How to Design a Polymer Clay Kaleidoscope Cane in Procreate

I’ve never really been one to design polymer clay kaleidoscope canes by sketching—until I discovered Procreate. Sure, I’d occasionally doodle something quick, but usually, I worked directly from an idea in my head or a photograph. Then I stumbled upon YouTube tutorials about surface pattern design, and suddenly it clicked. Those digital techniques were perfect for kaleidoscope cane design!

With Procreate, I can quickly sketch out the basic triangle, mirror it into a square, and see the repeating pattern take shape quickly and easily. It’s incredibly helpful for visualizing how a cane will look as a full veneer, letting me swap out colors or make tweaks before I ever touch clay. Am I officially converted to always sketching digitally first? Well, not quite. But I’m definitely doing it way more often.

Before diving in, I should warn you: I’m no Procreate guru. My drawing skills leave a lot to be desired, and I honestly don’t even know what half the brushes are for. But my goal today is simple—I want to inspire you to try designing your own kaleidoscope cane digitally, even if, like me, you think you can’t draw.

Why Use Procreate for Cane Design?

Save clay, save time — Planning your polymer clay kaleidoscope cane digitally lets you refine your design before committing to clay. Believe me, even after years of jumping straight into cane-making, I’ve had my share of misses and wasted materials. A quick Procreate sketch can prevent a lot of frustration and save precious clay!

Easy visualization — My favorite part about using Procreate is how easily you can visualize your final cane. Sure, with paper sketches, you can use mirrors to get a sense of your design’s symmetry, but digital tools make this way easier. With just a few taps, you can see exactly how your cane pattern will look as a complete veneer, not just a single slice.

Experiment fearlessly — Curious how your design looks in different colors? Want to try a totally new color palette? With Procreate, switching things up is as simple as tapping the screen—no mess, no stress, just lots of opportunities to experiment.

Quick adjustments — Procreate makes changing shapes, sizes, and layouts super easy. Adjustments that might take an age to redo by hand can be made digitally in a few seconds, giving you more time for claying!

Getting Started: Setting Up Procreate for a Kaleidoscope Cane Design

Setting Up Your Canvas

Begin by creating a square canvas, I recommend 3000 x 3000 pixels. Draw a diagonal line from corner to corner, dividing your canvas into two equal triangles. Fill one side with a solid color (I usually start with black).

Reduce the opacity of this triangle layer, then create a new layer above it. This top layer is where you’ll do your rough sketching.

Tip: Lowering opacity makes sketching easier, but don’t forget to bring it back up to 100% later.

Sketching Your Cane Base

Start with a rough sketch, keeping everything on one layer initially. I usually use one of Procreate’s pencil brushes for this. Remember, the sketch doesn’t need to be perfect; just capture your basic shapes and ideas.

Once you’re satisfied, create a new layer above your rough sketch layer, and fill in your shapes with color. Give each color its own layer so you can easily experiment and adjust your palette later.

When you’re happy with your design, return to your triangle base layer. Set your desired background color by tapping Alpha Lock, then selecting Fill Layer.

Voilà—your base triangle is ready for the next step!

Building Your Kaleidoscope Cane

Once your triangle base is complete, you’re ready to create your kaleidoscope pattern. Here’s how to transform your triangle into a beautiful, repeating cane:

1. Create the Square:

• Duplicate each of your design layers. Merge one set of duplicates into a single layer by pinching them together and hide the rest.
• Duplicate this merged layer twice, hide the original, then select the arrow tool.
• Flip one of the triangles horizontally and rotate it 90° until it mirrors perfectly to form a square with the other.
• Merge these two triangle layers into one square layer.

2. Build the Kaleidoscope:

• Duplicate your new square layer four times, then hide the original.
• Activate Magnetics and Snapping.
• Shrink each duplicate to 1/4 of the original size by dragging the corner inward toward the center.
• Using Rotate 45° rotate each smaller square until they meet in the middle to form your kaleidoscope pattern.

Creating a Repeating Tile or “Veneer”

• To visualize how your cane will look as a full veneer, repeat the previous steps:
• Merge your four small squares into a single “finished cane” layer.
• Duplicate this layer four times, hiding the original as a backup.
• Again, shrink and reposition each duplicate square, bringing their corners to the center.
• Align until your repeating veneer emerges clearly.
• Repeat as many times as desired to really get the full effect!

Quick tip from a Pro

Here’s a tip I learned from surface pattern designer Mel Armstrong, whose YouTube channel I’ve really been enjoying. Before merging layers, always save a duplicate. If something doesn’t look quite right you can back up and try again. You’ll thank yourself later. Bonus? It makes experimenting with different colors easy peasy.

Translating Your Procreate Design into Polymer Clay

• If you like working with a sketch to check the size and shape of each of the cane components then print off a copy of the rough sketch layer. Or keep your iPad handy for visual reference, as is my preferred method.
• Pack your cane carefully and tightly. The fewer gaps you have between components means less distortion during reducing.

Final Thoughts: Procreate as Your Polymer Clay Sidekick 

Even if you’re more comfortable with clay than a digital stylus, Procreate is a fun tool for polymer clay cane design. It helps you visualize, experiment, and refine before ever touching your clay. Plus, if you mess up? No wasted materials, just tap that undo button give yourself a fresh start!

If you give this a go and use Procreate to design a polymer clay kaleidoscope cane, I’d love to see what you create! Tag me on Instagram @bysandracallander.

Have questions? Comments? Drop me a message—I’m here to help.

Want even more inspiration and a place to share your work? Join my Facebook group The Polymer Clay Collective and connect with a fabulous community of fellow makers. Let’s clay it up together!