6 Videos #539 to #544: In this tutorial I demonstrate how to use the Sculpey Hollow Bead Maker Tool Kit… like a pro!
Whether you see a turtle shell, snake skin, lizard or dragon scales in this pattern, you are just going to LOVE making this exotic Reptile Hollow Bead Neckwire Tutorial!!
These stunning, dimensional, light-as-air beads, graciously curving around your neck will have your friends oooing and awing at your awesome abilities! And you don’t need to tell them they were easy for you to make!
From the tips and ticks you will learn in this tutorial, paired with some gorgeous colors and a little effort… you’ll be creating the most beautiful and professional looking Polymer Clay Hollow Lentil Beads in no time.
Plus you’ll learn how to create a stunning Neckwire piece… for showing off your one-of-a-kind art jewelry lentil beads!
Posted just below is a Sneak Peak and overview of my Reptile Hollow Lentil Bead Tutorial. The rest of the 6 part video series will be posted tomorrow (Friday, July 4th, 2014) in Vol-074 at the Polymer Clay Tutor Library.
BTW, if this Reptile Hollow Bead Neckwire Tutorial looks exciting to you, please do click that YouTube Like button. Many of you have been giving the Thumbs Up to the weekly YouTube videos, which is great… Thank You! However, these monthly intro clips need some love as well. When they don’t get as many likes, it makes it look like they are not appreciated as much… which surely can’t be true with all the nice comments you all leave :)
Vol-074-1: Video #539: Introduction: In this 6 part video tutorial series, you will learn how to create my original Reptile Hollow Bead Neckwire design. Included are many tips, tricks and techniques that you can use to create this cool cane in the colors and style I suggest, or your own. Truly a one-of-a-kind polymer clay project. This stunning reptile patterned cane design can be used to create gorgeous bracelets, earrings, pendants, and other jewelry pieces in addition to the Neck Wire design included in this tutorial. Plus the cane is great for making home decor items and whatever other polymer clay creations you can dream up!
Vol-074-2: Video #540:
Reptile Pattern Cane:
In this video I will show you how to create a sparkling and dimensional reptile patterned cane using a just a few colors and some inexpensive. It is an easy cane to accomplish and the results turn out wonderful every time. You will use this cane to create patterned polymer clay sheets, which will then be used for constructing the hollow lentil beads. You can choose the colors that I have used in the tutorial or easily adapt them to whatever color combination that you choose. Don’t limit yourself to only using this Reptile cane for beads though… this cane has endless possibilities in all kinds of polymer clay projects!
Vol-074-3: Video #541:
Hollow Beads:
In this video I will show all the tips, tricks and tools needed to make perfectly shaped hollow lentil beads. You will learn what thickness of clay works best. Plus I’ll share my techniques that will help you way to avoid having to do a lot of extra work when it comes time to finishing the beads. Also, if you don’t have access to the special tools used in this tutorial, I will show you alternatives that you probably already have in your home right now.
Vol-074-4: Video #542:
Baking Shaping Gluing:
In this video you will learn all about shaping, baking, cutting, fitting, gluing and re-baking your bead halves to form the perfect hollow lentil beads. There are important steps that you need to do, so that your beads fit properly together, and end up with beautiful crisp edges that look very professional. If you don’t do these steps, your beads will look clunky and homemade, instead of the gorgeous art jewelry quality that I’m sure you prefer. And achieving these results is not that hard to do either… not when you know exactly what to do.
Vol-074-5: Video #543:
Sanding Finishing Drilling:
In this video you will learn how to properly sand, buff and finish your gorgeous reptile patterned hollow lentil beads to perfection. I’ve got a really neat trick for drilling the holes in your lentil beads too. If you don’t do this simple extra step, it can be tricky to get the bead holes straight and in the right spot along those skinny edges… I’m sure you have seen poorly drilled lentil beads before. You be really surprised how much easier it is to drill holes after watching this video.
Vol-074-6: Video #544:
Making the Neckwire:
In this final video of the series, you will learn how to create a beautiful, clean lined necklace using a single piece of heavy gauged wire. I will show you how to measure, cut and form your neck wire so that it lays beautifully, and displays your incredible hollow reptile beads with perfection. You’ll be walking around with this eye catching piece of statement jewelry, like a mobile art gallery… or at least that is how I feel when I wear mine ;-)
Other Suggested Supplies:
- Water.
- Scotch Tape.
- Skinny Washi Tape (or trimmed piece of Masking Tape).
- Small paint brush.
- Paper Towel.
- Cloth for Buffing.
- Ruler.
- Baking Tray with Foil Pan or Cardstock for Tenting.
- Light bulb or bakeable rounded surface if not using Hollow Bead Maker.
- Kato Polypaste (Sculpey Bake & Bond Alternative) USA Source: Prairie Craft
- Kato Polypaste: Canada Source: Shades of Clay
By the way, many of the “shopping” links I provide for the various tools and supplies used in my tutorials, are “affiliate” resources. That means companies like Amazon and the other suppliers I refer, pay me a small commission if you click on the links and end up making a purchase at their site. It’s not a lot, but every little bit helps in keeping the cost of my tutorials down. And, the prices for products that you may purchase through my links, are exactly the same as what you would normally pay, even if it is a “sale” price. So please feel free to click whenever you need to pick up a few things for your studio. Thanks so much for your support.
The full video series for the Reptile Pattern Hollow Lentil Bead Neckwire tutorial described above, is available in Vol-074 at the Polymer Clay Library.
If you would like to receive 3 free beginner videos right now, plus some free color recipes that get sent out each week in my Friday email newsletter, please click this link: Polymer Clay Tutorials
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… Please Note: A general prerequisite for all of my monthly library tutorials is that you have a good understanding of the polymer clay basics, including: conditioning clay, using a pasta machine, clay blade and other simple tools, making Skinner Blends, baking clay, as well as sanding and finishing. If you need help in these areas, my Polymer Clay Beginners Course will get you up to speed quickly. There is also plenty of free information on this blog. Use the search box at the top of the page to find articles on specific topics.
