Polymer Clay Daily

Books/Magazines

Polymer pumpkin heads and books

Johnson on PCDaily

Nicole Johnson’s Pumpkin Heads should put you in an October mood. She has a whole gallery of pumpkins complete with teeth and bulging eyes. Her blog is newly renovated for the season with fresh mummies, monsters and zombies. She’s even written a book on the subject.

If zombie books aren’t your thing, there are several new polymer technique books that you may find of interest:

Marie Segal’s Polymer Clay Artist’s Guide is a comprehensive directory of surface effects. (It’s hard to keep track of all the new ones, isn’t it?) She features the work of lots of up-and-coming artists who may be new to you. The pictures make the recipes easy to follow and it’s a reference book that’s handy to have.

If mixed media is more your cup of tea, look at Incite, Dreams Realized: The Best of Mixed Media. You’ll spot the work of several polymer artists in this arty, inspiring book.

If how-to projects with hip designs are what you’re hungry for, try Polymer Clay Art Jewelry by Ilysa Ginsburg & Kira Slye. It’s bright and breezy and full of fashion.

Welcome home polymer

Williamson on PCDaily

Genevieve Williamson and her family were dropped off on a remote island in the South Atlantic for the summer (check out Saint Helena) and she’s recently returned to her rural Pennsylvania home. Her father installed a new skylight in her attic studio while she was away that may make you jealous.

Williamson on PCDaily

Genevieve has taken the dust covers off her work table as she dives into work for a gallery show. Already you can see that her months of a simpler life have changed her approach to clay. These simple strands of tubing in subtle shades, shifting diameters and slim palettes may hint at what’s to come.

She’s also added some variations to her earring project that was featured in Polymer Clay Global Perspectives. Has your summer changed your work?

The proof is in the pod

Veronique Hoffmann (Fimomaus in Belgium) has taken Claire Maunsell's (StillPointWorks in Canada) hollow pod examples from the Global Book and given them her own spin.

Veronique provides a shining example of how techniques bounce across the globe, picking up other influences as they travel. View more of her work here.

Speaking of traveling, I'm in Arizona with a new grandson! Excuse me while I babysit and cuddle these lovely little ones.

Roundabout polymer

Todd on PCDaily.com

Ottawa's Emma Todd provides a teaser for your weekend with her Roundabout beads. Stacked together, these flat swirls of polymer create a wonderful jumbled zigzag effect. She's a swirl expert and makes a big-holed round version plus pendants and beads that show real ingenuity.

Todd on PCDaily

I stumbled into Emma from fellow Canadian Claire Maunsell. Claire hadn't told her family that her story and polymer work would be in a book.

Maunsell on PCDaily

When the Global Perpectives book arrived in the mailbox, Claire snapped some candid shots of her daughter who was surprised to discover her mother's featured work and her story. "This is great, Mum – good for you," is high praise.

Claire also leaked that she's about to release a tutorial which further explains her hollow form technique for polymer. Her project in the book shows you the basics and it's based on her years of glass blowing.

Sister site

PolymerClayGlobal.com

Let me send you off to PCDaily’s new sister site, Polymer Clay Global. It’s the companion site for the brand new book, Polymer Clay Global Perspectives, and was created to help you find out more about the artists in the book.

Enjoy a look at the 13 featured artists. Try the free tutorial from Kim Korringa and explore the links to over 100 artists featured throughout the book which arrives in bookstores in July.

We’ll be adding to Polymer Clay Global regularly. The new site will provide enhanced resources beyond what’s offered in print. Pre-ordering online will get the book to you hot off the presses. Don’t forget to meander back to PCDaily!

Fixed the link! 

Sample polymer

Fresh spring colors pull your eye to the brooches and rings from Madrid’s Fabiola Perez Ajates. These new samples from her May class hum with patterns and layers of interest.

The pièce de résistance is the companion container that hides your jewels. Fabi’s known for her clever containers. Thumb through her Flickr pictures to get a sense of what she does. And note how well her students do!

Can’t get to Madrid? I’m pleased to have a chapter and a project from the fabulous Fabi in my upcoming book that’s available for pre-order on Amazon/Barnes & Noble/Indiebound. It’ll be here by July 30!

Buying kisses, giving away magazines

Our surveys showed that only two percent of polymer artists are men. That statistic may have contributed to the popularity of Dan Cormier and Staedtler’s director of marketing Nils Henssen during the Synergy3 auction.

Saskia Veltenaar and Marjon Donker, publishers of the Polymer To Art Magazine started the silliness by requesting Dan’s kissable stubble as an auction item (a bold move considering that Tracy Holmes was the auctioneer). When Saskia and Marjon later proposed Nils as an item, Hollie Mion and I could not let the Europeans outbid us. Here’s Nan Roche dropping out.

Wind Issue

To raise the stakes, I offered a PCD post that would document the event. I’m paying up with this post. Here are the two kisses that raised hundreds of dollars for IPCA. It was hard to explain to my husband how I placed a winning auction bid and came home with nothing.

Giveaway 5 magazines

Silliness aside, the Netherland’s Saskia and Marjon are offering a copy of this month’s issue of their international magazine, the Wind issue, to FIVE lucky winners who leave a comment on this post. Sign up before Tuesday midnight to be entered to win. Winners will be announced Wednesday.

Polymer karma

This bracelet from Anja Overdijk (based on Helen Breil’s shapes) jarred me. You can move from pendants to bracelets and beyond using Helen’s ideas! Anja’s bracelet helped me see the possibilities.

Mentioning Helen’s book is karmic payback. Helen mentioned the Nepal women’s project to the Kazuri Bead folks in California. Because of her recommendation and with Wendy Moore’s help, the Samunnat ladies in Nepal will have their polymer beads for sale at the Tucson Bead Show. Don’t you love how that works?

Helen’s e-book is also dynamite in its own right as many of you have discovered. The link to Anja comes from Karin Breukelman who’s minding karma for the members of the Dutch Polymer Art Guild.

Breil curves and cuts polymer

Sinuous shapes in polymer are lovely but for those of us who weren’t paying attention in geometry class, these smooth curves look impossible. How in the world would you make those cuts?

Luckily Helen Breil’s new e-book comes to the rescue. It’s 180 pages of step-by-step instructions and clear explanations of cuts and twists you probably haven’t even considered.

The book’s gallery is full of real-life examples from artists you’ll recognize (you may have run into them here on PCDaily). This beautiful spiral version is from Ron Lehocky.

Don’t take my word for it, download the free 25-page sample. Why fight your way back through geometry class when you can simply follow what Helen has so brilliantly figured out? Here’s the free link. Buy the $20 book here.