Covering a Sphere with Polymer Clay: Free Pattern
Use printable templates sized for several sphere diameters to cover glass ornaments cleanly with sheets of polymer clay.
Materials and tools
- Paper template
- Old glass spherical (ball) ornament- recycling, WOO-HOO!
- X-acto or craft knife
- Plastic sheet, deli paper, or clean copy paper
Technique overview
Measure the ornament’s circumference at the widest point, then print and cut out the paper template that matches your ornament. Use it to cut shaped sections from your clay sheet as shown in the photo above. Fit and smooth the clay around the sphere, decorate it, secure the hanging assembly if necessary, and cure according to the clay manufacturer’s directions. This technique makes covering a sphere easy, quick, and eliminates cutting waste off your ornament and smoothing it f-o-r-e-v-e-r.
I’m a cartographer and we have a lot of mailing tubes that are perfect diameters for hanging an ornament inside. I cut off a section of the tube and cut two notches in the rim so the knitting needle has a place to rest and not roll around (see photo below). Hanging the ornament in the center so it doesn’t touch the sides of the cardboard prevents flat or shiny spots on the cured ornament. Any shipping store or post office should be able to sell you a tube if you don’t already have one laying around.
Process photographs
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