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!

Paintings in Miniature for Jewelry

My humble beginnings selling Jewelry, I would mount some of my beadwork earrings onto miniature watercolour paintings. This didn’t last, especially when these sold as soon as I put them on the shelf.

A couple of days ago I took some of my small originals to the market and someone wanted to purchase them (shown below with jewelry), a moon and mussel shell watercolour as well as a stream in forest. I declined. I guess some things are hard to part with, especially since I’ve only done 3 watercolour stills (not counting those teeny ones), the largest “Driftwood and Rocks” is  20” x 26”. The ‘stream in forest’ is a small  9” x 12”. I’ve done 2 acrylics one of which is “Hot Springs Cove Park”. This is in my eldest daughters possession (without the watermark which is for Internet purposes only). I’ve done a few pen and ink drawings as well, one of which is in my Fathers possession (along with my first ivory carving of a 3 D octopus holding a rum bottle, complete with cork! lol. I’d love to see this one again and should ask if he can send me a photo)

I don’t consider myself a painter as I’m not trained enough. Maybe someday when beads are becoming too hard to see…but then perhaps I’ll use polymer clay as my medium on canvas.

Anyway…here are some of my paintings turned into resin jewelry…am thinking these might also look nice as Aquarium Pendants which I promised a few of you I’d  turn into a tutorial at some point. Fall is here and soon I’ll have more time for that as well. Pretty neat how a computer and printer can be so handy, eh? (Note the triplicate whale tail…Google Picasa magic)

A model for my jewelry

I’ve been wanting a more realistic display on which to model and photograph my jewelry, specifically for earrings and necklaces that I intend to sell online. I was looking at photos on Etsy or ArtFire . While the photos with models visually show better how items might look on oneself I’m a little turned off by the fact that I would essentially be getting a second-hand pair of earrings that someone had placed in their piercings. I know they can be cleaned with alcohol, but for the same reason I wouldn’t buy second hand undergarments, or bathing suits, hats or shoes, I just don’t know where they have been or what they were exposed to, sweat, head lice, bacteria, viruses, STD’s, ugh. The same can be said about telephone booths, restroom toilet flush handles and money. Small example and I digress, but… at least I have some control over what I will offer my customer which will be brand new jewelry previously modeled by a plastic model.
I searched online, but none of the ‘reasonably priced’ mannequin heads held great appeal to me. One may have a nice face, but the shoulder looks like a Thalidomide victim and others while a part bust and shoulder would be nicer for a necklace, the face and make up are just not very appealing, nor could a longer necklace like a lariat be modelled on such. And then there are the many headless half torsos. I suppose I could have gotten a head for earrings and a torso for necklaces and I do have a hanger type, but it just doesn’t look right to put a necklace on a headless body. The only head on a torso I could find was one with sculpted hair and that was a ‘no go’ for me as I wanted to give my model real hair.

I had my eye on my mothers full size mannequin which she used for her sewing career but that had been retired to storage, but she wasn’t ready to let her go and she would have taken up too much space in my little studio anyway.
So I was pleased when something came available to me right here in town. I can’t say that I’m pleased that one of our local shops is closing (actually there are 3!!) but when I saw ‘her’ and asked if she would be for sale and the answer was yes $10… I kind of hesitated. No, not at the low low price, but her earlobes had no holes and I wasn’t sure if I could drill them. She’s pretty heavy duty, not lightweight plastic. Being completely white, not a smidge of make up, bald and nekid! Um, would I be able to turn her into a model? I dunno, lol, but something in me kept saying ‘you’ve been wanting one…so I said ‘YES, deal!’. I’m glad I did because the shop owner could have sold her many times over when I came to pick her up two weeks later.

