Need to seperate the relatives to keep the family peace? Look no further! This instructable will show you how to make a sculpey (polymer clay) turkey place card holder that will not only be an adorable decoration but will keep your family from getting ruffled feathers.

Let's get started

Step 1: Materials Needed

Sculpey (or another Polymer Clay)
Tooth pick

Optional:

Texturing tools
My instructable on fixing hard sculpey HERE
A sense of humor

Step 2: Mix and Match

Mix some clay colors together to get your perfect shade of brown. I used a dark brown, tossed in some yellow and red.

Once you are all mixed together, you need one large ball and four smaller balls of the same color.

Step 3: Wing It!

Take two of your smaller balls and squish them down. Pinch the ends to create a wing shape. Trim if you like to make them perfect, but I'm an odd duck...err turkey, so I didn't mind that one of mine was a little large than another.

Attach the wings to the side of the large ball. Press hard so they stick, you can also smooth one side on to the larger ball to ensure it stays put.

Step 4: Oh Tail Feathers!!

Take another one of your smaller balls and flatten it out, spread it out like a fan, this will become your tail feathers.

If you want color to your feathers create lines using a tooth pick. Roll out small amounts of colors like yellow, orange and read and lay them in the lines. You can then roll your tooth pick over those lines to flatten them together.

To get a more feathered look cut the tail feathers apart, then lay them back on top of each other with a slight curve. To cut you can use your handy dandy tooth pick, a knife, scissors or the power of the force. If you can cut clay with the power of the force, please comment and attach a video, this I have to see!

Once your tail is tail-tastic, attach it to the body in the same manner as your wings.

Step 5: Stick Out Your Neck!

It is safe to say at any family gathering someone might lose their head. This is why place card holders are handy. Now, let's not forget that for the time being your turkey needs it's neck.

Take your last brown ball and roll it into a coil. Take the end of the coil and fold it back onto itself, this will make the head. Smooth the head together.

Give your neck a sight S curve. With your toothpick poke a hole in the middle of the face. Roll out yellow, orange, or yellow orange clay for a beak then push it into the hole you just created. Think of one end like a point and the other end of the beak like a peg, put the peg in the hole. Then attach that awesome head to the body.

Step 6: Gobble Gobble!

Roll out a small red coil to make the wattle, that would be the red do-dad that hangs off a turkey. Yes, it has a name...who knew!

To make the eyes make a small hole on either side of the head. Roll a really small black coil and cut little pieces. Roll those into a ball and use the toothpick to put them in place.

Woot! Now your turkey can see how funny (or crazy) your family is!

Step 7: Card Me!

Take a business card that you have laying around or a credit card or anything flat and stiff and run it across your turkeys back. Press down. This is creating the area for your place card holder. Gently separate the area to ensure when it bakes it will stay open.

Step 8: This Turkey Smells Like Feet!

At first I wasn't going to make feet, then I thought oh that's silly he needs feet! Roll out the same color you used for your beak and make two small balls about the same size. Flatten them. Cut triangles out to make your toes. Attach to the bottom of the body.

Step 9: Bake It!

It won't taste like the turkey you eat, but it also won't take as long... toss that turkey into the oven following your clay's directions and bake it.

Once out you can create cards with your family or friends name on it and place it where you want them to sit.

They get a cool take home gift, and you get piece of mind knowing crazy and Sally is not sitting next to you or grumpy grandpa!

I'd love to see your Turkey place card holders when you make them, and have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Step 10: Poofrabbit's Tips and Tricks

PoofRabbit Tips and Tricks

Seriously best tip I have for fixing dried out sculpey is in one of my other instructables HERE I was so excited when I learned how to fi my dried out clay, and now I'm a mess making crazy sculpey stuff all the time!

If you bake 10 degrees cooler than the package says for an entire hour, you will get a harder clay.

Let the clay stay in the oven until the oven cools completely down, this allows the clay to actually keep cooking and you will be surprised at the results difference.

Use a brush and baby oil to get rid of fine lines and finger prints

Mix your own colors. They have a million and one colors, and that's great but you can do a lot with a basic color set.