Me on Libby mills blog

Me on Libby mills blog, originally uploaded by * naamaza *.

an interview about my works and my studio
libzoid.net/blog/2008/05/26/studio-snapshot-naama-zami

Paper covered polymer clay beads

a very nice and clear tutorial about how to create pillow beads covered with paper. this tutoral was written by Whiteguppy creations

thanks Hagit Schechter for pointing me to this tutorial

if you want your pillow beads to be made all out of PC don't miss Barbara Fajardo from desert design's tutorial

there is another nice way for pillow beads that are flat in the back- Sigal Barnea wrote a great tutorial for that- it is in hebrew but it is very easy to follow with step by step pictures

Hand painted beads

Self-taught and self-employed, Yvonne Irvin has been creating one of a kind objects of art since her early childhood. Never content to concentrate her efforts in one area you can be sure whatever the latest medium is- the mood will be fun and the flavor will be eclectic.

The beads are all made from flexi glass or wood, handpainted by hand

fantasy figures

It was hard choosing what to post from the wonderful and cute figurines shown in this french blog. all figurines are dressed in such a fashionable way and have such a cute look.

Studio by Sculpey - Review

סוף סוף גם בישראל ניתן להשיג את הסטודיו, החימר הפולימרי החדש מבית פוליפורם.

התחושה הראשונית שלי לגבי החומר היתה תחושת מגע הקטיפה שלו, גם לפני האפייה וגם אחריה.

כל חבילה הינה של 79 גרם וליין הצבעים כולו כולל 34 צבעים - הצבעים מהממים- רק מגווני הירוק יש 8 גוונים- זה לא מדהים?

מביקורות שקראתי ברחבי האינטרנט לגבי החומר כתוב שהוא רך מאד ואינו מתאים לטכניקת המילפיורי - אתם יכולים לנחש

מהו הדבר הראשון שניסיתי לעשות עם הסטודיו? נכון, התחלתי בגלילי פסים ובגליל פרח ויצרתי חמסה.

את החמסה מרחתי בלכה סאטין של סטודיו שהיא באופן חד משמעי הלכה הטובה ביותר שהשתמשתי בה לחימר פולימרי- היא מאד דלילה ומצפה את החמסה בשכבה דקיקה ועדינה. מי שאוהב ציפוי עבה דמוי זכוכית לא יאהב את הלכה אבל עבור אלו שאוהבים גימור כלשהוא לעבודה היא בדיוק מה שצריך!!
.אם לא מורחים לכה הגימור של הסטודיו הוא בגוון מאט, יותר מזה שיש לפימו ולפרמו.

כמסקנה כללית לגבי התאמת החומר לטכניקת המילפיורי אני יכולה לאמר שלדעתי אין בעייה להכין ממנו גלילים אבל בגלל

רכות החומר הייתי ממליצה על כך רק לכאלו ששולטים היטב בהכנת גלילים

At last Studio by Sculpey is here... my initial reaction to this new clay was the nice feeling of suede that it has..

Each Package is 79 gm and it has 34 colors to choose from.

the color range is stunning -it has 8 (!) colors of green - isn't that great???

from reviews that I read about Studio over the internet I noticed that most reviewers did not recommand to work with this clay in the millefiori technique. if you know me, you can already imagine what was the first technique that i tried...yes, it was the millefiori technique...I made this Hamsa below.

my conclusion for the millefiori technique is that there is no problem to make canes with the Studio as long as you are a mid level and higher in making canes and the reason is becuase of the clay's softness..

לאחר שסיימתי את החמסה עברתי לפיסול בחומר וכאן המסקנה היא חד משמעית- החומר נפלא לפיסול, הוא רך, מגיב נפלא לכלי הפיסול ומסתמן כשוס אמיתי. אידית זוטא ביקרה אותי, ראתה את החומר וכמו אומנית אמיתית מייד הרימה שאריות מהשולחן ופיסלה פרצוף נפלא - גם היא מסכימה שלעניני פיסול החומר נפלא.

לאחר אפיית האיש נחש שלי עברתי על כל החלקים המפוסלים עם חומר יישון בצע חום של סטודיו ומיד ניגבתי עם מגבון לח. זה נתן מראה מיושן ועמוק יותר לפיסול.

