Polymer Clay Swaps–Hearts & Textures

This deadline for the mailing date for this swap has come and gone and happy to say I can finally blog about it since I’ve received the items from both my partners and they have both received mine. Yay!

The theme was Hearts and Textures, meaning that for the challenge we would create Polymer Clay Texture Plates (from polymer clay) and Hearts which we could stamp with the texture/s we created, but not necessary. Since I primarily work in jewellery I chose to make heart pendants.

Here are the ones I created for my partners, Bonnie Kreger in the USA and Leila Bidler in Italia. I have to say I am very lucky to have had these two ladies as my partners! They both spoiled me as you’ll see in a bit. The first set I sent to Bonnie. The bronze heart has a multi color stripe back with mica clays which I sanded and buffed. You can just barely make out my signature stamp on the side. The green blue heart has just about everything including a bit of crackle.

The second set I made for Leila. The blue heart has crackle and was silkscreened with one of my stencils and then has a layer of resin applied. The bronze hearts’ back, like Bonnies' has mica clays and was sanded and buffed.

Bonnie surprised me with something extra…a Shambala bracelet made with her handmade polymer clay beads that have the same cane as the Heart. Love the shimmer in the cane (darn photos can’t show that) . Of course the resin adds great shine and the pink & black go together like pie & ice cream…mmm. I think the keychain idea is so clever and I’ll never have hubby borrow my keys again!! hehe  Love the kumihimo work with the beads. Bonnie you have way more patience than I do! Bonnie made me laugh when she sent me a note saying the texture plate can be used to feed the birds, lol. I still think even if I don’t use it for texture, I can put it on a Journal as a cover!  

TADA!

Leila too spoiled me… with not 1, but 3 plates! 1 of them is a negative of the other. She made these laying one stripe at a time, baked, sanded to smooth the edges and then carved wiggly lines into them. Pretty nifty and am looking forward to using them. The heart is also sanded smooth and buffed. She left it so I could choose to add a pin, magnet or for stringing, but this might be a cool pocket ‘pet’. I like carrying things in my jacket pockets to play with. I tend to have my hands in my pockets when I walk or stand around. Leila also has a very neat signature stamp, but I forgot to take a photo.

If you are interested in joining our FB swap group, send me a comment or message with your email and I’ll let you know the details. Have a look at these blogs for more…

http://www.lbidler.com/apps/blog/

http://beadcomber.ca/ <<<<<You are here

http://www.fishwifery.blogspot.com

http://www.jainniejenkins.com

http://www.dakotahspolymerplace.blogspot.com

http://www.pepita-handmade.blogspot.com

http://katersacres.com/blog/

http://bleekreations.blogspot.com/

http://minacreations.mo-blog.jp/

http://gesmpccorner.blogspot.com

http://leggendesegrete.blogspot.it/

http://knighttwork.blogspot.com/

New Tutorial - Ammolite, Batik Veneers and more

Am happy to announce that my latest tutorial is finally finished. I know some of you have been waiting on this one for some time. Thanks for being so patient!

This one is packed…24 pages and almost 100 photos. I couldn’t decide on an appropriate ‘short’ title since this tutorial is so packed with techniques, tips and more.
If you're not familiar with Ammolite, it is one of the most wonderful gems, full of flash and fire and just about any color you can think of. It is the fossilized shell of the extinct sea creature Ammonite.
I've divided this tutorial into different sections. You will learn to make:
1. Crackle and Batik Pattern Veneers (a part of
the Batik & Shimmer technique)
2. "New Crackle" technique (one method)
3. Faux Ammolite
4. Uniform color or metallic edging for veneers
5. Faux Bone and Raku Pendants
6. Texturing front and back of pendants
7. 3 styles of polymer clay Bails
8. Bezels for embedding tiny stones or chips of
clay
9. Variations of veneers and pendants
10. Tips and much more.
The Tutorial can be found in my Etsy and Zibbet shops.

Kaweco Fantasie Pens for Polymer Clay Art

 

Childhood memories as a 5th grader in Germany…my cursive handwriting skills were never the prettiest and I would envy some of my classmates who accomplished neatly formed letters and would get complimented by the teachers. One of my teachers must have spoken to my father about my poor cursive skill because on my 10th birthday, or the start of 5th grade, I was presented with a beautiful sea-green fountain pen. My handwriting improved immensely with this new tool, perhaps because I felt more grown-up using a fountain pen. Doing homework didn’t seem such a chore when looking at a beautiful pen while doing so!

