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Thanksgiving Napkin Rings
These
cute Thanksgiving napkin rings look like mini ears of
Indian corn, and are made very easily using a few shades of polymer
clay. They add a creative touch to the holiday table.
This project is easy enough for an older child to help you
construct them too! If you have never worked with polymer
clay before, be sure to check out the
Tips and Techniques page before
you begin.
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Things
Needed:
(Please visit my E-store for great prices and
selections on polymer clay!)
- Quarter size ball of brown
polymer clay
- Quarter size ball of yellow polymer
clay
- Quarter size ball of bronze (or deep
orange) polymer clay
- Polymer clay cutting blade
(or exacto
knife, or razor blade)
- Empty toilet paper roll
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1. Begin your Thanksgiving napkin rings by rolling
a rope of
brown clay, long enough to wrap around the empty toilet paper tube.
Overlap the ends slightly as shown.
2.
To make the ear of corn, roll a ball of yellow clay,
slightly smaller than the diameter of a quarter. Then, roll
this ball back and forth in your hands to flatten it into a cylinder.
Roll the one end with slightly more pressure to make it
slightly tapered at one end, like an ear of corn.

3.
Next, roll three thin snakes of the three colors of polymer
clay. Make them pretty thin, about 2 or 3 mm in diameter.
Then use your polymer clay blade to slice off small chunks of
clay. These will be the Indian corn kernels.

4. Start to apply the kernels to the ear of corn, in no
particular color order. Add a lot more yellow kernels than
the other two kernels. Keep sticking them on until the whole
ear is covered in clay kernels.

5. Lightly roll the ear of corn between the palms of your
hands, to softly flatten down some of the kernels and make them adhere
better.
6.
To make the corn husks, start with a ball of bronze and
brown clay. Flatten the ball between the palms of your hands,
then pinch together the top to make a flat tear drop shape.

7.
Gently wrap these husks around the ear of corn.
For mine, I used three husks, two bronze and one brown.
Then, attach your ear of corn to the napkin ring and bake
according to the manufacturer's instructions.
8.
When the piece has cooled off, gently slide the napkin ring
off of the toilet paper roll. You can spray the napkin ring
with clear varnish for extra shine, if you desire.
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