Inspired polymer

Inspired by a fabric bracelet she saw on Pinterest, Sylvie Peraud sketched out a similar design using polymer with a buna cord hinge and closure. She refined her design, trying varying color palettes and textures.

On this one Sylvie used extruded strings and roughly textured trims. She backs the piece with black polymer.

Sylvie generously documents her process on her blog. It’s reassuring to see how time spent on Pinterest can be the source of new ideas and works.

See more of Sylvie on Flickr and CraftArtEdu…and of course, on Pinterest.

On-the-road polymer

Vera Kleist Thom shows up with this dynamite looking polymer Kameko Vase for our last post from the road. I’ll be home-based tomorrow.

Vera’s work makes me want to get back in the studio and make something big and unusual. You too?

Terrific muted colors, zooming shapes, slightly retro , updated mosaic and it could be extruded! Here’s her Etsy shop.

Seeing spots

Polka dots are fashionable and classic…and very hard to make in polymer. I’m putting the finishing touches on tonight’s Craftcast class where you’ll learn how to make dots in your own palette and use them in a variety of ways. Then there are extruded tubes that become birch branches or curvy tubular accents…and so many other ideas!

If squeezing polymer out of a tube is a mystery to you, join us for some fascinating answers.

Tomorrow I’ll be less frenzied and it will be back to PCD business as usual.

Strings of polymer

These polymer pieces from Russia’s Victoria Mkhitarian are probably extruded strings. Either way, you’re going to enjoy a trip through her Flickr site to see her earthy colors tinged with an updated ethnic vibe.

In her Polymer with Spices necklace Victoria makes a Natasha bead look like a folk museum piece. Natasha beads are fun but they are rarely put to such good use.

Wednesday extrusions class

Only one more day of my rant about extrusions. There’s so much to pack into one online Craftcast class that I had to enlist the help of friends to give a bunch of techniques a try.

I had no idea that these longtime polymer artists were extruder newbies and it was fun to watch them “get it.” Still time to reserve a good seat (and of course you can download and watch later too).

Polymer snails

This Snails 17″ necklace from Madrid’s Silvia Ortiz de la Torre shows us bright new ways with extruded polymer. We’ll have to guess how the coiled strips reveal their hints of other colors. Are they mounted on a backing or baked as a single unit?

Admire more of Silvia’s works on her blog and in her Etsy shop. Learn easy and time-saving extrusion tricks in my Craftcast class next Wednesday…I’m adding more to wow you.

Have a great weekend!

Extruded sunset

Libby Mills assembled this polymer collaged 4-inch tile as she quietly worked at our table at a recent conference. Backed with a Skinner blend, the tile combines a layer of ripple blade slices, swirled extruded strings and dabs of solid colors and textures in a fall palette. Her goal was to produce a series of decorative compositions for a wall.

This snapshot of Libby’s work popped up as I prepared samples for a class next Wednesday. (It looks very Santa Fe sunset!) My new extruded disks are now on sale on the Kazuri West site and I’ll be teaching extruder tricks (like perfect polka dots).

Extrusion is an enjoyable technique that we can use as another nifty tool to cover large areas and to produce consistently-sized elements. Ok, I have a thing for extrusion, do you?

Extrusions everywhere

Sherri Kellberg’s earrings from polymer extrusions jumped right out at me. They’re subtle, simple and clever and her site is full of similar examples with fine finishes (she offers a tutorial for that) and appealing color. This Florida artist also offers a tutorial for faux lampwork that is tempting. Here’s her Etsy shop.

I’m working on my Craftcast extrusions class for November 13. You know how when you’re focused on something you suddenly see it everywhere? Be prepared for extrusions this week.

Easy peasy payback

Polymer artists have helped pediatrician/artist Ron Lehocky reach another milestone – 24,000 hearts sold with all the proceeds going to the Kids Center in Louisville, KY

Ron’s celebrating by donating a Friday Freebee. These hearts were all made using his Easy-peasy Extruder Cane Technique which he offers as payback.

When Ron asked for scrap, artists responded with heaps of unloved canes and designs gone wrong. He figured out ways to turn them into fundraising fashion statements.

You might enjoy his video story here and his past features on PCD here. He’s been a powerhouse behind the Nepali project too. He doesn’t have much time for social media, as you might imagine, but you can reach him by email if you want to buy some hearts or send him your scrap. Heartfelt thanks, Ron!

Polymer heartstrings

Fabienne Avranche’s (Terre d’Effa) polymer string bowl struck a chord with us back in 2008 and five years later, readers are still snatching it from the archives.

Now I can post a somewhat larger photo. The bowl’s colorful playfulness appeals to the child in all of us. Five years later we can see Fabienne’s work more easily on her Pinterest site as well as on her original website.

Vacation posts from the archives

The Turkish way

Turkey’s Alev Gozonar tied together large pixelated polymer portraits of Marilyn Monroe, Che Guevara, Virigina Woolf, Frida Kahlo and other VIPs pairing them with renderings of VOPs – that’s very ordinary people – for her Way exhibit at Mabeyn Gallery in Istanbul last year.

Here you see Alev with her Sahne IV piece that combines thousands of lengths of extruded cane into a striking 49″ x 40″ image. Polymer QR codes designed into the portraits offered viewers another way to interact with the works.

Visit the gallery site and read the news coverage to comprehend the scale and impact of these unusual mosaics. There’s a weekend worth of research here that may make you rethink scale and size.

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