Lauren Cole Abrams

Rainy Days

2011-05-18T11:08:00.000-07:00

This whole week has been filled with rain. It matches my mood, though, so that's alright. I feel so uninspired and empty, not a hint from the muse. What does one do when the world is so grey?

New Studio Pics

2010-12-16T13:47:00.001-08:00

I know it's been a while, and here is part of the reason.....we totally redid this space and built in shelves and bookcases and drawer space. It's still not really finished but as close as we can come right now. It's a pleasure to work in and there seems to be endless storage(if that's possible).

....Now if I can just get over this artist's block things would be grand....I'm open to all suggestions....tell me how you got over yours....I know I'm not the first one to have it, but it sure feels empty.

Bangles....

2010-07-26T09:53:00.000-07:00

Several people have asked me to offer brass bangle blanks for sale so I've put some on Etsy
http://www.etsy.com/shop/laurenabrams
these are the best I've tried, offered at an affordable price.
Hope you like them

Just Checking In

2010-06-25T10:51:00.000-07:00

Sorry it's been so long since I posted....sometimes life gets in the way.

My mother turned 80 and we had a huge reunion(at my house...whew)that was wonderful and exhausting. Plus we are still putting finishing touches on my new studio(yes, pics will be here soon)

Today started out sadly, we found out my stepson's best friend died. Such a young man, and leaving a wife and children behind. Sometimes the universe doesn't make sense.

Thanks, Julie....your purchase of a pair of bangles from my Etsy store did give me a lift....I hope they brighten your day as well.

CraftEdu on YouTube

2010-05-18T13:25:00.001-07:00

Here is a sampling of the CraftEdu instructors' work on YouTube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1mEkMC_f8E

Brass Bangles

2010-04-20T15:42:00.000-07:00

I have been having a great time making these....it's addictive....the technique is loose and painterly and more fun than I've had in a while...

Having a bit of a learning curve doing my CraftEdu classes...but hopefully I'll be able to get some help tomorrow. Very excited to be doing these...

And my studio....is getting very, very close to being done...my wonderful daughter spend the weekend here with me and she organized me to within an inch of my life lol...I love her and I love the space....just some more wall treatment and molding and maybe the stairs covered and I promise I will be plastering photos all over the net......beware!

A Group of New Pieces

2010-04-07T08:47:00.000-07:00

My best friend, Susan, is setting up a show for me in Orlando next week. She and several other clay artists have opened a gallery called Claybodies...they mostly do ceramic work but have also included polymer....and up until yesterday I was working hard at getting everything done for that. Here are a few of the pieces I did for the show...

it's always fun to have a show to do, it gives me motivation to create work I might not otherwise.

In this case I've made some bangles... it's hard to stop once you get going on those...thanks to a wonderful tutorial from amazing polymer artist and fellow instructor with CraftEdu, Melanie West. She has a great Etsy store with bangles and tutorials here:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/CorvusFlies
I learned to work on brass and found it very satisfying...I've never really covered anything before so it was a bit scary at first but now I feel like an old hand at it lol....

I also did a piece with wild stripes and a split pendant.....

and I think my most fun piece was this one....I took a painting I did some time back and made a transfer...something I learned from Kathleen Dustin's workshop....I can see myself going in this direction...it's what I've been wanting to do for a while now, combine polymer with my painting....

....speaking of painting, I am all set up and ready to photograph my first class for CraftEdu...nervous but excited.......I'll let you know how it goes...

Bye for now!

A Gallery of Trompe L'oeil Paintings

2010-03-21T14:58:00.000-07:00

Here is a link to my new gallery done for CraftEdu.com.....I'll be creating classes to teach how to do faux finishes and paint trompe l'oeil objects on surfaces like tables and boxes.

http://craftedu.faculte.com/bp/MzA1MTY2MTA0Mg

CraftEdu.com

2010-03-20T17:01:00.000-07:00

Wow....the last few days have been a blur of exciting new things....one of the best being a new educational opportunity coming....CraftEdu.com! The brainstorm of the amazing Donna Kato, it will have it's launch very soon...check it out on Facebook at
http://www.facebook.com/pages/CraftEducom/339651391037
and the blog is http://blog.craftedu.com/

And yes, I'm going to be an instructor!! I'm starting with trompe l'oeil and if that goes well maybe some polymer classes.....I've very happy about this, it's made me look at painting with a new attitude....something I haven't done in a while....

