Kristen Oxtoby updates the 60’s aesthetic

Kristen Oxtoby's earrings have a 60's-inspired aesthetic with a 90's soundtrack on PolymerClayDaily.com

Many of Kristen Oxtoby’s designs (These Hollow Hills) rely on extruded clay laid down together to make corrugated shapes. Here, ball chain dangles from the bottom of her Farrah earrings. And in her Circa series, the polymer strings wind around circle cutouts.

Kristen’s pieces are big and bold. She calls it “…a ’60s-inspired aesthetic with a 90’s soundtrack.”

This North Carolina artist makes collections that have attitude. Get the full effect on her Instagram.

Polymer comes alive

Nancy Blindeman sees her dancing in the sand on PolymerClayDaily.com

Belgium’s Nancy Blindeman (Art BeYou) has started making faces in polymer lately.

The illustrations of Patrick Nagel and the music of Duran Duran inspired Nancy to work in a new way and it suits her well. She builds up extruded strings of clay into a portrait.

She says of this character, “Her name is Rio and she dances on the sand.” When an artist can see and hear and her characters, we can sense that aliveness in the work.

Dots with a twist

Gail Garbe takes dotted tube steps forward on PolymerClayDaily.com

I flinched when this necklace from Ontario’s Gail Garbe popped up on my screen. “That looks remarkably familiar,” I thought.

Then I had to laugh at myself when I realized that Gail took my Saturday Craftcast class and stayed up late coming up with her own twist on the concept. I must have done something right! Gail extruded the tubes and added the dots perfectly.

Then she added her own off-kilter gaily colored spacer beads. It all works!

This is what teachers hope to see – students who take their concepts to the next level. Gail has taught me a thing or two!

Going dotty

Cynthia Tinapple's all-polymer dot necklace on PolymerClayDaily.com

My dotted necklaces are all-polymer and fun to make. They’re so simple that I felt I needed to “up my game” for my Craftcast class this Saturday so I quickly (last night) made a Rex Ray, mid-century modern inspired version with colors I had on hand.

The design had been rolling around in my head. Do you have a design that needs to be brought to life?

Join us on Craftcast to learn my tricks and create your own look. For 30% off use the code: summer2020

You’ll note that I’m claiming a new hair color thanks to quarantine and mother nature. And I’ve adjusted cynthiatinapple.com to reflect my mentoring and class projects.

For more behind-the-scenes chatter, join us at StudioMojo for a weekly update each Saturday.

Colorful unraveling

Alessia Bodini explores euphoria and discouragement on PolymerClayDaily.com

This is the final 8″x8″ wood panel in a series of four from Italy’s Alessia Bodini.

The mixed-media grouping is called “The Genesis of Euphoria and Discouragement: Circular Work in Four Squares “.

In the final square, the extruded strips come undone, unraveled…but in a joyous, freed way. The surfaces of the extruded strips are shaved to reveal more depth of color.

It’s kinda like our lives right now….coming unraveled in what we hope are interesting ways. If you search Alessia on PCD you can track some of the unusual, quirky ways she plays with clay. Here she is on Instagram.

Groovy polymer

Deb Hart takes us back to peace and love on PolymerClayDaily

Texas’ Deb Hart takes polymer back to its roots with these three hippie-themed tiles.

With regular retreats canceled, Deb is using her free time to indulge her inner flower child and make some class samples for next year’s events.

On her Facebook, you can see her in-process photos as she creates an outline with a string of extruded polymer and positions the main elements. She fills in later with colors and more patterns. The peace theme feels hopeful and right.

Summertime polka dots

Doing the perfect polka dot on PolymerClayDaily.com

I couldn’t help myself. I spent a perfect summer day claying with friends in the neighborhood (more on that this weekend). I indulged my love of polka dots and paired them with my Matisse obsession. Soon I’ll have some to sell.

Follow Lynda Gilcher’s instructions for precise extruded dots. It requires two passes through the extruder.

Extrude each color through a circle die to get consistently sized round logs. Wrap sections of the extruded logs with your background color (I used white). Then extrude that wrapped log through a square die. Assemble the squares into a cane.

Tomorrow it’s back to looking at your work instead of mine. Sometimes you need a playful diversion.

Combined artforms

Mickey Kunkle weaves her art together on Polymer Clay Daily.com

Maryland’s Mickey Kunkle straddles the worlds of fiber and polymer in her jewelry. At Clayathon in New Jersey, Mickey was working on designing a woven polymer bracelet using a kind of loom she made by drilling holes in a round base. It’s a hybrid of fiber and polymer influences.

Mickey extruded round pegs that she cured and inserted into the holes in the base. She then extruded long strings to weave around the pegs to form a bracelet. Her prototype is strong and colorful and wearable. She’s still in the “Whatify” stage.

In her gallery video, Mickey explains her struggles as an artist and how she has learned to combine her talents to suit herself. Can’t decide between your favorite artforms? Maybe you don’t have to.

Shaggy dog story

Joseph Barbaccia paints with extruded strings on PolymerClayDaily.com

Zoom in on this polymer dog portrait to see how Delaware illustrator, Joseph Barbaccia paints with extruded strings of polymer.

His polymer brushstrokes are layered over each other. It looks like he works from corner to corner. Joseph’s subjects are usually people. This fuzzy, furry pet provided a welcome departure from humans.

His in-progress shots are from Instagram while his finished work appears on Facebook.

Polymer with a teasing twist

Italy’s Alessia Bodini makes spiral beads with a sideways mokume gane twist. She nicks off bits of the sides of the beads to reveal the layers underneath.

Alessia Bodini extrudes, twists and carves her extrusions on PolymerClayDaily

Could be a triangle extruded shape. Are you itching to figure it out too? Alissa likes to tease us on her Instagram and Flickr and Facebook.

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