. He wants it for secret messages. The purpose and meaning of yours will be unique to you.