A New Pendant..."Kimonofly"

2010-03-18T11:34:00.000-07:00

Here's one I just finished....someone mentioned that they look like "Kimono Bugs" lol.....so I've name them "Kimonoflies"....

New Work!

2010-03-16T08:52:00.000-07:00

I've been on a roll for the last week or so....I'm working on some new pieces that, well....just do it for me....

I can see these in many different permutations...I'm really happy with these, they are refinements of some earlier pieces I liked but just didn't know what to do with lol..

In the background I can hear the sounds of the Pergo floor being installed in my *gasp* NEW STUDIO!!! Pictures as soon as it is done....

A Video...with me in it

2010-03-06T15:39:00.000-08:00

I know I"ve been very remiss in writing in my blog....but lots of stuff happening behind the scenes....here's a video I just saw that has two pieces of my work in it

http://animoto.com/play/urxhHEsj5fuY6iCtz5Fbpg

Stay tuned...soon I'll be posting lots of new work I've been doing...in the meantime...have a look at the link...the music is lovely and there's some very nice work showcased....

In A Blog

2010-02-06T08:03:00.000-08:00

I just found out I was featured in this blog a few days ago...

rivervalleydesign.blogspot.com

thanks...it's nice to be included in your lovely blog!

Sorry that it's been awhile since I've written....lots of things going on
...we just had the new doors installed yesterday in my new studio....now I'm getting ready to do some faux finishes on the walls....once it is all done, I'll post pics!

Also, I decided to pull out of Baltimore....lots of reasons, mostly fear lol....but I'm glad I did....I feel much better now and not stressed out so much, trying to come up with a line that would work...hopefully by next year I'll be ready...
In the meantime, I'm letting the muse relax for a while as I work on the studio and enjoy the warmth and coziness of our little mountain house while it snows like a mother outside....:)

"And Now For Something Entirely Different...."

2010-01-10T11:39:00.001-08:00

I am in the process of designing a new studio and I've very excited about it....hopefully it will be done soon, but in the meantime most of my art supplies are in boxes, waiting....

I got the urge to paint...so I set up a small table top easel in the kitchen and did this....I really enjoyed it, it's been years since I've painted....and soon I hope to combine my paintings with my polymer clay pieces by using transfers....

In the meantime....here's a potato....

"Eastern Fusion" Mjxed Media Pendant

2009-12-11T12:54:00.000-08:00

I was invited to do a new piece for Synergy3....either collaborative or of mixed media.

I work with both resin and polymer clay, but I've never combined the two...so I thought, perfect time to try it...

Here is the result....the piece in the center was cast from a mold I made of my original....I cast resin(polyurethane plastic)with dyes and real brass metal powder....then I popped it out of the mold and buffed to a high shine with steel wool....then I added a Skinner Blend to the background of this, and made polymer clay cane adorned drop and bail....and hung it from a multistrand steel necklace....the pendant is 3" wide by 6" long

I'm pretty happy with it....and I think there will be more to come.....

A New Etsy Treasury

2009-12-04T08:38:00.000-08:00

I'm in an Etsy treasury today....yay!

Earrings....mostly

2009-11-25T12:25:00.001-08:00

Since I did those two pieces the other day I've been making things like crazy...I'm in love with colors against black....and I've been mostly doing earrings, which is something that lends itself well to this style and I'm so glad because I've usually had problems coming up with earring ideas....these aren't the greatest photos but I just wanted to get some up here to show you where I'm headed....I keep thinking of refinements and how to make them better and I'm loving all the ideas I have....the only problem is....these are way different from the style that got me into Baltimore lol....so this should be interesting....trying to integrate this colorful style with the earthy pendants I was doing when I applied...sigh...always something huh....

Some New Work...and a workshop pendant

2009-11-20T11:11:00.000-08:00

I've finally photographed the pendant I did in Kathleen Dustin's workshop in October...she is such a lovely, gracious woman...it was a total pleasure to learn from her. It's easy to tell which one is that pendant....it has the layers of color and pattern that is her signature...it was a joy to create and I've learned so many invaluable lessons...even things as simple as the proper temperature to bake Premo at(285 degrees)...and how to use a heat gun to get really good transparency....using prismacolor markers and pencils on baked clay.....so many things that I never knew...thanks so much, Kathleen...you've done more to advance the acceptance of polymer clay as a valid art/craft medium than anyone else I can think of....I'm so glad I had the chance to take your workshop...

