Merry Christmas & New Scarf Rings

I finally seemed to outgrow my trusty laptop computer and had to bite the bullet and get a newer model with more capacity and speed.  Unfortunately transferring all of my important files and getting things functioning properly has been a slow process.  I guess this is one of my poor excuses for not keeping up with my blog.  The other is that I have just been extremely busy with Christmas shows, the Shuswap Artisan Market, delivering product to the stores that sell my work and clay production in between.  I am actually relieved to see the Christmas holidays as I can finally take a few days out just for myself, which does not happen very often.

In the meantime, I have listed some new items in the store which are very exciting.  I know many of you love scarves and are always looking for new ways to add your polymer clay beads or accents.  I have now added some new scarf rings/slides to my shop that have a snap base.  These are available in three different styles.

These are perfect for adding your own snap designs for interchanging.  You can add a regular size snap:

Scarf Ring with Interchangeable Snap in Resin with German Glass Glitter

Scarf Ring with Interchangeable Snap in Art Deco Design

Or be more creative and add a larger size piece with a mounted snap for interchanging:

And many of you have asked where you can purchase some nice scarves.  Well I have now added some to my supplies category and the good news is that if you have your own personal "Snap" discount code, it will now also work in the Accessories & Jewelry Supplies category as well.

If you have purchased my Snap Decisions Tutorial (both parts 1 & 2) and do not have your own personal discount code and would like one, please contact me and it can be arranged.  Since it is now the holiday season, I might not be able to have it for you until after New Years, so please be patient.

So I would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas!  May you all have a fun and inspiring holiday season!

Shuswap Artisan Market -- Late Night Shopping Event

My last show for the year was last weekend and I am happy that I can now be at home more for the next few months.  I love getting out to shows and meeting with the people.  The positive feedback really gives one a boost and encouragement to carry on!  So I am still unpacking and reorganizing and preparing now for some small local pop-ups at the Shuswap Artisan Market.

I will be at the Market this Friday (Nov 30) and Saturday (Dec 1st).  The store will be open until 7 on the Friday for evening shopping.  Carmen of Stitches in Tyme - Contemporary Crochet will be joining me and we will be serving up some hot chocolate and cider.

Carmen crochets beautiful hats, mittens and other wearable items plus functional pieces too like these cool baskets!

Crocheted Basket by Carmen of Stitches in Tyme - Contemporary Crochet

I always have a wide selection of my interchangeable jewelry in stock with new items added regularly.  I have a wider selection with me on the days I am in the store and for pop-ups.  Also available are my handcrafted pens and my latest Serveware Collection.

Handcrafted Pens in Fall Colors

Cheese Knife, Pate Knife, Olive Spoon & Hors d'oeuvre picks - Serveware Collection

I will be adding some of these to my online store in the near future.

Life's Hurdles & More Shows

It never fails. Just when you are gaining momentum and feel you are right on track, life throws some hurdles to jump over.  I decided to jump and do my best to keep going.  It started a couple of weeks ago when I decided I needed to clean my eyeglasses as things were suddenly blurry.  I soon discovered that wasn't the problem and my left eye was actually blurry and I was seeing floaters.  Later that evening I was seeing some sparks which was not a good sign.  After seeing my optometrist, I was rushed in for emergency eye surgery the next day.  I had a small hole and horseshoe tear in my retina and was at high risk of the retina becoming detached.  They told me it was good they caught it in time as surgery for a detached retina is not something I would want to go through as it is pretty serious.

After the laser surgery, I was informed that my eye was still in extreme danger and for the next few weeks there was to be no bending over, stooping or lifting anything more than 10 lbs.  I had some shows coming up in a few days and was a bit worried how I was going to manage.  I was considering cancelling but decided to go ahead but with extreme caution and the help of a couple of friends. 

So the Craft-a-Fair and Trunk show at Silhouette Fashion Boutique were in the same week and both  went very well -- even with all the worrying.  I feel my eye is healing but still another week to go so will proceed still with caution.  This Saturday I will be doing another Trunk show in Salmon Arm but this time at Intwined Fibre Arts.  The main focus is still my Snap Decisions Collection but this time focusing mainly on items for scarves, shawls and sweaters.

My last (Christmas) show for this year is the Okanagan Artisan Sale at the Vernon Lodge.  This show has a great reputation with high quality artists that are accepted in only by a jury so is a real thrill to be a vendor this year.

After my last show I have other things I want to focus on.  I haven't written or published any tutorials in a while and have several in the background ready to finish.  So it is a surprise but a few word hints would be:  resin, buttons and bling!

Huge Sale on Snap Supplies!

I can hardly believe that winter is starting to set in and that Christmas is just around the corner.  My first Christmas show for the year is already this Sunday.  I will be at the Kamloops Craft-a-Fair in the same location as the past 8 years.

