Silver Clay and Fused Dichroic Glass -
A Match Made in Heaven

Background Information:

I love the shimmer & sparkle of fused dichroic glass. I also love the cool sheen of pure silver. When the two are combined, it's truly a match made in heaven. The color and sparkle of the glass adds dramatic impact to the silver. The silver provides a beautiful background for the vibrant glass. With metal clay, it is super easy to create fabulous, one of a kind pieces that are eye-catching and beautiful. My intention in writing this guide is to provide guidance for those of you who might want to delve into the world of metal clay and glass.

There are two types of Silver Clay, Art Clay Silver, which is the brand I use, and Precious Metal Clay, or PMC. Both of them are manufactured in Japan and both of them are excellent products.

Basically, microscopic particles of silver are embedded in an organic binder which forms a putty like clay that can be rolled, stamped, molded, sculpted, carved, brushed, etc. After drying, the clay is fired with a torch, in a kiln, or on a gas stove. The organic binders burn away, and you are left with pure silver. After firing the piece needs to be wire brushed, burnished or polished in a tumbler to bring out the true beauty of the silver. 

I work exclusively with Art Clay Silver 650/1200 lowfire slowdry clay. I like it the best because the slower drying time allows for more creative freedom, and the low firing temperature is best for combining the clay with glass or stones.

First of all, to incorporate glass into your metal clay work, you do need to fire in a kiln. Glass is very durable if it is heated and cooled in a controlled manner, but is fragile and will crack from stress if it is not annealed properly or is heated unevenly. I like to use a kiln with a digital readout, though you can work with a pyrometer instead. I use a small kiln for both my fusing and metal clay. It cost me about $500 and was well worth the investment. It runs on regular electricity. If you are serious about making jewelry with silver clay, and want to work with stones and fused glass, it is a great thing to have. Alternatively, there may be craft centers in your area where you can have your pieces fired for you. I have a studio here where I teach glass fusing and metal clay and I provide firing services to my students and customers for a small fee, so there is likely someone near you who would be willing to do the same if you are not yet ready to invest in a kiln. You can check out bead shops, art studios and craft centers, and maybe even some schools.

There are some wonderful ebay guides already written about the basics of working with silver clay, so I refer you to those for background information. Creating with Precious Metal Clay is a good beginning one.

Materials:

       Silver Clay of Choice, (best to use either Art Clay Silver 650 slow dry or PMC3)
       Fused Glass Cabochon of Choice - If you do not fuse glass yourself, you can purchase
                cabochons at my Ebay store -   Metal Clay Magic where I have both Art Clay Silver,
                a variety of  fused glass cabochons and other items for sale.
       Olive Oil, to lubricate hands and tools
       PVC Pipe to use as a rolling pin for the clay
       Teflon Sheet, Waxed Paper, or other surface to work on that will release the clay easily
       Rubber Stamp, texture plate or other means of applying texture to the clay
       Vegetable oil spray for spraying molds or stamps prior to impressing the clay
       Cutting tool, exacto, needle tool, or other tool to cut the clay
       Slip or Syringe of Silver Clay, Slip is a paste of silver clay and water. Syringes filled with
                slip are very handy to have and are also available for sale at my store, Metal Clay Magic
                but you can easily mix slip by putting clay scraps in a film canister or small jar with a
                little bit of water (distilled is best, but you can use tap) and mixing them together.
       Brushes, Carving tools, & whatever else you would like to use to impress, shape or carve
                  the clay.

Directions:

Begin by having a design in mind. The image above is oriental in flavor and very rectangular, but you could do something really organic as in the following example.

You can do pendants, rings, pins, bracelets, anything you want.

Once you have an idea, oil your hands and the roller. Begin by pinching off a suitable size piece of clay. You want to have a strong enough base for the glass to be supported, without wasting clay. Using cards as guides, roll out your clay to an even thickness. If you are using thick cards, one card thickness is fine. If you are using thin cards, use two card thickness. You can then impress it with texture by spraying a rubber stamp or other texture item with the vegetable spray and then pressing into the clay. I like to place the stamp or texture plate on the clay and then roll over the stamp with my roller to get an even & deep impression. Alternatively, I will put the clay onto the stamp or texture plate and roll the clay onto the stamp. This works best if it is a shallow, intricate design.

Decide where you want to place your glass piece on the object before you cut out your design to make sure there is enough room to support it and for the piece to have good proportions. Then use your exacto, blade or other cutting tool to cut out the shape of the piece. Roll up your scraps and put them back in the original packaging with a wet piece of paper towel to keep the clay workable.

Next, press down on your glass piece to make an impression of its shape. Remove it and use your cutting tool to cut out the clay where the glass will be going. Cut just inside the impression of the glass so there is some clay for the glass to grab onto. This saves on clay and also gives the glass a stronger "seat" in your piece. Put the clay you cut out in with your scraps, or use it to make a bail or decorative elements for your piece.

Place the glass back on the piece and press it down. Now you want to create a bezel, either by creating a thin coil of clay, or squeezing an outline of slip around the glass.       

   If you are using a syringe, you can squeeze out a line of slip at the very base of the glass, making sure it adheres to the background piece of clay as in this image. If you don't have a syringe, no problem. make a thin coil of clay, brush some slip on your background piece, and adhere the coil to the background around the base of your glass.

Once your glass is adhered, you can decorate your piece by adding balls, coils, or pieces of clay, carving into the clay, squeezing syringe clay, whatever your heart desires.

If you are making a pendant, you need to consider how you will hang it. You can either put a hole at the top, or create a bail with clay.

Once your design is complete, let it dry thoroughly, do any sanding or smoothing you feel necessary, and then fire it. 

I fire to 1250 degrees farenheit, then turn off the kiln and let it cool slowly to allow the glass to anneal. I usually let the kiln cool overnight and open it in the morning. 

To finish the piece, I wire brush it, being careful around the glass, and then tumble or burnish the silver. The tumbler does not harm the glass.

I hope this guide helps you to explore the creative and wonderful worlds of both metal clay and dichroic glass. Remember to have fun and enjoy the process.

If you have any questions, you can feel free to contact me. You can find all the materials you need to complete this and other metal clay projects at my store: Metal Clay Magic