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Customer Feedback About Membership Value:
Thank you so much for such a great value with your tutorials. I’ve never seen anyone else make inspiration (and instruction) so affordable and doable! Thanks for broadening all of your members’ creative horizons. ~Vierra-C
Thanks for doing this tutorial Cindy, I knew it would be great! I’ve discovered your secret – sorry, gal, it’s out! Your ideas don’t just produce a single item but are the basis for an almost unlimited range of projects. You plant the seeds and leave us to grow fabulous creations! You’re the best tutor I know of who encourages her students to learn from her designs but then go on to develop them further. Thank you so much, Cindy and Doug! ~Marion-R
Hi Cindy, I am so enjoying your site and videos – I think you do a fabulous job and I am learning quite a bit about things I thought I already knew. Thanks. ~Meridith-D
I have not commented for a long while (sad to say). First off, this site has been my number one go to site for three years now!!!!! I have learned more from Cindy then all of the books (about 50) and other tuts I’ve purchased combined, and for that I will forever be grateful!!!!! When I first started she had mentioned to save the beginning beads and I fought the urge for three days of throwing them across our driveway, running them over with my car then throwing it in reverse only to smash them again!!!!! Last week I was cleaning out my studio and came across a canning jar with beads inside. I blew off the dust and opened the jar (from 3 years ago) and I was stunned at how far I’ve come from the odd shaped, muddy colored starter beads!!!! I showed my hubby planning then to throw them out and he said “why on earth would you throw them out? You should treasure them because without those beads you would not be a polymer clay artist today!!!” Wow, I never really thought of it that way!! I now love and appreciate challenging myself, stepping out of my comfort zone has been difficult but the vast spectrum of Cindy’s tutorials makes that a lot easier!!!! I always feel like I have an encouraging cheerleader with me every step of the way!!!!!!! From the bottom of my heart… Thank you so very much!!!!!!!! ~Heidi-W
Cindy, your projects always make me smile and get my ideas flowing, I am so happy to be part of your very special group on clayers! ~Deby-P
The full video series for the Reptile Pattern Hollow Lentil Bead Neckwire tutorial described above, is available in Vol-074 at the Polymer Clay Library.
If you would like to receive 3 free beginner videos right now, plus some free color recipes that get sent out each week in my Friday email newsletter, please click this link: Polymer Clay Tutorials
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Hi Cindy,
I just LOVE that neckwire shape! Seriously cool. :D
All the sample jewellery pieces look fantastic, and I’m sure this is another winner.
Happy claying,
Sue
You don’t know how pleased that makes me feel to hear that you think this project is seriously cool! Coming from a seriously cool artist that means a lot!!
This is so exciting! Thank you Cindy, what a fabulous project! I can’t wait!!
Marion
Thank you Marion!! I can’t wait to see what you do with it!
Thanks Cindy. Now I’m back with time to ‘play’ I will!
Marion
Just have to tell you how much I’m enjoying your website and tutorials. You are a natural teacher and I love the videos. Thank you! I’ve bought a number of the back issues, have made some and will be getting more as funds allow.
Thank you so much Kathy for coming her and saying that! It makes me very happy to know that you are enjoying the tutorials so much. Have fun with this one!
Happy Dance! Can’t wait!
– Maria
Happy dancing with you Maria!
Looking fwd to this. Any news on the sanding kits for jooltool? This would be the perfect project for that. The beads look fantastic. Though my arm is aching already just thinking about all that sanding :(. Though I know it will be worth it.
Hi Sandra, yes we have it all figured out for the JoolTool but are just in the process of putting together a promotion that we can bring to everyone. If you can handle the Waite it will be worth your while. This project is the perfect place to use the JoolTool. Way faster and the shine is incredible without any finish at all. Stay tuned…
You know the saying ” are we there yet”? Thats me :) just sub the words “muuuuuummmm how much longer!”hehe
Hi Cindy,
Just noticed on the Jooltool website that Anie has a polymer clay package. Is this the same promo that you are doing?
Cheers
Veronica
No that is not part of my promotion… if all goes as planned, ours will be way more fun ;-)…
I think I need to get a t-shirt that says something like… “If only there were more hours in the day to get everything done as quickly as I would like to get them done…”
WOW!!! Right up my alley, Cindy! I love this tute!! Now, this being said, should I order the polypaste, or will the Sculpey Bake and Bond do the same job? I am a perfectionist, and would love the best end result for my jewelry. I have been waiting for a tute with for my new stuff I got. Two days before you came out with the video of the new products, I bought the silkscreen kit, hollow bead maker, and the bead making kit, mostly to get a piece of the fabric to place beads on, but the stuff in it is useful. An extra blade or needle tool never hurt anyone! On another subject, I got the Cynthia Tinapple extruder disk set, and I love it! I need a tip on how to keep the clay flowers from ‘getting mushy’ , and that may be due to the warmth or softness of the clay. I have yet to bake them, and I could use some advice for straightening out the flowers before baking. I did see that you cut them after baking. Well, all in all, I am happy to have a project for my new toys now. I thank you so much for continuing to impress and inspire me….Again, please let me know if the Kato Polypaste works better
– Regards, Marianne
Thanks Marianne! With the squishy flower extrusions, try putting it in the freezer to firm it up a bit. And as far as whether to use Bake and Bond or Kato Polypaste, either works great… Polypaste is easier.
Wow, I love this! I’m so pleased it’s raining today …… the perfect excuse to sit indoors and play :-) Thank you for another great project!!!!!!!
Have fun with it Lesley! Thanks for the kind words!
All I can say is Fantastic! I love the cane Cindy, so many options, and the great necklace is so clever. I’ve already tried making similar beads using a plastic paint palette. I was concerned that it might melt in my toaster-oven so tried it out alone beforehand for an hour at 275f and it worked perfectly! Hoping I can get the various sizes shown in the Sculpey hollow bead maker here in the UK but if not I can still try out your super project! Way to go Cindy,
Marion
Cool Marion! Your plastic palette must be one of those hard plastic kid. I think mine would probably melt!
Hi Cindy – Just got back, sorry for delay in replying. Yes, I think mine is a hard plastic; I wondered if it would melt but at the 130c temp needed for Premo (275f) for an hour it was fine. My local store sells them, I wonder if they would ship?
May I also add, I’m staggered by your output Cindy, where do all the ideas come from? Amazing, that’s the word for you! More power to your elbow!