So now what? lol...In the weeks I've been back I've gone round and round trying to figure out (still)what it is that makes me passionate about polymer clay...and what direction to go in..

I've had several false starts and got to that place where I felt like I was up against a wall creatively....it's not so much that I don't have any ideas....it's that I have so many that I don't know which is the real me...you know? So I've done what I try to remember to do when I hit that wall....walk away and do something else....so the hallway has been painted and I even have groups of framed pieces lying on the floor to be put up when the mood strikes me...and during that time several things seemed to come to the surface.

I've always loved black...with lots of colors...so I'm playing around with that...here are two pieces I've done to start....

I also want to figure out how to incorporate some wonderful things I learned in the workshop...but that's for later...for now...this is sort of fun all by itself....

Happy To Be Home

2009-11-02T13:14:00.000-08:00

I'm so happy to be home....had a wonderful time in Florida, great workship with Kathleen Dustin(she rocks)and it was incredibly wonderful to see friends and family....but there's no place like home.

Soon I'll have some new work to share....the workshop was chock full of great ideas and techniques I doubt I would ever have figured out on my own....

Oh, if you were thinking of taking a vacation in Florida in October to beat the heat...think again.....lol

Off To A Workshop!

2009-10-14T08:49:00.000-07:00

I'm leaving today on the train for Orlando...where I lived for 28 years....to visit some friends and family and to take a workshop from Kathleen Dustin! I'm very excited to be learning from her, she's always been my favorite polymer clay artist.

I'll let you know what we did when I return in two and a half weeks!

I GOT IN!!

2009-09-23T11:02:00.000-07:00

I am so psyched....I just found out today I got into the ACC Baltimore show!!! I got into the wholesale part and am wait listed in the wholesale/retail part....

I really needed this....the last three shows I tried for I was rejected....they were small shows in Florida, but still, it hurt....worse, it started to drain me and made me feel like what I was doing wasn't good, or worthwhile pursuing...now at least I can feel some hope that I'm on a good road...

Plus...I signed up for a workshop with Kathleen Dustin mid October....how wonderful will that be?

Yippeee!!!

You'll Never Guess....

2009-09-01T14:32:00.001-07:00

lol a new one....

And a New Treasury...

2009-08-28T10:33:00.001-07:00

Another Treasury

2009-08-13T13:08:00.000-07:00

I love being in Etsy treasuries....

Etsy Treasury

2009-08-10T10:06:00.001-07:00

I love discovering my work in a new treasury...and this one is so wonderful, it's hosted by this site

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6043390

check it out...it's one of those incredible Etsy stores you come across in which all the work is donated and will go to a charity....how can you resist?

Three More Pendants

2009-08-07T15:08:00.001-07:00

I like the one on the bottom best....I keep trying to get simpler, but it's so hard to do because I just don't know when to stop lol...

My Premio Meme Award

2009-08-04T20:01:00.000-07:00

My Premio Meme Award

I was given this award by Tonja

http://tonjastreasures.com/wordpress/?p=1707&cpage=1#comment-407

To be worthy of accepting the award, I must tell 7 things about myself and pass on the award to 7 more bloggers.

1-I like Three Muskateers Bars

2-I met Gloria Swanson at a film festival in the 1970's

3-I grew up in Levittown, PA

4-I used to hate Rutabagas but now I love them

5-I once painted a dollar bill on the floor of an indoor art show and watched as people tried to pick it up

6-I can wiggle my ears

7-I own a tiny piece of the Berlin Wall

ok, now I"m passing along this special award on to 7 of my favorite bloggers

1)http://janiceabarbanel.blogspot.com/

2)http://polymerclaydaily.com/

3)http://rubarbdesertdesigns.blogspot

4)http://beadbunny.blogspot.com

5)http://polymerclayworkshops.com/

6http://mosaicmoods.wordpress.com/

7)http://lifeonearthand.blogspot.com/

A New Pendant

2009-08-04T14:09:00.000-07:00

I've been toying around with the idea of doing more layers with my pendants....and I saw this wonderful video from Dan Cormier and Tracy Holmes about how their SHARK tool works....you can use it to make large graduations smaller...which is such a great thing to be able to do...I've been trying to get them small enough to work in my pendants and have had no luck....so I ordered one and can't wait to use it...

