Liquid Polymer & Scrap Fabric
August 29, 2012 Technique tutorials, Tips and Tricks
Isn’t liquid polymer just wonderful as a finish for polymer? Transluscent, easy to apply, durable … Those same qualities actually allow it to work really well with a few more things beside polymer.
Genevieve Dolosor shows how she uses small bits of fabric to create colorful backgrounds using LPC to seal it and make the bit of fabric more substantial so it can be shown off as a center piece like a semi-precious stone in this tutorial.
So pull out those old ties, scraps of fabric or that dress you’ve been wanting to shorten (from hemline to art!) and snip yourself off some color and pattern to play with.
The Nails Have It!
August 21, 2012 Inspirational Art, Technique tutorials
I’ve been drawn to stripes a lot lately … we have a cool striping tutorial in the latest issue — a simple, fun technique from Donna Greenberg that you can add to your approach to any practice in rhythm and repetition you might be inspired to try from the articles focused on those design concepts — as well as a lot of sample art in the Fall 2012 issue that uses lines as a primary design elements.
So a set of striped nails attracted me like a magnet. Polymer nail art has so much potential and not just the cane accents that have become so popular.
Claire Wallis’ Facebook tutorial with the steps on how to make your own fake nails with polymer is terrific. After you have looked at the tutorial, buzz over to her site to check out more hyponotizing stripes in her work, especially her beautiful bangles.
Aging Like Porcelain
August 15, 2012 Polymer community news, Technique tutorials
I restrained myself from presenting any crackling techniques lately (cracked textures being a weakness of mine!) but I figure enough time has passed to share this beauty and mention a couple of polymer friends along with it.
This if the work of Tonja Lenderman. She developed this technique which is posted on Polka Dot Creation’s page for free viewing. It looks like the full-detail tutorial is being published in the upcoming issue (Pink) of From Polymer to Art, due out in less than a month. Although Polka Dot Creations is phasing out their retail shop, Lisa will still continue to distribute the next couple print issues of From Polymer to Art in the US. So do get your copy reserved through them here.
In the meantime, if you are in a crackling mood, take a crack at this technique (I had to say it!) then you can review the full tutorial to improve upon what you’ve learned.
Cutting in Your Canes
August 11, 2012 Inspirational Art
It’s just amazing what a few impressions with a card can do for a simple cane. Although you will see this most commonly with jellyroll canes, you can try this with any abstract or geometric cane.
Using translucents gives the impression of semi-precious stone as well magnifying the luminosity of the colors. Aren’t these just gorgeous?
You can see the full tutorial by Elissa Powell on www.pcpolyzine.com. Just thought I’d give you something cool to try out this weekend when you aren’t out enjoying the summer outside.
Looking for more great tutorials and information? Do take some time to peruse pcPolyzine’s site. Tons of great stuff here!
A Light Swirling Mystery
August 2, 2012 Inspirational Art
We are probably all familiar with the use of a light bulb to create lentil beads but how about a swirl?
This beauty popped up on Pinterest with no credit given. The site it goes to, after translation, looks to be a page of gathered tutorials but there is not credit given for this wonderful work, just a link to the LiveJournal Polymer Clay page, which is posted to by numerous artists. I’ve done some searching but so far no luck. If anyone knows whose this is, please put it in the comment section and I will update when I see it.
In the meantime, enjoy the eye candy and the tips in the tutorial!
Beautiful Brains
July 25, 2012 Inspirational Art, Technique tutorials
Did you ever think brains could be so lovely?
Yes, I said brains.
This brain cane just goes to prove that anything with the right coloring and application can be beautiful.
Dája Dagmar Andělová from the Czech Republic works some rather straight forward but beautiful magic with just a little folding of a few sheets of clay.
Interested in trying your hand at some brain work? You can see her tutorial here.
Silk Screening Anyone?
July 17, 2012 Technique tutorials, Tips and Tricks
Have you been curious about what it would take to try out silk screening on polymer? I can tell you the whole process is relatively simple. You need a few specialty supplies (but who doesn’t like having to get a few new supplies!) and a little practice. Once you get it down it can be quite addictive.
Here are few pins by Karen Woods with lots of silk screening textures to intrigue you.
