Polymer Clay Craft Ideas - Pens

Pens are ubiquitous. We use them every day, throughout the day. Some are attractive, but I think it's safe to say that most are just plain useful plastic. Well, why not dress them up a little - with some polymer clay?

Covering pens with polymer clay isn't hard to do if you start with the basic types. After you've mastered those you can move on to the more complicated two-part kinds with clips. Here are basic directions for covering simple one-piece pens.

What kind of pens to use?
The only requirement here is that the pens must be able to withstand the oven temperatures used to cure the clay - usually 275 to 300 degrees (depending on the brand of clay used). You may be thinking that inexpensive plastic pens won't meet this requirement. But actually, some do.

It's usually recommended that you use only pens made from white (rather than clear) plastic. But I've discovered that this generalization is a little too broad. The first pen I tried was from a package of white plastic pens from the local dollar store. I opted on the side of caution and decided to try covering only one pen, and I'm glad I did - it warped in the oven and was unusable. Then I tried Bic Round Stics, and they've worked well; I've covered about 50 pens so far, and only two have warped - and in one case the warping was so slight that it was barely noticeable.

The ink color doesn't matter, unless you have a preference. The ink cartridges don't get cured in the oven with the rest of the pen.

Basic Procedure
1. Remove the cap (which will not fit on the final pen, anyway) and the ink cartridge. You'll probably need pliers to get the cartridge out. Just don't squeeze too hard on the pliers, or you'll damage the plastic adapter that holds the cartridge in the pen.

2. Prepare your clay sheet however you like - marbled, mirror image, Skinner blend, or even plain if you're going to embellish it later. Roll out the sheet using a pasta machine, brayer, dowel, or other roller until it's between 1/4" and 1/16" thick - about the thickness of a thin sheet of cardboard. Don't worry too much about this; just remember that the thicker your clay sheet, the thicker the barrel of the finished pen will be.

3. Trim the sheet of clay until it's about the same length as the pen and wide enough to cover it. You can estimate the width by gently rolling the pen in the clay sheet until it's gone completely around once.

4. Gently and carefully roll the pen up in the sheet, trimming the clay again so that the edges butt up against each other (they shouldn't overlap). Round the clay at the top of the pen, smooth it there, and then smooth the side seams. Then trim the clay at the bottom so that it doesn't hang over the edge (otherwise you won't be able to get the cartridge back in).

5. If your clay is plain and you want to embellish the surface - with glitter, sand, tiny glass beads, or texturing, for example - now's the time to do it.

Tip for steps 4 and 5: Clay that's warm from handling or a high room temperature can be hard to work with here. You can cool it by letting it sit, either on your work surface or in the refrigerator or freezer, for about 10 minutes.

6. Take a piece of paper that will fit on your oven tray and fanfold it, then put it in the tray. Place one pen in each fold, put the tray in the oven, and cure your clay according to the directions. (The fanfolded paper keeps the pens from rolling up against each other and sticking together.)

7. Once the pen has cured and cooled you can add acrylic craft paint in the textured areas if you like; just cover the entire pen with paint, then quickly wipe the paint off the surface; it will stay in the crevices. Or if you've added surface embellishments and are afraid they might come off in use, seal the pen with a couple of coats of clear polyurethane varnish.

8. Put the ink cartridge back in the pen with the pliers.

Final Thoughts
Polymer clay-covered pens have a number of advantages. They're unique and beautiful, of course. But they're also recognizable, which is great if you keep losing your pens at work. You can personalize them for the user however you like.

Also, these pens can be very comfortable to hold and use. For one thing, the clay adds thickness which can make the pens easier for people who have trouble with hand movement or coordination. And for another, the clay warms with use, which makes the pen even more comfortable. If you don't have trouble with your hands these may not seem that important. But if you do - for example, if you have arthritis - a polymer clay pen may help you write more easily and for longer periods of time.

Polymer clay pens can be addictive; it's hard to make just one (or two or three or four...). Fortunately the basic pens are fairly inexpensive and available in packages (at many grocery stores) or even boxes (at office supply stores), so it's not hard to get more supplies. And even though the basic pens are designed to be disposable once the ink runs out, you can always replace the cartridges with pliers.

If you're looking for something useful to make with your clay give pens a try. There are so many ways to be creative here that you may not need to explore other uses for a long time.