What Else To Do With Skinner Blends

  Tri-Color Blend, Ikat Canes, and Holographic Weave
     written by:  Valerie Hollis                                 Without Frames


Materials:
Approximately 6 oz. of polymer clay in 3 contrasting colors, work surface, pasta machine, tissue blade, acrylic brayer, ruler, needle tool, toothpick, sandpaper, soft cloth

What You Should Know...

Let's Begin!

Part I:  Making a Tri-Color Skinner Blend

Step 1
We're going to make a tri-color Skinner Blend.  The first thing you'll need to do is choose your colors.  I chose to make mine a Gray-White-Black blend and I'll accomplish that by mixing 1 part white, 1 part black, and 2 parts translucent to make Gray;  2 parts white and 2 parts translucent to make White; and 2 parts black and 2 parts translucent to make Black.  I chose to mix with translucent because it makes a good filler and adds a little more depth to the overall appearance of the finished design.  The idea, however, is to choose any three contrasting colors of your choice.



Step 2
Thoroughly condition and mix all colors.  Roll each sheet out on the thickest setting of the pasta machine (#1 on an Atlas).  The lightest color will go in the middle of the blend




Step 3
Place the black sheet on top of the gray sheet.






Step 4
Cut through the sheets to form 2 triangles.  Make the cut slightly inward from each corner, as shown in the next picture.






Step 5
Once you've made the cut, separate all 4 pieces of clay from each other.







Step 6
Stack the the black sheets together and the gray sheets together by lining up the cut edges.







Step 7
Place the black and gray stacks on top of the white sheet as shown.  Do this to determine where to make the cuts on the white sheet to form a triangle.







Step 8
Cut the white sheet along the lines of the black and gray stacks.








Step 9
After cutting the white sheet, remove the black and gray stacks .  The white sheet should look something like this.







Step 10
Stack the white pieces together, lining it up along the cuts.  You may have to do some trimming.  The idea is to have a white triangle stack that is 2 sheets thick.  Don't be overly concerned if it doesn't fit together perfectly or if you have some overlapping.





Step 11
Fit the three triangles together to form a rectangle. 







Step 12
Push them together so that the edges stick.  Smush and rub along the seams to accomplish this.  Here you can see the flip-side of the sheet.






Step 13
Trim the top and bottom edges, creating a straight edge to put through the pasta machine.  You may also need to trim the black and gray edges to fit the blend through the width of the pasta machine.







Step 14
Here's what we'll be working with.  Get ready to blend!







Step 15
Set your pasta machine to thickest setting (#1 on an Atlas).  Place one of the tri-color edges of your blend along the rollers and roll it through.






Step 16
After the first pass, fold the sheet in half and pass it through again in the same direction. 
(Note: If you place your blend through the pasta machine folded-edge-first, it will help to eliminate air pockets.  However, I always put my blends through opposite-end-first because I find I have more control over the blend, resulting in a neater, more usable piece.  I can then eliminate air pockets on the final sheet by rolling it through the pasta machine on a thinner setting.)






Step 17
Continue folding and passing, folding and passing...   This is what the blend will look like after approximately 3 passes...







Step 18
Here's the blend after approximately 12 passes.







Step 19
And here's the blend after approximately 18 passes.  The sheet will usually be fully blended in 15-25 passes.






Step 20
After 20 passes, the blend should look something like this...


 
What Else To Do With Skinner Blends
Part II:  Making the Plug

Step 21
Roll the blend through a medium setting on the pasta machine (#3 on an Atlas).





Step 22
Now it should look like this.


Step 23
Trim the edge.





Step 24
Trim the other edge.






Step 25
It should look like this.





Step 26
Starting at one of the tri-colored edges, begin rolling up the blend.






Step 27
Keep rolling, all the way to the other end. 




Step 28
Now you should have a log that looks like this.  Press and rub your fingers along the edge to smooth the seam. 







Step 29
Begin compressing the log by pushing one end downwards on your work surface.  Then flip it over and do the same thing on the other end. 






Step 30
Roll the log on your work surface, working inwards from the ends.
Use two hands to do this...you only see one of my hands in the picture at any given time because the other hand is holding the camera!  :)




Step 31
Continue rolling inwards, making the log shorter and fatter.  Also, put one hand on either end of the log and push inward, toward the center. 



Step 32
Continue to compress the log by rolling and pushing it inwards.  Sometimes, it will have a tendency to close in on itself (In this case, the gray and black would begin to spread out and meet in the middle over top of the white.  Just keep working the middle to keep it warm and moving.  Roll it on the work surface every once and while to even it out.  Sometimes, you have to pull outward on the ends then push inward in the middle, then go back and push inward on the ends again.  However, if it does happen, and it appears that you have "lost" your middle color, don't be too concerned because it is still technically "in there.")

Step 33
Continue compressing the log until it is about 1 1/2 inches long.






Step 34
Use your hands and your acrylic brayer to flatten the log into a patty.






Step 35
Continue flattening this patty until it is about 1/2 inch thick.







Step 36
Flatten one edge a little bit thinner - to about 1/4 inch - then trim that edge.








Step 37
Now the plug should look like this and it is ready to be put through the pasta machine.
 In the next part of the tutorial, we will be rolling this out into a very long ribbon...so it would be a good idea to clear a BIG space on your work surface before moving on to the next step.