Adjustable Tube-bead Lariats

I really like the concept of lariats, though I haven't made that many.  A few weeks ago, I taught a workshop on making hollow tube beads.  Of course, making beads often involves deciding how to showcase them.  Usually, you have to plan on how the bead will be used and displayed. Sometimes, I have a plan all set out before I begin, while other times I have not thought about it as much as I might have.  At the end of my demo on hollow tubes, I had a couple of sweet tubes without ends. Then came Clay Connection 2016, the every-other-year polymer conference, hosted by the Southern Connecticut Polymer Clay Guild (SCPCG).  I always look forward to this conference, and this year was no exception.  I had the tube beads with me, made a couple more, then decided how I was going to use them.  Adjustable lariats!





Here are samples of 2 adjustable lariats.  I have a few more tube beads made up, but they're not in lariat form yet.  This particular design leaves the cording just loose enough so the length and the size for around the head and neck can be adjusted. I like making little pod beads at the ends, too.  They provide a form to hold while adjusting the cord length, and they're just plain fun.

Polymer "Pottery": Faux Ceramic - Technique 1

This post has a little story behind it....Due to some unexpected events, the Westerly Artists' Gallery was in need of an artist to develop a show for the large street-side window.  When no one stepped forward, I agreed to give it a shot, IF I could pull in one or two other 3-D artists and make a small "group" show.  It was just too short notice to produce enough pieces by myself.   Happily, I was able to talk a potter and a woodworker into joining me.  Things are shaping up nicely, and the show will go on in April.
The reason this figures into my blog posting is I decided to try to make items that tied into the other 2 mediums.  I've made polymer faux wood pieces before, and knew I could make a few items that tied in nicely with the woodworker's items.  However, I've never tried making polymer "ceramics."  Here was the perfect impetus!
First, I decided to do a bit of research and see what others were using for ceramic-like effects.  I have long been an admirer of Iris Mishly of Polymeri Online.  She has some absolutely fantastic tutorials on just about any polymer topic you can imagine and, of course, she has an exceptional series on polymer ceramic techniques. I'm always happy with her tutorials, and her tips and tricks are quite worthwhile.  I also found a few Youtube videos on the topic, as well as an interesting tutorial on Polymerclayweb.  I set about experimenting, trying different ideas to see what "fit" for me.
Today's post covers the first approach I used. These are closest to Iris' approach, and, I feel, allowed me to achieve a somewhat rustic and realistic ceramic look.  When I showed them to friends, they thought the pieces were actually ceramic - until they picked them up and felt that lovely polymer lightness.
One of the most consistent aspects of the various approaches was the use of pastels or chalks for creating color. Iris also uses another product that adds some special effects.  I used some plastic stencils from Iris' website for the designs and some wallpaper textures for the back of the pieces. Here are the backs of 2 of the pieces shown above.

One of the hardest things for me is making the pieces into something that is done and immediately wearable.  The finishing - bails, chains, cording - is not my favorite part.  Sometimes the ideas I have are too time consuming - and I want to get back to more clay!   The ceramic pieces I made with this approach seemed suited to somewhat more casual approaches.  So here are examples using silk ribbon and wound cording on the left,  and chains below on the right.

Of course, I also needed to try some earrings.  I found these were a bit larger than what I usually make. The patterns just needed more space.

Some New Shapes

Sometimes, I just like to play around and see what transpires.  I'd made a mica shift Skinner blend for a demonstration, then needed to make something with the sheet.  This necklace and earrings were the result.  A new shape, and I like the simplicity of the pearls.




Next I was in the mood for some black and white, so made a mokemu gane stack with black, white, silver and silver leaf.  Of course I needed to do something with it - thought I'd share some of the shapes I've come up with.   This first set is composed of 3 layers of triangles, each layer with a different treatment.  There is silver mica shift, the multi-color mokemu gane and black textured.

These earrings are open at the sides and the shape clasps an object at the bottom. The black pair has pearls while the mokemu gane pair holds jet crystals.

This last pendant is a curved triangle with a smooth, solid backing.  I like the neck cording, but haven't quite decided if that's going to be "it" or not.

I've a few more in the oven - I'll be sharing  more later.