Marion
We are celebrating our Independence Day today and with all the firecrackers going off, dogs barking, and kids outside playing and screaming it was such a joy to find a cool quiet place and check out my project for July. Was so delighted to find you had used a hollow bead maker technique and the designs are gorgeous. I had also tryed using a plastic paint palette and it melted at 275 degrees so had to go buy a new one. This months tutorial is so exciting because of the overwhelming number of designs you can create with it. I can’t wait to sink my teeth into it. Well…..maybe my hands. But first I have got to go get the pizza and videos to celebrate our 4th of July while my mind is running amuck with ideas on this next tutorial. Thanks Cindy and Doug for another creative project.
Thank you Dixie Ann! I can’t wait to see what you make with this one!
This is a great video! I have a question however regarding polymer clay in general. I want to make polymer clay buttons that it may have to go in the washer/dryer, will the dryer heat soften them up again or distort them?
Hi Josilyn, polymer clay buttons do just fine in the washer and dryer as long as they are just sanded and buffed (a lot of finishes don’t take well to washing)… and as long as they are properly baked and are strong… and as long as the detergent isn’t too harsh. Your oven is much hotter than your dryer so there is no worry there.
This is the first tutorial I have purchased from you. I can’t wait to try this!!! Thank you for your amazing videos!! I have learned so many things from you. :)
Welcome Amy! Happy to have you here!
Hi Cindy & Doug, What a fantastic video, I need to pick up a few things and then I’m going to try at least a few of these beautiful beads, so very professional, I watched it so closely, but I may watch it again, then along with actually working on a bead! Thanks so much for the way you come across which is just as important as the actual technique, you’re both tops!
Thanks again,
Joy :)
Thank you Joy! Happy bead making!
Awesome tutorial! I watch all of them one time through before starting and then the second time around I work along with you, wat hing on my ipad. I really liked the purple ‘snakeskin’ palette, could you tell us what colors were used for it? Cannot wait to get started :)
Opps I forgot to come back to the purple colors didn’t I? The colors I used were, Purple Pearl, Magenta Pearl, Peacock Pearl and Purple. Not sure if there is such thing as a purple snake, but maybe it could be a Purple Dragon? Have fun with the tute!
Hi Cindy, I love this tutorial, like always. Could you tell me what colors you used in the purple ones? Yours are so pretty! Thanks
Hi Gay The colors for the purple beads are listed in the comment above.
When I first saw the reptile pattern for the bead, I thought you probably used an extruder like you did for your Mod Cane. The “controlled” Mokume-gane technique is VERY cool.
By the way, I haven’t seen you use micro-mesh sanding pads in a while. Are you still a fan?
Hi Jill, yes the micro mesh pads and sheets are awesome and I am still a fan. The ones I have are worn out though and so since I also have the Polishing papers on hand I show you those instead. Both do an excellent job. I have switched to pretty much only using my JoolTool though. It is way easier faster and does a better job than doing any of the other methods by hand. I’ll be doing more with the JoolTool soon, if that interests you.
the JoolTool does interest me. Anything that makes sanding and buffing easier is a good thing. Looking forward to more videos about this.
Cindy, the Jool Tool is the answer to a Clayers Sanding Prayer. Hopefully if Elaine gets one she can write a poem about it. The Polymer Clay Kit you and Anie put together is absolutely the best. I still use the Micro Mesh papers once in awhile but I have practically done away with the wet/dry sand paper. It takes a little bit of practice at first so I would suggest anyone who gets one, to use some old pieces to practice on. I pretty much messed up my first couple but after that I was off and running. The shine you get is unbelievable and the Ren wax I’m afraid is going to go unused. I just posted a photo on the FB beadsandbeading site of 5 sets of Tie Bars and Cufflinks. All were polished with only the jool tool, no wax and no resin. The finish is like glass and you know how a clean glass window shines! Like I said, an answer to my prayers.
Hi Dixie Ann.
I never received the Jool Tool that I had ordered way back when I saw it for the first time. There was a problem with the shipping so I had to cancel. All these months later (I still really want one!!)
Now I will have to wait to get the latest model plus the sanding/polishing kit for polymer clay. So it might be some time before I compose that poem, as planning a few more holidays and the kitty is nearly empty……cheers xx………
Hi Elaine, sorry to hear about the shipping problem. I sincerely hope one day you can be a proud owner of one of these. It took me some time to save up enough but it sure was worth it. Love your poems.
Cindy,
I went back to Michael’s yesterday, after revisiting this tutorial (for the 3rd) time now, and I couldn’t get the polycutters from Sculpey! Imagine that!!!! I bought my hollow bead form a day or two before the unleashing of the 2014 new product line, and here I am, sad and afraid that my Ateco circle cutters just won’t cut it, lol. Only 3 of my cutters will match, so I had to order the cutters online from the Polymer Clay Express store in Maryland! Hopefully it won’t be too long for me to get them. I told the staff at Michael’s, and they told me that it may be weeks before they get the cutters here….so that’s my story. I have these gorgeous, completed sheets of ‘reptilian’ looking fabric, and no cutters! Any suggestions for now, my wise ‘Sensei of the Clay’ ?
Hi Marianne, the circles don’t have to be exactly the same size as the domes. Just as long as they are smaller and not bigger. Your other cutters may be just fine. As well, if your circle cutters only work on one or two of the sizes, then just make your beads those sizes and make earrings or pendants out of them. You don’t have to start on the Neckwire right away. You can always make new reptilian sheets when your new cutters arrive.
Hi Marianne ,
I actually had to go to JoAnn Fabrics to purchase my new materials. I try to buy most of my products from Michales. I did talk to the manager about the new Clay and products:)
Ginny
In this reptile tutorial, I may be mistaken but you did not mention the colorways to do the purple and tan, I heard you mention you would tell it later.
I love your tutorials and testing, I had trouble with the sharpie translucent flowers breaking also I’m not sure why? Thanks for any help.
Hi Laura, You are right, I said I would mention the other colors and I did not. Only noticed after the videos were posted. You can use any four colors you wish but for the purple set I used: Purple Pearl, Magenta Pearl, Peacock Pearl and Purple and for the brown set I used: Bronze, Antique Gold, Ecru and Burnt Umber.
With the translucent flowers breaking, try baking at a higher temp. like 285F and make sure you’re using an oven thermometer. Your oven may not be baking as well as you think.
