Polymer journals

Thinking of making a journal for the new year? London’s Aniko Kolesnikova (MandarinDuck) excels at creating finely textured sculpted polymer tiles. When baked and then glued onto blank book covers, the humble journals speak volumes.

The Indian elephant piece to the left is the early, unpainted version of the tile. Layers later, washes of paint and highlights of color make the image much richer. Nothing Aniko has shown before has captured so much attention she says.

You can watch a terrific timelapse of her making a floral journal on YouTube and she hints that a tutorial about the elephant will follow.

Aniko shares her inspirations online on Pinterest and sells on Etsy. See more in process shots of this piece on Flickr.

Perfection in imperfection

The inscription inside Marlene Brady’s polymer and bead journal project pendant reads, “If malice or envy were tangible and had a shape, it would be the shape of a boomerang.” The quote is by Charley Reese.

Marlene was frustrated with the way the transfer smeared and blogged about her dissatisfaction with her art. Her readers had a different reaction. Reading their comments is a treat. They were struck, as I was, with the color and liveliness of the pieces that convey Marlene’s heartfelt sentiments so effectively.

She says, “My Bead Journal Projects are my way of giving myself permission to process negative feelings in a positive way.” Marlene’s inspiring pieces are a lesson for all the recovering perfectionists out there.