Bloody French Necklace

You must have one final, tasteful polymer clay Halloween treat this season. French artist Delphine Roche de Montgrand was inspired by another illustrator’s drawing to make this bloody necklace. If you’re looking for a last-minute costume, here it is.

I was snooping around in Susan Lomuto’s Polymer Clay Notes and followed one of her features to this goodie. Montgrand’s site is full of lovely creations. Thanks, Susan.

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SonofaMother Masks for your car

These polymer clay FreakMagnets are meant to be displayed on the back of your car. They’re made by Etsy artist, SonofaMother.

He’s from Biloxi, MS and was inspired by traditional African masks. SonofaMother dips liberally into his toolbox for wires and screws to embellish his creations in unusual and clever ways.

The link was sent in by Cassy Muronaka (you’ll find her in these publications) and she purchased the mask/magnet shown here.

Nagumo Rie

The best way to see the exciting polymer clay work by Tokyo polymer clay artist Nagumo Rie is to go to her site. Once there, keep reloading the front page to see nice big photos of her thin, delicate designs. Lovely inspirations to start your week.

I’m desperate for her new book, Polymer Clay Accessories, and am trying to figure out how to get it from Amazon Japan.

In the meanwhile I’ve google-translated and scanned her site and learned that she’s a multi-talented artist who started in textiles and works in PMC and polymer. Her blog is chock full of pictures of her world travels and classes.

I found her link on Alev Gozonar’s Turkish site! There’s more to this globe-spanning story. Stay tuned.

West’s new work

Maine’s Melanie West resisted the urge to make a face cane until her idea was just right. It was worth the wait. The resulting round beads are cheerful and fun in her new Etsy gallery.

Melanie’s work took a leap forward after her classes in Italy this summer. Take a look at the great translucent earrings she made after taking Louise Cozzi’s workshop. There’s lots of new inspired work on her site.

McCaw’s studio peek

I’m pleased to see that many of you are as curious about studios as I am. (Thanks to yesterday’s Betsy Baker for sharing hers.) To continue the theme, here are a few pictures of Sandra McCaw’s small workspace. Sandra’s muse likes a comfy chair too. I like her combination of sage and turqouise wall colors.

Is your studio in the middle of things or hidden away? Are you tidy or is chaos comforting? Do you prefer an open space or a cozy corner? If you’ll send me pictures of your inner sanctum, I’ll share them here from time to time.

And in case you missed this a few months back, there’s a demo of Sandra’s signature cane (pictures taken a mere ten years ago). Oh, and don’t miss her web page.

Learn from Baker’s Blog

Boston’s Betsy Baker takes simple polymer clay shapes and gives them an interesting twist as in this necklace with alternating long bi-conal and rounded square beads. Take a look at her offerings on Etsy and her web site.

The neatness extends to Betsy’s studio space where she says she must have a comfortable chair or her muse will refuse to visit.

Betsey’s does a bang up job of distilling her notes from her class with Maggie Maggio in Stresa, Italy. If you want the color smashing crib notes, read Betsy’s blog.

Selling polymer clay art wholesale

Get busy and get smarter this Monday…

Three polymer clay artists who have never done a major wholesale show will be chosen to share a booth free of charge at the American Craft Retailers Expo in Las Vegas next April. They’ll be taking orders from a wide audience of buyers. The online entry deadline is October 31 (soon, soon, hurry).

Jump start your color knowledge by watching Maggie Maggio’s new 8-minute video on color. She has several tutorials available free on her site. See Maggie’s pins at the left. The link was sent by Jean Anderson.

News from "across the pond"

The British Polymer Clay Guild reports the outcome of their meeting with Fimo manufacturer, Eberhard Faber. The company has reformulated the clay to make it softer and to remove phthalates. The new clay is stronger and hardens at a lower temperature. Its consistency and elasticity are noticeably different. Big changes ahead.

England’s Sue Heaser has a new book out, Encyclopedia of Polymer Clay Techniques. Heaser is chair of the British Polymer Clay Guild and runs her own company, The Polymer Clay Pit, which is the largest supplier of polymer clay products in Europe. This is Sue’s eighth book and she demonstrates over 50 techniques in it.

Susan Hyde’s Site

I’m such a fan of Washington’s Susan Hyde that I was giddy when she sent me the link to her new polymer clay site. It’s not quite finished…they never are.

Susan’s color sense is eye-popping and she can make polymer clay look like the most complex fabric. Her fabric tutorial shouldn’t be missed.

Polymer Cake Sculpture – Life Size

You gotta see this!

Here’s the rest of the story about Elizabeth Bonura’s life-size polymer clay wedding cake topper. (Here’s the beginning of the story.)

The bride saw a similar cake when she was a child in Nigeria and it became her dream….come true.

Fabulous! Crazy!

Dittmar’s Show

Enjoy these pictures from the reception for "The Evolution of Psychepolymereganics," Meredith Dittmar’s one-woman show at Compound Gallery in Portland, Oregon.

If you want to know a bit about how Meredith works, read this article from an earlier Portland show. You’ll find information about this prolific artist all over the web including previous posts ( here and here) on PCDaily.

In conjunction with her artwork she works as an independent character designer and maintains her company, Corporatepig, through which she continues to create handmade characters called "My Guys." These 3D polymer clay doodles are quirky and lovable and she’s created over 10,000 of them since 1994.

The show runs until October 31. Here’s the catalog of work in the show. Thanks to River Wolfe for the link.

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