Dem bones, dem bones, dem fish bones! Part 1

Mrs. B is extending the giveaway for the bat and pumpkin cupcake necklace I made giveaway until the 1st of November so if you still want a chance you can hop on over there and add your name to the bunch.

http://www.confessionsofapagansoccermom.com/2011/10/giveaway-from-marie-segals-art-from-my.html
You can see the necklace in the picture below the cat picture.

Thank you for your votes on the Fave Crafts Blog Hop. I did not win, but I feel great about bringing a ton of new people and unique votes to their web page and I could not have done it with out all of you. Blessings all over all of you.

Spooky fish skeleton that is not just for Halloween.
At least that is what I think anyway.
I love this cane.
I hope you have fun making it too.


You will need:
Black Cernit
Opaque White Cernit
Porcelain Cernit
Biscuit Cernit
Clay slicing blade
Clay machine
Ruler if you wish

I mixed the black clay with Biscuit and the white clay with porcelain in equal parts
Condition and roll out the black in to a sheet on the thickest setting in your clay machine.

I cut five sheets in black 2 1/8" by 1 1/2".














Roll the white clay out on the 3rd thickest setting.
We will cut down the white sheets to size but these are a great size to start with.

Cut out 5 sheets of the opaque white 2 1/8" by 1 1/2".  You can use a black sheet as a template.

Cut off 1/8" from each side of the long side of the white sheet.

Lay a black sheet down and place this white sheet in the very middle of it.

Take another sheet of black the same size as the ones above and rolled out on the 3rd thickest setting like the white sheets above and cut off 1/8" from the long side.

Place the black strips on the side of the white sheet on both sides.

It will be like there is a whole sheet that is 2 1/8" by 1 1/2".

Add one of the 5 black sheets that you cut in the beginning to the stack above.

It will look like this from the side.

Cut off a little strip that is a bit bigger than the first ones ( 1/4") you cut. Do this from both sides of the sheet.

Place in the middle of the sheet of black that you just placed on the stack.

Cut off strips the same size as the ones you just cut off of the white sheet out of the black clay rolled out on the third thickest setting.

It will look like this.

Add another one of the first black sheets that were cut.

Cut off a strip on each side of one of the white sheets that you cut before, these strips will be a little bit bigger than the last strips.

Add the white sheet that is left to the stack in the middle.
Add strips of black clay rolled out on the 3rd thickest setting to the sides of the white sheet.
Then add another one of the first black sheets that you cut in the beginning.

Cut a bigger strip from each side of the next sheet of white.

Add the white sheet to the stack in the middle of the stack.
Add black strips to the sides of the  white sheet.
Add one of the original cut sheets of black to the stack.

You can guess what happens with the next white sheet right? I knew you could.
Cut strips on both sides of the white strip that are bigger than the last strips and add that to the stack.
Add black strips to each side of the white sheet.

Stand the cane stack on the end like you see it and cut through the center of all of the sheets.

Here is another view.

Add a sheet of white to the center of the cut on one side. The sheet will be rolled out on the 3rd thickest setting.

Put the stack back together with the white sheet in the middle...











Stay tuned for part 2.

Black and White Canes #2 Atomic age influence part 3, Giveaway, and updates

Happy Saturday Sunday. I would have got this up on saturday, but I spent most of the day on the couch being a whiny waawaa. I got the cold. So I didn't get to go hang out with my friend Jodi and have so much fun making crazy stuff and staying up all hours of the night :-( So much for leaving town.

Since Madi has been on the planet I have gotten more colds than I have had in my entire life time.
It is a good thing I really like her ;-D

I am having a giveaway on Mary's Graces blog or I am the one giving the blog giveaway item this week. I am a member of the Mary's Graces Team on Etsy and it is a wonderful group of artists I am so proud to be a part of. Do not comment here, comment over there. Come join us!



And now on with the show...

You can find these Atomic age beauties on Etsy.

Set of 8, now that is really amazing. And the price... even more amazing.

Maplewood Bungalow on Etsy, great vintage finds

Continued from Part 1:

http://mariesegal.blogspot.com/2011/08/black-and-white-canes-2-atomic-age.html

and Part 2:
http://mariesegal.blogspot.com/2011/08/black-and-white-canes-2-atomic-age_09.html

You will need:
2 blocks of Opaque White Cernit
1 block of Black Cernit
Porcelain White Cernit big block
Clay machine
Clay Slicing blade
ruler

Links lead to my husband's store http://www.clayfactory.net/.
Thank you for looking or buying, we appreciate it very much. It helps us eat and pay the bills.


Mix the small blocks of Opaque white with equal amounts of the porcelain white.
Then mix the black block with an equal amount of the porcelain white. It will look slightly lighter, but bakes up a beautiful black color.

1. This is your 6 1/2". ;-D

2. Sliver off some of the clay from the lines if they have white over them from reducing the cane. Do not take off a lot.
Make sure lines are showing on this side of the cane.

