The road to amber

27 juin 2006

version en anglais de la route de l'ambre traduction par FLO
pour nos lecteurs anglophones

Different roads will get you there.

First, get your materials: translucent clay, (fimo and premo), brown and yellow piñata inks, brown wax, blade, gloves, sandpaper (800 to 2000), sanding machine (will make your life easier for polishing.

First road:

Form your beads with translucent clay, do not add anything to it. You can mix different brands; the effect will be nicer because the different brand go brown differently while baking.

Second road:

Form your bead, cut it slightly in different spots and insert drops of piñata inks. Form your bead again and smooth it. (You have to wear gloves here!).

Third road:

Grate a little brown wax and mix it with your translucent clay (it could be the kind of wax pastel), form the bead and smooth.

Bake your beads at 130°(266°fahrenheit) for 15 minutes then increase at 150° (302°), then 160° (320°)

until 180 °.(356° )

Turn them over after 5 minutes.

Watch carefully while they get brown (I actually pushed it until 200° (392°) but the bead got a bit too dark on one side!). In fact, everything depends on your oven, the clay you used; you need to make your own experience until you have the color you want.

The process is in fact very similar to making caramel!

Immediately after baking, plunge your beads in very cold water. This will reinforce the plaquing effect which is interesting for amber.

And then the entire secret remains in the sanding!!! You will need the miracle product to reveal the transparency: your elbow!!!

You will start with a 800 or 1000 sand paper and you will go up to 1200-1500-2000 if you can find some.

To sand properly, there is no need to do it strongly, on the contrary. You have to take water with soap, soak your sand paper in advance and then “caress” your bead, rinse, caress it again, rinse, etc…..At the end of the sanding process, your beads are ugly, dull, this is normal. Dry them and then, (this is the revelation!) polish them.

Now you have smooth and glossy amber beads.

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