Their work(as well as their tools)blows my mind....

http://www.dancormier.ca/DanCormier/HOME.html

Anyway, here's a new pendant....

Featured

2009-07-26T13:31:00.001-07:00

What a nice surprise today...featured in a blog
http://www.visart-dali.com/2009/07/funky3.html

A Few New Pendants

2009-07-25T11:12:00.001-07:00

Well, the hand is coming along...I've been able to work on my show orders and even do a few new pieces....the deco piece is a bit TOO deco, but it was fun....

"Handmade"

2009-07-14T08:38:00.000-07:00

had surgery on the other hand yesterday so this will be short...but it does gi ve you new respect for everything you do with your hands....which is pretty much everything....

if you have been having pain or numbness in your hands, please ask yor dr about it. don't wait for years like i did....the surgeries are very easy.....and you can do irreperable nerve damage if you let it go untreated...not a lecture, just hope to help anyone who might be putting it off

ok, hope to be back in commission soon....peace

Mosaic Monday

2009-07-11T07:14:00.000-07:00

One of my pieces has been featured in "Monday Mosaic" on the site "Craft Gossip"
http://polymerclay.craftgossip.com/monday-mosaic-purple/2009/07/06
How nice.....and purple being dear to my heart!

A New Pendant

2009-07-06T12:24:00.001-07:00

Nothing fabulous, just a new pendant...

Etsy Treasury

2009-07-02T15:29:00.001-07:00

How fun to find out I'm in an Etsy treasury!!

I just joined the PCAGOE and found a great site

while reading their forum....

http://www.craftopolis.com/

just go there and enter your Etsy user name and see

when you are in a treasury...how cool is that?

Some Funky Pendants

2009-06-29T12:53:00.000-07:00

For some reason, this format has stuck with me....I did two right before the wholesale show and they sold well...

So Now I'm doing more of them...and it feels good....just playing with textures and colors and patterns and shapes and not worrying about content....well, it's relaxing and exciting at the same time.

So I think I'll do more...

A Live! Presentation on EBSQ

2009-06-18T11:34:00.000-07:00

I belong to a wonderful online artists' community-EBSQ....I've been a member for quite a few years now and have made some great friends...it's a place where I can go to talk with people who have the same types of struggles and joys as I have because they have similar backgrounds. For a very small fee I get a website presence for my paintings or any other type of art I want to list, there are monthly competitive art shows, forums, chat rooms, and tutorials. Monday night, June 22, at 9 Eastern (6pm Pacific) I will be Live in one of their chat rooms giving a presentation on Polymer Clay Basics.....and you're all invited...
Just go to http://www.ebsqart.com/ and register as a Patron....it's a totally free membership and it will allow you access to this Monday's Live presentation.....where hopefully I'll see you!

Getting Ready

2009-06-09T09:58:00.000-07:00

Well, the hand is coming along very well....I'm able to type with both hands now and in a few minutes I'll see how well I can work with clay....I finally got a motor and foot pedal added to my pasta machine and am excited to try it out....

I will begin to fill the orders I got at the wholesale show and some others I need to fill...really looking forward to it. Also excited about starting some new pieces...

Here is a pic of my display at the ACRE show in Las Vegas...

Hand Surgery

2009-06-06T02:05:00.000-07:00

recovering from hand surgery...hardto type with left hand..back in action soon

The Show

2009-06-03T01:03:00.000-07:00

I've lived vicariously for the last three days....texting, phoning, emailing....the show was good, Muriel took some nice orders and now it's over.
Phew....what a lot of work, but what an exciting ending(beginning)to all that work..

And it's funny...you never know what's going to sell and not sell until the show comes....the larger flower necklaces were admired and passed over as too big....ok, I like them enough maybe I'll scale them down...
And I'm thinking the more colorful pieces were the ones that sold....and that's good, because I love color.

Hopefully I'll have some pics in a few days to show the booth display...

Faux Ivory and Turquoise

2009-05-22T16:54:00.000-07:00

This is the last piece I am making for the show.....but I did have fun with it lol.....anyway, I'm off to finish up getting things ready to ship.....

I'll let you know how the show goes...it's next weekend and a good friend is doing it for me....she is a wonderful artist and a great person and I can't think of anyone would could do a better job...I'm so excited...

Thanks, Muriel...

