Polymer Clay Daily

Tips and Tricks

Cutout, swap, repeat

Late at night Greece’s Klio Tsaliki (Klio1961) entertains herself by making simple polymer items using easy techniques, smart design and appealing color.You can catch the vibe on her Flickr page.

Especially on her sheets of pattern, you sense Klio’s playfulness as she repeats and repeats a pattern, then adds a surprising change to tease the eye. She uses the sheets most effectively on big bangles, coasters and containers.

Look at all the cutout/swap/repeat patterns she’s amassed in her collection of panels. Her use of dots is intense. Someone’s having fun!

Down to brass tacks

Alaska’s Karen Ottenbreit gets down to brass tacks with her polymer. Actually she embedded domed brads in these polymer beads and has since moved on to leather studs and spikes as she, “…channels my inner biker chick.”

The look blends perfectly with her gothic fish and funky flowers. You gotta be tough to deal with the wildlife and weather in Alaska. You can friend her and follow along on her Facebook page. After a week of seriousness, we end the week with a lighter touch. Have a relaxing weekend.

Birthstone polymer

October’s gemstone is opal, right? So why not continue our quest for a convincing fauxpal recipe? This one from Camille Young has me itching for a little exploration time in the studio. Her instructions are in the photo caption.

The number of Stroppel cane experiments appearing daily tells me that I’m not the only one who can’t resist trying a new technique.

If opals aren’t your thing, browse through Camille’s art folder. She’s one multi-talented sculptor, gamer and all-round artist.

Good news travels fast

If you want to watch how fast information travels around the globe, count how many variations on Alice Stroppel’s scrap cane you’ve spotted in the week she introduced it.

Since last Friday’s post we’ve watched examples pop up from the US, UK, Israel and beyond. The photo at the right is from France’s CreaSof who has skillfully integrated the technique into brooch designs.

Here are a few more you might enjoy:

I hope your weekend is filled with good news.

On a tangent

From their base on the west coast of Mexico, Dan Cormier and Tracy Holmes are about to go off on a new tangent and unveil their next big idea. Join their mailing list (it’s free) to see what all the fuss is about. All I know is that they’ve been working hard and they’re giddy with nervous excitement.

Stroppel’s polymer strudel

Before you tidy your polymer workspace for the weekend, consider trying a clever trick from Florida’s Alice Stroppel. She’s added a short (and free) video of her Stroppel cane on her website.

Colorful cane scraps layered between thin sheets of high contrast background produce new random patterns that give the scrap new life.

We had fun trying this at our recent conference where scrap was plentiful. These brooches were a late night collaborative effort by Alice and her table mate Meisha Barbee as they cleaned up the leftover bits of the day.

May your weekend be filled with colorful random bits of fun!

Pieced polymer

Gera Scott Chandler shows her “starter sheet” of polymer that ends up covering a series of her fusion bangles.

The luminous sheet is a sandwich of polymer, foils, translucent clay and alcohol inks. Loose graphic designs are stamped and scored into the clay.

The big sheet is cut into pieces which are fitted and smoothed over bangle bases.

The black polymer bases underneath make the overlay glow like faux stained glass. Socket joints stretch and close easily over the elastic that holds them together.

A starter sheet is an efficient way to produce a series of companion pieces. It helps, of course, to begin with a signature palette and lots of experience with foils and inks. You’ll see what I mean when you study the colors in Gera’s Flickr site.

Back to school polymer

Galina Grebennikova takes us back to school with the rest of the kids with a straightforward free tutorial for these beads on her Flickr page. A button, some water and a circle cutter are the only tools required.

Galina is Russian and living in Ireland. Her photographs are pristine and clear making it a smooth and pleasureable trip through her experiments, tricks and techniques.

Bounty from the polymer patch

Roberta Mohar’s garden is full of polymer vegetables – including pumpkins!

In an earlier PCD post we admired her Hokkaido pumpkin-shaped beads and she’s just uploaded a beautiful tutorial (in English and Slovenian) for you to enjoy. It’s worth the wait for the download.

The shape reminded me of Moroccan pouf ottomans and I promptly tried it for my own new beads below. Lucky for us we can now pick up the finer points in her free tutorial.

Her latest crop of garden flowers is most easily viewed on her Flickr page.

Roberta’s story about how her husband fabricated a motor for her pasta machine will make you appreciate thoughtful husbands and the easy access some of us have to equipment. Got a motor (or a thoughtful spouse)? Go hug it.

Tutorials unravel the mysteries

Rebecca Watkins unravels the mystery of her textured beads with a quick (and free) visual tutorial. Her methods and tools may surprise you. She shows more examples on her Etsy site.

You may also enjoy the step-by-step look that Tory Hughes offers on her most recent “Tahitian Flora” project. It’s educational to watch as she sketches her project before she begins.

Look closely and you’ll see that she forms the pieces into shallow cups in order to mimic the blossoms. She presses the flat pieces against her knuckle and bakes them on a paper cone to achieve a gentle shape. Tory promises another look at stringing as this project progresses.

Summer polymer recipe

Kathrin Neumaier divulges that her new watery-looking neckpiece, Seetang, is created from liquid Fimo colored with Pinata inks. She’s experimented with a range of colors.

This cool piece comes along just in time for summer’s heat. Has Kathrin’s concept started your wheels turning?

In the right column, watch a lovely video from Minnesota’s Prairie Public Broadcasting about Jennifer Patterson and her polymer quilt jewelry. Nicely done! Thanks to Lindly Haunani for the link.