Announcing the Winner of our Naming Contest

We had a lot of great name suggestions come in.  A big thank-you to those who contributed.  We narrowed it down to three that we especially liked and want to give an honorable mention to Cynthia Blanton -- she gave a lot of good suggestions and we especially liked the one "Western Glitz" and an honorable mention to Kim Sturgis for the name "Country Class".

The name we chose as the winner is "Country Charm" from Dana and will be the official name for our  "Country Charm Collection".   Thank you Dana and we will e-mail you the $25 gift certificate.

And here are some of the new Bargello pieces finally finished:

More Bargello

I'm still experimenting with the Bargello in the same color combo of Honeysuckle, Beeswax and Peapod I showed you yesterday.  This time I used the color peapod as the background and below that shows one done on a black background and a different pattern.

I made a piece that has no background showing at all which gives it a totally new look again.  These are all done from the same blended cane.

What do you think?

Bargello

Bargello is a needlepoint embroidery technique originally used for pillows and upholstery.  The stitches are done in a pattern using many hues of each color resulting in intricate shading effects.     Laura Liska created this same look in polymer clay in the most beautiful colors and patterns.  She fortunately shared her technique with Lindly Haunani and Maggie Maggio which is in their book, Polymer Clay Color Inspirations.

I followed this technique to create some Bargello style pieces but with my own color combinations from the Pantone Spring 2011 colors of Honeysuckle, Beeswax and Peapod.  You will find the recipes for these colors in my last blog post here.

This technique requires concentration and a very steady hand to achieve straight lines and a consistent pattern.  The first one I did on the Honeysuckle color background and was my first crack at it.  I love the effect from the deep colored background.  The one below shows the same cane on the Beeswax background with a different pattern which has a totally different look.

And of course I had to make a lentil swirl from this gorgeous color combo!

My next stage is to make some beads from these Bargello clay sheets and will show you later when they are complete...

More Pantone Color Recipes - Beeswax and Peapod

I decided to start the new year with two more color recipes from the top ten spring 2011 Pantone collection - Beeswax and Peapod.  Both recipes use Kato clay for the mix and you will notice I've added a little pearl or metallic clay of some form to each color.  I find these give that little extra shimmer and added depth.

Beeswax

6 parts Yellow

2 parts Gold

1 part White

1 part Pearl

                                                         

Peapod

3 parts Green

3 parts Yellow

1 part Black

3 parts White

3 parts Pearl

This is a fun skinner blend cane I created with the Beeswax, Peapod and Honeysuckle.  You will find the Honesuckle recipe I shared with you earlier here.  I will show you tomorrow what I'm doing with these colors.

Feather Fun

I've been experimenting with some new techniques and had some fun trying out Dona Kato's feather cane. I had some Honeysuckle colored clay still sitting on my worktable from the other day so decided to go with it.  I like the color combination and discovered the cane ends made a pretty lentil swirl as well.

I have some more new pieces in the oven and will show them to you tomorrow...

Tutorial - How to Make Polymer Clay Disk Earrings

I thought I would share this tutorial as our Christmas gift to all of our polymer clay followers.  We've been creating these fun disc style earrings in different styles and in custom Pantone colors for several years and are a lot of fun to make.  I've mixed up the top ten Pantone Spring 2011 colors including Honeysuckle which has been declared as Pantone's color of the year.  These earrings are created in this vibrant color but of course can be done in any other color or pattern of your choice.

I used Kato clay to create the honeysuckle color.  Measure out your clay by rolling each color out to the same thickness and using the same shaped cutter, cut out the number of pieces that are in the recipe.

You will need:  10 parts magenta, 1 part orange and 3 parts pearl

Mix your clay thoroughly and roll your clay sheet out on the 2nd thickest setting of your pasta machine (# 2 on an Atlas).  Create a pattern in your clay with a stamp or texture sheet.  Cut out two pieces by first laying plastic wrap down and using a 3 cm circle cutter.  The plastic wrap creates a nice bevelled edge.

  

To make the curved form I use the metal pieces from buttons you cover that are found in any sewing notions department.  For the disc earrings I'm using the 1-1/8" (28 mm) diameter size.

Centre each clay piece over a button form.  Gently pat down and smooth the edges.

You can highlight the raised areas of your piece with mica powders or leave them as is.  I'm using Pearlex in Flamingo Pink on these ones which will give a little more shimmer.

Bake your pieces right on the button forms for 20 minutes at the temperature recommended on your clay package.

After the pieces have cooled, pop them off the forms.  On the reverse side, spread a very thin layer of liquid clay (Kato, Fimo or Sculpey) of your choice.  This will help bond the unbaked to the baked clay pieces.

Take 2 eye pins, or make your own from wire and kink or bend the wire pieces with your pliers.  These bends will prevent the eye pins from pulling out after they are baked and won't require any glue after.

Roll more honeysuckle clay out on the 3rd thickest setting (#3 on Atlas) of your pasta machine and cut out 2 circles in the same size as your textured discs.

Make a mark on the back of your clay disc where you want the top to be and position your eye pin on the back at that spot.

Place your cut clay circle over top of the eye pin, lining up the two pieces at the top.

The clay circle will be slightly larger than the front baked piece so trim the edge with your clay blade or an exacto knife.

Smooth all of the edges with your thumb blending the raw clay into the baked front piece.

Texture the back and side edges with a piece of cloth or sandpaper.  This will help to camouflage any marks or fingerprints.  It will also embed the wire into the clay without it showing through.  One of my favorite textures for this are the mesh type bags that onions or other produce come in.

Bake your pieces again for 20-30 minutes at the temperature recommended on your clay package.

Apply several thin coats of your favorite glaze.  Click on the photo below to read more about glazing.

Hang your discs from your favorite ear wires or for longer earrings and a little more bling, add an extra bead between.

Enjoy and Merry Christmas!

Pantone Spring 2011 Colors

With our Christmas shows now over, we have been catching up on our own Christmas here at home.  Between all the baking and other preparations my husband (claymate), Dave, went through another surgery last week.  We are happy to say that things went very well and he is recovering nicely.  Thanks to all for your prayers and well wishes.

I'm getting back into the swing of things with lots of new and fun ideas in store.  I find mixing colors is a great springboard for inspiration and just finished mixing up the new Pantone Spring 2011 colors.

This new color collection is called "An Exotic Journey" citing exotic destinations like Africa, India, Peru and Turkey as it's inspiration and a way to escape everyday challenges with intriguing color combinations that transport one to foreign lands.  Honeysuckle is one of the most vibrant colors in the this collection and has been declared as the color of the year and I'm already seeing it popping up just about everywhere.

I have a special Christmas gift to all our clayers who follow us, that I will share with you soon.  I will give you a hint.  It involves the color Honeysuckle....  Look for it on this Christmas eve....

And for everyone, we have some great give-a-ways coming up in the new year....