Art Jewelry magazine Editors' Blog : polymer clay

Polymer clay artist Melanie West teaches you how to make stunning bracelets

Jill Erickson — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 15:38:00 GMT

The May 2009 issue of AJ features a project by polymer clay artist, Melanie West, whose work is a tour de force of form and color. Her project teaches readers how to "Craft a Seamless Polymer Cuff." The secret? An aluminum cuff blank (which she sells on her Web site). Subscribers, you can click here to learn how to make your own cuff blank; or if you like gizmos, read our review of "Cindy's Bender," a product that easily shapes a strip of metal into a cuff shape.

In addition to West's line of cuff styles, she creates incredible nudibranch-inspired (think sea slug) "Bio Bangles" like the one pictured to the left! Her experiments along this theme are inspiring.

Speaking of inspiring, I want to let you know about the upcoming International Polymer Clay Association (IPCA, formerly the National Polymer Clay Guild) Retreat this summer near Chicago. The IPCA Web site has details. I'll be attending the Retreat and look forward to connecting with old friends and making new ones. I'm sure I'll see lots of great work. Be sure to look for me if you're planning on being there! Of course, you can always chat and share images of your work with other polymer clay enthusiasts on our forum.

Cheers, :) Jill

How polymer clay artist Melanie West ended up living a green lifestyle off the grid and making vibrant jewelry

Kristin Sutter — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 15:58:00 GMT

Our May 2009 issue was exciting to put together, because it was our first-ever green issue! I was lucky enough to be assigned to interview polymer clay artist Melanie West about her solar-powered home and studio in Freedom, Maine. It was so interesting to hear Melanie explain how and why she and her partner, Tom Levesque, have continually made their homestead more eco-friendly. The green technology and practices they've adopted go way beyond solar panels (though they do have those). To find out more about their home, check out "How One Artist Walks the Green Talk" in the May 2009 issue of Art Jewelry.

The thing about magazines, though, is there's a limited number of pages. Melanie has had such an interesting life and done so many cool things, and we just couldn't fit it all in the magazine. So, we put more about her inspiration as an artist and the path that took her to where she is now in this online article, "Polymer Clay Artist Melanie West's Path to Green Living (And Many-Colored Art)." I hope you enjoy reading about her life as much as I enjoyed talking with her!

––Kristin

P.S. Melanie also contributed a fantastic project, "Craft a Seamless Polymer Cuff," to our May 2009 issue. You can find the issue on newsstands now. Or click here to order it from our top-notch customer service department.

Small jewelry world! Finding inspiration and discovering connections

Addie Kidd — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 15:37:00 GMT

Oh, how exciting is this!

Cynthia Tinapple over at Polymer Clay Daily just posted about Bettina Welker's polymer work.
Bettina's polymer work was inspired by enamel bracelets made by Angela Gerhard.
Angela's enamel bracelets are going to be featured in our July 2009 issue – you can learn how to make one!

My fellow associate editor Jill is editing Angela's sgraffito enamel bracelet story even as I type. Check out this cool process photo from the article - in it Angela's cleaning up a finished panel of her enamel bracelet.

Isn't it wonderful when inspiration can jump across medium lines like that?! That's part of why I'm so happy that Art Jewelry has always been a multi-media jewelry-making magazine. We'll have polymer clay next to enamel, next to gold and silver, next to bronze metal clay, next to wirework. Whew!

I think it's even more amazing when artists give each other the credit that they all deserve. Sadly, too often ideas are "borrowed" without acknowledgment. But not in this case – Bettina's so excited about her source of inspiration that she even puts Angela's Flickr address in the captions of her photos. I think that her confidence must come from the fact that Bettina didn't copy Angela's work in the least. She saw something beautiful in Angela's work, and then used her own medium of choice to make that aesthetic look completely her own. Isn't art great??

So check out this little chain of inspiration connections, then look for Angela's sgraffito enamel project in our July 2009 issue. I hope you find inspiration from it to make beautiful artwork of your own.

Happy Friday,

~Addie~

Halloween vampire ring on Etsy

Jill Erickson — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 15:13:00 GMT

If you're a bit of a Halloween fanatic, you'll probably appreciate this polymer clay ring posted on a seller's Etsy site. Knowing how much I enjoy the ghoulish holiday, Addie forwarded me the link. I love getting personal email notices with links to stuff I like. And I like to reciprocate when I come across a site that I know will resonate with a certain friend or someone in my family. Back in the day, we used to send snail mail post cards or newspaper/magazine clippings. Now we can keep in touch "across the miles" as those old greeting cards used to say...with the tap of our keyboards.
Happy Halloween!
>..< (that's supposed to be a bat!) Cheers, Jill

Find out what tools you need for working with metals, metal clay, bronze clay, enamel, wire, chain mail, stone setting, engraving, finishing, polymer clay, and more

Kristin Sutter — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 20:16:00 GMT

Tools, tools, tools! Do you wonder what tools you should get if you're going to take up metalsmithing? How about metal clay, or polymer clay? Or, maybe you want to know what tools you should have on hand no matter what medium you're working in. Well, here's your answer: In the November 2008 issue of Art Jewelry, we published an eight-page bonus poster that tells you what tools you'll need to have in order to work in a given medium or for a given task.