I kind of wish I had taken ‘before’ photos as I can’t find anything remotely like her in Google search for Images, but basically put the last too photos above together. She has nice shoulder caps like that and just a bit more of the torso. I kind of like the fact that her nose isn’t perfectly straight, lol. I used make up with a paint roller applicator no less. No, I’m not using it on me, I’m not a wall, lol. After that dried a bit I did a second coat. I should have chosen a darker shade, but oh well, she has alabaster skin. I then used PMYII as a fixative. I painted her eyes brown, gave her eyeliner, eyelashes from the Dollar store, bronzer, and lip paint (pan pastel along with acrylics) and another once over with PMYII (preserve your memories II).  I notice I have to paint the nostrils still. I had a wig in my collection of Halloween stuff, a hairband to tie it back so her ears can show, a scarf to wrap her modesty and voila…my model. My autistic daughter named her Thea! I was tempted to give her freckles or a mole…the doll, not my daughter…

Hopping into Fall

In the blink of an eye, where o’ where did Summer go... Leaves already falling and spiders busy creating their webs. I was busy (and still am) which is a good thing these days, yet I’m still finding time to create a few slightly lavish pieces, such as this bead collar.
My drop pendants are made with my “New Crackle” technique. All my pendants have daisy bails, it has become a sort of signature for me. As a change-up I have added Peridot sparkly resin drops to the daisies centers.

I knotted a cord with Japanese Kumihimo, I then embellished it with Japanese triangle beads and Czech glass.  The little heishi flower beads on the Cord are Polymer Clay, inset with Swarovski crystals,and are alternated with pewter heishi flowers.

The cord ends are also done with polymer clay. I created the “Bead Cord ends with Personality”  tutorial especially with these thicker types of cording in mind. They are so popular now, but I would rather add ends that coordinate or match the piece better. One could create them in all sorts of styles and colors to blend in with the rest of the work.

In other news, I’m participating in another Blog Hop called “My Bead Table” which Lisa Lodge of Pine Ridge Treasures created. She sent 30 participants a bead kit consisting of beads and miscellaneous items, from her bead/work table. She carefully selected ‘equal’ amounts/value of beads in a variety of sizes, shapes and colors. Kits were randomly assigned, so we had no idea of whom received what kit. The actual Hop will take place Saturday, October 13th. The objective is to use as many of the beads and may include beads I will currently have on my bead table. Here is what I received…

It’s going to be a good challenge since I rarely work in those colors, but those red Lampwork beads are gorgeous and the red leaves have me thinking.
Here is what is currently on My Bead Table…including one of my orange starfish and resin pendants. I do have a lot more in my stash…

You’re probably are wondering what is on My Polymer Clay Table, lol. Not much, but here it is…

Told ‘ya! I had just cleaned it up after making some Buttons for a small order to a Knit shop. Soon enough it’ll all be… really… messy again! Not sure if you want to see that…

Window Ornament Swap

This was our first International Polymer Clay Swap on Facebook. I was excited that 20 Artisans decided to participate, from Australia, Belgium, Canada, Italy, Slovenia, Spain, and the USA.
I thought Window Ornaments would be fun and a bit of a challenge and it was! I think we’re more used to creating Wall or Tree Ornaments, but challenges can be good for the creative mind and the results were pretty amazing!
I paired up people randomly as best as I could as most were willing to ship internationally. My partner was Kimberly Idalski. Kimberly is a multi talented jewelry designer. You can see her post about this swap here.
She did a lot of research about the Province where I live. British Columbia’s provincial flower is the Dogwood and the bird is the Stellar Jay, a cocky Bird that loves to hang out at Beach Parks and wait for the bread crumbs to fall. Actually feeding these birds in Provincial and National Parks is prohibited, but this doesn’t stop them from coming to your backyard!

I love these birds and I think Kim did a pretty fine job representing them. Beautiful, isn’t it! I’ve got it hanging in my studio against a back drop of Cedar which happens to be my view from my little window.

Look at the fine detail! Kimberly double sided the flowers so when they turn on the chain, front and back look the same and the encapsulated crystals can sparkle.

Love it! Thanks so much Kimberly.
I sent Kimberly something she likes which are Butterflies. As I mentioned…go visit her blog if you want to see what I made for her.
Here are some of the other participants’ blogs…

Alenka Obid http://pepita-handmade.blogspot.com/2012/08/window-ornament-swap.html
Kimberly Idalski http://kimisjewelryandgifts.blogspot.ca/2012/08/artisan-polymer-clay-swap-window.html
Vanessa Betcher http://vanessasclayadventures.blogspot.ca/2012/08/window-ornament-swap.html
Leila Bidler http://www.lbidler.com/apps/blog/show/18400894-facebook-swap-organized-by-tina-holden-
Anne Roncalli http://leboudoirdanne.canalblog.com/archives/2012/08/27/24975703.html
Nadia Gennari http://easywom.blogspot.it/2012/08/international-polymer-clay-swap-la-mia.html
Manon van Kempen: http://www.manonvankempen.com/1/post/2012/09/window-ornament-swap.html
Ilenia Moreni: http://leggendesegrete.blogspot.it/2012/09/international-swap.html

