Haunani Gane

Lindly Haunani is the queen of the rainbow.  Co-author of the marvelous Polymer Clay Color Inspirations book, she truly understands color and its impact on what we see and make.  In addition, she has a wonderful way of getting her grasp of color across to her students.  I have thoroughly enjoyed every class I've taken with Lindly, and the class on her version of mokume gane at CFCF 2014 was no exception.  Once again, her use of color and the way in which she manipulates the clay created a special twist on a classic technique.   If you're not familiar with mokume gane, please google the words.  There is a wealth of information on the Internet about this topic.

Before sharing my results from Lindly's class, I have to back up and tell you about a workshop I gave on mokume gane a few weeks ago.  Participants were introduced to several different methods of mokume gane in polymer, one of which was the "hills and valleys" technique.  I told the students that this particular approach to mokume gane was famous as the one Lindly Haunani uses.  I was right - and wrong.  The basic concept I presented is indeed similar to Lindly's technique.  But she has taken it to a completely different level, as you will see in the samples.  The yellow pieces on the left were the result of the process as I taught it.

The lime and cherry pieces on the right were made using Lindly's approach.  I think there is a world of difference in the end result.




This last shape has not been given a protective coating yet, so it appears more matte than the other examples.  You can really see the hills and valleys in this piece.

Needless to say, I think her version of this technique is superior to any I have seen before.  If you ever get a chance to take this workshop with Lindly, I can't encourage you enough.  It is soooo worthwhile to get these effects!