Leaves

2009-05-18T14:25:00.001-07:00

For some reason I went this way today....it felt good, although a big derivative....but who knows where that might go...I have to go reread "Art and Fear"......

Playing

2009-05-15T12:18:00.000-07:00

Well, to make things even more uneven, I went off on a tangent the last few days with alcohol inks....I made the mistake of painting directly on pearl Primo clay instead of putting down silver leaf and had a bunch of long beads made when I realized it....they turned out really nice though...more sutble, more colorful, than the ones with the leaf underneath(although I am a sucker for shiny things)and I found myself playing with them and came up with these two pendants...which to me couldn't look farther from the work I've been doing....so I am in a quandry....do I keep going in this direction or stop....try to see if I can combine some of both styles....or am I just not seeing the forest for the trees?

Deadlines

2009-05-15T12:11:00.000-07:00

ARRRGGGHHH.....only two weeks til the wholesale show in Las Vegas....less than that really because I have to ship ahead of time....so I'm approaching a deadline quickly and I couldn't be more unsure of what my line will be for this show....

So I thought I would past a few of the pieces I've done over the last week or so...and see what they look like all together....

Over The Top?

2009-05-03T08:18:00.001-07:00

lol...I sure had fun with this one, but I'm not sure that it didn't go over the top....but then again, who cares?

Red Flower Necklace

2009-05-01T09:10:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty happy with this one....I've been trying to pick up where my Spring Flower Necklace left off but it never seemed to happen til yesterday....so here it is....

Stacked Pendant

2009-04-29T11:40:00.001-07:00

I just finished a new piece...I combined a few techniques-the top bead is make using alcohol inks and silver leaf, middle one is ivory colored clay with stamping and piercing, the bottom is a push mold from one of my own leaf shapes....I'm pleased with this...although I think it's a bit fussy....

In An Etsy Treasury...

2009-04-27T14:54:00.000-07:00

I was delighted to find myself included in a lovely Etsy treasury...

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=54865

Thanks, Busybeadlady!

Friday Fun

2009-04-24T15:16:00.001-07:00

More Pendants...

2009-04-24T11:54:00.001-07:00

They seem to keep evolving....:)

More Pendants

2009-04-21T12:58:00.001-07:00

I just finished these also, more of the same split pendants that I'm having a great time doing....

A Quick Set Of Earrings

2009-04-21T12:36:00.000-07:00

My daughter loves long earrings so I whipped up a pair using colors I liked....and I'm having fun with them....they tickle the shoulders just a bit....

More...

2009-04-16T08:38:00.000-07:00

Well, I've been having a fine time for the last two days making more of these new pendants...and this one has a nice addition of a bead I learned to make from a tutorial of Janice Abarbanel's....who I greatly admire. It makes such a wonderful centerpiece....ooooh look, something shiney......

Split Decision

2009-04-14T12:07:00.000-07:00

I've been agonizing over which direction to go in....banging head on the wall, tearing out hair kind of agonizing....

I have a wholesale show in Las Vegas end of May....and no product line....oh don't get me wrong, I have plenty of pieces, but until today I just couldn't pull them all together..but I woke up with the same idea I had last time I posted...make a piece, then split it apart and see where that takes me...

I am just so happy with what today brought...and hopefully I can stay on this course until I have a line I'm happy with....

Of course, I have felt that way before only to lose interest after a piece or two....but I do think this is good, it's got plenty of possibilties.....and it's mine...

Back...

2009-04-03T07:37:00.000-07:00

I've been gone for a while, attending my sister's wedding and visiting some old friends. I've missed working with clay and I'm raring to go, so stay tuned for some new pieces...

Fimo

2009-03-14T10:40:00.001-07:00

Well, this is a long story but I'll try to make it short.....I've been using and loving Sculpey 111 for a while now, I love the colors and especially the softness and easy conditioning..

However, I've been questioning it's ability to be strong and durable for some of the jewelry I'm making...so I started reading....Tori Hughes wrote a wonderful book about using polymer clay to recreate the look of various natural materials..it's called "Polymer the Chameleon Clay" and in it she does a great job of showing how different brands of clay stack up according to durability, etc and in reading this I found that she greatly prefers Fimo....so I ordered some.

