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Now you may begin placing your petals around the center. If they do not fit quite right, don't worry.
Just go back and reduce your center portion. If the center portion is too small, just reduce
your petals. A little at a time.
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As you can see I changed my mind on the center. It stuck out too much. The smaller your internal
design, the less noticeable it will be. Not shown here- I wrapped a thin sheet of lavender around
my center to tie it in with the petals.
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Roll a sheet of black or a very dark version of a color you are using. I choose dark purple.
Roll out on a thin setting. I used a #5 setting on my Atlas pasta machine. Cut it to the width of your
cane. Wrap around the outside of your petal and trim edges.
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Here is the flower cane almost finished! Look it over. If you want to make any changes,
now is the time. If the center portion looks like it is over taking the flower, reduce it down
and use less petals. You can always make another flower with them later. Or maybe you decided
you don't want a flower at all. Make a five pointed star! There's about a million ways to put
this cane together. Just use your imagination. |
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Begin adding your background. I used a shaded yellow and white cane for mine. Use whatever you
like. Pinch triangle shapes and press between your petals. Make sure that the background extends
slightly beyond the petals. Otherwise you will end up with flat tipped petals. There's a fine
line between too much background and not enough. Be careful. :)
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Now comes the fun part! Reducing! Lay your cane out horizontal. Begin pressing on it.
Roll a slight turn. Press.
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Turn, press. I am not pressing as I roll. This will result in air
distortion within the cane. You simply want to turn and then press. If you notice your cane begin
to get square, roll it slightly to re-shape.
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Here is the completed cane! Hope you like it! Or at least had fun doing it. Cane work is a
lot of trial and error. When starting out, use colors that will blend together nicely if it doesn't
work out the way you like. For instance red & purple or green & blue. That way you don't end
up with more brown clay then you want!
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Now, what would you like to do? Make some beads? Roll out a sheet of your background
cane color. I use the thickest setting as a standard. cut out shapes all the same size for
uniform beads. Roll them into balls.
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Cut slices from your cane to fit the ball's six sides. You can also do two slices, three, four or
five depending on the look you want.
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Press the slices on. Roll your bead ball with your palm against a smooth hard
surface. I use a ceramic tile. When your bead looks smooth and all seams are gone, roll it
again between your two hands until it is nice and round. Pierce the bead with a needle tool.
Now it probably looks like a doughnut. If you like this shape, stop. If you want your beads
round, roll your bead between your palms again gently. You may need to re-drill your bead after it's cured.
My flower beads! |
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