Aw thanks! ❤️

Brilliant! Yay! xx

Make one!! LOL

Unruly Housewife Ma'am, yes ma'am! 😜

Yeah, I am certainly going to think about that. xx

In the UK they are on offer at the moment in Asda £1 for 8... Walmart own Asda, so if you're American you could look there?

I will have to think of some ideas...Thanks! xx

polishing with men's underpants lol

Hahaha! It got demonetised by YT for a while - maybe that was why!

Haha, this is "secret" information now? It might be a little late for that 😂. Glad to be of help. xx

I will remember that! Thank you! xx

Thank you for replying that means so much. Have a good day I love your work. XO❤XO💘XO❤

Thank you!

Left handed people are always awesome! xx

Unruly Housewife yes they are 😊

Oh sure, people use clay in sheet form. I prefer doing it this way (I'm a bit mad) but it's worth experimenting. I've seen some really pretty marbled ones...or Mokume Gane would be good, as it isn't a regular pattern. xx

Thank you! And that's an intriguing idea...

I buy almost everything from Amazon. :D xx

You can use the clay direct onto the unassembled tubes and bake it. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/hsCBbJR8z5-1XYE.html

Go to Penn State Industries. They have the blanks and the mandrel for the lathe.

I have a few pens I covered years ago and they seem fine. I do my best to make things well but I do also feel that sometimes we hold ourselves to a standard much higher than normal. It's nice to make things that last but they shouldn't have to be immortal 😉. Sorry, it's a subject I have been thinking about, because I suffer from anxiety and it can be creatively paralysing, if we try to turn everything we make into an heirloom. Anyway... The bottom line is they are holding up well. 😊

@@UnrulyHousewife Good to know! 🙂

I was sure I had replied to this already! Sorry! It's called a "tissue blade". You can find them on Amazon. 😁

I really don't know, sorry. Maybe ask in some FB claying groups? xx

Sure. The pen you used seemed to work well.

I'm glad it worked ☺️ I haven't made a top but I have seen people make a little base, with a hole for the pen so it can be put on a desk like an, er, pen holder thingy.

Lol! If you figure that out, you should patent it!😂😂 Thanks again. I look forward to watching more of your videos.

Lee Brown I might prep the different sizes in advance, so that I could join them together as I went but yes, that idea of different sizes does work. I've done it with flower canes and it would also look great in this context, as it would add variety.

Nope. The ones I used in the video are fine but I do recommend using an oven thermometer and also pre-heating the oven (as some have temperature spikes as they heat up).

Sorry I have taken so long to answer! Yes, you can use it without sanding, but I find the colours can look a bit muddy and the pattern blurry after all of the handling to make the pen. Sanding gets rid of that and underneath there should be a nice bright and crisp pattern. If you can't afford, or don't want to buy, sandpaper perhaps you could rub it lightly all over with an emery board? It does need to be damp on the surface though, because of dust. Then polish with old denim, or some sort of fabric. It really gives your creation a lift.

@@UnrulyHousewife thanks for the tip and for replying 👍 😀

Should be ok but choose one that you can keep for your clay. Polymer clay is fine in a domestic oven but I don't share utensils, or surfaces that food is prepared on, with my polymer clay. Plasticisers, that keep clay workable, are really hard to clean off stuff.

Aw sorry to hear that! Are they the exact same pens? The more brittle transparent type don't work.

Hi, Thank you for replying 😀 I bought bic disposable pen's. Are they ok? What temperature should I have my oven?

Bic Round Stic pens, which are grey and not transparent, are the only kind I have used. I know that the transparent ones melt. I think I describe the pens and the temperature in the video? Normal polymer clay temperature should be ok but do take the ink out lol. Hopefully the info will be in the video - I haven't made this style of pen for a few years. Good luck!

Hey Susan - if I understand you correctly, you're getting that "muddy" look, on the surface. I get the same but, after I bake my pieces, I use some fine grades of sandpaper (500, 800, 1000) to gently smooth them out and to reveal the sharper pattern underneath.

@@UnrulyHousewife Thanks, I will try sanding.

You can and some people might find it easier but I do like doing it this way as there is no seam to contend with, no bubbles and the result looks pleasing.

very true :)

Yes, as long as you use the type I am showing you here. It's probably best to watch the whole video, because that way you can hear my advice - I share a lot of information that may be useful for other projects too.

Aw...time to shop! :D

To answer both questions - the blade is a "tissue blade" (originally invented to cut thin slices of biological tissue, to look at under a microscope). The acrylic block is one normally used to temporarily hold rubber stamps, whilst stamping. Both are available on Amazon etc.

No, it's basically PVC, so pretty much anything you could "seal" it with would be less durable than the plain pen. Give it a good buff though, it makes it feel nicer.

Thanks..I thought it could make it sticky..love your tuts keep them going..merry Christmas…

Sure, just carefully remove the centre from an undecorated pen and push it into the decorated one.

@@UnrulyHousewife I mean like there is already a decorate one but the refill is over .in that only can we put the refill .I really wanted to know .i...am broke actually 😂

Not with these pens, at clay baking temperatures. The clear more brittle ones do. xx

So if I used the clear pen it was wrong one?

Yes, sadly you need to use the exact pen I recommend in the video. Sorry you lost your hard work!

Yep, take the middle out of a new pen and refill the decorated one.

You mean slip out the brass nib and the plastic tube that holds the ink? And the new one stays in? I've only had disaster with messing with pen inside parts, but I'm game. :)

I think about 1mm (it's been a while lol) ... Thin is good though, or it can end up more bulky and distorted. It's a really good idea to roll out some clay, or scrap clay, and experiment with applying it. You don't have to bake it, just have a play around before taking it off and making the real one. 😉