Cindy – I have been trying to make these beads for years and they always came out wonky. I would use a thin strip of clay around the two edges to get the halves together and this never looked that great even if I sanded it down. I made them too thin or too thick. Drilling also came out uneven.This is such a great video! It is the answer to all of the problems I have been having making professional looking hollow beads. Thank you, thank you, thank you! : )
Maria
P.S. I have to say that another interesting design could be to make beads with stripes going across them – the reddish tape on the purple beads looks cool…
Thank you for saying that Maria! I bet you were not the only one to find making the hollow beads on your own a real challenge. There are so many important steps, just not mentioned on the package, I’m not surprised! Oh and these beads would look awesome in a striped pattern. Great idea!
Dear Cindy,
I have just watched the reptile video. Great tutorial. I loved the colors you used. I just would like to know which colors did you use to make that brownish/gold you show as an example too. I loved that effect.
Thanks,
Sylvia
Hi Silvia, I mentioned the colors I used in a couple of the comments above, but for the brown one specifically, I used: Bronze, Antique Gold, Ecru and Burnt Umber. Glad you loved the tutorial! Thanks for commenting!
Ooops sorry I spelled your name wrong Sylvia… my bad!
Hi Cindy,
Can’t wait for the promo on the JoolTool. Once I know exactly what works with pc for both sanding and buffing, I will put an order in. Hopefully I will be able to get one out to Australia!
Cheers
Veronica
I ordered my supplies today from Sculpey.com (they are on sale!) and now am anxiously awaiting their arrival so I can give this tutorial a try! So neat looking!
Hi Cindy ,
Love love this tutorial ,so many design possibilities ,have ordered my Hollow bead maker on ebay from USA, none of these tools available this side of the pond . My clay supplier in England had never heard of them !! Thanks again for your most generous information I have also ordered the Silk Screen kit hoping this technjque will look cool on these beads also
Beautiful!! now to find the time to do the beads. First, thanks so much for using a piece of tape on the back of the bead to sand it- I have tried sanding flat like that more than once, and the piece won’t move. I feel like having a duh moment because you make so much sense.
Quick question on the Jool Tool – I got impatient and bought one (with lots of stuff, sigh) months ago, and then I didn’t have time to play. I just wanted to confirm that you aren’t using the 5 micron trizact that Ani recommends in her video. I have tried it, and it eats my clay – literally eats away at the top. It sounds like I need to start with the 9 micron finishing film and go from there, right?
Ready to play!!!!
Thanks alot,
Beth
Hi Beth, Glad you liked that tape trick! Doug and I will be doing some videos on how to use the JoolTool with a launch of the kit. Please be patient, we are trying to get this promo out as soon as possible.
I’m very happy to hear this. I promised myself a treat for working summer school. This will be it!!
Hi peeps,
After returning from my holiday in France my laptop was very sick!! Had to take it into the repair shop and spent a fortune getting it running again. My first chance today to watch the hollow bead tute…… Wow Cindy, spectacular! lovely design and great colours.
As it’s nearly two weeks since I could watch anything, reading all the comments and questions posted by your other members, answered all the questions I was thinking to ask.
So for any new members, don’t forget to click on the questions/comments to read what other members post. Saves a lot of time for Cindy as she has to answer the same things three times over. “Right Cindy”?
If anyone has eaten escargot in garlic butter, they are served up on a round metal dish with little hollows all round the edge. Who do you think was cheeky enough to ask ( In my terrible french accent ) if I could take home the empty dish! Just right to make lentil beads all the same size!!
I even enjoyed the “snails” so don’t say uggg! ( unless you are a vegetarian,) as they were very tasty and were a valuable source of protein during the war when meat was very scarce for the French people.
Drew the line at ordering the frogs legs though as I have a darling little frog living in my garden at home who could have French cousins!….cheers xx
Elaine, so glad to hear you are home and recovering! And Sue F, so glad to see you back!
Newcomers with questions about anything related to polymer clay need to use the search facility at the upper right of the screen. It will provide links to every single blog post by Cindy and to all comments on any topic. For those of you who have not tried this fabulous resource, go and type “baking” in the search, and see the reams of information available to you – all of it FREE!!!!
Thank you to the person that tipped us off the to sale of all the Sculpey products!!!
Just finished purchasing all the items needed for this tute (plus a few more doo-dads, lol) for a remarkable price. Here is a link to get you started, not sure how much longer the sale will last.
Cindy, this tute is fabu. Cannot tell you how many times I’ve tried this lentil process and failed. After watching the video, can see where and how I made all my mistakes, so I am sure glad I am a member here.
Also, I love the new mokume gane approach!
Now that I’m all set with the Makin’s extruder, power drill, and bench vice, and purchase Tinapple’s disk set, I will be an extruding fool.
Does anyone know how to preserve these snakes so that the excess can be stored for further use? How would you best reactivate the clay, warmth? I’m thinking the best approach might be to coil them loosely with a piece of deli wrap between each coil, then put them in an air-tight Glad baggie or air proof glass jar?
If anyone has experience on this and can give advise, I’d greatly appreciate it.
Nice to hear from both of you girls! Summer is such a busy time for people, so hearing your great stories and your supportive suggestions for others is greatly appreciated!
Jocelyn -WOW such good prices on the new Sculpey stuff. I paid way more at Michaels……………boohoo.
Cindy – This is my all time fav. The Reptile tute!!!!!!!!!!!! I never could get the forms right – mostly too thick . So I made the tute and they came out perfectly. Sanded the fool out of them. All the way to 1200 grit. What shine and so light weight! I bought the Silk-screen kit too. So I am going to made LOTS of hollow beads. Also thanks for the other 2 color ways. Happy camper for sure.
YOU ARE THE BEST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The Reptile Hollow Bead Tutorial is super awesome!
Well, if you looked at my desk -you would see 1/2 hollow beads everywhere. I can’t stop!!!!! Next I’m going to use the silk screen kit and make MORE. I just love the Reptile Pattern Hollow Bead Lentil Tutorial.
I will be here til midnight -LOL My hubby will have to fix his own dinner – it is that addictiong !!!!!!!!!!!
Thank you, Cindy! Very good video!!
All very detailed and precise.
See you soon and friendliness!
My English is so-so, from Italy.
Cecilia
Dear Cindy, I live in Lockerbie in Scotland, and started using polymer clay earlier this year. I had moved house in Dec and my studio was not set up and by Feb I was just longing to use colour. Came on polymer clay and ,, Love it… big distraction from all the other things I need to do in my life!
