Give your scrap clay a surprisingly glamorous second act! This free cylindrical Natasha bead tutorial twists, slices, mirrors, and reshapes contrasting polymer clay into smooth beads with bold symmetrical patterns—and the first reveal is always a little magic trick.
Materials and tools
- Scrap clay in different colors
- Sharp clay blade
- Small circle cutter
- Needle tool for making a bead hole
Technique overview
Twist contrasting scraps into a rectangular block, cut it lengthwise, and rotate the cut pieces to reveal mirrored patterns. Reassemble the sections, gently roll them into a cylinder, trim the ends, add clay end caps, and pierce before curing. It’s easy and the first cut’s mirrored pattern is always a surprise.
Process photographs
Twisted and squared beads
Twisted and squared beads
Sliced in half for a perfect mirror
Sliced in half for a perfect mirror
Capped and finished!
Related artwork
Read the cylinder bead project story • Browse all polymer clay galleries
