In my neck of the woods, it’s mighty cold. This woman-covered flask/bracelet from Alice Stroppel looks like a handy accessory for those who dare to brave the weather.
But wait a minute, Alice lives in Florida! A beach accessory for staying hydrated perhaps.
Start your week with a smile!
Wanda Shum has based the design of her newest polymer tea set on The Night Circus, a popular novel by Erin Morgenstern that presents a sprightly version of 19th-century English magic.
Wanda uses ceramic teapots as the canvas for her polymer canes.
You can follow the evolution of her face cane here snd see the damask cane portion of the teapot emerge here. Zoom in close to examine the carved and drawn areas as well. What a treat!
Party on Wednesday
PCDaily doesn’t usually cover tools but that’s not because I don’t love them. Wednesday night, party girl and Craftcast publisher Alison Lee is hosting a free webinar during which five tool fans will bring out their favorite polymer and metal clay tools.
Celie Fago, Jill Erickson, Wanaree Tanner, Patrik Kusek and I will demo our secret weapons. It’ll be a fast-paced, fun filled hour with lots of surprises and giveaways. RSVP here.
Julie Eakes‘ latest polymer face cane started out from her pop art drawing. She chronicles her caning successes and misteps on her blog. Reading along is both instructional and entertaining as she remedies her mistakes.
To the left is a finished piece from the pop art cane. The pendant has a domed surface that you miss in this picture but which adds to its smooth sultriness (achieved with olive oil, I believe).
Julie doesn’t sell much of her work, preferring to experiment, teach and share her art and her humor. Her new book just out is “Clay Classics Inspired by Zentangle.”
Cassy Muronaka’s post about her treasures from the recent Grove and Grove sale grabbed me in the first sentence, “Polymer clay was a snowball that really began rolling down the hill in the early 1990s, picking up very fine artists along the way.”
Cassy describes the Grove’s step-blend process and tells why it remains important. She shares pictures of the face canes that were their trademark and says that, “After spending a couple of weeks mooning over these exquisite Grove and Grove face canes, I may have to take another crack at it.”
Monday is a good day to mull over her thought that, “I find it ironic that after all these years, I am getting starting to get new ideas from some of the very old things they produced.” Here are some more pictures from their sale.
Not every holiday polymer piece has to be stars and stripes. Lori Wilkes canes with crisp blue and white and adds red accents for a summery set of bracelets.
There’s something challenging about a flag cane that Sarahb4 couldn’t resist.
On her Flickr page she shows how she used a star cutter to start the process. She fashions the results into a variety of playful patriotic holiday baubles.
North Carolina’s Julie Eakes can cross one resolution off her list. She launched her blog. Go give her a pat on the back.
Julie has become known for her elaborate polymer clay face canes like the one shown here. There are more samples on her Flickr site. Thanks to Jana Roberts Benzon for tipping us off. (Jana has some new lovelies on her site as well.)
Polymer hearts for the next holiday are already beginning to pop up on websites. My favorites are from Konstanze Filip (Madooli) from Berlin. She works in polymer, paper mache, and air drying clays, painting the surfaces with bright colors and drawing graphic patterns and icons.
Her newest pendants look like fossils or rocks from the lunar surface. The “in progress” pictures detail her unusual way of handling the clay.