Really enjoy your tutorials, clear and sharp and really detailed. I am a teacher myself… or have been, only do a little bit now… but really appreciate your way of presenting the info. Just great!
I am making swirly bead pendants to give to all the students in my colour workshop in Italy in a month (16 of them, 3 from Canada)… will do key rings for the 3 men… just love making them.
I recently bought your hollow lentil bead tutorial and am waiting for the wire to arrive so I can construct my necklace. I made the beads according to your lessons and am really pleased with them… they are not perfect, think I will make them a bit thicker next time… but they look and feel great… you can see them below, waiting to be put together. I was not paying attention when I cut the first slice from the cane and that gave me the other pattern… so I did a few of them as well as the reptile pattern… now I know how to do both.
.
But I was wondering if you have a tutorial I can purchase…. I would like to make the other linked kind of necklace you showed, as well as the wire necklace, and don’t know how to make, or especially fix, the links to the beads. I also wonder about the earring wires, the long ones you showed in the intro video… they are great and I like the reversible possibility. Did you make them or were they purchased somewhere? Would really appreciate any info or advice.
Many thanks again for your inspiring work!
All the best for now,
Bella
Bella, these are gorgeous! Very well done! Did you ever construct the necklace? I’d love to know how it turned out.
Hi Bella,
Glad to hear you are enjoying the videos. Your beads look wonderful.
To answer your question… yes wire does go all the way through the hollow lentil beads.
In regards to making wraps and ear wires, I do have several videos on the subject. Here are the links if you are interested:
Foxgloves & Raindrops (Kidney shaped ear wires)
Sweet Pear Earrings Project (Beaded French Ear wire)
Clover Flower Earrings (Vol-046-2… it is in this tutorial that I show how to make the long ear wire… the same thing I did for that Hollow Lentil Bead earring)
Fancy Rose Earwires (Vol-043-4)
Handmade Earwires (Vol-021-4)
Wire Wraps & Loops (Vol-018-4)
.
Hi Cindy… I’m new to Polymer Clay and so very happy I found your tutorials on YouTube!! I’m a new member and recently bought the Vol-074 tutorials on hollow beads – just awesome, Cindy, really awesome!
I have been scouring Calgary craft stores and the internet and cannot find the round cutters sculpey has out to match the sizes of the hollow bead mold. Could you tell me where you found yours? If it’s a Surrey or Vancouver store – perhaps I can order one from them.
Thanks to You and Doug for being there for all of us beginner through to expert polymer clay lovers.
Hi Donna, I got my round cutters directly from Polyform as samples. I did see some of the other shapes in Michaels. (Maybe they sold out of the rounds or something?) You may have to Google around and see if you can find them or ask the Managers in the stores if they plan on carrying them. DO let us know if you find them.
hi donna
i ordered all of my supplys from shades of clay in ontario. fast shipping and only 10.95
Finally, I got my Premo cutters for my hollow beads, and I cut them out! I made 4 sets, 4 colours, and I have yet to bake them, due to illness. Cindy, I have had them on parchment paper, in a scrapbooking style box, ready to be formed and baked. Should I attempt to heat them ever so slightly before trying to place them on the forms for baking? They have been sitting idle for 3 weeks or so now. I will probably never order from Polymer Clay Express again. They took at least a week or more after payment of both my order and shipping was paid. I found a somewhat local place, thanks to Cindy? I think, which is in Keswick Ontario, Canada. She has the new clay (Souffle) plus hollow bead maker, and cutters. You can find her website, Polymer Clay Canada, and I am sure the service will be much faster. Best of luck to those looking for the new stuff at Michael’s, they only bring in some of the new stuff, and leave out the important things (like the cutters for the hollow bead maker they DO carry). I found them to be really going downhill on filling in out of stock items.
Again, many thanks, even though I have said it in the past, to you and Doug. You do such a wonderful job, and he is great at those close ups with the camera. You have such talent, Cindy. I made the brown set before you gave us the colours, and boy, was I close! They look the same, but I had 1 of the colours slightly different, and that was the ecru. I used 1/12th ecru, 11/12ths pearl. They look close. My fave was 1 that I came up with: black, silver, 1/4 pearl mixed with 3/4 white, and 1/2 Aliziran Crimson! I will take a picture of those for sure, you will love that scheme.
Ooo that color combo sounds pretty Marianne! Sorry to hear that you have been ill. :( Hope you are feeling better. :) As far as the clay sitting,… yeah it would be a good idea to warm the circles slightly. Mane just put them between some paper and put your palms on both sides to warm them with your hands. Then place them slowly on the mold and don’t force them. Once they are all sitting on the mold, you could maybe use a blow dryer to warm the mold a little from underneath. Be careful with the heat though… it is very easy to go too far and make your clay extra brittle. Good luck!
Cindy/Doug,
All the videos are so great! I enjoy learning creative things and your videos are SO GREAT!
I am watching the reptile pattern tutorial now on my iPad. I had to order some graduated circle cutters and it was the longest two weeks of my life. LOL. I have everything in the 2 x 2 square now. Just found the old credit card. SO excited!!!! Your lentil beads with that pattern are probably the coolest thing I’ve seen this year. I want to cover my life in that pattern. (:
Where oh where did you find your tapered drill bit? I have looked at some of my local craft stores and also some hardware stores and haven’t found anything that is quite the right size. Please and thank you!
Samantha, cannot help with Cindy’s specific tool, but if you check out Micromart online catalog, you might find something similar that might do the job of enlarging and finishing the hole. Hope it helps.
Hi Samantha, I got mine years ago with my Dremel Tool. They are called tapered cut burrs or tapered drill bits. Places like Amazon and the Dremel site could be good places to look for them.
Hi Cindy I purchased your hollow bead tutorial and have used the cutters and the sculpey hollow bead form. Both times I found the beads soft and they broke easily. They looked about the same thickness you used, what could I be doing wrong? I tried Kato first then Premo and double baked the Premo ones to try and make them stronger! Thanks. Kim
Hi Kim, how did your beads break? Along the seams? Or did they crack or something? They should not be breaking if they were baking at the right temp for the full hour. In fact you should be able to pop each half inside out without them breaking. I am wondering if your oven is hot enough? Do you use an oven thermometer? That would more than likely be the problem… not the thickness.