If you want to look into it further, Polymer Clay Express has both a tutorial posted as well as supplies to get you started.
And our friends over at Polymer Clay Productions have a great video on polymer silk screening with lots of good tips to get you started: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJZ8ec8NAko
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Are you familiar with something known as the flow state? This is that space you get in where you are lost in your own little world because you are so wrapped up in what you are doing. It happens quite commonly when people are working on creative projects and it’s a really good thing for you, both because it dissipates stress and because it increases your level of “feel-good” chemicals like serotonin and dopamine. It’s also defined as an “optimal state of consciousness where we feel our best and perform our best.” Now, who wouldn’t want that?
I bring this up because I want to talk about mosaics. I think a lot of people look at all those tiny pieces and think, “That looks like a ton of work!” And, yeah, there might be a lot of steps to putting a mosaic together, but the technique is also one that really gets you deep into a flow state. It can be kind of like doodling but with little pieces.
It would not be a hard thing to start on. Most of us have access to tons of tiny pieces, either through leftover canes, unused polymer sheets, or failed projects we haven’t had the heart to toss out. Just slice up those canes, cut up those sheets, and/or start chopping up those cured elements and you have all you need to start creating mosaics. Of course, you can make pieces specifically for mosaics from fresh clay, too!
Mosaics have been on my mind these last couple weeks because, while working on the latest book, Polymer Journeys 2019, it became quite apparent that one of the bigger trends making a splash right now is polymer mosaics and so I thought we ought to take a closer look at this not so new but definitely interesting and flexible technique. (By the way, today is the last day to get the Pre-order Sale pricing on Polymer Journeys 2019! Go to the website to get it at 30% off the cover!)
Mind you, being the insanely creative and exploratory artisans and crafters that they are, polymer enthusiasts aren’t just slapping together any old standard expectation of a mosaic. They are mixing mediums, trying out every shape in the book, using three-dimensional forms, and generally just pushing the boundaries of what the mosaic technique is. Gotta love polymer crafters!
So, let’s take a look at what some people are doing as of late and we’ll end with suggestions for getting into the mosaic flow yourself.
Different Kinds of Bits & Pieces
One of the folks who, at least initially, takes a classic approach to the art form of mosaics but certainly adds her own flavor to it, is Christi Friesen. She cuts out squares of polymer, lays a base to adhere them to and then arranges the pieces in pleasing and energetic patterns. But of course, Christi can’t leave well enough alone — she has to add bling and embellishments of all kinds! She’s been mixing in glass, wire, charms, beads, and probably a bunch of other things I will never be able to identify, to create her whimsical tiles, vessels and jewelry. Can’t you just sense the depth of the flow state she must have been in creating this beautiful maelstrom?
You could say that Claire Fairweather is classically inspired too, but her work has a twist to it. That twist is a commitment to circles used to create these wonderful images of graduated color and varied texture. Using round elements instead of squares and straight-sided shapes that join neatly together, leaves more open space but it’s one that has a fairly regular rhythm that flows in and out of the carefully placed circles. This gives the imagery more orderliness and a softer look as you can see in the many sides of her mosaic globe below. (Be sure to jump over to her blog to get the rundown on what each side is showing.)
Keep in mind that a mosaic piece does not have to be all mosaic. Large swaths can be made up of other types of polymer elements such as textured, silkscreen, impressed, or hand tooled layers or forms. A lot of Susan Crocenzi’s work, especially earlier in this decade, consist of entire halves of her pieces being a kind of polymer landscape, surrounded by glass mosaics or a mix of mosaic mediums. Here is just one example below but you can find more on her website too.
For all of you mad caners out there, here is an example of how beautifully energetic a piece can be just by arranging thick cane slices on a simple form. This bib necklace is a yet-to-be-hung creation by Ivy Niles, who makes some of the most impressive canes. You can see how much more impressive they are when working together in this off-center mandala type pattern.
