Matchy matchy

A new necklace from Laurel Swetnam updates an old favorite on PolymerClayDaily.com

Oregon’s Laurel Swetnam was bummed that her schedule forces her to miss her friends’ Clayathon class about using what’s in your closet to come up with new palettes and patterns.

Laurel grabbed a much-loved top that gives her a sunny glow every time she puts it on and headed to her studio to try out the concept.

She scored! Her riff on the pattern includes dotted and striped tubes that enhance but don’t compete with the flowery batik pattern.

If you’d like some pointers about how you can mix and match accurately without going overboard, grab a seat in the online class with Shelley Atwood and Joan Tayler.

Give your old favorites new life.

StudioMojo lets you in on all sorts of behind-the-scenes happenings every Saturday. Sign up here!

Playing during a party

Loretta Lam test drives a new idea at Clayathon on PolymerClayDaily

It’s not easy to be productive at a busy event like Clayathon where you are bombarded with ideas and opportunities to socialize.

Loretta Lam bravely used her time to play, trying out an idea that had been rattling around in her brain. She envisions a long chain of these 3″ tubes covered with mix and match patterns. The neutral palette keeps her focus on shape and design.

Passersby help her with a thumbs up or down. The patterns are all Loretta and the shapes allow us to see them in a new way.

Roaming the workroom

Gail Bor creates arty paper-bead style polymer beads around dowels on PolymerClayDaily.com

Finding out what’s catching on, what’s trending is one good reason to attend polymer events in your area. Chunky wrapped beads formed in the paper bead style and baked around varying sizes of wooden dowels popped up at Clayathon. This particularly striking one is from Gail Bor. Its free and easy style and colors look great with any wardrobe.

Like lots of polymer artists, Gail makes pieces to wear and doesn’t show much of her work online.

Late at night, when everyone clears out of the workroom, I roam with my camera to capture works in progress. The cluttered workspaces offer great insight into each artist’s methods and thought process. In this week’s StudioMojo you can wander the conference with us and pick up new tools and ideas. Sign up now to join us for the inside scoop this Saturday.

Festive giveaway

A small switchplate? A buckle? Canadian Pat Ghadbane explained that this 2 1/2″ x 2 1/2″ maple leaf was one of her sought-after scarf pins that Pat made to give away as swap items and use as poker chips.

Who doesn’t love a useful little memento? Especially one as well designed as this one? Pat’s chunky variation of Nikolina Otrzan’s pixie cane celebrates our guests from the north in a festive shower of confetti.

See more from Pat on Facebook and Flickr.