New Switchplate Covers

I've been working on some items for our home and finished some lightswitch covers.  I was experimenting with various clay colors, stamps, mica powders and paints and after sealing with liquid Kato, the final result turned out looking a lot like ceramic.  I would've taken some photos to show the process but I was so absorbed in making these, I completely forgot.

I found a home for one of my angel faces I posted about last month but I decided to design some different wings for this switchplate cover and I think these ones fit better.

Handcrafted Rondelle Beads

I love the finished look of using rondelle beads in jewelry but it is a little difficult to find them in the colors we want so I developed a way of making my own.  This way I can make them in any color or size I want to match our other beads as well as making the hole size to fit exactly as needed.  Each one is formed by hand and may seem a little time consuming but I think the finished end result is well worth it.

Earrings Galore!

I was trying to decide what to post on and thought I would do a little advertising.  We get a lot of custom order requests and some were for disc earrings in solid colors.  Here is a photo of some of the ones we've done.  They are textured with a soft-matte finish (can be glossy as well) and finished with either gold or silver wire and a matching bead.

We make them in all sorts of colors and are great for a special occasion such as a wedding.  Imagine having earrings that match the dresses in a bridal party.  You can read more about these in our Wearable Art Gallery blog.

We also get requests for clip-ons.  We now have some new findings that can change any or our earring designs to a clip-on at no extra charge.  These clip-ons are quite unique where they give the appearance of pierced ears.  The bottom photo shows a pair of fun gecko ones I made for myself.  I don't have pierced ears so whenever I make some new design,  I'm always looking for a friend or neighbor to try them on and make sure they hang right!  As our earring designs are becoming increasingly popular you can check out our earring section in our new blog.  You will find them all categorized on the left hand side and we will be adding more each day.

Our New Online Galleries

We decided to update our profile photo.  Dave suggested he liked this one.  I wasn't so sure so we took a vote and he won --- okay, don't ask.  This caricature drawing was done a few years back but of course we haven't aged much since - ha!

We also added 2 more blogs (there are links on the side bar).  One is a gallery of our Wearable Art Collection and the other is for our Jewelry for the Home.  Both are set up like a magazine style where you can view by categories we set up on the left side bar.  This was an experiment I was trying and so far I think it will work quite well.  This is just an easier way to view what we have for sale either on Etsy or in our studio.  Let us know what you think.

Tulips for Spring

We've been dreaming of spring and waiting for our snow to melt.  We can't wait to add a deck and patio to our new home so we can enjoy the outdoors and the flowers.

This is another new design I came up with that is another pendant that can be easily converted to a brooch as well.  The tulips and leaves are slices from canes I created and are placed on top of the background for a 3-d effect and sort of a modern cameo style.

More Brooch Pendants in One

I finished 3 more brooch-pendants.  As you can see, these are variations of the flower brooch-pendant I posted on last month.  Our friend, Deb, commented that it reminded her of a peacock's tail so I created the teal/green and blue/silver ones in her honor...   The coral pink and yellow has a more summery look to it which we are really longing for and is hopefully around the corner!

These again convert back and forth from a brooch to a pendant very easily and can hang on any medium-weight chain or cord of your choice.

Texture Inspiration

What is this?  In our last post we shared about our Kreative Blogger Award and what inspired us.  I mentioned how I am drawn to the colors and textures of fabric and textiles.  Well this is an example of what I do with them.  The above photo is a texture plate I created out of polymer clay from this:

I was going through my bag of old lace and doilies and found this one that was quite tattered and worn and decided it would be perfect for some of my faux tapestry or brocade designs.  I will post something I made from it a little later.

Kreative Blogger Award

We received an award from Tina Holden (Beadcomber) which is a great honor!  Thanks Tina!

When one receives this reward they are to write about what inspires them. 

Dave says he gets inspired by looking at the many beads, metal findings, stones, polymer clay pieces, etc. laying in front of him.   He then likes pulling them together to form a design like putting pieces of a jigsaw puzzle together to form a picture.   This is why he enjoys creating necklaces the most.  The earrings are usually added later to coordinate as a set.

It is difficult to say exactly where my inspiration comes from.  I would say just about everything that surrounds me and crosses my path!  If I had to nail it down I would say there are several main things that come to mind.

1. Fabrics and Textiles.

As I loves to sew and have been making my own clothes since high school (the only way I could afford that prom dress and later the wedding gown I wanted).  I love fabrics with rich color and texture like silks, lace, brocades, tapestries and printed cottons.  I use to be a real sewing addict and could not walk by a fabric store without being lured in by all the color and have to touch and feel the bolts of material I was drawn to!  I also love to soak in some of the patterns in the brocade, cotton and silk prints.  I have a collection of scraps from over the years that I just couldn't part with and I look at every so often to get some fresh ideas.

2. Nature. 

I love photographing flowers and plants.  After I discovered polymer clay I started looking at the flowers and foliage in a new way and visualizing flower and leaf canes or shapes!  I also have a seashell collection from our days of living in Mexico which I've use for textures and design ideas.

3. Colors -- I love deep rich colors and being surrounded by them.  That is why the walls in our home are never white! (Our family and friends can attest to that - lol !)  But it is the colors I see in everything that inspire me the most -- whether it be the fish on our shower curtain, the ceramic chillies hanging in our kitchen, other artists' work on the internet or a magazine I might be reading.

The first person I would like to pass this award to is   ---   Joan Tayler

She was the first person that inspired me with polymer clay when I took a bead making class from her about 3 years ago.  It was because of her I later became a member of the Vancouver Polymer Clay Guild and learned more techniques and I never looked back since. 

I would also like to pass this award on to:

Caren Goodrich  -  I discovered her blog not too long ago and really like her kreativity!  Or maybe it was her name that first caught my attention -- We're just "Good" but she is "Good" and "Rich"  -- lol !!

Toni from New Zealand - She does beautiful cane work plus she gives a very entertaining read about the experiences of living in a foreign country.

And last to:  Donna Schrader of Cards and Clay - She does card making as well as polymer clay and I like her sense of humor.  

I would've given one to Sandy as well but Tina already beat me to it!