Good to the last drop

We usually say that about coffee, but here I actually mean that about resin. Not the UV resin you’ve heard me talk about so many times before, but the Little-Windows.com resin. Yes, it’s definitely my new love! It’s a 2:1 ratio resin rather than a 1:1 ratio that most other resins use for combination of Resin and Hardener. I find I just can’t go wrong with this one. I posted a little about it back in April. I’ve tried 1:1 ratio resins but sometimes ended up with beautiful but unusable tacky pieces which I sadly had to toss. And UV resin, while it has great uses, the annoying thing is that you can’t mix opaque stuff into it. And for the LW resin, I don’t have to wait for the sun to shine (here in the North, haha), or plug in my Aluminum foil lined Lunar Excursion Module (LEM) UV oven. Blablabla…ok here is a little idea with a bit more blablabla attached, lol. Notice the teardrop ends of the beads? I’m entering these in the 52 earrings a year which I have fallen behind in. I’m planning on catching up!

I normally use these cute silver little headpins with the round ball ends or the plain flat hammered end ones which I have so many of. Then this idea hit me…why not make some!!

When done working with a batch of resin, as instructed you can wipe the cup with a paper towel to then being able to reuse the cup. But now I make use of those last few drops before wiping it. Well,in case you’re wondering how I then cure them…here they are…

I just used Scotch Tape and taped the pins onto the shelf above my head. They’re not drippy at all, but you could place a sheet of printer paper underneath just in case you have your coffee there or whatever, lol.

Mine are black because I used Fran’s magical black powder that is used with her Dichro tutorial (the video of which you can watch in my April link above). You could also use glitter or colorful embossing powders.

Stay tuned for asap…

German Bead Soup

It’s time for the Bead Soup Blog Hop and our 2nd Reveal for August 11th! There was one a week ago and the last one a week from now. It was split up because there are 400 participants!!
A few weeks ago I blogged about all the wonderful things I received from my Partner Stefanie Teufel of Germany. Here is a recap of what she sent.

She knew I like Copper so she included some chain, a Toggle and Focal Heart in that metal which I used as the basis for this necklace. I didn’t use all the beads as I only had so many copper bead caps and wasn’t sure how else to pull off the larger beads or how to incorporate the odd smaller beads work with the large, but I think this one works!

Here is another view. The focal with the Green Agate bead



I used the Jade and Coconut beads for these Earrings…

I filled the little glass vial with sand and all the small beads that would fit in and used the green jump ring to hang from a simple necklace that has African frosted flower beads.

So I was able to use most of the beads.

Our Wonderful Hostess, Lori Anderson, Pretty Things

Summer Bracelet Fun

I’ve been making and selling a few bangles and none received more compliments than the one I chose to keep for myself. So I’ve decided to share it, in the form of my latest tutorial.

This tutorial is fold as in 2 parts. First I show how to create the crackles and craze with the full tutorial of "New Crackle", then second, how to create round and flat round elasticized bangle bracelets. The tutorial will shows a modification of the crackle. Nothing gets wasted when you use the crackled veneer for other projects and then use the left over bits to create these types of bracelets.

The Bangles are unique in that the 2 halves interconnect with elastic. You can also create these bracelets with other veneers such as Mokume gane, milifiori canes or my Batik technique which I think is a lot of fun.

This 15 page tutorial has more than 40 photos as guidance with the detailed step by step.

I’ve listed it in my Etsy, ArtFire and Zibbet, so one can choose their preferred Market place. There is a bit of a bonus with a percentage discount on ArtFire (Comment and Patrons). The other markets don’t offer this yet.

Ok, but what about if you already have the ‘New Crackle” Tutorial? Well, you could just create your own bangles I suppose, lol. I was thinking of offering just the bracelet as a project part, so one can use their own technique along with it and just learn my tips and method, but it gets to be a bit confusing when listing. This was the case with my Batik Flower tutorial, where I offered a tutorial with the technique and the project and then the project alone. I sold very few of the project alone that I stopped offering it.

I could use some opinions on this…