How can I make Glass Looking Polymer Clay Beads

[NatashasDesignz]

Hello, I am quite new at making beads and wondered if someone could give me some advice on how I can make the beads looks like they are glass? As you can probably see I make Clay Ornaments etc but before this I used to make jewellery by buying the beads. I have made a few of my own Polymer Clay Beaded Jewellery which are available to view at my shop, but would like to better myself with more tecniques. I am also learning how to make my own canes to add to my beads but need to improve on that also. Any advice would be appreciated, thanks :-)

[Former_Member]

what i do is mix translucent sculpey with either pigment powder or eyeshadow.
but if you use too much powder, you may lose the glass-like effect. you can also take a pinch of color sculpey with the translucent, and keep blending until you get the right look. another optional tip is after you bake it, you can lightly buff it. i hope that helps!

[Claybykim]

Lots and lots of sanding, buffing, glazing rebaking. Uhg. They look great but are a lot of work .

[Former_Member]

I find glaze always looks like exactly that - a glaze. Working in such a way to leave the smoothest surface possible then after curing sanding through multiple grits, ie 400, 600 at a minimum, then 800 and in some cases 1000, but most of the time I find by that point there isn't always much difference. It's important to switch out the water and clean your pieces as you progress so that no stray particles ruin what your working on. Then buff away. I've never been going for glass like so I usually just buff on cotton. But I hear a big lambswool head on a dremel is a good way to go.

[exZuberant]

Hi,

I haven't tried this yet (and may never do so!), but I got this advice from Shauna Hullender, who made these beautiful glassy beads:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/54769220/6-green-blue-yellow-stripes-handmade

"I use wet dry sand paper from the automotive store. I use three different grits, 400, 600, 1000. Some people say to use more but this works for me. Start with 400 and go to 600 then 1000. Get a bowl of water and tear some pieces of sandpaper and lightly sand every surface, be sure to keep your bead pretty wet. go thru each grit this way. then buff your bead with a soft cloth. You want to check for any scratches or rough spots. If done wel,l it will feel like glass when you are finished. Then I use Future floor polish. Get a soft paint brush. I put on three coats, letting them dry 30 min in between coats."

I have tried Future floor polish and it really does accentuate the glassy quality of translucent clay.

Also, I have seen several references to Premo "Frost" being the most clear of all the translucent clays.

Good luck!