Punched Clay Boxes

Materials:

Kato Polyclay: gold, black, copper
Fiskars decorative edge scissors
Fiskars punches: hearts, teardrops, triangles, circles, etc.
Punch Bunch assorted punches
Punch Bunch Power Punch (optional)
Lisa Pavelka's Hi-Temp brush-on Polybonder (cyanoacrylate)
Delta Ceramcoat acrylic paint-Black #2506
papier mache box
large ball-tip
clay blade
craft knife
clay-dedicated pasta machine
needle tool
large flat brush
tweezers
ruler
measuring tape
thin cardboard or heavy-weight poster board
12" or 8" square smooth ceramic tile or other work surface
baby wipes

Condition all clay thoroughly before using, starting with the lightest colors first. Knead for 1 to 2 minutes or cut a block into four or five slices and run through a pasta machine on the largest setting several times until very soft and pliable.

Note: Specific dimensions are not indicated since the box size and shape you select may vary. You may wish to use a ruler and measuring tape when doing your project.

Steps:

1. Roll out a 3" x 3" sheet of black and a 1" x 1" sheet of gold clay on the largest setting of the pasta machine. It's important that the brand of clay be extremely strong and flexible after baking.

2. Bake these sheets at 275 F degrees for 20 minutes and set aside to cool.

4. When the painted box is dry, place the lid over the bottom. Trace along the underside of the lid all the way around with a pencil. (You may need to use a white colored pencil to see the line). This is your gauge for how high to position the clay on the base of the box.

5. Roll out a sheet of gold clay large enough to cover the box lid and sides through the fourth largest setting of the pasta machine.

7. Press the needle tool vertically all along the gold clay on the sides of the lid (figure D). Trim the excess clay from under the lid's sides using the clay blade.

8. Cut several dozen shapes using the hand punches out of the cooled sheet of black clay (figure E). (Tip: You may wish to use the power punch to make it easier to cut out several dozen shapes without causing hand fatigue (figure F).) Start by gluing one or more shapes over the center of the lid, using the polybonder. Create a pattern, radiating out from the center using five or six lines in your design. Add various shapes and build the design out to the last 1/2 inch away from the lid's edge. Press the shapes into the clay using the top of tweezers or the handle of the needle tool (figure G).

9. Stipple the exposed gold clay on the lid with the ball tip.

10. Cut a 1" x 11" strip of cardboard or poster board. Cut along the top and bottom edge of the strip using the decorative edge scissors (figure H). Roll out a copper clay strip through the fifth largest setting of the pasta machine: 1 inch wide times the circumference of your lid.

11. Place the card board template you created in step 10 over the copper clay strip and cut along the edges with your craft knife. Realign the template on the clay and continue if the circumference of your lid requires the clay to be longer than 11 inches.

12. Carefully position the trimmed copper strip over the top edge of the box lid (figure I). Trim away excess clay and heal the seam with your finger. No glue is needed for this step. Bake the lid at 275 F degrees for 30 minutes.

13. Roll out a sheet of copper clay large enough to cover the base of the canister with the lid on. Glue this sheet around the container with the polybonder following the lid line drawn earlier (figure J). Trim the excess clay away from the bottom and blend the seam with your fingers.

14. Create a second single-edge template (figure K). Use this template to create patterned clay strips from black clay rolled through the fourth largest setting of the pasta machine. The width of these strips should be determined by your personal preference and height of the base. Wrap these strips around the bottom base and top edge, just under the lid, of the base (figure L). No glue is needed. Blend seams together with fingers.

15. Glue punched gold and black shapes along the exposed copper clay on the canister and black clay borders as desired. Press the shapes into the unbaked clay using the end of the needle tool handle (figure M).

16. Place the baked lid on the canister and re-bake with the base at 275 F degrees for 40 minutes.