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Gingerbread Cookies
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In many homes, gingerbread is an essential part of the holiday season. Real gingerbread has an unmistakable aroma that is both sweet and spicy. Our polymer clay version may not tantalize the nose, but it just might fool the eyes! (For that reason, we recommend that you keep these "cookies" out of the reach of young children. Better safe than sorry!)
Make polymer clay gingerbread cookies in any shape or size you like. They are adorable as miniatures, but they work equally well as life-size imitations of the real thing. And as always here at Polymer Clay Web, these treats are fat and calorie free!
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Recommended Materials & Tools
- Polymer Clay
- Premo - Raw Sienna
- Premo - Ecru
- White-tinted liquid polymer clay
- Preferably in a clay-compatible plastic applicator bottle with a very fine metal tip
- Embossing powder
- Black and white or cream
- Work surface
- Pasta machine
- Assorted cookie cutters
- Baking parchment (or unmarked printer paper)
- Toothbrush
- Oven and related tools
Optional Materials & Tools
- Polymer Clay
- Very small amounts in candy colors
- Iridescent glitter
- Decorative chalk or chalk pastels
- Medium and dark browns
- Paint brush
- Jewelry findings
- Eye pins, pin backs, etc. or craft wire
- Polymer-friendly finish
Directions
Step 1
Mix your gingerbread "dough".
The color of real gingerbread varies by recipe. We used equal parts of raw sienna and ecru (Premo brand), but that is easily adjusted to suit your own aesthetics.
Step 2
Blend the clay thoroughly until there is no visible marbling. Roll into a sheet.
Put small amounts of embossing powder onto the middle of the sheet. (We used black and seafoam white powder, but brown, yellow, or even copper embossing powder would probably also yield nice results. Experiment with what you have on hand, in a small pinch of clay.)
There is no hard and fast rule for the ratio of embossing powder to clay. In our experience, a little goes a long way, and we find it more effective to start slowly and add more powder as needed than to have to increase the size of the batch by adding more clay.
Fold the sheet of clay in half, trapping the powder in the middle. Feed through the pasta machine as usual, or condition with an acrylic rod or by hand. Condition until the powders are evenly distributed through the clay.
Step 3
Roll the clay into a uniform sheet.
(We used the thickest setting on the pasta machine. Make a thicker or thinner sheet, as necessary, but don't forget to adjust your curing times accordingly.)
Place the sheet of clay onto the parchment or paper. Use cookie cutters to cut shapes from the sheet.
Smooth away any jagged edges around the cookie shapes with a finger, clay shaper, or needle tool. If you prefer, you can wait until after they're cured to sand the edges or use a craft knife to trim them.
Step 4
Remove the excess clay; set this aside for later.
If necessary, arrange the cookie shapes on the parchment so that they don't touch.
Give your "cookies" a realistic texture by pouncing (not dragging) an old toothbrush over them. You can even go around the edges of each with the brush, if you have the time and patience.
If you'd like to darken your cookies a little here and there (around the edges, particularly), now is a good time to do that. Use a small paint brush to pick up a little brown powdered chalk (decorating chalk from the scrapbooking aisle or artist's chalk pastels). Lightly dust this over the cookie, as desired. Continue to add chalk (in multiple shades, if you like) until it has a realistic appearance. (Note that this may need to be sealed if the "cookie" is to be handled much, as the chalks can wear away.)
Cure (bake) according to the manufacturer's instructions. (We cured ours for thirty minutes at 275° Fahrenheit.) If you plan to put the "cookies" back in the oven later (after decorating them), you can do a partial cure. Otherwise, cure for the full time recommended on the package.
Step 5
If you'd like, you can decorate your cookie shapes with polymer candy. (Actually, you can decorate "raw" cookie shapes and add uncured cady for a single, longer curing time, but we find it easier to decorate the cookies in steps. Do whatever suits you best.)
