Ever find yourself with in the middle of a metal clay project and couldn't locate the punch or clay cutter in the right size or shape? I've been experimenting with "granulation" or "pebbling" in metal clay lately, and the one thing that became apparent was the need to come up with some punches/cutters in unique shapes and sizes. As you can see in the piece "Sophia," that along with the circular granulation, there is also a tear drop shape.
This tear drop is much smaller then the same shape cutter you can buy commercially, so where did I get these tiny punches? You may be surprised how easy it is to make these little guys for yourself, in a variety of shapes that you can use on wet and dry clay. There just something incredibly gratifying about making your own tools, especially if it's not a difficult process!Friday, April 6, 2012
Bench Tips: Make Your Own Metal Clay Punches! (4PAM_12)
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i have different shapes of brass tubing but i never thought of using it for this; thank you Wanaree!
ReplyDeleteYou're welome Kim! :D
DeleteGreat and wonderfully informative, Wanaree! This is similar to what I used to make the little granules for the Nicaea Series...a very, very thin silver tube that I made myself because I could not find the gauge I needed in the stores in Greece. Love your posts!
ReplyDeleteGreat minds, my friend, great minds ;)
DeleteI got a ton of circle cutters from this very grab bag. I guess I was unlucky because there were very few squares and I want more of em! Great idea with grinding them down to thin them. The one square I have is too heavy walled to work. Now I can make it usable!
ReplyDeleteIt is a crap shoot with those grab bags. I bought one that had mostly large tubes, this last one had all kinds of tiny tubes and four little squares, I was happy!
DeleteI just made my first little brass punch for hammer setting last week- now I can't wait to try this tubing for punches- great idea!
ReplyDeleteOh cool! Making your own tools is so empowering, although, it's much easier to make them for metal clay then it is for metal smithing ;)
DeleteWanaree, this is extremely cool! I've acquired several different tutorials for making your own cutters (out of soda cans, copper strips or aluminum strips), but I've never seen one for small tube punches before. Thanks so much for sharing! {{{}}}
ReplyDeleteMy pleasure Margaret!! :D
DeleteGreat idea...but I want more information!!!!!
ReplyDeleteHey Susan, did you click on the page to take you to the full PDF? There's a hyperlink embedded in the PDF that links back to a video that shows a little more about the granulation process I used to make pieces like the one pictured. Let me know if you have any question :)
Deletebrilliant!
ReplyDeleteThanks Lynn!!
Delete