Some time ago one of my friends and I made some jewelry from sculpy clay, the kind you mold into the shape you want and then bake in the oven. She also made a belt buckle, flattened it with a rolling pin and cut it into a rectangle with 2 slots in it. Placed it over a heap of rolled up foil, pressed some pretty stones in it and baked it.
Might this be something you could try?