We were so excited about the poster that we put the info up online too! (If, for some inexplicable reason you haven't picked up your issue yet, you can find a PDF of "The Right Tool" here.) Of course, the print version has its advantages: it's a pullout, so you can proudly display its glossy pages on your studio wall. And, it's one continuous sheet of paper, so you won't need as many thumb tacks to get it up there, and you won't have to spend time with your level making sure all eight pages are aligned. Of course, the biggest advantage to having the print version means that you have the rest of the issue surrounding it.

We hope the poster helps you as a shopping list, a quick reference (what do parallel pliers look like again?), and as a vision of beauty that only a tool junkie could love.

Enjoy!

—Kristin

P.S. Subscribers, if eight pages of info isn't enough for you, you might want to check out our archive of Product Reviews.

Video gives sneak peek inside Ford Forlano studios and how they make polymer clay art jewelry

Kristin Sutter — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 14:26:00 GMT

If you like polymer clay jewelry, chances are you've seen work by Ford Forlano; that is Steve Ford and David Forlano, with Maryanne Petrus-Gilbert doing metalwork. We first featured Ford Forlano's work in "A Rarefied Medium," an article by Ronna Weltman (September 2006) about A-list polymer clay jewelry. If you've never seen their work, prepare for a treat. For me, Ford Forlano pieces never disappoint. The texture, the shape, the color — the pieces are always exciting and elegant. When I'm feeling creative, I tend to work better on my own. So it was really interesting to learn more about the team's collaboration in this video.

It shares not only great images of their studios and finished pieces, but also a bit about their history and how they continue to work together. Check it out!

—Kristin

Recurring forum topic: using a tumbler to polish polymer clay pieces

Jill Erickson — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 20:46:00 GMT

The folks who participate in our forums are always helping each other out and sharing their latest experiments. By following a recurring thread in the AJ polymer clay forum, I've read lots of different approaches to tumbling cured polymer clay to give it a smooth, polished surface. I have to confess that I haven't attempted to tumble any of my polymer pieces yet. But I wonder if using ceramic shot would work? I'll put it out there on the forum -- if someone's already tried ceramic shot, I'm sure they'll write in and keep us posted! Ciao for now, Jill ;)

Art Jewelry online!

Hazel Wheaton — Tue, 27 May 2008 22:57:00 GMT

In the editorial department of Art Jewelry magazine, it's not uncommon to see one of our editors' doors closed, with a sticky-note reading "interview in progress." Usually, however, we're the ones doing the interviewing. This time 'round, though, the tables were turned. Check out the most recent podcast at craftcast, and you'll get an earful (in the best way) from Associate Editor Jill Erickson. In the 45-minute-long interview with host Alison Lee, Jill talks about her own artwork, the magazine, some of our upcoming stories, and how to get published.

While you're over at craftcast, check out the link for their first online master class, to be held Wednesday, May 28 (yes, that's tomorrow) at 8:30 pm Eastern Standard Time. Alison has roped in polymer clay artist Seth Savarick as her first master class teacher — once you register and pay your fee, you can listen to the class by phone or through your Internet connection.

2008 Bead&Button Show

Jill Erickson — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 16:07:00 GMT

In one week (January 15), online registration opens for classes offered at the 2008 Bead&Button Show held here in Milwaukee, Wisconsin from June 1-8. New this year is a series of Fundamentals in Techniques workshops. These 3-day intensives give beginners an opportunity to learn a new technique or work with a new medium. I'm pleased to report that I'll be teaching Fundamentals in Polymer Clay. Fire Mountain Gems has underwritten the entire kit cost for this workshop. My goal is to ensure that each student comes away from the class with the confidence to use all the great tools and supplies provided in the kit, and become comfortable with techniques such as making a Skinner blend, simple caning, making image transfers, and pushing the clay to explore mokume gane and mica shift effects. Plenty of hands-on time assures that students will also learn how to incorporate jewelry findings in their pieces. I'm really looking forward to getting to know the students. Their wonderful energy and individual, creative expression always make teaching a very fun exchange.

To view the full listing of OVER 500 (!!!) workshops and classes offered at this year's show, visit http://www.beadandbuttonshow.com/bnbshow/default.aspx. To check out the latest buzz about the show, visit the show forums at http://cs.beadandbuttonshow.com/bnbshowcs/forums/. If you're planning on coming to town for the show, be sure to send us an email -- it would be great to hook up and meet you in person!