http://youtu.be/GCFn-ET_sRc

This is a tool that I used to manufacture and sell, and you can make it yourself, if you know how to make photopolymer plates.

Here’s what it looks like when you use it write in the clay:

Here’s what I wrote about it back in 2007, when I first started making them:

Finding the perfect tool for writing words in metal clay is not easy. Rubber stamps are too large, and metal clay sticks to rubber. I love using typewriter strikers, but they are getting harder and harder to come by, and not everyone loves them as much as I do.

To solve all these problems, I have come up with the Photopolymer Alphabet Tool! It’s a do it yourself project, but that keeps your cost low. The clear part of photopolymer plates cut very easily with scissors. Just cut out each letter and glue them with regular school glue to the backs of pencil erasers! (See photo for a sample.)

The letters are “outies” on the photopolymer plates, which will give you an impression in your metal clay. This makes it easy to use liver of sulphur to darken your letters, making them easy to read.

Where can you learn to make photopolymer plates? Here are some links to some previous posts on the subject.

Getting Started with Photopolymer Plates:
http://www.creativetexturetools.com/news/2007/06/10/getting-started-with-photopolymer-plates

Some tips for improving your plates:
http://www.creativetexturetools.com/news/2009/07/21/another-great-tip-to-improve-your-photopolymer-plates

http://www.creativetexturetools.com/news/2008/04/02/improve-your-photopolymer-plates-with-this-tip

How about you? What’s your favorite way to write on metal clay? Do you make your own photopolymer plates? What’s your favorite tip about making them? Please post a comment, everyone wants to learn from you too! Thanks!

“Weekend Warrior Tools That Turn Your Garage Into a TechShop”

http://www.wired.com/design/2012/05/5-must-have-shop-tools?pid=214

While we’re talking cool gadgets, wouldn’t it be cool to have one of these 3-D chocolate printers?

http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2012/04/3d_chocolate_printer_hits_the.html

http://riograndeblog.com/2010/11/meeting-dr-morikawa

Here’s the link:

http://lorahartjewels.blogspot.com/2010/11/pro-or-con.html

And, I should mention, this was my first webinar and it was a great experience — easy, worked well and felt like a live class (which of course, it was.)

Update 11/28/10: Another helpful post on a first experience with PMC Pro, this one from Catherine Davies Paetz. http://www.catherinedaviespaetz.blogspot.com

The big buzz from the PMC Conference is the announcement from Mitsubishi Materials Corp. about the newest version of PMC — PMC PRO — available from Rio Grande in October.

It’s 90% silver, fired in activated carbon at 1400 degrees for one hours. What’s the hallmark, you wonder? .900

It is significantly stronger than all previous versions of PMC. You can still embed fine silver objects in it, if you do, you’ll do an open shelf firing first.

While some folks are not thrilled about the fact that it’s not fine silver, I’m thrilled with the strength. Before metal clay, I worked with conventional sterling silver (and still do sometimes), so to me the fact that it’s not fine silver doesn’t matter.

Here’s a chart about the strength, as compared to other versions of PMC:

The Metal Adventures Fast Fire BroznClay is also out! I’ve got a free sample to try out and will report back to you!

Some ideas for the metal clayer in your life…

More clay to work with!

New materials to try out and be inspired by!

A sketchbook to capture ideas in.

Encouragement to enter that craft show.

A gift certificate to your local bead store.

Registration for a conference: Synergy 2, PMC Conference, Bead and
Button, or a mini-retreat, a class, even an art cruise.

Books are always good, see my reviews here.

Clay play time! A work space of one’s own!

That’s 8, what would you add? Tell everyone in the comments, thanks!

Oh, and need some wrapping ideas? Here’s my prank wrapping job from last year: How to Hide a T-shirt in a Cake.

One of the fun things about BronzClay is that you can make keychains with it! At last, something to make for the husband, or for kids to make for Father’s Day. I’m using the fish one for my keychain, and it’s holding up beautifully, as you would expect it to.

The other one says “& Mia,” and was a gift to a friend; Mia is her puppy.

I got the brass colored split rings at the crafts store. You can find the regular ones at the hardware store.

(The tree isn’t a keychain, it’s a pendant that snuck into the picture.)

by Elaine Luther

This is your guide to learning to create with Precious Metal Clay online, 100% for free. I’ve searched the web for the best of free videos and how-tos, and even more importantly, I’m presenting them to you here in a logical order.

The internet is full of free information, but when you’re a beginner, how do you know how to harness that information?

I was inspired to create this tutorial by the concept of a web quest, a teaching tool.