Wow...what a difference! I baked three identical shapes of clay, one was Sculpey, one was Fimo Classic and one was Fimo Soft.....I tried them for strength and immediately the Sculpey one snapped in my fingers...but both Fimos were strong and resisted breaking...so I'm hooked on Fimo now

Ok, so I looked at the few other Fimo colors I had ordered and saw one Fimo Effects in Copper....I absolutely adored the color...I mean, it is luscious and juicy and altogether my new favorite.....

I had a scrap of a simple striped cane left over so I started playing....and added the copper as an accent piece....and actually, I'm pretty happy with the whole thing....I keep thinking of new exciting things to do in this format and that usually is a good thing...

So...that's the story of how this pendant came to be, how I fell in love with a new color and a new clay....

A Wedding Necklace

2009-03-13T10:55:00.000-07:00

My sister is getting married in a few weekes....and she wanted me to make her wedding necklace......since this isn't her first, she is wearing ivory and wanted a heart and some purple....so I just sat down and had a great time making it....

Seaforms

2009-03-12T12:54:00.000-07:00

I made one of these and it sold right away on Etsy....a great motivation to do some more...so here they are.....

I'm kind of liking them, but they still don't feel quite right...

Maybe I need a trip to the beach.....for research....

Beads

2009-03-12T12:47:00.000-07:00

I went through a phase with these beads....aligning different patterns and then chopping them up, adding them back together and shaping them.....fun really, but I just don't know what else to do with them....

A Step Back

2009-03-09T12:47:00.001-07:00

I ran across these today and almost forgot to post them...I did these pendants a few months ago(shown without neckpieces)put them away and now I've brought them out of hiding to look at them in a new light....I think I am re-liking them....hmmm

Earrings

2009-03-09T12:42:00.001-07:00

I'm going to be doing a wholesale show the end of May and I've decided to do some earrings...at least, I've been playing with teeny amounts of clay to that end....

Started with the ones on the left...then the rest kind of exploded...

I'm in the "I really don't like these" stage on them....for a time, I was in the "wow, this is great" stage but it got downgraded, as these stages seem to do...

Hopefully next stage will be "They're fine, stop being so hard on yourself"

We'll see....

Bakelite Tangent

2009-03-05T10:18:00.001-08:00

I've always loved the look of Bakelite and have several pieces in varying colors, but mostly butterscotch....so I set out to try to match the look of that vintage 30's and 40's plastic that aged so beautifully. At first I had some trouble because I was using opaque clay and it came out looking chalky....then I played around with a combination of translucents and regular clay and I was happy!

However, once I ran these past my husband and chief critic, he frankly said he thought the earrings resemble corn on the cob or macaroni art....

It's amazing we've been together this long...

Newer Work

2009-03-03T09:41:00.000-08:00

It's funny, but when I started this blog a little while ago, I hadn't done any of this style for months.....but looking back it kind of inspired me so I made some more....it's great to combine old designs with newer techniques and see what happens...

Catching Up

2009-02-28T10:54:00.001-08:00

I thought that I would make this a long one, and put up some examples of the rest of what I played around with up until very recently so this could become more of a daily blog than history...

Playing With Simple Canes

2009-02-24T10:46:00.000-08:00

I did try doing some more canes....very simple stripes and a little more crushed Ikat....and then I slapped a bunch of different colors and shapes together to see what it would look like...

Don't ask me where the baby bonnet/peanut shell texture look came from...lol

I also got really excited about using anodized aluminum findings for a bit of sparkle....

I've come to believe that the way I work is by looking around at work that inspires me, ruminating on it for a bit, then something from here will mesh with something from there, leave it to marinate for a while, then voila...a new direction....

This gets tiring after awhile though...I keep wanting so just find my own unique voice and start talking....

A Tropical Necklace on a Cloudy Day

2009-02-23T15:36:00.001-08:00

It's kind of hard to remember the exact chronology of how these pieces all came to be but I do remember this came to me on a very chilly, overcast day....and warmed me right up. Having lived in Central Florida for 28 years, I rather miss the bright colors and overblown beauty of that area now and then. Not often though, I'd much rather be making tropical necklaces than baking in that heat...no thanks..

My First Real Canes

2009-02-20T16:23:00.000-08:00

I rented a video of Donna Kato's cane making and saw this crushed ikat....I was a bit nervous to try cane making but was so glad I did...it added that surface texture I'd been seeking...and it wasn't hard at all!

