My New Pasta Machine

I received my new pasta machine the other day and couldn't wait to try it out!  It is an Atlas 180 but is different!

The new Atlas pasta machines are now made with plastic scraper blades which I found react in a negative way with the polymers in the clay and were a real pain to keep clean.  Mona Kissel, another polymer clay artist, sells the Atlas pasta machines that have been modified.  They not only replace the plastic blades with metal ones but they make the blades removable for easy cleaning!

I find it very user friendly and a so nice to work with now.  I can be working with black or dark clays and within minutes, clean my blades, snap them back in to place and start working with white clay and no more messy streaks!  Just nice clean whites!

According to their website, if you already have an Atlas 150 or 180 pasta machine, you can send your machine into them and they will actually modify it for you!  I can't be without my machine for any length of time so I ordered a brand new one and plan to send my older one in later to have modified so I will have a spare.  This turned out to be the best (economical) solution for me.

Some New Rings

I've been having fun playing around with some new adjustable ring blanks I purchased the other day.  By adapting my double-sided bead technique I can create some gorgeous rings that match my other jewelry pieces.  I created the matching post earrings in the same way.  I tested them out in our last show we did and they were quickly swooped up by several customers.  I guess that is telling us we need to make more!

Some New Shawl Pin Designs

Made some more new shawl pins which are now for sale in our Art Fire Studio and our Etsy Shop.

Featuring our new home decor pieces

Our show went very well Sunday and our home decor display drew a lot of attention.  We've added a lot of new designs to our line which you will find on our "Jewelry for the Home" site.  Here are a few samples that we have added.

Sante Fe Chili Pepper

Sunflowers

Daisies

Flower Power

Our Double-sided Display

We have been working overtime getting our displays ready for our coming shows so that everything fits just in the right place and everything looks just so.  We find the first one takes a lot more effort but after all the signs are printed and everything is sorted, the remaining shows go a whole lot easier.

We've been expanding our home decor line and so we decided it deserved its own display.  We wanted something that was free-standing so we don't have to rely on needing extra table space.  We searched around and decided to use something we already had -- 2 plastic shelf units that snap together very easily and when you put them together they make a perfect square table with some space underneath for storage.

We placed a board over top to make it a little larger and so the black skirting we had would fit nicely overtop.  We purchased the grid from a local company that sells store displays and created a backdrop by draping some black fabric and added some clip-on lamps at the top.  A sample board of our special switch plate covers and drawer pulls hangs perfectly on the grid with space for other items to display on the table top.

The beauty of this display is that it is double-sided!  Yes we have a jewelry display on the opposite side with plenty of room for our cable necklace display I showed you earlier and lots of earrings.

We created a simple display for our post earrings by arranging them onto some plastic canvas.  Now we feel we are ready for any event whether they provide good lighting or not.

How to Make an Eye Catching Jewelry Display for Shows

This is a simple and easy way to show off your jewelry pieces at any show or craft fair.   The body mannequins that are for sale are not only expensive but too bulky to transport.  This one is very compact and won't break the bank.

Start with a formed or padded clothes hanger.  You will want one where the hook at the top will turn different directions so it can be hung in various ways.

You will also need a turtleneck shirt -- black is good but any color that will show off your jewelry pieces the will do.  Hang your turtleneck shirt onto the hanger and stretch an elastic hair tie around the waist area.

Thread a medium-size safety pin horizontally to the inside of the shirt on one side near the top.

(inside of shirt)

(outside of shirt)

This pin is to hang your earrings:

Stuff the top part of your shirt with bunched up tissue paper or bubble wrap.  You don't need that much but just enough to give it "body" (pun intended) and the shirt isn't totally "flat"  ---

Take another safety pin and tack the back of the neck part of the shirt so it closes tighter and this will cause it to stand up straighter.  If your hanger is padded, you can pin the collar to it.

Take one of the sleeves and tuck it into the elastic at the waist.  This sleeve can be used for hanging a bracelet or two.

Your mannequin display is now finished and ready to hang anywhere you wish.

You can even make a similar one for men's jewelry such as this shirt for showing off a tie tac.

Hang these in such a way so people can walk directly to them -- they will want to get a closer look.  If you have anything to hang them on, try using a coat rack as a free standing display.

Kamloops Craft-a-Fair

Our first Christmas show this year is this Sunday at the Kamloops Craft-a-Fair.  It is operated as a fundraiser for the  Kamloops Hospital and run by the hospital auxiliary.  Our space will be on the concourse and to the left of the main entrance.  If you happen to make it there be sure to stop by and say hello.

**  Note:  Click here to see our post for the 2011 Craft-a-Fair show....