Giving Is More Fun Than Receiving - Sometimes

A couple years ago I got an email from a lady in Tucson who said she had seen my blog and she had decided not to do polymer clay any more and wanted me to have all her clay stuff.  I met her at a half way point and she loaded 8 bankers boxes of polymer clay, tools, pasta machines, powders, paints, books, stamps and two ovens in my car.  I had no idea at the time that she had that much stuff.  She refused to take any money but she liked the necklace I was wearing so I gave her that.

A couple weeks ago a friend called and decided she didn't want to do polymer clay any more and asked would I take her stuff.  She came over and brought me 4 big boxes full of clay stuff and a brand new clay oven and many items that were never used and still in the packages.  She had about 25 polymer clay books which I already had so I sold all but one.  She had two bags full of clay.  1 bag of unopened clay and 1 bag of balls of clay from when she took my classes.  She also gave me a cane that she had made when she took a class from Judith Skinner at the Bead Museum in downtown Glendale.  Unfortunately the museum has been closed for about 2 years now so we think this cane is about 5 or 6 years old.  I decided I wanted to make something for Connie since she gave me so much polymer clay stuff.

 

I worked on that cane for a long time to get it to move so I could put it in one of Penni Jo's molds.  I sanded it for a long time and then buffed it.  As I was buffing, the buffer started walking across the table and I grabbed it.  Now I'm wearing big band aids on my two pointer fingers where the buffer took chunks out of my fingers.  That will teach me to turn it off before I try to grab it.

 

  The white beads are Megatamas done on a Kumihimo loom.  It can be used as a key chain or purse bling.  Connie loved it.  I'm not crazy about the colors but I'll bet that cane was hard to make.

 

MY PRINCE DONE IN PENCIL

 

Another friend of mine who is just starting in clay is an incredible self-taught artist.  She came over to the house one day to clay with me and she fell in love Buster.  He puts on a show every time she comes over.  She asked me for some pictures of him and this is what she did.

Buster in pencil.  This is the picture she took it from.

But, we turned it upside down.  I think she did a terrific job.  He looks so calm and sweet in the pencil picture.  The day she brought it over he pushed the screen out on the window in my studio and then started doing flips all over the tables and the chairs.  I think he liked his picture.

 

 

RESIN ON FUTURE

 

I was doing a pendant and I put Future on it and re-baked it.  I always rebake my pieces for 30 minutes at 200 degrees after I put Future on them.  It solidifies the Future and hardens it.  I didn't the like the final finish and I had never used resin over Future before but I decided I had nothing to lose.  I put Magic Glos over the Future (Pledge) and the amazing thing is that it didn't pull in on itself like it normally does and I only had to use one coat because it leveled itself to a nice dome.

 

CLAY SWAP

 

I joined The Polymer Clay Swaps Group.

My swap partner is Tina Holden, I'm so excited.  I'm almost done.  I just have to box my stuff up and ship it to her.  We had to make a heart and a texture sheet.  This is my first polymer clay texture sheet.  If she doesn't like it as a texture sheet she can use it for a trivet.  I have to practice at that more.

Now I have to make 12 canes for a cane swap for our clay guild and some things to send to The Poly Clay Twister Retreat in Oklahoma.

I know, get off the computer and get to work.

 

 

CATS AND CLAY IT'S A WONDERFUL DAY

 

My friend is in Detroit for 4 days so I'm feeding her 3 new kittens.  This is King.  He finally sat still long enough for me to take his picture.  He was abused by a child and left at the shelter.  No one wanted him because he was very agitated.  He's doing great and I was so excited this morning he rubbed against my legs when I was fixing his food.  He's going to be a wonderful, loving cat.

 

 

These are all polymer pieces that have been sanded and buffed.  I can't tell you how much I don't like to sand but they sure are pretty when they hit the buffer and the shine comes up.

 

Am I the only one that has 5 boxes full of clay ends and pieces?  I must have 200 pounds of clay here.  THIS IS INSANE.  A friend came over yesterday and I showed her how to do different Skinner blends and plugs and how to do a spliced cane.  We had a lot of fun.  Then I realized I needed to do something with my clay.  I'm going to make plugs and blended plugs and make some canes and sell them.  I'm running out of clay storage.  I still have a box full of Studio by Sculpey.

 

DO YOU REMEMBER BOOBOO???

 

My good friend Anita Brandon did a blog a couple days ago about her angel cats.  She included some pictures and a story of Booboo in it.  It was so nice and it brought tears to my eyes. 

 

This is her webesite, check out her angel cats on Etsy. http://melobeau.blogspot.com/.  Booboo was such a good friend for almost 20 years.  I miss him dearly.  Buster can never take his place but Buster is making a place of his own.  He loves dates and donuts and Kraft American cheese.

 

A week ago Sunday night I got intestinal flu.  I was down and out for 9 days.  If you get a chance, get some Powerade, Pepto Bismal, soda crackers and Imodium in the house just in case.  I got a flu shot Wednesday and my arm is still sore.  Here in Arizona we have a big problem with the flu right now so I am washing my hands and face a lot and trying to stay out of public places.

 

Stay Healthy and Happy New Year

 

HELLO NATASHA

Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas.  I got a new refrigerator for Christmas but it needs some food in it.  Guess I better go shopping.

On Monday, I decided to clean up my polymer clay area before we left for the day.  I had a pile of pearl, black and some end pieces of a face cane that I made in a Barbara Maguire class over a year ago.  So, I thought I would just chop all the pieces up and make a Natasha pendant.  I chopped the clay and then rolled it out and twisted it like I do before I make the pendants.  When I cut it in half, I was stunned.