You can make almost any candy imaginable-- nuts and raisins, too! With a little time, you can create a millefiori cane that will yield hundreds of slices that resemble peppermints and other favorites. Jelly beans and M&Ms are even easier to make. But to add a little sparkle to faux gingerbread, there's nothing like polymer gumdrops!
Start by conditioning small amounts of candy-colored clay. ("Candy-colored" can be any color you like, of course.) If you want to increase the realism, use a lot of translucent clay in your mixes.
If you want many gumdrops in the same size, roll out the different colors of clay into sheets of uniform thickness. To make small gumdrops, use a short piece of a plastic drinking straw to punch circles from each sheet. (Very small cookie cutters can be used for larger gumdrops. You can also make uniform gumdrops by slicing a snake of each clay mixture into even segments.) Roll the circles into balls. Drop the balls into iridescent glitter and roll until covered.
Form the balls into gumdrop shapes. We do this by holding a ball against one finger of the right hand. This side becomes the flat bottom of the drop. Gently pinch the other side a couple of times with the fingers of the left hand. (This can take a little practice. If you find another way that works better for you, by all means, use it instead.)
Place the finished gumdrop on the baking surface, and when they're all shaped, cure them briefly (10 minutes, perhaps) to make them easier to handle, later on.
Step 6
After the "cookies" have cooled, you're ready to bebin the fun part-- decorating them!
We prefer opaque white liquid clay for our "icing", but you can also use a thin rope or extrusion of solid white polymer clay. (If you're decorating pre-cured cookied with solid clay, it's a good idea to use a little liquid clay as "glue" to help the pieces adhere during the second curing.) If you don't have an applicator bottle, you can apply the liquid clay with a toothpick or needle tool. It takes longer, but the results can be just a nice.
You can decorate your cookie shapes any way you like. Refer to a cookbook or the Internet for inspiration. Adhere polymer gumdrops or other faux candies to the "cookie" with a dot of liquid clay.
If you should make a mistake, don't worry! It's easy enough to remove some or all of the icing before it's cured. Use a little rubbing alcohol, if it's being stubborn. (You can also go back and add more icing and candy to cured cookies, if you're dissatisfied with your results. Don't forget to re-cure!)
When you're happy with your designs, pop them back in the oven for a while. The curing time required depends on whether the candies have been pre-cured. We recommend curing for longer rather than shorter than necessary. As long as your curing temperature stays below the danger level (300°F for most clay), your polymer cookies should be fine.
If you've used glittered gum drops on your polymer cookies, it's a good idea to brush on a quick coat of polymer-friendly finish over them to help keep the glitter in place. Other faux goodies (candies, raisins, etc.) may also benefit from a touch of shine.
Step 7
At this point, it's up to you to decide what to do with your "cookies" next!
Here are a few ideas to get you started:
- Arrange a few on a pretty plate to leave out on display. (For Santa, maybe?)
- Use them to spice up gift tags or Christmas cards for loved ones and friends.
- Turn one into a holiday brooch by attaching a pinback.
- Add them to a seasonal floral arrangement or wreath.
- Make them into Christmas tree ornaments for yourself or others.
- Add an eye pin and wear as a pendant.
- Turn a couple of teensy cookies into earrings.
- Use to decorate a frame for a special Christmas photo.
- Glue to holiday scrapbook pages to add some textural interest.
- Instead of making cookies, assemble a polymer gingerbread house for use as ornaments, in floral arrangements, as stand-alone decorations, as jewelry, or even as a festive element in a dollhouse.
Here's a quick explanation of one way to add an eye pin to your cookie: Turn the cookie shape over so that the undecorated bottom is showing. Gently adhere a small flattened ball of gingerbread-colored clay near the top of the shape, using a little liquid clay as glue. Insert the eye pin into the raw clay. (Or, to avoid having to remove and glue the pin back in place, later, twist the pin into a curve or zig-zag and sandwich it between the raw and cured clay, again using liquid clay to strengthen the bond.) Cure as usual. (Note: If you make your cookies from a thick sheet of clay, you may be able to insert an eye pin directly into it, during Step 4, above.)
The finished gingerbread cookies.
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