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Jewelry Tree | Clay Crafts

Jewelry Tree

Total Time Needed: 2-3 Hours

This fancy jewelry tree makes a great gift for a friend or sibling, who will have a blast adorning its branches with all of her silvery chains, beaded necklaces, and pretty bracelets.

Materials

  • 4 (2-ounce) packages of polymer clay
  • Aluminum foil
  • Metal washer (2 1/2 inches wide)
  • Forked tree branch, dry and clean with a base about 3/4 inch wide
  • Tacky glue
  • Felt
  • Acrylic paint and paintbrush

Instructions

Jewelry Tree - Step 1

1. Make a tree stand. Working on a doubled sheet of aluminum foil, knead the clay and shape it into a mound (about 4 inches across and 1 1/2 inches thick in the center). Press the metal washer into the bottom of the clay to add weight, as shown.

Jewelry Tree - Step 2

2. Trim the branch to a suitable size for your stand (ours measured about 1 foot tall and 15 inches wide) and remove any loose bark. Use the base of the branch to make a hole centered in the top of the stand. Turn the branch slightly as you push it into the clay fairly deeply but not all the way.

3. Remove the branch and bake the clay (with the foil under it) on a baking sheet according to the package directions, at 275 degrees for about 30 minutes per 1/4 inch of thickness.

4. When the baked clay has cooled, glue a circle of felt to the bottom. Finish up by reinserting the branch (adding a dab of glue if it is loose) and painting the tree any color you like. To ensure the jewelry tree stays intact, you may want to simply tie a ribbon around the base rather than package it in a box.

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