Tutorials 3

Canes

If it's a great cane, you didn't make it big enough.

updated 02/07/07

 Plant Related

13 Pound Cane!
Sarajane (and Bruce) Helm's
Saga of the monster cane
SJPolyclay

Aunt Betty's Pansy Cane

Marla Frankenberg

Candy's Citrus Cane
PCC

Cobalt Blue Balloon Flower Cane
Darlene Kulczycki
PcPolyzine
DawnDazees
Dawn Naylor
PCC
Enamel Ware w/ Apple Cane
Marie Segal
Polyform

Flower Cane

Simply Darling

Flower Canes
syndee holt
Polyform

Hydrangea Cane
Dawn Naylor &
Sunni Bergeron
PCC
Hydrangea Cane Variations
Dawn Naylor
PcPolyzine

Jelly Roll/Flower Cane
Beadunique

Leaf Cane
Leigh Ross
PCC

Millefiore Flower
Cindy's Art & Soul
Millefiore with a Story
Maureen Carlson
DIY

Monica's Rose, Updated
Monica Resta

Peony Cane

C.A. Therien

Polymer Pansies
Donna Kato
HGTV

Ripple Leaf Cane
Pinchy

Sandie's Flower Cane

beadyeyedbrat

Sandie's Leaf Cane

beadyeyedbrat
Simple Flower Cane
Mia Rox
PCC

Spotted Langloisia Cane
Desiree McCrorey
Furry Fimo

Translucent Flower Cane
Zuda Gay Pease

Translucent Flower Cane
Utah Polymer
Clay Guild
Truleigh Rose
Leigh Ross
PCC

 Faces

Cartoon Kids Face Cane
Julie Wise
Polyform
Eye Cane
(Cane Oeil)
Christine Alibert
Face Cane
Donna Kato
DIY

Face Cane

Susan Berkowitz

Simply Darling
 

Face Cane
Barbara McGuire
Carol Duvall Show
HGTV

Face Cane Cheeks and Nose
Face Cane Eyes

Face Cane Lips

Face Cane Packing
Face Cane Variations
Kim Kennedy
PcPolyzine

 

Face Cane
Jan Ruhnow
Mica Shift and Skin Colors
Dianne Cook
PcPolyzine
Witch Face Cane
Julie Wise
Polyform

 Inspiration

Critters

Butterfly Wings
Alan Vernall
PcPolyzine
Candy's Cat Cane
Candice Mathewson
PCC
Donna Kato's Feather Cane
PCC

Colorful Butterfly
Pinchy
 

Fish Cane

Kim Korringa

Frog Cane

Cindy Pack

Funky Fish Cane

Carolyn

Gertsch Feather Cane
Jean Sheppard

"Old Cane" Feather Cane
Jean Sheppard
PcPolyzine
 

Peacock Feather Cane
Jean Sheppard
PcPolyzine
Scorpion
Pinchy

Zuni Bear Cane

Kathi Gose

Dragonsglass

 Holiday

(also see Holiday Tutorials)

Angel Wing Cane
Linda Hess
Polyform
Candy Cane Canes
Polymer Clay Central

Patchwork Angel Cane
Kim Kennedy

Simple Valentine Cane
Arlene Thayer
Polymer Clay Central

Star of David
Lanin Thomasma
PCC
Valentine Heart Cane
Candice Mathewson
PCC

 Various Canes

Amish Quilt Cane
Kim Kennedy
PCC
Another Shell Cane
Pinchy
Apple Cane
Darlene Kulczycki
PCC
Apple Cane
Marie Segal
Polyform

Basic Spliced Cane
Anna T. Hill &
Sunni Bergeron
PCC

Bargello

Kathi Gose

PCC
Basketweave Cane
Mia Rox
Clayfulmingles
Braided Rainbow Cane
Desiree McCrorey

Brain Cane

Kathi Gose

PCC
Bullseye Lace Cane
Desiree McCrorey
Candy Garland
Maureen Carlson
HGTV
Chevron Stripes Cane
Sunni Bergeron
PCC
Confetti Cane
Donna Concha and Sunni Bergeron
PCC
Crazy Quilt
Pinchy
Curved Illusion Cane
Robert Wiley
PcPolyzine 

Down By The Sea

Heather Powers

Humble Beads
Faux Enamel Ware with Apple Cane
Marie Segal
Polyform

 

Folded Cane
Arlene Thayer
PCC
Geometric Canes
Martha Aleo
PcPolyzine Gingham Cane

Simply Darling
Ikat Cane
Mia Rox
PCC

Kaleidoscope cane
Kris Richards
PCC

Keepsake Party Favors

Lisa Clarke

Polka Dot Creations
Lace Cane
Leigh Ross
PCC

Latin Squares Quilt Cane

Alan Vernall

Polka Dot Creations
Mica  Shift Jelly Roll
Ginny Newman
PcPolyzine
Millefiore Cane
Affinity Clay