Really Cindy? Gosh I had better check my oven then, thanks for replying I will try again. They just broke when I was sanding them across the centres, they seemed very brittle I thought perhaps I had overbaked them!!
Hi Cindy!
I am wanting to purchase your reptile lentil bead videos, but had a question first. I was wondering if you have to have a pasta maker/roller to do this? I don’t have one and I don’t want to invest in one right now because I’m not sure I’m going to really enjoy jewelry making (I have done various things with polymer clay, but this would be my first “jewelry” item. ) Any thoughts?
Thank you
Hy Robin,
A pasta machine is a great investment (I have 3 and a half) the half is one I took apart to clean and never could get it back together. One I got second-hand very cheap and one is the most expensive gold one. No not solid gold just finished in gold paint.
If you find you aren’t going to make polymer clay jewellry (They are great for making home-made pasta). Because I have no strength in my hands and hardly any feeling in my fingers I am a tool freak but find every tool I purchase helps me to create my little master pieces!! My list of wants grows longer and I must stop jaunting off on holidays and save for the items on my wish-list.
Cindy and Doug together make the best videos online and they are great value too. Doug with his close-up shots and Cindy with her step by step instructions are just the best team.
I have been a member of PCT for quite some time and must add that although I knew lots of things about polymer clay there was loads I didn’t know but you can find ALL the answers here. If Cindy is busy one of the members will pop in to suggest trying something that has worked for them or you can use the search box to scroll through answers to your questions.
Nope, I do not get any commision for encouraging new people to become members. I know it has changed my way of working. So three cheers to the Leitz team, long may you continue to amaze us. …….cheers xx……..
Thank you so much Elaine for popping in here to help Robin! I really appreciate that!
Robin, Elaine is right… a pasta machine is definitely worth it. Although you could do this particular technique without a machine, it would be a lot harder and would take a lot longer. Even if you don’t do much jewelry, you find it is a great help for mixing colors, doing blends, conditioning clay and making consistently even sheets.
Look for a second hand one or just a cheap one to start with. Like Elaine said there is tons of info here that will help. Put pasta machine in the search box and you will find more info that will show you its use…. to be honest I wouldn’t do clay without one anymore.
Thank you for the reply Elaine! I’m armed with a coupon and off to the craft store :)
I meant to say Elaine and Cindy :)
i would really like the color receipe for the purple hollow bead u show on ur hollow lentil bead paid tutorial. My best friends birthday is just around the corner &I Purple is her favorite color.
Hi Joyce, You can use any four colors you wish but for the purple set I used: Purple Pearl, Magenta Pearl, Peacock Pearl and Purple Premo for my layers. I hope your present turns out lovely for your best friend!
The new Sunset Pearl (kind of a pink pearl) goes really well with Purple Pearl. I made some beads with Purple Pearl, Magenta Pearl, Sunset Pearl and Antique Gold, came out really well!
I have purchased the lentil bead video But would like the clay colors & receipe for the purple lentil bead on ur video. U said u would talk about it but I think u ran out of time. I would really appreciate if u could send me the clay colors & possibly the ratio of colors .thank u joyce
I answered this question for you, just above Joyce.
Thanks I found the colors for the purple beads. Could u tell me the order u stacked the clay& which color did u use half of a section.
Joyce, the amount of clay you use is up to you… it really depends on how many beads you want to make. Also, just like the Blue colors, it doesn’t matter the order you put them in. There is no such thing as a Purple Snake, so you can’t get it wrong. Just relax and go for it!
Thanks so it doesn’t matter which color I use for the half of a section. I really want them to be really purple like yours were
I just love this! I can’t believe how many uses for tape are in this tutorial. That’s one of my favorite things about your tutorials, you’re always throwing in extra helpful tips that really make a big difference. I’m especially thrilled about the idea of putting a piece of tape on a bead before starting to drill. In the past I’ve had the bit slip and scratch the bead and I’m hoping this will reduce slipping and prevent the scratching if it does happen. I’m really excited about that!
I also really appreciate you mentioning the specific jooltool grit you used. I had been wondering if you used the bristle brushes or the Micro finishing papers. I know a lot of people don’t have a jooltool, but I would definitely not mind seeing more videos with demonstrations on how you use it with various shapes and sizes and any tips or tricks you have. I adore my jooltool, but I still struggle with getting scratch marks left from the coarser grits. (I typically start with 30 micron or 60 if I need to do more shaping) Sometimes my pendants come out perfectly, but other times I have a hard time getting them up to a good shine. When they do turn out well it definitely seems to take a lot more time and effort for me than on any of the demonstration videos I’ve seen. I’m sure I just need more practice with how I hold the pendant against the disc or something, but any help you have would be appreciated. I do have pictures of my cane and my makeshift hollow bead makers, but there will be no pictures of finished hollow lentils for a while because I have misplaced the final and most important 9 micron Jooltool disc! The other day I also misplaced one of my leaf shaped cutters and still haven’t found it. I’m afraid this means it’s time for the dreaded studio cleanup. (Did you hear that dark scary dun dun dun music when I said that?) I should probably learn to work in a more organized way and prevent these issues, but I’m not sure how easy it will be to change my lifelong habit of chaos. :D
If you’re watching Ani’s videos, she is usually only doing a small section of the bead at a time and they actually had a pretty nice finish to begin with (the samples she uses are my beads btw). So it will seem that the process is shorter than it actually is.
The JoolTool is faster than doing it by hand, but it still takes time to get a nice finish. I ususally use the Orange Trizact for shaping and then the 15 micron Microfinishing Film and the 9 micron Microfinishing film last. Then the Felt buffing wheel and lastly the cloth buffing wheel.
Before this whole web upgrade, Doug and I started filming a JoolTool course to help people just like you. Unfortunately we haven’t been able to get back to it. Hopefully we can finish that after the new platform is done.