 

There in the middle was a face looking up at me.  Looks a little like a cat but I think it's a ghost from Christmas past.  I put it in one of Penni Jo Couches molds http://www.bestflexiblemolds.com/ and the clay came out like a rock with different pieces of rock types in it so I left it like that.  Sanded and buffed it and it kept looking more like a rock formation as I buffed it.  I think it needs a Kumhimo necklace to go with it.  I don't understand how that face survived after all the manipulating I did.

 

 

I made this cross for a friend for Christmas.  It has 4 layers of Magic Glos on it.  I don't normally have problems with Magic Glos but I think it was so cold in my office that the Magic Glos pulled in on itself faster than I could put it on.  Arizona is a little cool right now but at least we don't have any snow to shovel.

 

My friend who has the 3 kittens (King, the one that got out and is now back in and loving his new sister) didn't have an afghan.  I told her all kittens need a lap with an afghan on it to rest on.  I started this a week ago last Monday and finally finished it Sunday.  My elbow was crying from all the crocheting.  She loved it and I'm sure the kitten's will too. I'm 5'6" so you know how big this thing is.   Buster loves snuggling in an afghan.  That's my new refrigerator in the back.  It's got French doors and the freezer is on the bottom.  When you get water out of the door it tells you how many ounces it has dispensed.

 

POLYMER CLAY TEST 

 

I made a Santa Claus head out of one of Penni Jo's molds.  I didn't get it finished before Christmas but I wanted to try something.  I made it out of white and pearl clay and before I baked it, I painted the hat with ink and the beard and tassle with white Lumiere paint.  I baked it at 265 for an hour and the ink and the paint baked with no problems.  I'm antiquing it now and will spray it when it's done.  I'll post a picture.  But now I know I can use inks and Lumiere to paint on raw clay with no baking problems.

 

If I don't get a chance to post before next week, hope you have a wonderful, safe and healthy New Year.  Keep on Claying.

 

 

 

 

 

THE KING HAS COME HOME FOR CHRISTMAS

You probably think I'm going to start talking religion.  I don't do that, my politics, religion and family are pretty private.

When I said the King came home for Christmas I'm talking about one of the most beautiful and regal kittens I've ever seen.  A very dear friend of mine rescued two kittens from the shelter about 6 weeks ago.  The boy's name is King and the girl's name was Peep.  He is regal and she peeps (the reason for the names).  No one wanted to adopt King because he had been abused and was very skittish.  He had been in a home with a small child who was not taught how to treat an animal.  He was put in a container with Peep and the two of them bonded so my friend took them both.  No two animals have ever had more love (except maybe Buster).  Anyway, someone came over and King ran outside.  She tried everything to get him back in.  He spent the days roaming some where and the nights on her patio talking to Peep through the screen.  She gave him water and food but as soon as she would move, he ran away.  He was outside for at least 8 days.  Sunday night I went over and we spent an hour with a bowl of food and being as still as we could but kept moving the food closer and closer to the house.  We got the bowl in the house and he came in to eat and we got the door closed just in time.  In the mean time, my friend adopted another kitten named Queen.  We found King and Queen in the closet snuggling together on my friends jeans.  We both cried.

 

THE KING HAS COME HOME FOR CHRISTMAS.  He used the kitty liter and sat in the cat condo so all is good.

 

I'M NOT READY FOR CHRISTMAS

Every year I make jewelry for my sister, nieces and nephew's wife.  I'm late this year.  They love Shambala bracelets so I'm making a bunch for them to wear.

 

 

 

 

Also made some stretch bracelets.  Love those beads from Joann's.

 

 

 

 

 

My family doesn't read my blog so that's a good thing.

 

BUSTER IN TROUBLE AGAIN

 

 

I tried to warn him he was falling off the chair but he wouldn't listen.  Sure enough he clunked his head on the chair back when he started to fall.

 

 

He keeps getting up on the computer and stepping on that little button that turns the computer off.  I lost two emails so I had to put a cardboard over it to stop him.

 

FREE EARRING TUTORIAL

 

We all know and love Penni Jo Couch and she put a free Christmas earring tutorial out.

 

http://bestflexiblemolds.com/free_tutorials/ChristmasEarringsTute.pdf

 

Send her a note and thank her if you like it.  I think it's great.

 

 

 

 

A Good Day and Some Cookie Recipes

What would Christmas be without a bling sale and some really good cookies?  BORRRRRRRRRING

 

Yesterday our beading club had a "Holiday Bling Fling".  There were 41 of us in a big square in the room where we go beading.  There was so much bling it made your eyes water.  My friend Evelyn and I shared a table.  We both do mostly polymer clay, I do a little beading, Kumihimo, wire wrapping, bead crochet and yadda, yadda, yadda.  When we saw how much bling there was we thought it was going to be a slow sale day.

 

This is my side of the table.

 

This is Evelyn and her side of the table but we actually combined some of our things.  We had a lot of fun and we both made enough money to have some fun and buy lots more clay.

 

COOKIES

 

I love baking Christmas cookies and I have a couple recipes I would like to share with you that I make every year.

 

 

 

Easy Kraft Pinwheel Cookies http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/pinwheel-sugar-cookies-138371.aspx

 

My Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies

 

BEST CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Mix together the following:

2/3 Cup shortening

2/3 Cup butter

1 Cup sugar

1 Cup brown sugar packed

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 Cup chopped walnuts

Sift together the following:

3 Cups flour

1-teaspoon salt

2-teaspoon soda

 

Mix all of the above - add two 6-ounce packages of Chocolate Chips. Bake at 375 degrees 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown.  1 cup chopped nuts optional.

 

Hope you enjoy these, we love them.