Souffle Office Cubicle Decoration

Getting Started Polymer clay may stain. CLAY MAY DAMAGE UNPROTECTED FURNITURE OR FINISHED SURFACES. DO NOT USE polymer clay on unprotected surfaces. We recommend working on the Sculpey ® clay mat, wax paper, metal baking sheet, or disposable foil. Start with clean hands and work surface area. Knead clay until soft and smooth. For best results, clean your hands in between colors. Shape clay, pressing pieces together firmly. Bake on oven-proof glass or metal surface at 275°F (130°C) for 30 minutes per ¼" (6 mm) thickness. For best baking results, use an oven thermometer. DO NOT USE MICROWAVE OVEN. DO NOT EXCEED THE ABOVE TEMPERATURE OR RECOMMENDED BAKING TIME. Wash hands after use. Baking should be completed by an adult. Begin by preheating oven to 275°F (130 °C). Test temperature with oven thermometer for perfectly cured clay. For best results, condition all clay by running it through the Clay Conditioning Machine for several passes on the widest setting. Fold the clay in half after each pass and insert the fold side into the rollers first.

Things to note:This project uses the Design-It Templates in the jewelry shapes. In an effort to clearly indicate which of the two cut outs are being used for this project, an image of a traced template is shown in these instructions. Two of the cutouts are numbered and will be referenced as either “cutout 1” or “cutout 2” in the corresponding steps.

Condition ½ block of Royalty and roll out a sheet on a medium thickness setting on the Clay Conditioning Machine. Gently smooth the sheet of clay onto the ceramic baking tile so the clay sticks to the surface of the tile and does not slide off. Sprinkle a small amount of the glitter onto the surface of the clay and use your fingertip to spread the glitter over the entire surface of the clay sheet. Note: When working with glitter, it is best to do so away from your main work surface, glitter tends to end up all over the place and you don’t want it getting all over your tools and other clay.

Take the 1-3/4” cutter from the set of circle cutters and hold it so the “top” of the cutter (the side that has the folded over metal edge) is facing down. Using the “top” of the circle cutter begin making light impressions all over the sheet of glitter-covered clay. Note: You don’t want to press the cutter too far into the clay; pressing in too deep creates areas of very thin clay that can cause breaking later on. Continue making overlapping impressions until you are satisfied with the pattern. Note: You will be cutting out some pretty small pieces so you want to have a pretty tight pattern. Having too many openings in the pattern will make it difficult to capture a lot of detail in the small pieces you will cut out later.

Once you have your pattern created lay a piece of clear packing tape onto the surface of the clay, adhesive side down. Use your fingertip to rub the piece of tape onto the surface of the clay and then slowly peel the tape back off the clay. The glitter on the raised portions of the sheet of clay should stick to the tape and lift off of the clay. Continue doing this until you have lifted the glitter off of the entire sheet of clay. If there are spots on the surface that still have glitter on them, you can go over them again with the tape.

You are going to need 6 petals cut out from the sheet of patterned clay you just created. The petals are made using the “cutout 1” shape that is shown at the beginning of this project. Position the template so that the cutout area is close to one of the edges, use the craft knife to cut around the inside of the window in the template, and then lift the template off of the clay. Reposition the template onto the clay so it is close to the piece you just cut out. The goal is to maximize the number of pieces you can cut out of this piece of clay. Once you have at least 6 pieces cut out lift away the excess clay and set it to the side. Note: Although you only need 6 petals, it is a good idea to cut extras; one of the petals may break during handling, one piece might be a little misshapen from when it was cut out, and/or you might find as you are putting them into place that another piece has a better section of pattern. Set the cut-out petals to the side.

Repeat steps 3 through 7 using the Bluestone colored clay and the Design-It Template “cutout 2” shape that is shown at the beginning of this project. Bake these petals and the petals you finished cutting out in Step 4 for 30 minutes and let cool completely.

Roll out a sheet of Bluestone, using the clay that you set to the side earlier, on the thinnest setting of the Clay Conditioning Machine. Place the sheet onto the ceramic tile and cut out a 1.5” circle. Lift away the excess clay and set it to the side. Rub a thin layer of Bake n’ Bond onto the circle. Pick up one of the larger petals you made with the Bluestone clay (Step 5) and position it so one of the pointed ends is facing into the middle of the circle. Continue placing the petals onto the circle of clay until you have what looks like a flower with 6 petals. Note: This is where the 320 grit sand paper comes in handy. When you used the template to cut out the petals, you may have ended up with some tips that are a bit blunt, which cause the pieces to not quite fit in together. You can use the sandpaper to work those blunt ends into more of a fine tapered point, which should help you get the pieces to fit into place. Once all of the pieces are in place bake for 30 minutes and let cool completely.

Pinch off some of the Royalty clay you have left from Step 4 and roll a ball that is about 3/8” in diameter. Squeeze a small dab of Bake n’ Bond into the middle of the area that all of the Bluestone colored petals meet and press the ball of Royalty clay into the middle. Pick up one of the Royalty-colored smaller petals, turn it over, spread a thin layer of Bake n’ Bond onto the back and then a little bit onto the pointed end you plan on facing into the middle of the design. Press the pointed end into the small ball of clay and place it so that it is extending out from the middle and centered between two of the larger Bluestone petals. Once you have it positioned, press the petal down so it makes good contact with the layer underneath. Continue doing this until you have 6 of the Royalty petals in place. Bake this assembly for 30 minutes and let cool completely.

Roll a small sheet of each of the Royalty and Bluestone on a medium setting. Cut a ½” circle out of the Bluestone and a 3/8” circle out of the Royalty. Gently pick up the circle of Royalty and place it on top of the Bluestone circle so it is centered. Use the tweezers to place the 5mm Crystal AB hot fix crystal into the middle of the Royalty circle. Gently press the crystal into the clay, lift up the assembly, add a little bit of Bake n’ Bond to the back and place it into the center of the piece with all of the petals. Bake for 30 minutes and let cool completely.

Roll out one small piece of Bluestone clay on the thickest setting of the Clay Conditioning Machine and another small piece of Bluestone clay on the thinnest setting. Cut a 3/8” circle out of each of the different thickness sheets of clay. Place the “T” end of the t-pin onto the thicker circle of clay and gently press it into the surface. Add a little Bake n’ Bond and then cover with the thin circle of clay.

Carefully remove the t-pin assembly from the work surface. Add a thin coating of Bake n’ Bond to the bottom of the thicker circle of clay. Turn over the assembled petal piece and position the t-pin assembly so the circle of clay is close to the end of one of the larger petals with the length of the pin pointing down the length of the petal towards the middle. Gently press the t-pin assembly onto the petal, turn the entire assembly over, bake as directed above, and let cool completely.