Well that explains it! She’s using Cindy-fied beads! I’ll definitely have to be more patient and work on smoothing my surfaces better too. I’m glad you mentioned the trizact again. I started with that but I thought maybe it was the culprit of my semicircle scratches so I switched to the course and medium Micro polishing papers. (is that what they’re called? I forget. Close enough) But since I’m still getting the scratches sometimes maybe I’ll switch back to the tripartite to start. Anyway that will have to wait because I decided to do some sanding by hand tonight since I haven’t found my missing disk. That should speak volumes to how much I dislike cleaning up when I’d rather sand by hand haha! Anyway, really looking forward to that jooltool video in the future. Goodness knows you and Doug have plenty on your plate right now, but somewhere down the line that’ll be neat to see. Maybe I’ll even have found my missing disc by then lol
I find hand sanding kind of therapeutic actually. Well not sanding a bunch of tiny round beads, but sanding something like these large hollow beads I do. :)
Hmm… I’m a little worried about your sanity now Cindy… But since you haven’t shown signs of being too crazy before, perhaps I should give adjusting my attitude a shot… I’ll try thinking therapeutic rights next time I’m sanding.
Any tips on baking on a lightbulb? I just tried it they burned up in less than 10 minutes and yes my oven thermometer says 260 even. I was wondering if you could help me out a bit. I plan on getting the hollow bead maker but that will be in the future right now I have a lightbulb to work with.
Hope you can help me out or anyone for that matter. I loved the cane by the way just too cool looking.That came out perfectly the baking not so much :-))))
Hi Linda, if you place your light bulb on the lowest rack in your oven, set it in a bed of cornstarch and gently place some foil over it to protect it from the heating coil, always bake at 275 degrees if using Premo or whatever your clay calls for, for 1 hour, it should come out perfect. If your using translucent clay, what I do is bake it on the bulb for about 15-20 min and then I remove it and bury it in the corn starch and finish baking it for another 35-40 minutes. This protects the translucency of the clay. Once they have cooled down completely you will want to rinse them in some cool water and get all the corn starch off them. Perhaps someone else has a better solution but this has always worked for me. Good Luck Doll.
Dixie Ann:
thank you so much. I did figure it out for my oven. I use a toaster oven so not a lot of room in there :-))) I baked it way longer at a lower temp and it came out very very strong so I am going with that for now. I also did not roll it as thin which helped. I am thrilled with the results. I will be getting the hollow bead maker though, these are way too much fun and they look fantastic. I kept the answer on my computer though for future reference I will be using the cornstarch method as well. Thanks again.
I have made a necklace from this lesson that I would like you to see as it is one of my favorites, but don’t know how to post it on your site…do you have a place for this?
Jeanne, here is the link to Cindys Facebook page where you can upload the photo of your work. Bookmark it and keep it handy so we can see all your wonderful work.
Thank’s Dixie
I enjoyed this tutorial a bunch. One question – I saw somewhere that heating up the form just a tiny little bit will help the clay stick and form to it; has anyone else ran across this tip and if so, does it work well?
Thanks for the videos!
I like to keep the hollow bead maker on top of my small clay oven as it’s heating up to the right temperature. It gets a little warm and it’s definitely easier to mold the clay onto the domes!
Great idea!
I just got around to doing this Tute and love it. Some people were concerned because they do not have the Polyform round cutters, not to worry. I did purchase the Polyform hollow bead form and circle cutters and expected the cut clay to go all the way to the bottom of the lentil dome, which they do not. I worked with my clay circles to make them extend down further. Big mistake- the halves did not match up very well and some bead sides were very thin and flexible. I reinforce the thing areas by adding a strip of clay to the inside of the lentil. I had to do a lot of sanding to get the halves to match up well. Oh we…live an learn.
Love all the color ways people have tried, very cool.
Anna
So good to hear that you are enjoying this tutorial Anna! Looks like you figured out a method that worked for you. I think you should find it easier next time, if you don’t try and stretch the pieces and just push them gently down onto the form. If the circles are cut the same size, they should match up after they are baked. Good luck and have fun!
Wow, this cane is so gorgeous, I loved how it looked even before I made the indentations, with the gold and green shining subtly through the navy. My very first lentil beads are resting on the work table. I wasn’t careful enough about getting them stuck down all around so they’re very wavy. I’m not used to working with such a thin setting so was scared to push them on too hard, but I can see I need to be firmer! I’ll see how much I can fix with sanding. And if that doesn’t work, I’m thinking I could use them on top of a mosaic box with clay tiles. QUESTION: what colors do you use for the blueish colorway? Thanks Cindy this was so much fun!
Hi Cindy, Oops I see now you’ve included the purple (not blue) colorway recipe above. Thank you!
Cindy,
Oy! Some days I just spend hours here bopping around from one great topic to another. But the the problem with that is I never remember where I saw something, especially if it was in a video and there’s no text to search on. I think that’s the case here…. I know it isn’t in this series of videos, but somewhere I saw you had a round metal palette that had, I don’t know, 10 or 11 is the usual number, of same-size wells that you could use to bake a number of hollow lentils of the same size at the same time. In fact you commented on that. (is this true or am i totally losing my mind and just dreaming up things I want to see?)
Well, I bought one on the internet, and it looked just right, but when i got it, I realized the domes are not perfectly round as they are on the plastic palettes. In fact, they have a subtle nipple shape, which is not quite what I had in mind. So, my question to you is, do you remember where you bought your palette? Or is the brand on it anywhere? There are a million of them on the internet, but as I have learned, the photos can be misleading!
Thanks,
Fran
Hi Fran, are you talking about the Hollow Bead Maker by Sculpey that I showed in the tutorial? Watch the intro video above at the 0:44 second mark you will see the metal form I am talking about. Other than that, I don’t have another metal palette that I can use for baking beads on. The only round palettes that I have are plastic.
No, I have the Sculpey Bead Maker, and it is great but frustrating, as you can only make 2 forms of the same size at once.
I have a round plastic palette like you do, and thought that would be perfect, but I am sure the plastic would not survive the heat. I could have sworn it was one of your videos where I saw it. hmmm. I’ll just have to look in some stores…..
Thanks, Cindy.
Fran
Fran, you can find round metal palettes for baking the same size hollow beads from hobby lobby in the artist paint dept for less than $2 bucks. Again these are all the same size but they work great. I bought a couple of them so I could make both halves at the same time. For the graduated size hollow beads I use the Sculpey Hollow Bead maker.
Thanks, Dixie Ann. I figured Hobby Lobby or one of those stores might have them, but it is quite a distance away (60 miles) so my first effort was the internet. I’ll just have to accumulate a worthy shopping list and go on a trek!
Fran, they have online ordering and a lot of times have free or reduced shipping. They have a 10 well aluminum paint palette which I think you are looking for. Here is the link to it. They are $2.49 each. Hope that helps you out.
