Blog feature: Dakotamiss

I found another wonderful polymer clay artist, with such a cute shop! Dakotamiss!

Here are my four favorite pieces from her shop:



This is my very favorite piece from her shop. I love all the colors in this, and the buttons really set it off. I also love the glossy look that this piece has, as well as all of Dakotamiss' other pieces.




Three peas in a pod! These cute little guys are a magnet, and they'll be there on the fridge when you go digging for a late night snack. :)




This precious baby figure would make a great gift for a baby shower!




Last but not least, the graduation bunny. Graduation is coming up soon, this would make a cute little gift for the graduate in your life. :)


Here is what Dakotamiss had to say about crafting with polymer clay:

It all started about 16 years ago. My sister and I were strolling around one of our local craft shows when I spotted this booth full of polymer clay figurines...I was in awe and loved the idea right from the start! After we finished looking around I rushed to the hobby store and purchased my first bars of polymer clay. And so the obsession began :)

I just create things that pop into my head. I'll start with a bar of clay in front of me and sit there until an idea comes to me. It might follow what is currently popular or it may not. I never know sometimes what I'll come up with! :)

I'm very much a perfectionist when it comes to my sculpting. If the finished product doesn't meet my expectations, I will not sell it, if its not something that I would want myself, I will not give it as a gift. I take pride in what I do in every aspect.

I love experimenting with polymer clay and what I can do with it. I have recently branched out into making polymer clay jewelry, which will be featured in my shop very soon. I hope you enjoy my creations as much as I love making them. :)

check out her shop! http://dakotamiss.etsy.com

Blog feature: Katswearableart

As a proud member of Etsy.com, I've decided to start showing off the talent I've come across on Etsy. I want to put polymer clay artists in the spotlight, where they belong :) The first beautiful shop I found, Katswearableart.

Here are a few of my favorite pieces from her shop:



I love all the details in this polymer clay pendant. Elegant, Beautiful, just a beautiful piece all around.





Here is a beautiful tulip pendant, just in time for spring! The perfect accessory to set off any spring color.





I love the traditonal, oriental feel of this piece. The beads are really the icing on the cake for this awesome polymer clay pendant.





And last but not least, here's one for the fairy lovers (like myself :)). Very beautiful, whimsical piece.

Here's what the creator had to say about her carft:

Polymer clay is probably the easiest, most satisfying and versatile medium I have ever used. It can resemble so many things: skin, stone, wood, ivory, plastic, metal just to name a few. The expense for supplies and equipment is probably the lowest out of any art related start-up costs I can think of. Almost anyone can make something wonderful the first time they use it. The shelf life is very long, too, so it is easy to keep going back to. That is how I started making components for jewelry with it - I was cleaning out my "art/craft" cupboard in the kitchen and "found" all my polymer clay supplies again! (When my daughters were very young they had dollhouses and we used the polymer clay to make tiny objects and food.) Today, there are so many books showing new techniques that I have been very eager to start experimenting again.

I originally started working with polymer clay around 10 years ago; aside from the dollhouse miniatures I was very interested in one of a kind art dolls. I spent enormous amounts of time learning how to sculpt the faces. Unfortunately for me I have absolutely NO sewing skill, so I ended up with all these faces on sticks looking at me! As it turned out, I made a line of pins that incorporated the faces with quotes and sayings.

My current favorite technique is using the polymer clay as a focal bead, or pendant, with a transfer image. My background is in Illustration and Graphic Design so I enjoy putting elements together digitally then transferring it to the polymer clay. It is a many layered process with baking, coating, and sanding till the pendant looks and feels like a smooth, aged piece of ivory. I love combining different textures, colors, and time periods; for me, it is the contrast in these things that make these pieces interesting.

Check out her shop! http://katswearableart.etsy.com

Techniques and equipment for polymer clay

I've just recently discovered all the things I can do with polymer clay. I seriously never would have imagined that I could make some of the things i've made so far, just from clay. I guess I always saw it as some kind of play-doh. But it's awesome!! The links to things i've made are down in my etsy mini at the bottom of my page. But I've read that a pasta machine is a great tool for making things with clay.

One of these:
http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i224/tigerlily100/FOR%20SALE/SOLD/PastaMachineforClay.jpg

I saw one at Hobby Lobby today, but it was $25. I figured I could find one for a little cheaper. I wanted to do a little bit more research on it before i spent my money on it, this is what I found...

Pasta machines are used to condition clay. It turns the clay into flat, even sheets so that there is consistency in the clay. It makes the clay easier to work with instead of trying to condition it and soften it with your hands. neato :)

Got the info from this site: http://www.jaedworks.com/clayspot/polyclay-faq/pasta-machine.html

Well, i'm off to play around in the forums!

new to this :)

I'm new at this whole blogging thing, but i figured this would be a good way to promote my shop and my craft a little more :) planning on posting friday, hopefully with some pictures of things i'll be working on :)