Polymer Clay Daily

Women’s stories in polymer

Elissa Farrow-Savos tells women's stories on PolymerClayDaily.com

This grouping of Village Women from Virginia’s Elissa Farrow Savos was destined for Gallery C in Raleigh, N.C. Elissa captured them on her new Instagram page before they left for the art gallery.

Their pensive expressions pull us in for a deeper look as we approach Mothers Day in the midst of #metoo. She hints at their stories here.

Ellisa says, “As I sculpt, I push the polymer clay past its intended size and boundaries, then incorporate found objects, and finally paint the baked clay with layers of oils.”

The overview of her women and all their stories on Artsy.com is fascinating. Learn more from this PolymerArtArchive post and see her in the Polymer Art: Recent Acquisitions show at the Racine Art Museum until June 24.

Pixelated rainbow

Deb Hart explores the rainbow in her pixelated cane bangles on PolymerClayDaily.com

Texas’ Deb Hart is cooking up a tutorial for her rainbow pixelated cane. Here she’s turned the cane into bangles of extruded tube beads curved to ride comfortably on the wrist.

The edges of the squares in the cane glow and accentuate each color. Look on Facebook and Etsy to see where Deb goes next with her cane tricks.

The polymer olympics

Circle pins from Olympic experimenter Nikolina Otrzan on PolymerClayDaily.com

A few more circles and Croatia’s Nikolina Otrzan (Orson’s world) could be building her own polymer Olympic logo with her Texture Play series of circle pins!

Let’s hope she’s building a tutorial to show us how she achieves the painterly textures and loose patterns.

Nik is certainly in the Polymer Olympics when it comes to pushing the boundaries. She’s created 26 rich, dense tutorials, each with an AHA moment that comes from ceaseless playing around. Keep a close eye on her on Facebook.

A friendly Monday wave

A Monday wave from Miryam Garcia Mardones' finger puppets on PolymerClayDaily.com

A quick wave from Spain’s Miryam Garcia Mardones (dinkyartesania)  and her friends. Note that Miryam’s finger puppets are built on thimbles.

I wasn’t quite ready for Monday so you’ll have to figure out the construction details. Clever!

She also carries some great looking tiny clay cutters in her Etsy shop. She shows her work on Flickr.

A day at the beach

Lyn Tremblay's small triptych takes us to the shore on PolymerClayDaily

Ontario’s Lyn Tremblay completed these small tiles at the recent Morrisburg Polymer Clay Retreat. The colors on the wonderfully textured beach-like triptych are enhanced with pan pastels. See more on Facebook.

Deep conversation with house guests (and maybe that glass of wine) made me forget all about writing a post for Friday!  PCD is a wee bit slow today.

Luckily my meandering assortment of discoveries, links, and ideas for Saturday’s StudioMojo is already composed. Join us for some lovely weekend morsels to savor and explore. 

When simple is soothing

Juliya Laukhina extrudes and wraps beads from a spring palette on PolymerClayDaily

Today we examine close shades of extruded ribbons of green polymer wrapped around ultralight core beads.

Again easy and effective techniques that rely on color and repetition. No overworking or overthinking. Leaching or cooling the clay accentuates the ragged edges of the flattened extruded strings.

These spring beads are from Moscow’s Juliya Laukhina and you’ll find more of her delicate, natural way with color on her Instagram and Etsy sites. (The beads are already on their way to a customer in Connecticut.)

Sometimes we make our creations more complex than they need to be when simple can be so effective.

Italy's TacchiDadieDatteri upcycle with abandon on PolymerClayDaily.com

I know, I know, this necklace of concave beads from Italy’s Graziella Spina and Laura Pagani (TacchiDadieDatteri) is super simple.

So why do I return to it again and again? I like how the colors are so slightly different and the shapes are wonky and fingerprinted.

These two women are both healthcare workers who met years ago and started a business recycling their stash of fabrics scraps and jewelry parts which are often given new life by combining them with polymer,

The story is a happy one and their pieces somehow communicate fun and friendship. It’s their confidence that captivates. Wouldn’t you like to sprinkle more confidence around in your studio? Follow TacchiDadieDatteri on Instagram and Flickr.

Life lessons in polymer

Seana Bettencourt welcomes May with a new attitude on PolymerClayDaily.com

Ontario’s Seana Bettencourt has come through some health concerns and it looks like her creativity has been pumped into high gear.

These pendants (and more on FB) were made at a spring guild conference. Seana has taken bits of techniques she’s recently learned, mixed them with hard-won life lessons to make her own distinctive and stunning pendants that let her own spirit shine through. Exciting when that happens to us.

Featured polymer

Deb Groover's polymer paintings featured in Missouri show on PolymerClayDaily.com

Florida’s Deb Groover (debortinastudio) is the featured artist for the 2018 Brookside Art Annual in Kansas City, MO next weekend.

Her bright and energetic polymer paintings are created from cutouts of fired flat designs which are adhered to wood panels. The backgrounds on her large and busy paintings are added last. Deb (and her partner Tina) come to polymer from ceramics.

In this video of Deb from a couple of years ago, she details her process which is like no other and has become very sought after. Enjoy an overview on Instagram.

Mixing sunshine and polymer

Monika Busch makes buttons into a warm weather fashion statement on PolymerClayDaily.com

Germany’s Monika Busch (Efimoni) shows us how she mixes polymer and pleasure.

Monika used cane slices turned into buttons which she sewed onto the fabric straps of her flip flops for a warm weather fashion statement.

I’ll be reporting from a very warm Phoenix on StudioMojo this weekend, mixing polymer and pleasure and exposing my usually-protected Ohio toes to their first taste of sun this year. The newest batch of tutorials and trends may boost your mojo into action. I hope you’ll join us.