Polymer Clay Daily

Miro Monday

Leonini on PCDaily

Cecilia Leonini (of Italy’s ImpastArte) channels the spirit of Miro for today’s inspiration. “No transfers,” says Cecilia of this 26″ necklace of her flat drawings joined by copper rings.

She’s become adept at mixing alcohol inks, pens, pastels and other media with polymer to paint her small pieces of design.

Born and raised in the Tuscany area, Cecilia was trained in music and taught piano for many years until she discovered polymer.

Leonini on PCDaily

“For me the clay is the synthesis of all the arts that I love,” she says.

You can see how her work has evolved on her Flickr site and note her influences on Pinterest. You’ll find more on Facebook and Etsy.

On my desk

There’s nothing like a deadline to focus attention. These 2 1/2″ diameter bowls are for a conference swap this summer. Thirty are required and the idea of making 30 of anything is daunting to those of us who happily flit from project to project.

By limiting myself to translucent shibori-like blues, I’m concentrating on patterns and shapes. Right now, they’re perched (not glued) on their bases for easy packaging and transporting. I’ll attach the mix-and-match bottoms on site.

These little delights feed my enthusiasm for small decorative items. With their varying pedestal heights and shapes, they create an intriguing grouping.

Repeating a new technique or design 30 times can be very instructive and before you know it, you have a body of work that veers off in a new direction.

You can see how I’ve been mulling over bowls for a while on my Pinterest board.

If you’re interested in learning more about adding touches of personal style to your home join my class at Maureen Carlson’s at the end of July. Have a super weekend!

Polymer coloring book

Mika on PCDaily

“If as a child you loved coloring in a coloring book like I did, then this is the class for you.” says Laurie Mika about her Coloring on Clay workshop this September.

Mika on PCDaily

These class sample tiles show how acrylic paint on clay expands the range and intensity of Laurie’s colors.

She starts with light polymer clay which is stamped and/or textured then painted. Gold leaf and sparkly bits add finishing touches.

See all the mosaic wonders that Laurie composes with her richly decorated tiles on her site, on Pinterest and on Facebook

Painting by the slice

Gozonar on PCDaily

Turkey’s Alev Gozonar piled thousands of polymer slices into Garbage, this 4′ x 5′ collage on canvas. Alev’s pointellist style has evolved into larger, more dense, colorful and dimensional images. On her most recent canvas, Alev amassed over 9,000 pieces.

Gozonar on PCdaily

Watching these images grow (see Instagram and Facebook) adds to the fascination. Zoom in close and you’ll see how she paints, building color with precise and varied cane patterns.

Charming polymer

Stroppel on PCDaily

Florida’s Alice Stroppel has a high energy style that keeps evolving. She’s moved into her own gallery and set up classes. She upcycles furniture and adds polymer that turns flea market finds into fantasy.

Here’s she’s shifted into a minimalist groove, maybe in reaction to all the hubbub and excitement around her.

For her charms she slices thick slabs of square canes, embedding buna loops and dangling dabs of pattern. The palette is distinctively hers and the treatment is slimmed down, fresh and fun for her new gallery site.

Alice added more to the tea set we looked at last month. Here’s the video.

Lazy Monday

Lazy on PCDaily

Until 2010 Leah Lazy was a full-time cake decorator. Her customers wanted to keep her gum-paste characters so she switched to polymer and developed her line of monsters called Little Lazies.

Zombie kitties, pandas, bears and other beasts – all the colorful characters on this Virginia artist’s pages have colorfully bandaged owies.

It’s hard to feel threatened by an injured turquoise guy with a purple tongue, especially when you’ve seen him deconstructed. Leah makes her process seem deceptively simple.

Lazy on PCDaily

Creating endearing expressions, consistently smooth finishes and colors that grab – those tricks take patience, skill and a real love of monsters. Witness Leah’s work on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Etsy.

Cleaning up after the flood

The flood of Facebook posts from PCD has stopped. Thank you for your alerts and your support. Of all days, I was sick in bed with a bad cold and not checking in.

The autoposter went crazy and you got a crash course in polymer. I’m still under the weather and will take a couple of days to regroup and get over my embarrassment. Your notes were all very kind and understanding and I heartily appreciate that. What a kind audience you are.

Clay on clay

Loveless on PCDaily

MaryAnne Loveless shares her own brand of mixed media. She throws ceramic pots, leaving spaces for polymer. Clay on clay.

A polymer stopper top or a band of color are added after the piece has been kiln fired. Of course the ceramic piece can tolerate another baking.

Loveless on PCDaily

She added a wire and polymer handle to the ceramic teapot below. See how she mixes media on tins, wood bases, ceramics by checking her out on Flickr and Pinterest. What can you pair with polymer?

Nuts! I published early. My site’s clock seems to have a bug in it. I’ll try to fix it and bring you your regularly scheduled programming as soon as I can figure it out.