If you are working on your Christmas shows or thinking of making your own gifts this year, I am having a huge Flash Sale of 35% off all my Snap Supplies! -- but hurry as this does not happen often and it is only for a few days!  Sale ends Friday, November 2, midnight.

* Use Coupon Code:    SNAPS35OFF

at the checkout in my online store.

* Prices are in Canadian currency

* Shipping is a flat fee --
-- no matter how much you purchase!!

* Free shipping with a minimum purchase

(after any discount codes have been applied)

If you haven't purchased my Snap Decisions Tutorial but have been thinking about it, that is on sale right now too!  The price has already been reduced so no coupon code is necessary.  As a bonus, if you purchase the Parts 1 & 2 tutorial package, you will receive your own personal and permanent discount code for 25% off anything in our snap supply section.

Notice:  If you have purchased this tutorial and never received a permanent discount code and would like to receive one, contact me with your request.

Busy Fall

Life has been way too busy for me these past few months and I am finally able to catch my breath and slow things down a bit.  Doing four shows in September was a lot but I managed to get through them and now preparing for my last few shows coming up in November.

So here is a caption of what I have been up to since my last post:

August I did a Trunk show at the Silhouette Fashion Boutique in Salmon Arm.  We had a great time and I will be doing another one for Christmas coming up on November 8.

September started off with the Lake Country Art Walk.  This lady  entertained us with her fabulous voice.  It was an extremely busy yet fun time.

Entertainment at the Lake Country Art Walk

Shortly after I did a mini pop-up show at the Kelowna Yarn & Needlecrafts store.  Then at the end of the month it was off to Vancouver for Knit City.

After returning from Vancouver the Salute to the Sockeye Salmon Festival in the Shuswap had already started.  This festival only runs every 4 years when there is the largest amount of Sockeye Salmon spawning (dominant run).  My salmon themed jewelry and accessories are in the Artisan market along with more than 50 other local artists.  We all take shifts to help out in the store and greeting customers.  Everyday there are thousands of people and tourists that come out to see this spectacular event that runs for three weeks.

A few of my salmon themed items for sale in the Artisan Market

This is Kim who did an awesome job of operating and running the Artisan Market.

This is Fion who bought my salmon earrings and was already modelling them.

I will be there again for a live demo this Sunday (Oct 21st) in front of the Artisan Market which is also the final day of the festival.

Pantone Color Combination Samples plus CaBezel Tip

I have been working on new pieces using the Pantone Fall 2018 fashion colors in various combinations.  I love creating with the CaBezel molds that Wendy Orlowski at Shades of Clay designs and the new Holy CaBezels are my absolute favorites!  When working with them, I find it best to create my bezel frames first, add my snap and bake them so they are ready to fill when I need them.  I like to do them in my bolder or neutral colors like black, navy, dark green, etc. and in a variety of shapes.

To keep them handy, I have a peg board above my clay work table and I organize them all by color in bags and hang them on the pegs.

So here is a little peak of two that I did using a combination of four of the Pantone Fall 2018 Fashion Colors:  Martini Olive, Ceylon Yellow, Valiant Poppy and Russet Orange.

I will share a few more samples on my facebook page so don't forget to click the like button every so often so my posts will stay in your feed or facebook will consider it unimportant and hide them from you.

Pantone Fall 2018 Fashion Colors Summary and Clay Recipe Cards

Here is a review of the Pantone Fall 2018 Fashion colors.  Click on the photos below to see the clay recipes using Kato clay.  If you would like to see more clay recipes for the past Pantone fashion colors, go to the color recipe page at the top of this blog.

Russet Orange and Meerkat - Pantone Fall 2018 Fashion Colors

The last two color recipes I will be sharing with you today are Russet Orange and Meerkat.  Generally there are 12 colors Pantone selects for each season, however this time there are only 10 plus five colors in a Classic palette.  Meerkat is one of those colors and I decided to include the clay recipe for it as it fits in nicely with the other fall colors.  Meerkat is also a lighter version of the Autumn Maple that was one of the Pantone Fall 2017 fashion colors.

Here are the recipes for the Pantone Fall 2018 fashion colors Russet Orange and Meerkat using Kato clay:

Russet Orange

3 parts Kato Orange

1/2 part Kato Gold

1 part Kato Pearl

Meerkat

1 part Kato Brown

1 part Kato Copper

1 part Kato Gold

1 part White Mix # 1-2

* Note:  These clay color recipes are created using Kato Polyclay.  Any of the base color "mixes" used are from my Clay Color System. (which is still on sale until the end of this week)

I have been playing with different color combinations from these new fall colors and if you would like to see some of them for more inspiration, you might want to follow my Facebook page here.  And you may want to click the like button or comment every so often so you will continue getting up to date posts.