If you really like the idea of doing mosaics don’t relegate your sources of inspiration to the work of polymer artist’s, as unique as they may be. Take a look at what glass and tile mosaic artists are doing these days as well (just type “mosaic art” into your favorite browser or an image-centric site, like Pinterest or Instagram) if for no other reason than there is some amazing and gorgeous work out there to enjoy. Here is a gorgeous piece by Francis Green in what seems to be a rare piece of wall art. This woman will mosaic anything she can get her hands on! She kinda reminds me of some unbridled polymer artist with their canes. Just take a look at her website.
The How-Tos of Mosaics
So, are you itching to try some mosaics now? Here are a few places you could start:
- If you want to start with something classic, even, and orderly, check out this straight-forward mosaic tile tutorial by Korrina Robinson on her blog.
- Prefer a more open and visually textural approach that is flexible enough to use any type of clay sheets or even canes? Take a look at this mosaic vase by Kathy Koontz on the Sculpey website.
- If you’re ready to really dive in, might I suggest you invest in this great tutorial on micromosaics and faux glass by Pavla Čepelíková. The opening image of this post shows examples of some of the things she’ll teach you to make in this downloadable PDF.
- If you want to use mosaic as a way to diminish your pile of scrap clay and cured bits, take a look at Christi Friesen’s mosaic video tutorial here. You can also have fun creating mosaics Antoni Gaudi style on an unusually formed box with Christi in the Polymer Art Projects – Organic book (go to our website to get your copy!)
- And if that’s not enough, Christi sells mosaic kits on her website where you can also find tons of other embellishments and bobbles to assist in your mosaic flow. Just click here!
- I even have some exciting mosaics for you to look forward to too … We just found out that Staedtler/Fimo is going to sponsor Ann and Karen Mitchell, the Masters of liquid polymer clay, to create a mini mosaic tutorial for the next issue of The Polymer Studio magazine. This is a changeup to Karen’s tiny micromosaic technique published in The Polymer Arts back in the Fall of 2015.
Whew! I got into a flow a bit there myself writing excitedly about all this fun stuff. I hope you’ll give mosaics a try if you have not already, or at least give yourself some time to just get lost in your craft today. It’s good for the brain and the soul and you never know what will come of it later in your creative journey!
Read More
Saturday was a bittersweet day as we released the final issue of The Polymer Arts. It is enjoying a wonderful reception as it is packed full of great ideas, beautiful techniques and lots of food for thought to get those creative wheels spinning.
If you are one of our readers expecting a digital edition but haven’t seen it yet, look in your inbox for a midday email Saturday or check spam/junk mail folders if it’s not there. The print editions headed to the post office on Friday so they should start popping up in mailboxes soon. If you are on the east coast of the United States or overseas, allow up to four weeks for it to arrive.
Here is a collage of some of the first pages of articles if you haven’t seen the issue yet. This issue feels a bit like a transition between what The Polymer Arts has been and what the new magazine, The Polymer Studio, will be. There are a lot of tutorials focused on technique, as always, but with a more accessible range for the novice to the intermediate craftsperson. Rather like The Polymer Studio will be.
I also wrote a couple of short pieces in this issue, talking about the role of publications in our creative lives and how these ideas caused me to make the changes we are making with the magazines. You can read about the development of these magazines in the “Editor’s Worktable.” In this issue’s back page “Muse’s Corner” is my personal story about how circumstances and refocusing on self-care precipitated the decisions to close one magazine and start another.
As always though, we have lots for you to ponder and act on regarding things like your creative vision, the use of color, selling your work, expanding your jewelry forms, and working as an artist in the world of polymer. The fascinating interview with Helen Breil is reason enough to get this issue. She is a very unusual woman who really took a different path. I think you’ll find some surprising details in this and many of the other articles in this issue.
So if you haven’t yet, you can get your own copy of this very special last issue of The Polymer Arts by ordering it online here.
While you do that, I am going to go visit family in Colorado and drive through the mountains in all their changing colors but I’ll drop in here Wednesday, as usual, with a peek at a few things that we weren’t able to fit in this issue of The Polymer Arts.
Read MoreThis week is going to be a series of announcements but I promise, they will all be very exciting, they will all be polymer, and they will all give you something you can look forward to as we move into fall and winter (or spring and summer if you’re down under.)