I was happy when Kaweco agreed to let me review them on my blog and even happier that they surprised me with both a ballpoint and a fountain pen! Beautiful craftsmanship…

 Kaweco is located in Nuremberg, Germany and is well-known for its exceptionally high quality writing instruments, so I knew I wouldn’t be disappointed. The Company has a long history since it’s early beginnings in 1883. Before setting off to cover them (more on that in a bit), I just had to play and handle them on their own a bit…like a new toy, yes, you know it. I had to click the ballpoint pen a few times, to feel it’s strength, feel it’s nice weight and gave it a ‘go’. I’m not exaggerating when I say it is the smmmmoothest writing instrument I have ever felt touch paper. Like a perfectly weighted pendulum balanced between the fingers, it seems to write almost by itself. Just writing this, I had this image of Japanese Samurai and how particular they are about their swords. I handed the pen to my husband to try, he scribbled something and saw him smirk as the pen disappeared into his pocket! lol. He was teasing me when I objected, saying “ohhh…you want this back?!” lol. I know that I’ll never loan these to anyone, they’re guaranteed to disappear! These pens are like that, no ordinary pens, because as polymer clay artists will appreciate, we can cover and personalize them! Beautiful Chrome and raw brass.

The set comes with plenty of easy to follow photos and instructions in several languages.

Here you can see which parts can be cured in an oven and which cannot.

It took me a couple of weeks to ponder what I would want to cover these with, so finally created my own mokume gane stack in blues, purples and greens with hints of black, gold leaf and translucent. I find this resembles Abalone quite a bit and will hone that a bit more in the next while. I placed pieces of the mokume on a black sheet and rolled it out to a #4 on my Atlas. I used the measurements for cut-outs as per instructions, but found they needed to be adjusted in length just slightly.

I trimmed the pieces and flipped them over to lay the pen blanks on top.

I wrapped the pen blanks and used a soft rubber tip chisel to smooth  and close the seam. I have quite a few tips on how to get a smooth and flawless seam and finish that requires very little sanding afterward. I think I need to put that in a more complete tutorial at some point as I didn’t take any photos of that process.

Here is another tip though…instead of laying the tubes on card stock paper which will produce a slight flat spot on your piece…I use knitting needles (or skewers) and suspend the pen blanks on a tin form. I used the aluminum lid of a case that held little watch cases, but you could use aluminum pans meant for baking or perhaps use makeshift aluminum foil formed into a tray instead. For the pen blank that is closed on the end, I just wadded up some scrap clay as a support under the metal ends, so that the clay on the barrel itself doesn’t touch anything.

After curing and cooling, I covered the metal rims with some scotch tape and wet sanded with 400, 600 and 800 grit. Finally, a good polish on the buffer. I just can’t convey the super high gloss in these photos, but they are smooth as silk and sparkle like glass.

Aren’t they beautiful?? I love them! Btw…I also covered a ball point pen that is commonly used in wood turning. I’ll show you the mishap tomorrow…

Here are a few more examples to wet your appetites about Kaweco pens…

Kaweco’s website is language friendly and you can choose your language on the bottom of the page. Be sure to check their Calendar of events as they’ll also be at Exhibitions in the USA this year. If you too would like to purchase some Fantasie pens (or other pens) for your creativity, their prices are worth it. Contact Kaweco at: info@kaweco-pen.com

From my table…

Just finished 3 items…a UFO Pin and Flower Pin, both for hats but can be worn as brooches or necklaces as well. I have more of those on the way… And a ‘Card chair’ for a Hair Salon...

Heaps of Cabochons to sell

Funny how I think that I have never enough cabochons, pendants and even buttons for jewelry and I definitely do! What happens is that I’ll need a certain colour and shape and make a larger batch than needed for a project instead of scrapping the clay that has been inked, crackled, silkscreened. patterned etc.

This means I don’t use them all and they pile up! then I repeat the process because I want something different instead of looking through what I already have. Told myself that this year I will need to make some changes, but I’ve decided I should sell some of these to give myself a fresh start. I need to empty some of these tins and boxes. Most items are from 2010 to 2012, so not out-dated nor rejects. Here are more! (but not all, lol)

and there are already started projects as well as many cabochons clued on Lacy’s Stiff Stuff in preparation for beadwork. Perhaps I should offer some ‘kits’ and work up some tutorials for the mounted ones and perhaps from the first photo pile.

Here are a couple along with a recent necklace I finished…so kits with a tutorial might work…what do you think?

Horizons 2013 – Vancouver Polymer Clay Guild Retreat

There is still time to register for the Retreat which the Vancouver Polymer Clay Guild will be hosting next month, held at the Park Inn in beautiful Downtown Vancouver, Friday Feb 15 –17.

They have a great line up of workshops and demos. I’m sad that I can’t attend this one and know I’m going to miss a great time shared by all. Will miss seeing some good friends and familiar faces there as well.

Chameleon – a Polymer Clay Exhibition

CHAMELEON will be opening on Sunday February 10th and is running until March 3rd, 2013 at the Seymour Art Gallery in North Vancouver.

The show celebrates polymer clay as a means of playful artistic expression, and reflects the diversity which is possible within the medium.