Then I rented a video of Sarah Shriver's and saw her make her incredibly complicated kaleidoscope canes....and I haven't made a cane since...lol

But maybe....soon

A Leap...

2009-02-19T11:12:00.000-08:00

In a short period of time I made these three necklaces....I guess I was tired of working on such a small scale....

I truly enjoyed making these, I was learning how to do the Skinner blend and since I LOVE graduated colors(always have)it was a natural for me.

When I sat back at looked at them together as a group(and a few others that I wasn't as happy about)I just couldn't connect them somehow....what were the constants? what were the strengths and weaknesses?

"Spring Flowers"(far left) kind of represented my graphic design background-stylized, with Art Deco and Art Nouveau influences.

"Curlicue" has a more contemporary feel and is my favorite of this group, still very symmetric, stylized and Deco-ish.

The third one, "Android" was fun and mainly an exercise in using up scraps from other projects...
I did learn from this one though, that simply adding a ready made neckpiece just doesn't do it. Years ago I had a good friend, Robin, who did wonderful things with polymer clay...and she was musing over how to design the back of a mirror she was making....when I suggested she use one of the frame suppliers I used to add a cardboard backing to it, she said no, that she wanted everything in this piece to be designed and made by hand. At the time I thought that was kind of silly(no one sees the back)but since then I've had to learn that lesson over and over. Just "adding on" a manufactured component can really detract from the whole piece. I tend to get focused on one part and then slap something on it later to hang it with.....but I'm trying hard to make myself stop doing that.

Hopefully in time, that will just become second nature. For now, it's something I have to keep reminding myself to do.....

Thanks, Robin...

More Of My Journey...

2009-02-18T15:18:00.001-08:00

Over the next few months I played with these elements, the circle and leaf shapes....the symmetry appealed to me, the balance seemed to give me the control I felt I needed working with a new material. I added some metal drops here and there, experimented with textures.

It was a wonderful experience..and I made maybe fifty of these, some more successful than others...

It was one of the first times I can remember that I stayed with a few simple design elements, and just worked with them....I am usually so distracted by every new image that draws me that it felt good for once to stick with something....but, of course, that wasn't to last.....

So this is what I started doing...

2009-02-17T13:23:00.001-08:00

I enjoyed the softness of the greens and salmon colors I used...

and the simplicity of the flower shapes....

I did a group of these pendants and earrings and put them on Etsy...

Then I started using bolder colors and adding more "stuff".....I did sell some and that really encouraged me....

I decided that I liked Sculpey 3 polymer clay very much,

the colors are so vivid and the clay is easy to condition....

I began to check out what other polymer clay people were doing....got staggered by the sheer number of people out there who work with it...and also inundated with information on techniques, trouble shooting and just about everything polymer clay related. I don't think I've ever met such caring and generous artists.

I'm still marveling over it...

Where I Came From....

2009-02-16T16:07:00.000-08:00

I started out in the seventies and eighties doing graphic art and illustration.

Then during the late eighties and nineties, my then husband and I collaborated on a line of
trompe l'oeil painted furniture that we sold at retail and wholesale art shows.

After about fifteen years, the marriage and the collaboration ended and I went back to art school, painted for a few years.

In the last few years I became obsessed with designing purses. Finally focused on the part I liked best, doing the handles. Particularly, resin handles. I do the originals with polymer clay, then make silicone molds and pour resin(dyed and with metal powders added, called cold casting). I sell them to purse makers on my website http://www.labeanabags.com/ I've truly enjoyed doing this, especially working with polymer clay again.

In designing these handles, I'd missed using color....so one day I played with some other polymer clay colors.....and soon I was making little sculptures and jewelry....(stay tuned)

Finding My Way....

2009-02-16T15:41:00.000-08:00

I've been wrestling with "becoming" a polymer clay artist for a while now....for years I've enjoyed working with this medium off and on but never felt I knew enough about it to do anything serious....why do I feel it has to be serious anyway? It's like playing, really.

I've shared my angst with fellow EBSQ friends(a great online artists' community) and they've been great as always...giving me support, critiques, advice and sometimes just hugs...but I guess this journey is one you take alone....at least that's how it seems. The thing is....I love so many things about polymer clay that I am having a hard time finding my own voice. I keep jumping around and trying everything and end up with....a hodge podge lol...

But I guess this is my own way of evolving....and while I'm doing it I might as well share the ride..