According to WebQuest.org, “a WebQuest is an inquiry-oriented lesson format in which most or all the information that learners work with comes from the web.”

In this web adventure, I present excellent resources on beginning to work with metal clay, in a logical order. Let’s get started!

Tools You Need

Supplies for Beginning Working with Metal Clay
http://www.creativetexturetools.com/news

Top Ten Tools for Metal Clay
http://www.Squidoo.com/PMCtopten

Precious Metal Clay, Getting Started and Beyond
http://www.squidoo.com/allthingsmetalclay

How to Work the Clay

Videos from Art Jewelry Magazine: MUST BE A REGISTERED USER, registration is free
Metal Clay
http://www.artjewelrymag.com/ART

Repairing a Break In Metal Clay
http://www.artjewelrymag.com/art

Making Metal Clay Paste
http://www.artjewelrymag.com/art

Texturing Metal Clay
http://www.artjewelrymag.com/art

More on textures
http://www.squidoo.com/metal-clay-textures

Rolling & Cutting Metal Clay
http://www.artjewelrymag.com/art

Liver of Sulfur Patina
http://www.artjewelrymag.com/art

Making Lavender-Oil Paste For Metal Clay
http://www.artjewelrymag.com/art

Firing Metal Clay with a Handheld Butane Torch

Getting Started with PMC pdf, PMC Guild.com
http://www.pmcguild.com/gettingstarted/gettingstarted.html

Video Clips
http://www.pmcguild.com/gettingstarted/video_clips.html

Rolling Coils
http://www.creativetexturetools.com/news

Choosing Combustible Cores
http://www.creativetexturetools.com/news

Relatively Simple First Project:
http://pugetsoundmetalclay.com/shellpendant.htm

Rehydrating Dryish Clay
http://www.creativetexturetools.com/news

Reconstituting Metal Clay
http://langeestla.canalblog.com

http://www.silverclayart.com/reclaim_clay.htm

Add gold foil using Keum boo
http://alienorbijoux.canalblog.com
and
http://www.pmcconnection.com/pdf/KUMBOO.pdf

Stone setting

Overview of choices
http://www.creativetexturetools.com/resources

Using tabbed bezel wire from Metal Clay Findings
http://www.metalclayfindings.com/pdfs/bezelwirehowto.pdf

Embed prong setting, fire in place, set stone after firing

(free pdf project at Art Jewelry)
http://www.artjewelrymag.com/art

Setting Stone using a recessed bezel cup
http://pugetsoundmetalclay.com/bookofkells.htm

Stone setting using a plaster plug and making your own fine silver bezel wire (can be made to fit any cabochon stone)
http://pugetsoundmetalclay.com/freeformbezel.htm

How to Torch Fire
Video Clips:
http://www.pmcguild.com/gettingstarted

Video, how to torch fire MUST BE A REGISTERED USER
http://www.artjewelrymag.com/art

Which Torch is Best
http://www.creativetexturetools.com/news

How To Kiln Fire
http://www.paragonweb.com/videos

How to Tumble-polish
http://www.jewelrylessons.com

How to add Liver of Sulphur

http://www.hollygage.com

How to add Liver of Sulphur without dipping
http://www.creativetexturetools.com/news

Liver of Sulfur Patina
http://www.artjewelrymag.com/ART

Iridescent Patina
by Katherine Palochak
http://www.ganoksin.com

Additional skills to use with metal clay:

Make your polymer clay texture plates
http://blog.craftygoat.com

Make your own photopolymer plates
http://www.silverclayart.com

Video by Tonya Davidson:
http://www.wholelottawhimsy.com

Dry Metal Clay? It Could Be Your Hands (and what to do about it)
http://www.creativetexturetools.com/news

What else? Have I missed any essential skill? A great tutorial that you know about? Tell me, and the world, by posting a comment below, and feel free to post the url of the great tutorial you recommend. Thanks!

Learn to use Metal Clay, FREE, online! by Elaine Luther is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Based on a work at www.creativetexturetools.com.

I’m publishing this under a Creative Commons license (specifically, the Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License). This means you may re-publish it on your blog or website, as long as you don’t change it, don’t charge for it, and credit me as the creator.

Update: Want to learn to use BronzClay? See this post:

Round up of All Information Available on BronzClay
_____________________________________________
I follow the Art Biz Coach!

affiliate partner

Margaret Schindel, known in the Squidoo universe as MSchindel, has published another great Squidoo Lens. This one covers everything you could possibly want to know about textures. I really appreciate Margaret’s completeness when she creates one of these resources.

Check this one out at Squidoo.com/metal-clay-textures.