A new twist on polymer strips

France’s Florence Minne-KHou (CreationMyWay) has been playing with polymer strips and this lovely Wave necklace is her latest version.

Her starting point was the lantern beads we made as children from paper. As I remember, you take a rectangle of paper and cut strips between the two long uncut edges. Then you glue the rectangle into a tube shape and twist to make your lantern. If you see her post here, you’ll get the gist.

The Wave is a more elaborate version and the pearls provide a bubbly, finishing touch. Other artists, like England’s Carol Blackburn, have toyed with polymer strips. This is a delightful new twist.

Polymer mashups

In this necklace, Germany’s Ingrid Ulrich makes a great mashup of Christine Dumont’s butterfly beads and Carol Blackburn’s mobius beads, rolling them into her own distinct design.

The result is something quite new with Ingrid’s own colors and clear echoes of her teachers. Each of the classes Ingrid has taken pushed her in a new direction. It’s great to see student work develop its own momentum. Thumb through her Flickr pictures to see.

Blackburn’s bangles

This new page of bangles and necklaces from London’s Carol Blackburn shows lively and colorful designs that are finished to satiny perfection. The closeups of her mobius/color blended strips are inspiring.

Carol’s techniques are thoroughly explained in her Making Polymer Clay Beads book which has been translated into English, French, German and Italian. Her work serves as a gentle Monday reminder about the importance of finishing.

Feichtinger’s twists

Austria’s Carina Feichtinger shows us her latest variation of the polymer clay mobius designs that have been floating around. Her fabric image transfers, metal clay accents, and distinctive palette combine for a sophisticated look.

Carina’s been twisting and connecting strips in interesting and innovative ways. Peek over her shoulder at the new work on her website and her Flickr page.