I always get astonished by talented polymer clay artists of their skill on making miniature food charms or decorations. I adore them so much since it is not my expertise to get it done so perfectly and look so real. After reading this guest tutorial on Polymer Clay Heart-Cookie Charm, I think I can do it and I hope you can too!!!
** Warning!!! these cookies are not edible **
Today, I have Mo Tipton of The Mouse Market as our guest tutor to show us how to make these “delicious”polymer clay heart-cookie charm where you can turn them into jewelry like earrings and bracelet. This polymer clay heart-cookie charm is tiny, look at the bottom photo where Mo wears them on her wrist. I love the details Mo has put in, the cookie texture and also the colors. Isn’t it cute and yummy? Simply AMAZING!!!!
Do remember to hop over to The Mouse Market after this tutorial, Mo has some tutorials there to share. And, if you want to buy materials and supplies to make your own polymer clay crafts, or, buy the ready-made handmade as own collections or gifts, be sure to shop at Mo’s shop. Hold on your jaw and saliva while browsing through, don’t say that I didn’t tell you beforehand 😉
If you have any question, please contact Mo at her website, she will be very happy to hear from you 🙂
What’s Next
- Start making and share your completed handmade onFacebookand/orInstagram. Remember to tag us, @craftpassion, so that we are able to see them.
- Pin it toPinterestfor future To-Do List
- Share with your DIY groups for a diy-along event.
- Browse morefree craft tutorials to DIY, especially our clay crafts.
Polymer Clay Heart-Cookie Charms
by Mo Tipton
Materials
polymer clay in white, ecru/tan, and translucent
translucent liquid clay, such as Translucent Liquid Sculpey
heart-shaped cookie cutter or mold
artist chalk pastels in the colors of your choice
razor blade
paintbrush
needle tool or awl
wooden craft stick
small bowl
toothpicks
parchment paper
jewelry findings of choice (earring posts, chain, jump rings, etc.)
two-part epoxy (if you are gluing your cookies)
Instructions
egin by preparing your cookie colored clay. Mix equal parts white and ecru/tan clay, then add translucent clay in an amount that is equal to all of your white/ecru clay mixture. Knead thoroughly until you have an even, consistent mix.
To create the heart shapes, you have three options. If you have a flexible clay mold, press a small ball of your cookie clay into the mold and flex to release the clay.
You can also roll the clay out into a thin sheet roughly 1/16” thick and use a cookie cutter to cut out heart shapes.
Finally, you can cut a heart out of card stock and use this as a template to cut out clay hearts from your clay sheet with an X-Acto knife. Choose the method that works best for you, depending on which tools you have access to.
Once your clay hearts are cut out, press the backside of each one onto a piece of medium grade sandpaper to add texture.
Take artist chalk pastels in light and medium brown, and grate some of the pigment onto a piece of parchment paper or a small bowl using a razor blade. Keep your colors separate.
Dab a dry paintbrush in the light brown pigment and brush a thin layer onto your cookies. Follow with accents of medium brown, perhaps concentrating on the edges of the cookies, which, with real cookies, would become darker upon baking.
Decide how you will be using your hearts. If you plan to glue them to a jewelry finding, such as a post earring or a ring blank, you do not need to add a hole in this step. If you want to make dangly earrings or use the cookies as charms, perhaps on a bracelet or necklace, you will need to create a hole. Place your cookies on a thick piece of cardboard to protect your work surface, and using either a needle tool or an awl, punch a hole in each heart. Make sure that it is close enough to the edge that you will be able to insert and close a jump ring.
In a preheated oven, bake your cookies for ten minutes and let them cool completely. Use the baking temperature specified by the manufacturer; for most polymer clays, this is 275 F/130 C. The cookies should be baked on a metal or glass sheet lined with parchment paper or on a ceramic tile. (Baking directly on metal or glass will give the polymer clay an undesirable shiny finish.)
Prepare your icing by taking a small block of white clay and chopping it into smaller bits. Place the clay in a small bowl (do not use this bowl again for food; reserve it strictly for craft use) and add an equal amount of liquid clay. This ratio does not have to be exact, so you can simply eyeball the proportions.
Use a wooden craft stick to mash and smear the solid and liquid clays together. It will take a bit of work, but eventually, the mixture will resemble a thick cake frosting. If it is far too dry, add a bit more liquid clay and continue mixing.
You will tint your frosting with artist chalk pastels, grated just as you did in step 4. If you wish to mix up batches in different colors, separate your white frosting onto small squares of parchment paper so you can mix each colored batch individually. For each color, grate artist chalks pastel into the frosting and combine with a toothpick.
The texture of your frosting is important, and you want a nice, smooth mix for icing your cookies. In the photo below, notice how the frosting on the left is thick enough to hold peaks, while the frosting on the right is nice and smooth. Add additional liquid clay to your frosting until it matches the smoother frosting on the right.
Using a toothpick, dab a small dollop of icing in the center of a cookie and use the toothpick (or a needle tool) to carefully drag the icing to the edges of the cookie, filling in the heart. If you created a hole in step 6, take care not to fill it with icing. Place your cookie on the baking sheet when you’re done.
While the icing is still wet, you can add toppings, such a glitter or glass beads. I like to use glass microbeads, which can be found at many craft stores, like rainbow sprinkles. Whatever toppings you choose, just make sure that they are heat safe–no plastic beads should be used or they will melt.
Bake your cookies in a preheated oven for five minutes and let cool completely.
If you are gluing your cookies to jewelry findings, I recommend using a two-part epoxy. Roughen the surface of your metal jewelry finding and the surface of the clay with a piece of sandpaper before gluing to increase the strength of the bond.
For charms, use needle-nose pliers to open a jump ring, loop the ring through the hole in your cookie, and attach to a bracelet or necklace chain, or an ear wire before closing the jump ring to secure.
Enjoy making as many polymer clay heart-cookie charm as you want!
Guest tutor bio:
Mo Tipton is the miniaturist behind The Mouse Market, an online world of teeny tiny dollhouse snacks and yummy food jewelry. She draws on her background as a pastry chef and graphic designer to create her realistic food sculptures, and when she’s not busy in her studio, she’s usually spending way too much time on Pinterest, looking for inspiration for her dollhouse. Learn how to sculpt all kinds of miniature foods with simple tutorials.
