What To Do
Soften one triangle in the water, take care not to leave it too long, or get the water too hot or the plastic will be unmanageable.
Whilst the plastic is warming smear a tiny bit of oil on your finger tips to stop them sticking to the plastic
Remove the plastic from the water using the needle tool touched to the thick base of the triangle.
Quickly and carefully transfer the wide end of the triangle to the bamboo skewer and gently press it on to stop it from moving.
If you are right handed keep the skewer in your left hand and gently turn it whilst guiding the plastic with your left hand. Try not to pull and distort the plastic, but don’t dilly dally or it will go cold and hard before the bead is formed.
The bead should look like the drawing at the left.
Plunge the skewer and bead into cold water to harden and then remove promptly from the skewer (beads have a nasty habit of sticking permanently if you leave them on the skewer for hours!)
What You Will Need
Wet heat (see wet heat)
Bamboo skewers
Triangles of FP cut across the width of a stick, the base being about 1cm wide.
Cold water
Oil ( a tiny bit to keep things lubricated)
Needle tool
What To Do
Soften a 2cm wide strip in the water, take care not to leave it too long, or get the water too hot or the plastic will be unmanageable.
Whilst the plastic is warming smear a tiny bit of oil on your finger tips to stop them sticking to the plastic
Remove the plastic from the water using the needle tool touched to the narrow base of the strip.
Quickly and carefully transfer the narrow end of the rectangle to the bamboo skewer and gently press it on to stop it from moving.
If you are right handed keep the skewer in your left hand and gently turn it whilst guiding the plastic with your left hand. Try not to pull and distort the plastic, but don’t dilly dally or it will go cold and hard before the bead is formed.
When the bead is formed, lightly roll the bead on the skewer in you your hands to smooth it.
Texture the bead by using the needle tool to impress lines into the warmed plastic, or roll it gently onto a rubber stamp or textured surface. Don’t press too hard or the bead will distort.
Plunge the skewer and bead into cold water to harden and then remove promptly from the skewer (beads have a nasty habit of sticking permanently if you leave them on the skewer for hours!)
Variations
Add strips of FP to the edges of your rectangle for a smart finished look
Colour the edges of the triangle with a leafing pen before softening. This gives a simple neat finish to the bead.
Make up a much linger piece from lots of strips in different colours for a long thin bead which could be cut up into smaller beads
Wrap with wire, threads etc once the bead has been formed but still warm for an interesting textured effect
Roll the warm bead onto a rubber stamp for texture, then highlight the texture with little smear of Rub n Buff
Soften narrow strips of FP and wrap around the formed bead whilst it is still warm
Wrap with wire, threads etc once the bead is cold
Cut long narrow rectangles from the length of a stick of FP
Wrap the warm bead with net
Wrap the rectangle eccentrically to give an overlapping spiral effect
Look at paper bead techniques for other ideas.
Use very narrow strips and wind eccentrically for a spiral spring effect.
