Polymer Clay Daily

Contrarian polymer

Lela Todua's bright mixes tell a story on PolymerClayDaily

The slicker and more commercial the holiday frenzy gets, the more I appreciate roughly handmade, Bohemian, tribal, rustic, gypsy, hippie, ethnic designs like this pendant from Ukraine’s Lela Todua (Leland Jewelry).

Lela’s techniques and patterns follow her own whims. She pulls the mix of various textures together with color themes and accents of paint.

I realize that PCD featured Lela’s butterflies just recently. Once my eye locks onto a vibe, I find myself visiting and revisiting a collection to soak it up. Lela builds compelling stories as she picks and chooses an assortment of related components.

Follow her story on Etsy and Instagram.

Bio Bopping polymer

Bonnie Bishoff's multi-media bio bop in Boston on PolymerClayDaily.com

The Bonnie Bishoff Bio Bop brooch is quite a mouthful for mid-week. This polymer, copper, paint and steel wire mixed media pin is on its way to CraftBoston for one last holiday hurrah. While they look light and airy, Bonnie’s pieces are built on metal which makes them incredibly solid.

Betsey Baker and Kathleen Dustin will also have their wares in Boston on December 15-17. You can watch Betsey, Kathleen and Bonnie pack up and run to the show on Facebook and Instagram. These ladies work hard!

Polymer takes wing

Karina Formanova's birdy brooches take wing on PolymerClayDaily

Russia’s Karina Formanova has created flocks of small bird brooches in a huge variety of colors. You can see from her Instagram focus that Karina has studied her birds.

She distills their colors and shapes down to combinations of subtle Skinner blends and delicate canes that make her birds seem to flutter on the wearer’s collar. 

Follow her works in progress on her Facebook and see the range of colors in her shop. The brooches are nicely packaged in nests of matching papers.

Mud cloth Monday

Kathleen DeQuence Anderson's polymer mud cloth on PolymerClayDaily.com

These mud cloth pattern Bogolanfini polymer bangles strike a balance between tribal and contemporary jewelry. The colors are perfect and the patterns are purposely loose and energetic.

Each bracelet is formed from two curved mud cloth-patterned tube beads and four spacers joined with a twist. Another version joins over a wider cuff.

They’re from Massachusetts’ Kathleen de Quince Anderson and she sells some of her polymer creations at the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington. See her signature heart box and most current works on Instagram.

Mosaic moments

Cecilia Leonini's italian mosaic in polymer on PolymerClayDaily

This delightfully asymmetric pendant from Cecilia Leonini (impastarte) leads us into the weekend. The energetic mosaic reaches out in several directions, as if in celebration.

This piece appeared on the FoltBolt Facebook page. If you’re looking for color, you can count on FoltBolt to give you a jolt of inspiration and polymer art appears regularly in their features.

If your muse is befuddled or your mojo is misaligned, come on over to our group at StudioMojo, the Saturday newsletter that provides the spark, the reminder, the new perspective to set you straight again. 

Riotous color winner

Silvia de la Torres explosion of colors becomes a winner on PolymerClayDaily

The first prize winner in the Arcilla Polimérica de España is this color explosion from Silvia Ortiz de la Torre.

Silvia’s riot of colored disks and squiggles are neatly grouped into a necklace that looks ready for New Year’s Eve. For more of her hot colors and unusual constructions, check Etsy and Flickr.

But wait!  There’s more! Ten Spanish award winners are pictured on the guild’s Facebook page.

More selfies!

Ann de Bode takes a selfie on PolymerClayDaily.com

We need more polymer selfies!

This new self-portrait by Belgium’s Ann de Bode captures a sparkle and her sense of fashion. And it’s a nice break from the overworked and over-thought photos for Facebook pages that we usually see.

Ann’s an accomplished illustrator so she makes this little sclupt look deceptively easy. Still, wouldn’t it be fun to see more of these poly people popping up?

Ann’s latest book is based on old family photographs. Poke around on Ann’s Facebook page. Her ancestor’s clothes are fine and the story’s a good one.

Coming home to roost

Wendy Jorre de St Jorre assembles her flock on PolymerClayDaily.com

Bet you didn’t expect a flock of chickens on PCD this morning, did you? These little creatures roosted at the recent Perth Polymer People meet up and were created under the tutelage of Wendy Jorre de St Jorre.

Each hen’s feathers are sliced from a cane and layered over a base. The variety of canes contributes to their colorful personalities. If you need an idea for a social polymer evening, look at Wendy’s Facebook page to see the other one-night projects they’ve tackled.

Wendy sent several large groups of bugs to the Into the Forest that shouldn’t be missed!

Interest in the background

Carola Greiser's Norwegian knitted background on PolymerClayDaily.com

Caner Carola Greiser (polymerclayshed) from Texas starts our week with a black and white background cane. Carola made the cane specifically to frame her moose cane.

But who wouldn’t welcome the sketchy dashes and lines of this composition to enhance a larger design? It has the look of a Norwegian knitting pattern.

Carola uses her designs to cover crochet hooks, card cases,  pens, and other small items that you can see on Instagram and Etsy.

Mean mason jar

Pamela Carmen's big florals cover a jar in a hurry on PolymerClayDaily.com

Florida’s Pamela Carman makes a mean Mason jar. This big floral one has actually been upcycled with one of those fancy liquid soap pumps.

The background for her flowers is textured white clay. Pamela’s big blooms allow her to create a quick composition without having to cover every inch of the glass jar with pattern.

She shows a bunch of them on Instagram if you’re in a handmade gifty mood.

If your mood has gotten grinchy and fed up with the pressures of the season already, join us over at StudioMojo where we help you keep your priorities balanced and your mojo bopping along.