Thanks, Dixie Ann. I will give it a try. (in fact, i just ordered it, and I got 40% off, so I saved a buck. Even at full price, still cheaper than driving to Manchester!)
Fran
Hi Fran – I just checked ebay and they have these aluminium palettes, cheap as chips! You can find them here.
Marion
Hi Cindy,
This is the first tutorial I have purchased from you and I am so glad I did!!. I have learned some great new info and your presenting style is so clear and interesting – thank you so much. :)
p.s. You mentioned a polishing gismo called a Jool tool (I think). Where can I find out more?! (I live in the U.K.) Thanks. Cx
Thank you Caroline! I am happy you are here! To learn more about the JoolTool (or anything else related to polymer clay) then just type what you are looking for into the search box at the top of the page. That will take you to the information you need. Thanks for commenting!
Hi Cindy
I have purchased your class (539 reptile) and I enjoyed it very much. However when I go back to see it again part one is missing. Would you please let me know to get to that part.
Thanks
Rezvan
Glad to hear you enjoyed this Vol-074 tutorial. Thanks for saying so.
When you are logged into your library account and go to the course page, the Part 1 video is at the very top of the page. You are probably looking at the bottom of the page which is where the video thumbnail images are posted for Part 2 through to Part 6.
Hi, Cindy;
I just bought the reptile/hollow bead tutorials, and am looking forward to making them.
However, I don’t see any of the shopping links to sources for the tools and materials that you mention, or a list that I might print. (There’s a big empty space on the page with the tutorials, so maybe something is missing.)
Thanks, Harriet
Hi Harriet… that blank space is where an Amazon “Widget” is supposed to show. If it is not displaying for you, that is likely because an “ad blocker” setting is turned on in your web browser.
If you don’t know how to adjust settings like that, you could try using a different web browser, that won’t have an issue with showing Amazon widgets.
Or… you cold just go direct to Amazon and use their search box to find anything that Cindy mentions in the videos, that you may not already have.
Hope that helps.
Hi Cindy and Doug!
I absolutely loved this tute and I see so many future projects with the cane! ???? My question is in relation to the bake and bind products. I live in Sydney Australia and compared to the art and craft supplies in the US and Canada, we are in the stone ages so I have to order in my clay supplies from interstate and it takes a week or so. Because I am insanely impatient it start on these, can I use sculpy liquid translucent or another craft strong glue in the meantime? The first batch will be experimental of course.
Thanks for all the hard work you two put into these tutes!
Hi Corrina, thanks for your comment! Glad you liked the tutorial! As far as using TLS Translucent Liquid Sculpey in place of Bake and Bond… sure that is no problem. The Bake and Bond is a little easier to use because it is stickier and has a bit of a fibre? in it that seems to act a little more like a tacky glue. But it is mostly made of liquid clay anyway. If you find your liquid clay is too slippery, then you can leave a blob of it out on your counter for awile to thicken up a bit. Or you could try mixing in a tiny piece of translucent clay, to make it a bit more pastey. It will work for you though, so don’t worry about trying to source the Bake and Bond, before finishing your project.
Hi Cindy! Loved this tutorial. You are so upbeat and knowledgeable! It is easy to follow you. I can’t wait to give this a try. By the way, what was the color mix for the purple reptile cane? Thanks again!
Hi Andrea, thank you so much for the compliments! I did end up forgetting to give you guys the “purple reptile” recipe, I will have this recipe posted in the tutorial on the new site, but for now here it is: the colors I used were, Purple Pearl (Premo), Magenta Pearl (Premo), Peacock Pearl (Premo) and Purple (Premo).Have fun!
Thanks Cindy! I definitely want to be a member! I had so much fun with this! I had some scrap clay left over from another project I had rolled out and last night experimented and made a reptile cane. I rolled out all your required colors…but…as I said last night, I grabbed the old clay…one was green pearl….the rest were mixes i could not tell you how they came about. How can I attatch pictures? I want to show you! Still have to sand & polish
I would love to see them Andrea! Post them on our Polymer Clay Tutor Facebook page.
Will do Cindy! XO
I bought this package last year, and have changed computers since then. I was trying to access them, but can’t. Can you help. Thanks, Harriet
Sure I can help Harriet. I just sent you an email to followup with this.
Hi Cindy,
On the purple & Brown reptile blends, can you please give me the proportions of clay colors used? Thank you!
Hi Norrie, You can use any four colors you wish but for the purple set I used: Purple Pearl, Magenta Pearl, Peacock Pearl and Purple and for the brown set I used: Bronze, Antique Gold, Ecru and Burnt Umber.
Thank you SO much! Are the colors each 1 section or is there a quarter of a section like the navy in the blue cane??
Norrie to be honest I don’t remember. You may need to experiment with that a little. I don’t think you can really go too wrong with it, but maybe you could go a little less (1/4 block) on the darkest in the bunch like you did with the Navy. I don’t think it will matter too much tho.
Thank You!! ?
Hi, Cindy,
I just bought the Reptile Hollow Bead Neckwire Tutorial videos. I have already learned so much! My question is this: how do you make that gorgeous striped golden bead? It’s on the back of the asymmetrical focal beads of the linked necklace and on the double-sided pendant with the bail. You mentioned that it was an experimental technique.
Hi Mary, thank you for the compliments! As far as that sample bead I showed, I don’t have an actual tutorial on that. That was made one day when I was playing around with a sheet of gold clay that I had run through the noodle cutting attachment of my pasta machine. You could replicate something similar by rolling out a sheet of clay and cutting into thin strips… then putting all the strips back together as a sheet again. (all the dark edges of the mica particles on the cut edges, end up kind of showing a little through the shiny top side. Making what ends up looking like a wood grain. Play around with some metallic clay ans see what you can create. Maybe one day, I will make a tutorial for that technique?
Hi Cindy
I’ve been watching the reptile hollow bead tutorial 074 and wanted to just check that when you take slices from the block are the slices from the top to bottom or from the side of the block? Have watched the video but was still not absolutely sure.
Many thanks Anne
Hi Cindy
Having thought about it, I realised that you cut top to bottom as that’s where the diamond
pattern runs through it. It’s looking good and has worked well.
Thanks
So pleased to see you figured it out Anne! Sometimes if you just step back and think through the process… the answer will appear!!