Charms revisited

Remember a few weeks ago I mentioned that I was making little charms? I made over 100 of them; cupcakes, donuts, bears, bunnies, etc.

They turned out really cute until I did the finished work. What a fiasco!

If I wasn't such a mild mannered gal, I would have been pulling my hair out.

Here's what happened.

I know that polymer clay is durable, but I was concerned with the findings staying in the charm. Charm bracelets take a beating, so I wanted my charms to last for years.

After they were baked and cooled, I attached a split ring, applied super glue to the finding, and dipped them in acrylic to give them a nice shine. I had a laundry rack set up so I could hang the charms. I would dip them, attach them to a piece of wire, hang them on the rack, and go on to the next charm. I had about 50 finished when all of a sudden, the rack tumbled over, hitting me in the head. Charms went flying everywhere; I even had some hanging in my hair. There was acrylic finish all over me and the floor.

Disgusted, I cleaned up and went to bed. The next day I discovered that the super glue (gel) had dried white and crusty. The charms looked horrible and were ruined. I now have a box of about 60 charms that I can't sell. I have been using them in my child care program as incentives, the kids can't really tell the difference.

I thought I had done a lot of research on how to make these charms, but I guess I missed something. I do know that some people push a headpin up through the charm, then form a loop to attach the split ring. I wished I would have done that.

So, my little venture in charm making didn't work out so well. Maybe I'll do some more investigating. Any advice? Feel free to leave a comment on how I can make charms that are durable, long lasting and look nice.

For now, I'll keep working on my ornaments.

Charming!

Here are some better pictures of the little charms I have been making.




This is a chocolate bon bon.

Dime shows the size. I have some smaller too.

Yum! Bagels and Cream Cheese!





Do you need some ketchup with your hot dog?




How about a donut for dessert?

These still need the charm ring added on, (which I plan on doing this week.) I made about 65 charms in the last week. These are just a few of the charms.

There are a lot of steps to the process. Form the clay, put an eye pin in it, bake it, shine it, add paint and details, glue the eye pin for extra strength, then add the charm ring.

But, I had a lot of fun doing these. I have a lot more ideas!