Jewelry ala Klimt

A few polymer clay tile beads make a set of jewelry. I like the way the beads turned out, satiny and no finish required. Gold and silver leaf, mica, gold and sea green clay....

Made 4 strands of seedbeads as a chain to hang pendant on....

Polymer Clay Cuff Bracelets on PVC

Reduce, reuse and recycle. How handy that hubby had some PVC pipe left overs in his studio. He cut them up for me and I used them on these polymer clay bracelets as well as some boxes. Made a whole bunch, but now am out.
I guess not all piping is the same because some will 'melt', some will soften and can be reformed and others aren't affected by baking at all.
To continue making some other types of bracelets, just ordered some great aluminum blanks from Melanie West.

Polymer Clay on Canvas

Bought some canvas in various sizes last month. Been wanting to do some collage on them combined with painting. This one is a small trial. Measures just 5 x 7. I used pan pastels, acrylics and polymer clay. I think I'll do another one or two to compliment this one and then try a larger one.
Canvases come primed. If you want to paint with acrylics, do so before applying your clay. I used a little TLS where I apply the clay. All can be baked at polymer clay temperature and baking time.

Best Pasta Machine Motor for Polymer Clay

Now this is the most ingenious pasta machine motor I have seen. A few polymer clay friends have been complaining about their motors burning out or having to be held together by duct tape. I've never had a motor, but will give this one a try. My sewing machine peddle will come in useful once again! lol

Motorizing The Pasta Machine - Watch more funny videos here

Polymer clay kelp box

More wire curls and polymer clay.
This box was a bit of a challenge and took 2 days. It's made entirely from clay which means it's not only heavy, but used a lot of clay and required multiple firing. The entire box is 9" tall including the wire curls and legs, but the box without wire measures 5.5 long x 4.5"wide and 3 1/2 inches tall which may not sound like much, unless one takes the 1/4 inch thickness into account. The biggest challenge was the firing and impossible with the height even without the urchin and wire curls. Moved the rack to lowest position and surrounded the box with an aluminum foil tent after my last crisped item. My convection oven is teeny and really 'stunts' my creativity in wanting to create larger items. So, I baked the urchin and wire alone and super-glued it in the end. The finish of the inside bottom is much the same as the textured outside, with the internal sides painted with an acrylic 'moss-like' painting.
I'm beginning to like the wire curls....

Wired Polymer clay Boxes with a Surprise

Hope you can forgive me for not posting for almost 2 weeks! Here are some wired polymer clay boxes...or should I call them weird? I've been trying to achieve a more organic look with my clay and foregoing the use of any lacquer or varnish. I still work with sparkle and shine, but for this look it just doesn't work.

This busy box got a bit outa hand...

Some boxes are entirely made from Polymer Clay, others use a paper mache base.
Am still working with the sea theme of using starfish, urchins and scallops.

Got the idea of putting a surprise under the lid when I burnt one of them during my multiple baking phase. It was a mistake to move my rack to the lower shelf and not using aluminum foil as a shield! The initial reaction is a big "oh no!" , but as it happens I don't give up so easily and the mistake gave me the idea to add a starfish and make the rippled rock-like surface part of the design.
I will still post on those glass tiles, hopefully this coming week. Could kick myself for not taking pictures of the jewelry I made, but we were in a mad rush to get things done and deliver them to a gallery in Victoria.

Glass gem bits, baubles and polymer clay

Today I picked up the oodles and oodles of glass gems my friend Kevin Midgley so patiently custom made for me.

Kevin's work has been featured on the front covers of magazines, such as 'Chatelaine' and 'Food and Wine' as well as being frequently found in fine recipe books and restaurants. If you are looking for Christmas presents such as fabulous Art Glass platters or even the most glowing kinds of dichroic gem earrings or necklaces, go visit his studio and/or the link above.

You're probably wondering what I will do with these little gems?!

I had googled for glass rectangles on the net, but couldn't find anything other than the common glass baubles/drops. I wanted some plain glass rectangles measuring between 10mm x 15mm-20mm. These are for my upcoming project, based on an idea I've had in my sketch book since 2000 but never followed up on...until now.
Want to know what I will do with these?!...

Ancient Jewels in Polymer Clay

This weeks creations of Polymer Clay bracelet and necklace with an ancient feel. The stone is Dragonscale Agate, the band is woven from Japanese Cube and Triangle beads. The clasp is a convenient Rare Earth Magnet....strong! What should I name this bracelet?

A viking drop and medieval type cross incorporating crystal and pearls.

Before getting my first computer in December 2000 (Ya, the big y2k, lol), I used to try and keep track of my bead and polymer clay designs via sketches and the odd photograph. The digital age certainly has made things easier and more practical, although I now'loose' pictures amongst the thousands that are now in my files, so I still sketch the occasional piece.

Kotomi Yamamura's beautiful Elizabethan polymer clay designs have rekindled my passion for the medieval jewelry of the late 1490's and early 1500's. Kotomi sells her designs through numerous galleries as well as on etsy.

Back in January 2000 I created pendants from Polymer Clay that looked like ancient Viking pendants along with the odd medieval or Elizabethan piece. All the pieces sold very quickly and to this day my husband gently scolds me for selling these and not making more. He's right, but too many muses are chattering in my mind to do this, that, this, lol.

Here are a couple of sketches I had done January 2000. Wow....talk about rockbottom prices, they'd be a bargain now. Current pieces like this would fetch about twice as much now, considering the labour and experience that go with it.

Here are a couple of pieces I beaded in 2005/6. One has a polymer clay transfer with a Tall Ship and the other a polymer clay cabochon as the centrepiece of the front of a mirror compact.

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!
I have to give thanks to my Creator for giving me many gifts, including the gift of creating...

Another box with Polymer Clay

I've been thinking of doing more with paints, either on polymer clay or on other objects and then incorporating polymer clay as embellishment. I took this generic slide lid box that was black to begin with, primed it with Gesso and painted it with Acrylics. I guess I'm really drawn to blues, greens, yellows and browns these days....

Addition to Starfish Polymer Clay Box

Am posting another picture of the Starfish Polymer Clay Box which I gave an additional embellishment of 'kelp'. I just felt it was missing something, the starfish alone felt too empty. Also finished some necklaces with the recent beads I made. This one with the celtic applique to prebaked polymer clay beads.
This necklace set is made with Polymer Clay ovals which I gave an 'impasto' matte crackle finish. The frosted glass beads are recycled glass from bottles.