Hip Mamma Necklace

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Project by Lindsey Austin Samahon from Las Vegas, Nev.
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Lindsey Samahon became interested in precious metal clay after a brief stint with regular ceramic clay work. She discovered that her potter’s wheel was not very portable and eventually had to get rid of it. Her aim was to try silversmithing next, instead she ended up taking courses in precious metal clay (PMC), which she found to be the perfect mesh of clay and silver. She works on her creations during her downtime–which is hard to come by as the mother of 18-month-old twin boys! Her box-shaped pendant is made of precious metal clay and finished with two photos of her twin baby boys. Bonus: It’s reversible, if you don’t feel like touting your motherhood!

Materials:

28 grams of precious metal clay (PMC+)*
PMC slip
PMC paper sheet
16" - 18" sterling silver chain–finished with clasps
4" piece of 22-gauge sterling silver wire
1/2" clear tumbled glass tiles
baby photos, reduced to 1/2" in size
satin-finish decoupage paste
two-part epoxy resin
graph paper
plastic work surface
clay rolling pin
water spritzer
olive oil
10 playing cards
striped texture plate
large round hole paper punch
small round hole paper punch
1/2" square hole punch (Kemper punch)
3/8" square hole punch (Kemper punch)
craft knife
straight edge tool
nail file
kiln
soap
soft brass brush
steel wool (medium coarse)
wire cutters
jewelry pliers
paintbrush
rubber gloves
bowl of water
toothpick
coffee cup warmer - optional
*Note: For this project use PMC+ (not PMC3 or original) because of its stability. Other formulas may warp easily, which is problematic for box construction.

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Figure A
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Figure B
Steps:

1. Prep hands, plastic work surface and rolling pin with olive oil.

2. Roll out a slab of PMC clay that is 2 playing cards thick. Press texture plate into clay. Cut baby photo frames using square clay cutters or craft knife (figure A). Allow frames to dry leather hard (figure B).

3. File off any rough edges and fire at an appropriate kiln setting.

4. Prepare templates for box pendant by cutting a rectangular shape out of graph paper that measures 1-1/2" x 3/4" inches. This is the front/back template for the box construction.

5. Cut two more rectangles out of graph paper, one that measures 1-1/4" x 1/2" and one that measures 3/4" x 1/2". These are the side templates for box construction.

6. Using PMC+ clay roll out a slab of clay that is five playing cards thick. Press texture plate into the clay.

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Figure C
7. From the slab, cut two matching rectangles using the front/back template (figure C).

8. Roll out another slab of clay that is five playing cards thick. Cut a single rectangle from each of the two side templates. Then cut each rectangle in half lengthwise--resulting in four sidepieces–two short and two long.

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Figure D
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Figure E
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Figure F
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Figure G
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Figure H
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Figure I
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Figure J
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Figure K
9. Allow the pieces to dry leather hard. Or place them on a coffee cup warmer to speed up the drying process (figure D).

10. In preparation for frame construction, square the edges of each sidepiece with a craft knife. Position the box sides on edge and at right angles, making sure that the longer pieces are sandwiched in between the short pieces, like columns supporting a floor and roof. Ensure the fit by placing on top of the front or back rectangle. Trim if necessary.

11. Tack the corners of the frame together with PMC slip (figure E). Allow the frame to dry.

12. Join the frame to the front and back pieces with ample amounts of slip. Fill in holes and gaps with extra slip (figure F). Allow the box to dry.

13. File the sides of box with a nail file, removing any imperfections. If necessary, fill and file once more (figure G).

14. From PMC paper, cut decorative circles using paper hole punches. Punch the paper first with the small hole punch, then punch around the small hole using the large hole punch creating a donut shape (figure H). Attach to the corners of the front rectangles and attach three circles to the back rectangle with a wet brush (figure I).

15. Using a craft knife, bore two holes, one in each side of the box to allow for the chain attachment (figure J).

16. Fire the pendant in the kiln at the proper setting. Remove pendant from kiln and attach pre-fired photo frames to the box front with slip (figure K).

17. Fire pendant in kiln at proper setting.

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Figure L
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Figure M
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Figure N
18. Remove pendant from the kiln and brush with soapy water. Wipe dry. Brush with steel wool until a matte finish appears (figure L).

19. Cut images to fit tightly within the frames and place them inside (figure M).

20. Fill the frame with epoxy resin, making sure photo is completely covered, especially the edges. Spread the epoxy with a toothpick (figure N).

21. Allow epoxy to dry.

22. Feed bead chain through the holes in the pendant. Affix the end caps with epoxy.

23. Add clasp with jewelry pliers. Cut an 18-inch chain in half and remove the extra link.

Website: wireandice.com

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