Meet many of the artists and watch demonstrations of polymer clay techniques at the reception: Sunday, February 10, 2013, 2- 4 pm

Gera Scott Chandler, Rachel Gourley, Carolyn Joy Good, Tina Holden (yep, that’s me!), Joan Tayler, Wanda Shum, and a selection of work by members of the Vancouver and Vancouver Island Polymer Clay Guilds.

I’m very excited about this show!

Glow in the dark and Faux Fun

It’s a new year and hoping you survived the holidays (or weather) without a hitch. Winter isn’t over tho. Apparently we had another Tsunami Warning a few nights ago which was changed to an Advisory…but we slept through it this time and didn’t even hear about it until next morning.

I sat down at my desk to try a Glow in the Dark shot with a borrowed camera. It’s just a simple Fuji, but has a manual setting and my older Sony only has Auto focus which isn’t possible to use in the dark. These dagger beads made from Glow-in-the-dark Premo will be for some earrings and necklace…might be interesting for a night out on the town. I mixed another colour into the clay as it was a bit too green in daylight.

The shot in the dark isn’t as crisp, but then it’s virtually impossible to focus a camera in the dark, even with ‘manual’ and a tripod…or I don’t understand how to use the camera correctly which is entirely possible since I don’t have the instructions.

This shot conveys the glitter quite well.

Ok…perhaps this is boring stuff for you, but I’ve also been working on some Faux things like Turquoise and Nephrite Jade. The slab is faux and for the Jade, the ovals are real. I hand carved the tubes. Hadn't done that for a while. One of my directions this year will be to create more focal beads and incorporating them with bead embroidery. Actually I don’t have a real plan yet.

What’s on your clay table?

Jewelry Class in a Box Review

Mid October a surprise arrived in the mail, a bead kit from PRIMA Beads. I was asked to give my opinion of this product and finally here it is, “Jewelry Class in a Box!” Pearl Collection.

Although I don’t usually assemble jewelry from kits, perhaps that is why I was a bit hesitant (I design my own jewelry), there are times when I either lack motivation, can’t decide ‘what’ to create, what colors to choose or just don’t feel creative, so a kit is a welcome change of pace. And those bauble earrings for the holiday were calling, lol. If you are new to jewelry or have been wanting to create something fashionable, or live in a remote area or can’t visit the nearest bead shop for a class or the class is too pricey, then a kit like this is perfect to learn at your own leisure. PRIMA Beads offers a variety of classes in a box. Their chain class looks alluring…
“Jewelry Class in a Box!” includes everything a beginner would need to create several follow along projects, even good quality multi functional round-nose pliers with cutters. Taking things out of the box there is even a plush reusable bead mat which provides the ideal work surface as it prevents round beads from rolling off your table. Of course it didn’t save my fumble fingers from promptly dropping a crimp bead on the carpet, nowhere to be found, but fortunate for me, for the extras included so save me from having to look with a magnifying glass on my hands and knees, lol. Saved my back too.

  There are beginners kits out there, but I haven’t come across many that are geared toward adults. There is nothing childish about this kit, and a student learns a variety of things, including stringing, crimping, and wirework. The 6 projects consist of 2 Necklaces, 2 Bracelets and 2 Earring Sets. The instructions are concise and even in 3 major languages: English, Spanish and French.

There are Pros and Cons to everything. Like I said, I was pleased that there were extra pins and beads. A few of the beads were stuck together or needed cleaning with a pin to unplug the holes for stringing, especially when using the elastic. I ended up with a few beads left over and breathed a sigh of relief. The tigertail while tightly coiled (3 inches or so of the ends are wrapped around the coil and needed to be snipped off), the rest of the coil straightens with the weight of the beads. The photographic and pictoral instructions along with text are easy to follow and understand.

The biggest downside is perhaps that this kit lacks consideration for those with nickel allergies. So many are severely affected by this metal, not being able to wear certain fashion earrings because of major skin reactions and yes, the earring hooks, jump rings and pins contain nickel (you can test with a magnet…magnetic = nickel) and you may want to use alternative nickel free supplies. The clasps, chain and charms are non-magnetic and are nickel-free. One needs to remember this is a ‘class’, to learn various techniques, so the quality is not High-High grade. Just like any beginner class, one wouldn’t use sterling silver when first learning to crochet wire, copper would be a better alternative. Still, the overall supplies make for some pretty jewelry.

After using this kit, one could use the pattern again, perhaps with some lovely quality beads and supplies from PRIMA Bead. Their catalog is beautifully laid out. Over 3,500 products and even includes PROJECTS! a bead size and wire size chart, approximate bead counts in both metric and inch and other helpful charts. Their website also has techniques and tips. The supplies they carry are quite unique and they have things I haven’t seen elsewhere. PRIMA is located in Florida and they offer volume discounts as well as FREE shipping in the USA.

I especially like this set, with cute Key and Lock charms, but wouldn’t you agree the earring baubles are just perfect for the Holidays? Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all you you!!