How to make buttons and shanks

While I’m not new at creating tutorials, creating video tutorials is something new for me. I just published 2 videos on how to create buttons or cabochons. The button tutorial is in 2 parts. Part 1 shows you how to use the flex mold, how to imbed a shank with a seamless back, color and finish your button. Part 2 continues by showing you how I  create and imbed a wire shank. I posted the videos below.

If you are interested in some molds, I’ve begun to list a bunch on both my Etsy and ArtFire.

Here are the Video Tutorials. Hope they work well for you…if they do, like or comment on YouTube…

Making buttons with Tina

and here is Part 2

Making buttons with Tina

Now I need to list more molds  among other things, as well as finish some bigger tutorials. They’ll be pdf file format, but in future I have some interesting things in mind…how about live shows?

Colourful faces

Ok…here in Canada we spell Colour with a ‘u’ added, but spell check is driving me a little bonkers. Am using Windows Live Writer and it wants me to add the ‘u’, but then when I need to edit something in Blogger it underlines it and insists it’s without the ‘u’, argh…
Anyway, with the suddenly dreary, gray, wet and colder October weather I need to add some colour to my online shops (most are in Etsy right now, but will add more to ArtFire) by adding more of my Art doll face cabochons. While they are moulded, the moulds have flaws which transfer to the faces, so I  redefine them by tooling each cabochon, plus I add details such as the spiral symbol, nostrils, eyelashes/eyebrows, change the lips and of course color them with my unique mixed media that exhibit a sort of ceramic property.

The exception are the recently addition of faux or imitative stone cabochons. Right now I just have the Rhyolite or Sandstone but will be adding other type.

I make them both masculine or feminine, glossy or matte. Of course, I prefer the faux stone in matte as opaque stone is rarely glossy and for the colours I prefer the glossy as it also makes the colour more permanent, although I put some matte ones in the wash and they came out looking the same. I just trust the gloss more, but for art dolls either should be fine. Wouldn’t a matching pair of dolls be fun?

I have some creepy Alien faces for Halloween as well…creeeeeepy!! not sure if I should list those…

Polymer Clay Logo or Initial Canes

In my earlier days with polymer clay I enjoyed creating canes and making beads, but quickly moved on to other things. Now it was time for another signature cane, something with my initials or a logo that I could attach to some of my creations. It’s been a while since doing this and I don’t mind that a lot of things left here without my ‘stamp’ on it, but for some one of a kind things, maybe a piece of cane added means a little more than just a rubberstamped signature pressed into the clay? What do you think? Maybe on some pieces it’s too obvious or out of place? I dunno! I guess I ‘want’ to add a little bit of a different signature. Instead of my old TH cane with the letters side by side, I sketched out a few designs. The one I like best would be a maple leaf added to my initials but for this batch just the letters because they are too skinny and will virtually disappear when the cane is reduced.

For this overview I used two Makins Extruders, one for white and one for black, a grid, tissue blade, pasta machine. I sketched out a design, conditioned and rolled some clay, used the grid to cut and fit pieces, then placed or stacked them onto my sketched design. Well, here is a quick pictorial.

That’s it. I will make a maple leaf cane, but will thicken the initials and leave off the black circled rim around them, something like that. Do you create a signature for your pieces? Do you prefer a caned design or using a stamp?

Thanksgiving and my Home Studio Tour

Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canucks! Tomorrow, Monday, will be a busy day making Turkey and spending time with family, although it seems a few don’t keep the traditional holiday and celebrate the day before. I’m so fortunate that my husband is a great cook and always makes the big dinners including PIE! Although my cooking isn’t shabby, I prefer doing the dishes, lol.
Welcome to my Studio!

If you ever wondered what it looks like from the outside, here it is, complete with homesteaders rusting stove and tools hanging on the outside. This really is a converted Garden Shed that once held all of my husbands sport fishing gear. Then he fixed it up for me because he couldn’t ‘stand‘ looking at my corner in the dining room anymore. I admit I don’t like a mess either, but it was impossible to keep it tidy during busy times and when in ‘creative mode’. I was so glad to have our dining area back again too.
Instead of Spring cleaning I tend to do this in Fall since I’m already too busy in Spring to supply Shops, Galleries and Boutiques, so I finally gave my Studio a much needed tune-up. It’s just amazing how many bits, scraps, failed experiments, papers and odds ‘n ends can accumulate over a couple of seasons. I spent a week doing this, but had other personal things to deal with, so it took a bit longer than I anticipated.
Wanna see the before and after? You might want to close your eyes for the first photo…OMG!

This is the view just inside the door. Quite small, but I can make it work with plenty of drawers and even a little loft (where we store Christmas things, extra blankets, some of our girls toys as well as displays, my canvases). I love my view out the window…Forest of Cedar, Pine, Spruce, Yew, and Alder as well as Blackberry, Huckleberry, Salalberry, and tall ferns. We picked all the berries we could and they were ample this year! I digress…don’t you love my zebra blanket?

This is the view looking the other way, out that little door which doesn’t hang so straight anymore. In a few years this needs to be all torn down and rebuilt, ack. Anyway, to the right is my mannequin, photo station and printer. To the left my photo developing and some beading supplies.

There is a comfy place on a soft plush zebra blanket should I have some company dropping by for a real-time visit. Above are my journals and some novels in case I want to scribble, listen to music, or read about something other than creating (If you squint you can see Star Trek, lol). No, the pillow doesn’t hold up the shelf, ha, but is out of the way until it’s needed.

Across from the couch is my Polymer Clay work desk. Above that is a shelf that has built-in long daylight bulbs underneath. The shelf holds some of my PC art as well as that of others, an acrylic tower holding stone cabochons and the right little wood cupboard holds all my mica powders and such. On my desk a tray converted into shelves to hold inks. I like having some, most often used things on hand and easy view. To the left of this desk is another just like it, for my bead and assembly, computer work, to watch movies/listen to music/skype chat while I create(sometimes all at once!). All my drawers are now organized. One holds textures, a second has things to cover, yet another holds cutters and moulds, one for wire work, one with findings, one with gemstones and beads etc.

My Pasta Machine needed a feeding tray, for those nice long sheets of clay that require 4 hands, so I made one out of matte board. Works great! Beside the machine you can also see some of my cups holding needle tools, brushes and such.

Between the couch and window I converted an old file cabinet to hold my motorized pasta machine. I didn’t have a place for it before and would have to haul it out every time and find a plug in on the other wall that is already maxed out. So this side was the right solution and it’s right behind me. All I need to do is swivel my chair around, no need to get up, lol. Converted cassette tape boxes hold my clay, the nice tin holds open packages of clay. Above it is my UV oven for photopolymers as well as resin. I also place regular resin pieces in there as they are protected from dust accumulating on them while curing. My ovens are right outside the window…nice ventilation (grin).

That’s it! Hope you enjoyed this little tour of my place. I’ll endeavour to keep it tidy-er over Winter. I even have a little heater to keep myself warm…but until then…the inside of the house is next!! ack…not looking forward looking into my closet!