Leftovers.

The aftermath of Thanksgiving’s abundance often leads to leftovers. Day-after meals often consist of various food-item concoctions. Turkey sandwiches are piled high with different side-dish items like stuffing and cranberry relish; turkey soup is derived from the bird’s picked-over carcass; or turkey pot pie is cobbled together with remaining ingredients. Depending on how many leftovers exist, a family might enjoy all of these aforementioned extra meals for days after the main event. At some point though, as the the leftovers dwindle, they lose their appeal. 

In the studio, I work with leftovers as well. I like to incorporate discarded and long-collected treasures into some of my creations to make them useful once again. This week I played with a new idea I’m developing for a craft party I’ll teach at The Muse on January 6. 

I created several textured medallion pieces from polymer clay I rolled out and cut into different shapes. I baked the pieces in an oven for about 20 minutes. When they cooled, I decorated each with layers of acrylic paints. 

I purchased several types of cord to experiment with and ended up using leather cord I already have to create the finished necklace. A variety of beads, recycled fashion jewelry and charms were strung and simply tied into place with a knot. I like how this adds some visual interest to the final necklace and makes use of items that might otherwise be discarded. 

At the same time, I used this polymer clay to create more shawl pins for sale at the Muse. The original design was made from clay I regularly use in the studio. Since these decorative fasteners are selling well and the polymer allows a quicker creative turnaround, I decided to experiment and make some with this alternate medium. These fun brooches also incorporate leftovers constructed from knitting needles, tubing from the hardware store, and collected beads. 

How do you use leftovers in your life? Click on the photo above to tell me! I’d love to know.

Material Gains

I was a student in a workshop this weekend in a whole new subject matter: Polymer Clay. It was exciting, informative and absolutely addictive. This new artistic material satisfies my creative desire to mix materials, achieve bright color results and explore new (to me) techniques. 

The workshop was held at a fantastic 3-Dimensional cooperative art gallery in Fredericksburg, Va. called Artful Dimensions, a manageable drive from where I live. I lucked into the class through one of those ‘rabbit hole’ internet searches early this spring. Unbeknownst to me when I signed up, the teacher -- Laurie Mika -- has pioneered some of this medium's techniques, written a popular book on the subject, and has a strong following of polymer clay enthusiasts. She is a seasoned, remarkable teacher. 

Although some of the tools used with this type of material are similar to ones used in my ceramic studio, there are lots of new gadgets to explore for creating in this medium. Yay! Various sharp cutting implements, different types of rubber stamps, permanent ink blotters, weldbond glue and colorful laser printed images were used to create the final piece. 

In this particular workshop, we learned how to decorate the clay using acrylic paints and laser printed images. The ‘clay’ material itself has different properties and a different feel than ceramic. It feels more plastic and requires kneading and softening by squishing it in your fingers before it is used. I described it to my husband that it reminded me of silly putty from my youth.

Similar to how I manipulate ceramic clay, the polymer can be rolled in a small slab, stamped with a decorative design, and cut out to a shape. Here’s where it’s a bit different. A mixed media embellishment can be glued and pressed into place. Then the piece is baked in a small toaster oven for 20 minutes. Once it is cooled and continues to harden, it is ready for more decoration with layers of paint. Now, I’m on the hunt for a used toaster oven. If you have one you’d like to part with, let me know!

Of course, you can’t learn everything in one single day-long workshop. I did learn enough to know I’d like to pursue this new (to me) material and see how to incorporate it into what I create with my ceramic pieces. My stash of mixed media jewelry bits and doodads are just waiting to be folded in to future projects. 

Workshops are a great way to learn new skills, meet great people and explore creativity. I’ve gained all of this and more through the class I took this past weekend.