Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Is gold green?

by Cynthia Tinapple on August 6, 2008 · 2 comments

From a recent ASJRA newsletter:

It is purported that to create one 18k gold ring results in:

  1. 20 tons of mine waste
  2. another 250 tons of mine waste for a 1ct. diamond
  3. cyanide to separate the gold from the ore
  4. smelting to remove gold impurities (Smelters release upwards of 140 million tons of sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere annually.)

Thanks to Elise Winters for the info.

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Wallace shares new tutorial

by Cynthia Tinapple on August 6, 2008 · 2 comments

Since my studio’s closed for construction, I’m hungry for some hands-on polymer clay activity and Amy Wallace was kind enough to share a brand new tutorial with us.

Her “stacker” beads are a riot of color and pattern that combine into a patchwork quilt effect. If you like the surprise of “natasha” beads, you’ll love Amy’s simple tutorial. Amy’s instructions contain few words, just pictures (I think steps 6 and 7 are reversed). Amy’s tweaked it and added a few more instructions. Write her for clarification if you need it.

The technique is called Damascus Ladder by metal workers and you can find similar tutorials on Polymer Clay Central and other sites. What sets Amy’s version apart is her spiraling the cane into a disk/bead which adds interest by exposing two variations on the pattern, the flat side is a stripe and the edge is a figure.

See more on her etsy site and her blog. Thanks for sharing, Amy.

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I may have to make this cake to keep my caning skills sharp since I’m out of the studio for another day.

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