Secret sauce finishes

Adriana Allen's bumpy, bubbly, bold finish on PolymerClayDaily.com

Texas’ Adriana Allen (adrianaallenllc) has concocted a secret sauce for her new Nebula and Sunset earrings. She adds very bumpy grunge over great colors and amplifies the effect with a dash of gold.

Polymer artists continue their tradition of camouflaging the material with finishes that beg to be examined more closely. The trend is exciting and encourages lots of experimentation. Seems we’re getting bolder.

StudioMojo (the weekend newsletter) offers 6 tips for talking about our work. We look at the latest products that will help us mix up our own signature finishes and refine our personal aesthetic. Join us!

Fish for the rainforest

Colorado’s Ann Kruglak (MysticDreamerArt) has helped save thousands of acres of rainforest with her polymer art. She has donated 100% of her earnings since 2010 to the Rainforest Trust.

The project allows Ann to put her money where her mouth and her heart are. At the same time, her art has taken leaps forward as she has created hundreds of pieces of wall art and jewelry. Her colors have grown brighter and her textures deeper on clearly defined shapes to match her energetic retro patterns.

Ann is passionate about both her art and her service project. She sends each piece off with prayers of peace. It’s a win-win use of time and talent. Here she is on Instagram. Thanks, Ann.

Hitting the sweet spot

Pondering how Carol Beal works without supervision on PolymerClayDaily.com

Kansas’ Carol Beal (beadunsupervised) hits a sweet spot with this layered pendant. What grabs you? The glowing color? the intersecting lines? The overlapping shapes? Note how the cording color is repeated in a slim sliver on the edge of one layer.

The red stripe finds its way to very small bead at the bottom. Distress on the edges adds an allure too.

Don’t you love the idea of working “unsupervised” with only your very arty self suggesting what to try next? It works for Carol as you can see on Instagram and Flickr.

Mash-up of memory

Jana Roberts Benzon taps into her floral design past on PolymerClayDaily.com

Utah’s Jana Roberts Benzon can’t stop carving polymer and now she understands why. Jana explains.

This newest mash-up of my carving and murmuration techniques has been rewarding, As I was making these small arrangements I realized that something felt very familiar. For 20 years, I had my own floral design company! Assembling these new little gardens woke up some old muscle memory from my floral work. There it was, ready for service! The body doesn’t forget. Those things we practice lie in wait for later use.

Textiles, illustration, painting, cooking and other crafts we’ve loved can imbue works with our history. What echoes from your past reappear in your designs?

Polymer that changes

Christine Harris' Transmutation looks at change on PolymerClayDaily.com

Virginia’s Christine Harris has built a growing body of work about change, including this Transmutation which is one of her works on exhibit at Lemon Tree Gallery.

Being both a sculptor and an art therapist, Christine welcomes change and has a strong interest in art as a vehicle that makes growth possible. As a child, she was deeply affected by her trips to the cemetery every week with her great-grandmother.

That helps explain why she is drawn to mythology, nature, the animal world, and scary movies. Learn more in this YouTube video, on Facebook and her blog.

As you approach spring, are ideas of growth and the changes it brings appearing in your work?

Circling back to simple

Anouk Stettler bends simple clay into charming shapes on PolymerClayDaily.com

Switzerland’s Anouk Stettler (Habetrot) looks like she’s having fun as she bends and twists ropes of polymer into earrings like these.

She explains, “I make costume jewelry. I do not use gold, silver, and gems. I am not a goldsmith. My works are made of polymer clay, leather and brass – beautiful to look at and memorable for its wearer. Its value lies in the individuality, the creative process and the time I invest in each piece.” Get Anouk’s full effect on Instagram.

After pushing ourselves toward increasingly complex shapes and techniques, it’s good to circle back to simple and delightful ideas.

If you’re looking for more info about the quirky and weird paths your fellow artists are taking, join us at StudioMojo on Saturdays where we gather the most interesting ideas, tools, and trends I run into so that you can round out your polymer education. Join us!

Polymer on target

Louise Fischer Cozzi's polymer on Artful Home are right on target on PolymerClayDaily

We love to search Artful Home from time to time to see if polymer is on target and selling in the trendy online places. Louise Fischer Cozzi’s target earrings are light and balanced. Look over her full line and be sure to note all her clever connections.

We want to stay on target for fundraising for the Namaste Tour too. Hop on over to the angels in the right column and donate in any amount. Ron Lehocky has a supply of Samunnat angels ready to fly off to your home. Contact him at rlehocky@bellsouth.net

Becoming an Instagram follower of SammunatNepal is another way to show them you’re watching and supportive. Thank you!

Portraits with layers of interest

Melissa Terlizzi takes you on safari on PolymerClayDaily.com

Virginia’s Melissa Terlizzi takes us to the jungle with her polymer Safari Portraits. On the finished piece, Melissa included two more portraits – a giraffe, and an elephant – onto the finished canvas.

She sculpts mostly wildlife and mostly for home decor, with a real fondness for her subjects and an understanding of their habitats. Note how she pulls the viewer into her scenes with layers of interest and loads of surprising details. What could have been a good animal portrait makes you part of a story.

Going rogue in Charleston

South Carolina’s Shannon Tabor (Charleston_Clay_Jewelry) models her chunky, colorful, carved beads on Instagram.

Here in Shannon’s Going Rogue necklace, she combines the carved beads she loves to make with textured rounds and a stack of rondelles. She throws in a few surprises just to keep it interesting.

Shannon’s statement necklaces are for those who embrace color and aren’t afraid to speak up. Perfect for spring 2018!

Step-by-step mosaic marvel

Step-by-step mosaic from Bridget Derc on PolymerClayDaily.com

Starting the week with step-by-step photos from the UK’s Bridget Derc makes us feel like we’re already working in the studio.

Bridget’s Katie in the Garden is a 9″x12″ homage to her cat. It took her over a year to finish this polymer mosaic to her satisfaction.

The colors are alluring and her ingenious skinner-blended border will give you a Monday morning headful of ideas. See more of her on Facebook.

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