A New Tutorial to Start off the New Year

The new year has been off to a slow start for us but we've been able to spend some time with family we hadn't seen in a while so that is nice.  I traded in some of my claying time over the holidays to do some baking and cooking up a few special meals instead which Dave has really appreciated!

We have accomplished a few things, however, this year so far though.  We've managed to list more items in our online store and I finally published my new tutorial, "From Scrap Clay to Art Deco"!

We always end up with so much left-over clay that we call scrap but it is never wasted.  We will sometimes mix it up to create new colors or use it as filler for beads.  We also love making Natasha beads or creating with Stropple canes and one day while playing around I discovered this fun new way to create bold and funky Art Deco patterns.

In my 16 page lesson I share my new technique along with a Kaleidoscope variation and tips on combining your scrap clay to achieve the best results.

Art Deco Kaleidoscope Variation

I also show an easy method to frame your designs to create buttons or jewelry pieces plus 2 full pages of photos for ideas and inspiration.

My new tutorial is now for sale in our Etsy shop as an instant download or if you do not want to pay the extra VAT tax, you can purchase it from our online store and we will e-mail it directly to you.

This is a fun new way to create new designs from your scrap.  We like to use the Art Deco patterns to create bracelet tiles, buttons, cabochons for our interchangeable "Snaps" and even create Tessellation patterns.

Bracelet Tiles

Tessellation variation

Interchangeable Fashion in a "Snap"

Rectangle Kaleidoscope Dish

Yesterday was the final day of the Shuswap Lake Festival of the Arts show and it will most likely take a few days for Dave and I to get everything put away and recover from the busy week we've had.  It was a great week and we are already planning the next art show we will be in coming up in September but I will share that with you a little later when I have more time.

In the meantime, since I was showing off some of my new decorative ring/jewelry/soap dishes, I thought I would show you one more in a different style, again with more of my left over kaleidoscope cane pieces. This time I used Helen Breil's "Tango" texture sheet to "frame" it.

Nothing Wasted

Here is another series of kaleidoscope buttons in bolder colors.  These ones are available at Heather's Fabric Shelf along with some other unique designs made special for there shop.

I love making "Natasha" (inside out) beads from the left-over pieces from my kaleidoscope canes.  I collect the left-overs keeping them organized in batches until I have enough to make a bunch of beads.

Here is one of the beads made from the scrap pile above.

This is a container of my scraps that are rolled into logs ready to make more beads.  

Kaleidoscope Canes and Buttons

I love the effect of kaleidoscopes and we decided to transform them into buttons.  We make them in several sizes with the large one shown on the left measuring 2 inches.

I am not one for making large canes and prefer making smaller ones.  I know there is a saying that you can never have enough of a good cane but I would rather have lots of new designs than a ton of the same pattern to use over a long time.  It keeps things fresh and new as well as making each pattern a "limited edition original".  To make our kaleidoscopes, I like to use left over cane pieces and color blends from my bargello and quilt patterns and coordinate them in a selected color scheme.

There was a lot of discussion lately on a polymer clay forum about how to slice canes that are straight and not wonky.  Like with any polymer clay technique I have developed or learned, I have discovered that to improve your skill it takes practice.  I messed up quite a bit at first trying to slice my canes and today I do most of it free hand without the use of any tool other than my tissue blade.  I just had to practice -- a lot.

Kaleidoscope Rings

I still had some cane left over from the pieces I showed you yesterday and so decided to make a few rings.  I just had to reduce the cane down a bit more to get the smaller size.  I managed to get 3 style variations.  I like the Swarovski crystal in the center but I also like the one without.  What do you think?

Kaleidoscope Dish

When playing with my clay I really enjoy making beads and buttons the most.  I do like a challenge of creating larger pieces which helps to break up the boredom.  While experimenting and developing my skill in creating kaleidoscope canes, I had put a large design together that I absolutely loved but was way too large to use for any pendant or button.  I set it aside along with the remainder part of the cane until I could decide what I was going to do with it.

After looking at it for several days, I could only visualize it as a centerpiece for a dish and this is the finished piece.

The most difficult part of finishing this piece was getting it absolutely smooth before baking which resulted in a fair bit of sanding later.

Fortunately I had some left over cane so still created some jewelry pieces.  All these pieces shown below were created from the same cane.  I love how you can get so many different patterns and effects from it.

More New Kaleidoscopes in Bellflower and Solar Power

Here are some more fabric inspired Kaleidoscope pieces finished off in another color series.  The main colors I used are the Pantone Spring 2012 colors of Bellflower and Solar Power with green and navy blue for more contrast.

Kaleidoscope Designs

I have always been fascinated with kaleidoscopes and admire some of the beautiful kaleidoscope canes others have created in polymer clay.  I always wanted to give it a try and never got around to it until now.  It was a lot of fun experimenting with different techniques until I figured out a method that worked best for me.

Now that we have our new logo stamp (see our last post here), I managed to finish some of the pieces.    Here are a few pieces that can be worn either as a brooch or pendants.  I used some of my left over cane pieces and color blends in the Pantone Spring 2012 colors of Tangerine Tango, Cabaret and Solar Power combined with my favorite olive green.