by Danelle Karth

Created on: August 19, 2010   Last Updated: May 16, 2012

Polymer clay is a great tool for making beautiful jewelry. Pendents, beads, and other elements can be made from this beautiful material. What's even better is that it doesn't take a miracle and it isn't a hard craft to get into. You can be making beautiful marble clay beads whether you are new to clay or are experienced in working with it.

Choose your clay.

There are several brands of clay that you can choose from. Each one has its own unique properties and you will want to pick based on those properties. Often trial and error of different brands will give you the best results because you will be able to find one that works well for you. You can also blend more than one type of clay together to get different results. Have fun trying different types of clay to meet your tastes and needs.

Choose your colors.

There are several options for colors when you are making marble patterned beads. You can choose contrasting colors such as black and white or you can choose complimentary colors such as two shades of green. It is a good idea that you avoid mixing colors of great contrast because you could end up with undesirable colors. For example mixing a green with a purple often produces a brown and getting it marbled without a great deal of brown color can be frustrating. On the other hand, when you are bold and willing to try new things you are likely ot come up with some amazing things that turn out better than you ever imagined.

You can also choose to blend a small amount of translucent clay into the colored clay for interesting effects. By choosing two colors you will have an easy blend, but three or more colors can be fun as well. Consider color combinations such as green and white, purple and lavender, brown with tan and translucent, or other colors to mimic gemstones.

Blending.

To make a marble pattern you need to blend the colors together. However, there is a fine line in blending for a marble effect and taking it too far and creating a new color. There are several different ways that you can blend to get a great marble pattern. Here are some techniques that are used. By trying different techniques you can get different marbled patterns. Figure out the ways that you enjoy it best.

Mixing.

One way is to roll your main color out into a snake or tube. You will then want to put small amounts of your other color(s) onto that snake. You should then roll the snake up and begin to fold the colors together. Go slowly and pay close attention so that you can stop when you

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