Mirror Image Cane
Darlene Clark
PcPolyzine
Monet Cane
Mia Rox
PcPolyzine
Monet Cane Revisited
Mia Rox
PcPolyzine
Mosaic Cane
Elissa Powell
PcPolyzine
Name Came
Byrd Tetzlaff
PCC

Ohio Star Quilt

Jennifer Patterson

Quilted in Clay
Plaid Cane
Mia Rox
PCC

Polka Dot Cane

Simply Darling

Quilt Cane
Jennifer Patterson
Quilted in Clay

Rainbow Quilt
Mia Rox
PCC

School Spirit Cane

Lisa Clarke

Shell Cane
Pinchy
Shelley's Lace Cane
Shelley McLoughlin
PCC

Simple Striped Cane
Mia Rox
PCC

Six-Sided Quilt Cane

Simply Darling

Snowflake Cane
Kim Kennedy
beadyeyedbrat.com

Spliced Jelly Roll Cane
Anna T. Hill &
Sunni Bergeron
PCC

Stained Glass Cane

Simply Darling
Strawberry Cane
Pinchy
Surprise Canes
Jenny Dowde
PcPolyzine
Swirly Brick Cane
Mia Rox
PcPolyzine
Tsnunami Cane
Elissa Powell
PcPolyzine
Ugly Duckling Cane

Jeannie Havel

PcPolyzine

Weave Cane

Lisa Clarke

Polka Dot Creations

Wrapped Cane

Modelene

Zipper Cane

Iris Mishly

PCC

 Cane Technique

Rick Rack
Nora Jean Gatine
PcPolyzine

(see also Covering Things)

Dora's Cane Blog

Clay Gun Quilt Cane Pt 1

Clay Gun Quilt Cane Pt 2

Clay Gun Quilt Cane Pt 3

Clay Gun Quilt Cane Pt 4 

 Hints

Cane Tips
Polymer Clay Central

Mapping Canes

Elaine Robitaille

Tooaquarius
Rebecca's hints for canes

Squiggy's Cane Reducing
with glass end caps

CANE REDUCING TIPS
Laurie
Aka turkeymama
Utah Polymer Clay Guild
To find excellent lessons on video,
1. FIMO Classic and the old FIMO will give you less distortion. If you are using the softer clays, especially Sculpey, you'll have more distortion. Keep the soft clays cold before reducing. Alot of people put them in the fridge.
This will greatly cut down on the distortion and take the reduction slower with a softer clay. If it starts to move easily, SLOW DOWN! *G*

2. Distortion can also be caused by not putting into the "negative" spaces (those places that just need to be filled up so there are not any holes) the same shape of clay (could be triangular, could be round...could be totally a strange shape) that it is in the shape of...so then distortion happens because the clay moves into the spots and it may not be planned that way.

3. Or you are not filling in the negative space at all. Such as on a flower...to get round petals, you have to fill them (at the outer edges) with triangles...or you'll have a 6 sided flower petal and not rounded. Of course...it's another matter with other petal shapes...but most of them still use some shape of triangle.

4. When reducing, some people do not squeeze the ends down...or they roll them
down with the palm of their hands ...I pinch from the middle out to the ends-WITH MY FINGERS (I DO NOT ROLL) - and gently reduce to the ends, making sure
the log or square stays uniform. I WILL roll it to even it up, but I can feel things better this way and I have very little garbage clay. 

I do NOT reduce ALL of the cane - I reduce all of it to a certain stage...then cut it in half. I work down 1/2 of the cane to another smaller size - cut it in half and reduce one half of this reduced cane. At this point, you'll have one large portion, one the next portion and another one to reduce down...and repeat.

I continue reducing each 1/2 portion, cutting each reduced portion in 1/2 and reducing only half of it until I get to the smallest I want. I may have as many as 5 or six sizes of the same cane. I do not reduce all and I DO keep things for years and when I need to reduce a 6 year old cane...I need to warm it up...and reducing warms, so I don't have the battle of working with old canes.

Plus, I have several of the same cane in different sizes.

Pictured on the face cane tutorial is a reduction and it looks like they reduced the whole cane...so that's why I said this.

Also, when SOME people reduce, they find that they have alot of distorted ends
(inevitable...) and if they put an endcap of an ice cream carton (just something flat that will "suction" to the clay) on each end, they feel  that they have less distortion, hence less "garbage" clay.

*Also check out the UPCG's hints on making Landscape Canes

Inspiration:
Cindy's Art & Soul (pages of 'em!)

Cane by

C. A. Therien