3. Cut cane in half.

4. Here is what it should look like.
Anything close to this, you have done a good job, pat your self on the back. Pretend I did it.

5. Place on the sheet of black clay rolled out on the 5th thickest setting. Fan lines down.

6. (really about step 40 something) Trim away the black so you have a sheet of black the same size and your cane block.

7. There you go, now place the sheet on top of the other half of cane you have mirroring the top cane with the cut edges on the same end.

8. Press together gently. You could if you wished reduce this cane down here and make an awesome border out of this, can you see it?

9. Roll out a coil of white that is over 2 1/2" long and about 1/2" in diameter.

10. Place the white coil on the black sheet that is rolled out on the 5th thickest setting.
Trim the sheet so it is the same width as the coil is long.

11. Roll up in black sheet.
Roll over the edge of the beginning of the sheet over the other side of the sheet to make a mark. Roll back away from the mark.

12. Here you can see the mark I made with the edge of the clay.

13. Place the edge of the blade on the inside of the line mark you made or closest to the cane.
Tilt the blade towards the cane. Cut at this angle.

14. Roll up and press the edges together.
Smooth gently.

15. Roll the coil down and extend the length.
Roll down to about 1/4" in diameter.

16. It will look like this.

17. Cut 4 pieces the length of your cane block.

Continued in part 4...

African Trade beads-part 12 Shinning Star part c

This is the 3rd installment of the shinning star cane.
You can find part a here
http://mariesegal.blogspot.com/2011/05/african-trade-beads-part-12-shinning.html

You can find part b here
http://mariesegal.blogspot.com/2011/05/african-trade-beads-part-12-shinning_18.html


You will need:


Clay Machine
Clay slicing blade-SB
Red Cernit
Yellow Cernit
Blue Cernit
Opaque White Cernit
Green Cernit
Porcelain White Cernit
Ruler if you need it
Middle cutter in the Makin's clay Star set M36006
Knitting needle 3 to 4mm

All links above lead to my husband's on-line store the www.clayfactory.net
Thank you so much for looking.



This is the picture and the instructions from the last part b http://mariesegal.blogspot.com/2011/05/african-trade-beads-part-12-shinning_18.html

Trim off the excess, if there is any.

Take the conditioned blue clay and roll it out in your clay machine on the thickest setting.
Trim the leading edge of the sheet for a straight edge. Lie the cane on top of that edge.
Trim the side to match the size of the cane length.

Roll up the cane in the sheet and then roll the leading edge over on top of the sheet on the other side of the cane and gently make a mark on that sheet.
Cut with the clay slicing blade just inside of the mark that you have made. Roll the cane up in that sheet. the edges should meet up.
You do not have to smooth and mess with the seam more than pressing the edges together.

Roll out some of the conditioned yellow and fold the sheet in half to double the thickness.

Do the same thing with some of the conditioned red clay.

Cut the yellow sheet to the width of the cane center and then use the yellow sheet to measure the red one.

I added more of the porcelain to the green here. I used the same mixed that I used in this cane here
http://mariesegal.blogspot.com/2011/04/african-trade-beads-part-11.html

Double the green clay as you did with the red and the yellow and then cut to the same size as the yellow and red sheets.

Trim the end to the other sheets.

Trim the sides to match those edges.

The piece that you see trimmed off is the folds of all the sheets. I did this so I have a straight edge.

I then made my first cut which is about 3/16" in thickness.
Cut down and drag the blade forward with the clay piece against the blade and on it.

Use the slice to measure the width of the next slice and then drag the blade forward again and stick the next slice to it. Measure and cut again. Do this for about four slices or more if you can
;-O
It is not required though, you can add one section at a time. ;-D

Lay the slices in the repeating pattern against the cane center. Wrap around cane.

If this is what you end up with match the bottom edges of the slices together and then...

Turn the cane on its side and press the two matching slices in to place.

Press a little waist in to the cane by squeezing with the your thumb and forefinger and then turn a little and squeezing again.

Turn the cane and press moving upward in a circle a little press at a time.
See the center of the end of the cane moving out, this is right.

You can squeeze like this too, turning and squeezing to the end of the cane.

Turn the cane over and start in the middle again and work your way out to the other end of the cane.

When you have reduced it this way to half of the diameter it was, roll on the surface of the table of work surface.
If the cane looks rough on the outside like this you have probably done a good job and the inside will be nice and straight.
When you roll the cane you will start in the center of the coil and roll with both hands all the way to the tip of your fingers and then all of the way back past the palm of your hand in one smooth move while moving your hands away from each other.
Remember to move slowly and to make sure the cane rotates over 180 degrees when you roll. Do not make short movements it will not make a smooth coil, it will put in little dents from your fingers. The movement is smooth and fluid.

Roll down to about 3/4" and roll the blade and the cane forward at the same time to cut in the center.
You can refer back to the other canes in this series to see how that is and the description that comes with them.

Tah Dah!!! Stars.