First up… I can finally announce and show off the cover of the first in an upcoming series of books, Polymer Art Projects. This series arose from your consistent request for more projects and a desire to support and promote our great artists, so, after many conversations, I came up with this cooperative book project. All contributing artists in the book will be part of a promotion and profit sharing team. That means they are highly motivated to provide you with some truly fantastic material on top of looking forward to sharing their love of polymer art.
For less than a couple of dollars each, you get 16 tutorials that will expand your abilities under the guidance of some of the polymer community’s best instructors. The skill level of these tutorials range from the experienced novice to the intermediate artisan, with tips and ideas for polymer crafters of all levels. The tutorials are very detailed, each showing off a variety of techniques, expert construction, and lists of ideas for variation so you can create your own unique pieces from what you learn.
The first in the series, Polymer Art Projects—Organic, includes tutorials by Donna Greenberg, Christi Friesen, Eva Haskova, Anke Humpert, Debbie Crothers, Kim Cavender, Stephanie Kilgast, Chris Kapono, Stacy Louise Smith, Nevenka Sabo, Adriana Allen, Dani Rapinett, Fabiola Ajates, Rebecca Thickbroom, Klavdija Kurent, and little ol’ me. Projects include a variety of jewelry as well as home decor, all inspired by mother nature.
Check out the cover for a sampling of what you can look forward to. The cover price for the print edition of this book will be $23.95 but for the next month, you can preorder for $16.75 – that’s 30% off the cover price. Or maybe you’d like a digital edition which will list for $15.95 – you can preorder the digital edition for just $11.95. These preorder prices are good through October 10th.
Don’t forget the last issue of The Polymer Arts comes out September 22. Preorder this last historic copy on The Polymer Arts website.
Read MoreOne more little tease before I go off. This is a brand-new Christi Friesen piece she created just for the new book, Polymer Art Projects—Organics, for which we will have discounted pre-sale opportunities when I get back in a couple of weeks.
Christi has been playing around a lot with mosaics and shares her techniques for creating polymer mosaic pieces and then applying them on variously shaped surfaces. This covered tin box is a textural jungle gym for the fingers. She mixes the busy, hard-edged mosaic pieces with the soft, organic flowing shapes and surface variations. This is all done over a tin box. Her tutorial is wonderfully detailed and allows some room for those people who like to change things up a bit as they go along, making their own unique version. Which, I think, is the end goal of working through tutorials—to learn the skills to make your own unique, self-expressive work. All the tutorials in this book will give you that opportunity if that’s what you want.
I thought it was also apropos to share this particular piece because Christi’s inspiration for this is Gaudi, as in Antoni Gaudí whose work can be found all over Barcelona. And that is exactly where I’m heading to tomorrow! For three days I’m going to take in all the Gaudi and fabulous Spanish food I can manage. So with that, I leave you in the hands of my generous artist friends, starting with Christi guest-blogging on Friday. ¡Hasta luego!
See more of Christi’s mosaics on her website and stay tuned here or get our newsletter, which you can sign up for on our website here, to be one of the first to hear when the new books are ready to order.
Read MoreI spent a lot of time looking for differently constructed clocks in polymer and couldn’t find much that really illustrated the point I was hoping to make. What I wanted was to show that a clock does not have to be on a flat surface. It can be made of many parts, attached or not, and fully dimensional. As long as you have something that can house or hide the clock mechanism while holding out the hands, the rest is wide open. You can have the hour markers designated by any form and attach them with sticks or wire or be free floating–whatever suits the piece and your inclination.
These two examples are commercial designs rather than polymer art but I think they give you the basics of this idea of moving beyond the flat clock face. Not only do these kinds of clocks make for really interesting wall pieces, they give you the freedom to use pieces you may already have such as large hollow beads, faux stones, unhung pendants, small figurines, flowers, etc.
As a gift, giving a clock that has separate pieces might be best attached to something that can be hung as one piece, like a backing of Plexiglas or painted plywood. Or include instructions for a template to mark on the wall where each piece goes. There is little to no construction to deal with but you will have to make concessions in the design for how the individual pieces will be hung. Alternately, go for a design where the elements are attached like the flowers you see here.
The sky is the limit with these kinds of designs. For more ideas, try searching “DIY clocks,” which was the keyword set that brought me to these two pieces. I hope these sparks some ideas and I look forward to seeing inventive clock designs this month!