My next post will include a summary of all the clay recipes and you can download the cards to print out if you would like.

Sargasso Sea and Nebulas Blue - Pantone Fall 2018 Fashion Colors

There are two shades of blue in this year's Pantone Fall color palette.  Nebulas Blue is rich and saturated with color.  If you have my Clay Color System, then you already have the recipe which is #9-3 (Blueberry).

Typically there are 12 major colors in the Pantone seasonal color selection but this palette consists of only 10 plus a "Classic Color Palette" which includes 5 neutrals.  One of the colors from this group is Sargasso Sea, a beautiful shade of Navy and still a popular neutral color that is considered to be "the other black".  The added pearl in the clay recipe not only gives it the perfect shade but also adds a bit of shimmer and depth.

So here are the recipes for the Pantone Fall 2018 Fashion colors Sargasso Sea and Nebulas Blue using Kato clay:

Sargasso Sea

8 parts Kato Blue

1 part Kato Black

1 part Kato Pearl

Nebulas Blue

Same as recipe #9-3 Blueberry *

* Note:  These clay color recipes are created using Kato Polyclay.  Any of the base color "mixes" used are from my Clay Color System. (which is still on sale this week)

Red Pear and Valiant Poppy - Pantone Fall 2018 Fashion Colors

There are two shades of red in this year's fall palette.  Red Pear is a blue-red with a brown undertone where Valiant Poppy is an orange-red with a gold undertone.  Both shades are very rich and bold and closely related to other shades from the past.  Red Pear is similar to Tawny Port from last years fall color with with a bit more red and Valiant Poppy also has a bit more red than the previous Aurora Red.

Here are the recipes for the Pantone Fall 2018 colors Red Pear and Valiant Poppy using Kato clay:

Red Pear

7 parts Kato Red

1 part Kato Blue

2 parts Kato Pearl

Valiant Poppy

6 parts Kato Red

1/2 part Kato Gold

Quetzal Green and Limelight - Pantone Fall 2018 Colors

Pantone describes Quetzal Green as a deep elegant blue-green hue suggestive of rich plumage.  I have found purple and teals to be a very popular combination and this blue-green shade combines well with the Ultra violet and Crocus Petal.

Pantone describes Limelight as a pungent yellow-green, however, I  see it more as a pure yellow and having a difficult time trying to make it fit in with the remainder of the fall palette colors.  It does pair well with the Quetzal Green and I will do more experimenting which you will eventually see in some samples later on.

In the meantime, here are the recipes for the Pantone Fall 2018 Fashion colors Quetzal Green and Limelight using Kato clay.

Quetzal Green

4 parts Kato Turquoise

2 parts Kato Green

1 part Kato Pearl 

Limelight

2 parts yellow

1 part White Mix # 1-2 *

* Note:  These clay color recipes are created using Kato Polyclay.  Any of the base color "mixes" used are from my Clay Color System which is still on sale until the end of this week.

Martini Olive and Ceylon Yellow - Pantone Fall 2018 Colors

When I started looking up the new Pantone Fall 2018 Fashion colors, I had a real blast from the past.  The colors Martini Olive and Ceylon Yellow are two shades that especially took me back in time to the Pantone 2017 Fall Colors - Moss Green and Lemon Curry.  This was the year when I ordered my set of Pantone Color Cards and mixed up my first Pantone colors for fall.

As a matter of fact, I was also into making bangle bracelets back then and here are some in this color combination:

While this year's fall color Ceylon Yellow is a perfect match for the Lemon Curry in 2007, the Martini Olive is a bit richer than the previous Moss green.

Here are recipes for the Pantone Fall 2018 Fashion colors Martini Olive and Ceylon Yellow using Kato clay:

Martini Olive

Follow recipe # 7-9* for Olive Green

Add 1 part Kato Black

Ceylon Yellow

Same recipe as Lemon Curry

Recipe # 6-4 *

* Note:  These clay color recipes are created using Kato Polyclay.  Any of the base color "mixes" used are from my Clay Color System. (which is on sale this week)

Ultra Violet and Crocus Petal - Pantone Colors for Fall 2018

So I will start off the Fall 2018 Pantone Fashion Colors with Ultra Violet and Crocus Petal.  Ultra Violet is actually the Pantone Color of the Year and so was also included in the latest Spring collection.  Crocus Petal is pretty much a lighter shade of the Ultra Violet and therefore the colors combine well.

So here are the recipes for these two colors using Kato Clay:

Ultra Violet

4 parts Kato Violet

1 part Kato Pearl

Crocus Petal

1 part Kato Violet

8 parts Kato Pearl