Stringing and shopping

Katya Karavaeva’s (nikamiart) pendants glow with colors that are both dark and clear. Her pendants often have rings buried on the top from which she strings them to flatter each design.

This is not your usual drill-a-hole-and-grab-a-cord approach. Look at the multi-strand and braided cords that she’s paired with her beads on Instagram.

On sale now!

The catalog from the Into the Forest exhibit is a keeper, a souvenir of a monumental event. You can now order one online by following this link.

You might also want to click on Dan Cormier’s new online Single-Slice Mokume MasterClass which debuts in January. The pre-launch, early bird pricing ends at midnight tonight (Wednesday).

The Sculpey.com store is now open and PCD readers can get an extra grand opening discount by using the promo code PCD20%

Exploring cutting machines

Sabine Spiesser layers machine-cut pieces of reef on PolymerClayDaily.com

Australia’s Sabine Spiesser has been learning the ins and outs of cutting, using a Silhouette machine and coming up with new designs. Layers of lightweight jointed pieces are slightly textured to resemble felt.

Sabine shares more of her samples on Facebook.

She credits the classes on Craftcast for getting her over some humps. If you’re intrigued by this technology there’s a new machine etching class online with Cindy Pope this Saturday. Instructions for metal clay apply to polymer as well.

Cutting machines offer new possibilities for polymer and we’ve only scratched the surface.

Wakeup call

Aric Verrastro moves beyond the forest. Care to follow? on polymerclaydaily.com

Is Aric Verrastro’s necklace too Energetic for you on a Monday?

Our Into the Forest weekend keynote speaker, Brigitte Martin from Crafthaus, asked, “What comes after technique?”

The answers have to do with expression and a bigger vision of what your craft can do.

Aric’s steel, spray paint, tool dip and polymer necklace (actually it’s sculpture with a hole for your head) points one way to art. What happens when you walk out of the forest into the larger world?

Facebook is awash in photos from the grand weekend in Pittsburgh and some of the lovely gallery goers are pictured on Instagram.

Drawn squiggles and dashes

Mouna Cadra has a keen eye and steady hand on PolymerClayDaily.com

This dish from France’s Mouna Cadra waves gently on the tabletop. Its vertical patterns make your eyes trace up and down the lines.

Mouna cured the white clay and then added the designs with pigment markers. The thought of drawing on baked polymer sounds refreshingly uncomplicated, It must be a challenge to draw those squiggles and dots with precision and without smudges, however. Read more about Mouna on her site and Facebook.

Speaking of things being harder than they look, I’m off to Pittsburgh’s Into the Forest weekend and will compile all my snapshots and first impressions into a report for tomorrow’s StudioMojo. I hardly know what to expect! Join us to see the results on Saturday morning.

Polymer fly on the wall

Gesine Kratzner’s Blobhouse characters provide a whole kennel of wall pets, monsters that dangle from the ceiling and tabletop critters.

You may recognize your own friends and neighbors in her current series of People and Their Pets.

Enjoy Gesine Kratzner's odd assortment of polymer pets on PolymerClayDaily.com

If you could use a good laugh, visit Gesine’s Instagram, and her Etsy. She’s also made a rollicking fun Advent calendar for the past two years. Let’s hope she’s planning one for 2017 that we can follow.

Gesine’s Fly on the Wall shows me what I’ve always wanted to be. In fact, I’ll be your fly on the wall at this weekend’s opening of the Into the Forest Exhibit in Pittsburgh.

Stamped and stacked polymer

Wendy Moore stamps wisdom on a brooch on PolymerClayDaily

Australia’s Wendy Moore does a bit of self-talk with this four-layer brooch. We’re all braver than we believe, stronger than we seem, and smarter than we think.

That’s a good thing to remember on a Wednesday. It’s amazing how much wisdom can come from a little polymer, some light textures, and a few stamped phrases.

Wendy’s in Nepal working with the Samunnat women and testing all three of those thoughts. Follow her visit on Instagram.

Oddfae step into the light

Dawn Schiller's characters go all chromatic on PolymerClayDaily

Usually, Dawn (Dee) Schiller’s goblins hide in seashells, peer out of watch cases and dribble down candlesticks.

Her newest Chromatic Goblins step out into the California light and proudly reveal their colors.

Does this signal a change in attitude for Dee and her OddFae? They’re so proud of themselves. Follow her on Facebook and see more on Etsy.

Sometimes when you’ve had a change of heart, you can’t stop it from coming out in the clay.

These beads weren’t made for wearing

Fabi Ajates' beads climb up the walls on PolymerClayDaily.com

Need a break from jewelry or have a bare spot on the wall that could use a spot of color? Cruise through the blog of Spain’s Fabi Perez (ConTusManos). There may be other uses for your favorite beads.

Fabi gathers fancy colorful polymer focals and builds them into bouquets mounted on painted wood. Some are featured in framed windows or made into knobs.

If a bowl or a box is more to your liking, she’s full of ideas. Here’s her Flickr.

Yes, Fabi makes great jewelry but she shows us how to branch out to decorative items for more variety.

Salads and polymer

Jane Cox turns simple wooden kitchen utensils into special gifts on PolymerClayDaily.com

The UK’s Jane Cox (JaneLovesCreativity) turns simple wooden kitchen utensils into special gifts.

She winds comfy colors of extruded polymer strings around the handles, smooths the clay and polishes it to a shine after curing.

Imagine a friend smiling as she stirs dinner or serves salad with the spoon that reminds her of you.

There’s plenty of time to create these before the holidays, right?

We’ll be peeking into Tory Hughes Santa Fe atelier this week on StudioMojo. See how she surrounds herself with samples of luscious colors before she begins. Join us!

Shish kebabs are hot

Ashley Hicks glamorous shish kebabs sell out on PolymerClayDaily.com

These Table Totems from the UK designer Ashley Hicks look as refreshed and silly as I feel. One fan calls them glamorous shish kebabs. His variety of polymer shapes are stacked on rods and perched on painted wooden bases.

Here’s an in-process shot. He seems to relish the love/hate responses from his commenters.

Ashley makes much larger, resin sculptures with the same vibe. Carried by trendy London decorating stores, his works are often sold out. Follow him on Instagram and his site.

I missed you PCD readers in October but our separation was a good thing and I’m happy to be back home.

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