Read MoreThis week’s theme will start with one of our more notorious creative instigator, Christi Friesen. On my end it started when my better half came back from an orchid show not with any orchids but rather with a 4 foot tall branch covered in air plants and I thought, “That is far too many air plants for that stick. I should save some from their crowded existence and make planters for them! In polymer. Of course.” However, in my world, the time between the germination of an idea and gaining the free time to implement it can be pretty vast. A few days later, I saw this photo pop up on Facebook. Apparently thoughts of air plants are, well, in the air!
Being a simple rolled cone construction with a ton of possibilities for color, texture, and embellishment, these little wall sconces of Christi’s are sure to get creative sparks flying for those of you looking for something new, easy and fun to play around with. There is plenty of room in this kind of project for your style and voice to come through. Work up something of your own like forming bowls, boxes, or tubes instead of cones and design it with your own signature colors and treatments.
Easy and fun are the signature marks of Christi’s classes and books, not to mention her community site, Christi’s Creative Neighborhood where have access to all sorts of tutorials, videos and creative ideas along with a chance to share with other like-minded clayers. Check out Christi’s happenings there, on her website and on her Facebook page.
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Read MoreOne of my personal favorite articles in the new Summer issue is the “Blended Beauty” article on creating dramatic color and light in canes, written by Meg Newberg. I have been trying to get a really good article for our caning enthusiasts but for some reason, it’s been a struggle getting anything submitted beyond specific cane patterns. Which are cool, yes, but not quite in line with the technique driven and skill building objective of The Polymer Arts.
This article, however, is amazing. Meg gives concise and clear instruction on how to create the type of clay blends that give her canes that beautiful inner glow and dramatic color. But these ingenious Skinner type blends are for more than just caners, as you’ll see when you read it.
Meg’s focus on canes has allowed her deep and intense exploration into what can be done with canes. If you want to work on your caning skills or just want to create more interesting and colorful Skinner blends, read the article but also consider signing up for Meg’s monthly tutorial subscription (the mandala cane you see on the bottom here is this month’s tutorial) or buy one of her tutorials posted in her Etsy shop.
Weekly Inspiration Challenge: Let’s recharge this weekend! Sit back with a favorite beverage and take in your latest copy of The Polymer Arts or another magazine or book and let you mind process the art and ideas you find. Keep a sketchbook nearby to record any “ah-ha!” moments and if you feel charged up when done, go to the studio and have some casual play time, exploring what inspired you.
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Read MoreJournal covers are very much like blank canvases, which means you can do anything you desire on them. Your medium is probably the only thing that will constrict you, but then you aren’t restricted to one medium, are you? Polymer is amazing and will always be my go to material but I wouldn’t ignore other wonderful options, especially since so many other mediums work so well with polymer.
Here is a journal cover that has no polymer on it but most of the materials used are quite familiar to polymer clayers and could be combined with it to create looks inspired by this texture rich cover. Gabrielle Pollacco uses an insanely wide array of paints, inks, powders, sprays, stencils, stamps and a few other things to create this cover. Sometimes, too many materials is like too many ingredients in a recipe … going overboard can really muck things up. But Gabrielle brings it all together here by limiting her palette and sticking with a weathered look as her thematic motif.
She seriously looks like she is having way too much fun in this video tutorial that she recorded of her full process for creating this cover. I now have a new list of products to find and try so if you watch this, you have been warned that it may result in a bit of frenetic online shopping! Also … the music she uses may get stuck in your head and have you bopping about the rest of the day. It’s not a bad thing. Just wanted to give you a head’s up so you are ready to defend yourself with the mute button if bopping is not appropriate at the time.
Weekly Inspiration Challenge: Create a journal cover for your goals and plans book. Try some new materials to really make it interesting. If you’ve not covered a journal or sketchbook before and find covering a pristine new book on your first try to be a bit too much pressure, create on a separate sheet of clay that can be glued to the journal later or, if you like it as is, can be a bit of inspiration to frame. A sheet of raw clay, cured between two tiles to keep it perfectly flat can be a great ‘canvas’ to work on.
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