Polymer Clay Elephant Pendant

So one of my boyfriend's friends got a big promotion and he wanted me to make him an elephant pendant as a gift.  In Filipino culture, an elephant with an upturned trunk is a sign of good luck (according to the boyfriend, don't quote me on this one!) 

I used Sculpey Premo! Accents polymer clay in grey granite for this pendant.  First I conditioned the clay.  This can take a while with this color as the granite effect clays seem to be a bit stiffer than solid colors. 

Once I was done conditioning the clay I used a chunk and made it into a rectangle that was a bit under a half an inch thick.  I then made a dent in the top to start forming the head.

I then took my blade and cut into one end of the rectangle.  I then started working this part to lengthen and shape it to look like a trunk.

I then cut out a notch in the bottom of the rectangle to form the legs.  Its starting to look like an elephant now!

I kept smoothing with my fingers to make the edges rounded and to make the trunk and legs the shape I wanted.  I then used one of my tools to make the eyes and ears.  A toothpick would work great for this too.

Once I was happy with how the little guy looked I baked him per the directions on the package.  Once he was baked and cooled I added a bail to the back of him and put him on a simple cord.  I didn't get a picture of the finished product as of course the boyfriend needed it same day.  What is it with men and last minute things? lol 

If you haven't tried polymer clay you should! The best part is it doesn't air dry so you have plenty of time to play around and if  you mess up you can just start over again and again.