Finished Bronze and Copper Clay Cane Beads

In this photo you can see me cutting my cane into beads. This cane was made with bronze and copper clay. I began with a copper snake in the center. Then I rolled out flat (3 cards thick) rectangles and wrapped it in bronze, copper, bronze, and ended with copper. To choose the size of the rectangles I eyeballed it and then cut strips to fix any mistakes; you can also stretch it a bit to make a bit too small piece work. I wet the out of my cane slightly with a paintbrush of tap water before applying each new layer to assure sintering.

Next I cut the cane, which I had gently shaped into a "rectangle" I cut it with the very thin blade I broke out of my husbands old razor (worked great!). I cut my beads a bit thick and then I smoosh them on the glass you see in the photo with my finger. To make rectangles I used another regular razor blade to accentuate the shape after I smooshed them (its all very scientific).

The above photo shows my  bone dry finished rectangular cane beads on the plate I took them to the kiln in. I fired them in a firing pan full of coconut shell carbon in my Paragon SC2 kiln (which I love).

Here are my round swirl cane beads. These are easier to make. Roll out two large rectangles (one of copper clay and one of bronze) at 3 cards thick, then take the card away from one side and gently thin your rectangles down at a gradual incline until it is as thin on one end as possible. Lightly wet one rectangle with a paintbrush and put the other exactly on top (it is nice if they are exactly the same size-but you can squish and add more as needed to make up for it). Then roll from the thin side and close with your top layer and a  bit more water. Your cane is ready to slice. See slicing directions above. These require less shaping as the cane is round and round is such a natural shape.

The two photos above are my finished work. I drilled the holes I wanted before I fired (easier!) and then I tumbled my finished beads. Some beads are put together with sterling silver rivets (I used my acetylene torch to melt the ends to create these. I got a lot of finished pieces out of the two 2-3 inch canes I made-this is a fun technique for making unique beads.