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Tag selected: Project

Jun
03
Cool cufflinks for Father's Day

Treat your dad with a pair of cool cufflinks with a handwritten name or message this June.

To make this special gift you will only need a small pack of PMC3 and pair of cufflink backs which cost no more than £20 in total. Here is how to make them.

  • Rub a little badger balm on your hands to stop the clay from sticking.
  • Place the clay on a piece of Teflon and use a par of 1.5mm spacers and a roller to roll out the clay.
  • Create the tops of the cufflinks by cutting out the shape with a (circle) cutter. Remember to make them slightly larger than the cufflink back to allow for the 10-12% shrinkage.
  • Leave to dry completely.
  • Write your name/message using a pencil and follow with am engraving tool. (This can be found in the 'finger and handprinting' section of our web shop).
  • Fire with a torch for at least 2 minutes or place in a kiln at 800C for 30 minutes. 
  • Hand polish using a stainless steel brush and agate burnisher or place in a tumbler for 2 hours with some water and 1/3-1/2 teaspsoon of tumbler soap.
  • Attach the cufflink backs using strong glue or two part expoxy.

 

         Please note the office will be closed on Friday 13th June

by Helen O'Neill , under   cufflinks  engraving in PMC  father's day  project

May
13
Jigsaw Bracelet Project

Free Project to print off and keep.

Make a statement with this chunky bracelet. The links are made using our jigsaw cutter. There is no need for any calculations as the links are joined together through a series of jump rings. These enable you to adjust the length of the bracelet to fit your wrist.

 

Supplies:

Pack of 27.8g of PMC3, 1.5mm spacers and roller, Teflon sheet, paintbrush and water, badger balm, texture mat, Jigsaw cutter, hand drill, sandpaper, 7 or 9mm jump rings and a clasp

You will also need a plastic drinking cup or glass (or similar) to dry the links over, firing and polishing tools

Instructions:

  • Roll the clay out on a piece of Teflon using the spacers and roller
  • Rub some badger balm on the texture mat and press firmly into the clay
  • Use the jigsaw cutter to cut out as many pieces as you can
  • Roll the clay out again taking care you roll it in a shape similar to the jigsaw cutter to create the final and fourth shape.
  • Use a damp paintbrush and a little water to smooth the edges.
  • Lay the glass on its side and rub with some badger balm. This will allow you to re-position the clay whilst wet.
  • Lay the links over the side of the glass to create a slight curve and leave to dry completely.  
  • Drill a hole at either end of each link to allow you to connect the links with the jump rings once fired. Sand any rough edges if needed.

Kiln firing: Fire at 700C for 20 mins. This can be done by running the PMC3 Fast Programme twice.

Torch firing: Fire each link individually. Lay on a piece of kiln pillow to support the link. Heat the piece until it glows a pale orange. Start your timer and fire for about 3 minutes.

Polishing by hand: Support each link on a rubber block and use a stainless steel brush and agate burnisher to polish, 

Polishing in a tumbler: Place in the barrel with 1/3 -1/2 teaspoon of tumbler soap. Cover the piece with water and tumble for 2 hours. 

Assembling the bracelet

Us a pair of jewellery pliers and jump rings to connect the links together. 

   

 

by Helen O'Neill , under   bracelet  jigsaw cutter  pmc3  project

Feb
25
Make something special for Mother's Day

Mother's Day (30th March) is the perfect opportunity to create something unique and use your PMC skills. Here is a project I hope will inspire you. The design allows you to copy it or adapt to suit your needs. We would love to see what you make so please post any pictures on our facebook page. Happy making!  

What you need:

Agate/metal burnisher or tumbler polisher, Badger Balm, Clean up cutting and carving tool, Cutters- Heart set of 6, Large drinking straw, Heart shaped garnet 3-4mm, Paintbrush and cup of water, PMC3 9g silver, PMC3 paste to join components, Roller and 2 x 1.5mm spacers, Rubber block, Sandpaper, Snake roller, Stainless steel brush,Texture mat- Hearts Aflame

To fire: Kiln or use the Kiln Firing Service

Work mat or Teflon

Instructions for Flaming Heart Pendant 

1 – Add texture

Rub badger balm on your hands, work mat, texture mat and roller. Place the clay on the texture mat and roll the clay 1.5mm thick using the roller and spacers. Remove the clay from the mat and place on a piece of Teflon. Replace the excess clay back into the pack.

2 – Create the base

Cut the main heart shape out using the largest heart cutter. Use the next size down heart cutter to remove the centre and leave the smaller heart aside to dry.

3 – Create the bail

Roll out a flat strip and wrap around the (thick) straw.  Join the ends of the bail using paste. Now cut out two hearts using the smallest heart cutter. Place the hearts aside. Shape the edges of the bail using the clean up tool. Leave the bail to dry. Once dry, sand and refine. Your bail should be ‘perfect’ before adding to the rest of the pendant.

4 - Sand all the components prior to assembling the pendant. Start by adding the bail. Use plenty of paste to attach the bail to the large heart. Next, add the three smaller hearts using more paste.

5 - User the snake roller to roll a small coil. Wrap the coil around the Garnet to create a bezel. The table of the stone should be level with the clay to ensure the stone holds in place after firing. Attach to the main heart using paste and smooth using a little water with your paintbrush. Leave to dry and refine. Prior to firing make sure there is no clay left on the Garnet as this cannot be removed after firing.

6 - Please note: NATURAL GEMSTONES CANNOT BE TORCH FIRED.

Fire your pendant in an Evenheat Set-Pro kiln on the PMC3 Fast Programme (700C/10mins). Once fired, open the door about 2 cm/ 1 inch and leave the piece to cool in the kiln.

Should you not have access to a kiln The PMC Studio also offers a Kiln Firing Service. For information on how to use this service please go to www.thepmcstudio.com. The cost of this service is £2.50 per item or £10 for a kiln load plus return postage.

7 - Place the fired piece on the rubber block and use a stainless steel brush to polish. To achieve a high shine finish, continue using a burnisher or place in a tumble polisher with mixed stainless steel shot and 1/3 teaspoon of tumbler soap.

Optional: Use a soft cloth and silver polish to complete your polish.  

by Helen O'Neill , under   Mother's Day  PMC  Project