חומר היישון הוא נחמד בעיני אבל לא הכרחי לרכישה נפרדת. ניתן להשתמש בכל צבע אקריליק מדולל בגווני החום לאותה המטרה

After completing the Hamsa I tried my hand at sculpting with the clay and here I think the material is absolutely great. it is soft and it reacts great to the accompanied sculpting toos. Idit Zuta came to visit me and tried her hand with sculpting and she was also thrilled about it.

As a finish to my ugly guy i antiqued it with antiquing medium by Studio which gave the sculpture a more deep look .

ככה הוא נראה מהצד של הזנב- איזה מבט יצא לו- מרושע משהו לא?

That is how my ugly guy looks from his tail

מכאן המשכתי לפיסול ראש בובה על בית נר ישן. אני לא מתה על התוצאה אבל עדיין אפשר לראות כאן את היכולות של החומר

I continued my journey to sculpting a doll's head on an old candle holder.

the result is mmm.... not that great but you can still see the possibilities..

החלק האחרוי עשוי מקשקשים שנקרצו ממשטח מדורג

The back side is made of scales that were created from a skinner blend..

פרויקט אחרון שניסיתי עם החומר הוא תליון מוקומה גאנה. שהכנתי עם חותמת מקסימה של סלסולים, גם היא מבית סטודיו.

אהבתי מאד את התהליך ואת התוצאה

The last project I tried is a Mokume Gane Pendant that I made using the swirl stanp. I like the result..

מסקנות ביניים

- מגוון הצבעים מעורר השראה, פשוט אי אפשר לעמוד בפני הצבעוניות הזאת

- החומר מתאים במיוחד לפיסול, עבודה במשטחים,עבודה עם ילדים

- מגוון הכלים הנלווים נפלא ואת רוב הכלים הייתי רוצה בסטודיו שלי.

לרעיונות נוספות וצפייה במגוון הצבעים והכלים של הסטודיו ניתן לגלוש לאתר הרישמי של סטודיו

אשמח לשמוע תובנות גם משלכם על הסטודיו כדי ללמוד את החומר יותר ולהעמיק ביכולות שלו

Summary -

• the colors are stunning and there are a lot of possibilities to this clay.
• it is good mainly for sculpting, working with sheets and with children.
• the accompanied tools are wonderful and there are some that I would really like for my studio

for additional ideas you can brows to Studio's official site http://studiobysculpey.com/index.php

New Vessel

I am so pleased with this one. I wanted to cover a vase in my traditional style but when i reached the middle I was bored with it and thought it needed a twist

my way of giving it a twist was by adding the beads that i strung ON the vessel with Peote stich.

well that was not the end of it - after 2 hours of beading on the vessels it seemed too much to go on with the beading until reaching the top so I stopped and waited - really, I waited for a week with the half done vase in the center of my kitchen waiting for "the light" (meaning how I should finish the rest of it) and then last night it came... the rough edge is exactly what I was looking for !!

I love how it turned out and as you can see I am very excited about the finished look.

would love to hear what you think

Israel's 60th B-Day

Israel's 60th birthday is celebrated all around the country and I thought that a patriotic artistic post should be written... :-)
Not all the items below are made of Polymer clay but they were interesting enough IMO to be included in this post.

know of any other artists that should be included? please contact me

Israel's 60th B-Day, originally uploaded by Liat R.

Liat made these lovely cell phone decorations by working in the transfer method.

Yonat Dascalo wrote a tutorial about making a cane in the shape of the Israeli flag
Nir ans Noa will teach you how to sculpt the Zabar, the israeli most famous cactus

Moshe Dadon creates the star od david with entier book of Song Of Songs & Eccleiastes.

Mr.Dadon has perfected the ancient art of Microcalligraphy over the past 30 years . Within his artistic representatios of stories from the Bible, is the actual text of the Bible! If you look closely at Mr. Dadon`s creations you will discover the Biblical text that has been painstakingly woven throughout the work art.

Alona Lahav makes The Merkavah which is a three dimensional Star of David representing the three planes of human reality: Physical, Astral and Mental. The Merkavah has particularly strong energetic powers and is a fundamental element of the new age in which we live today.

and is you want to do something but don't want to get up from the computer why don't you make this Internet puzzul of the Israeli flag?

NO words...

1 032, originally uploaded by Sigal Barnea - Polymer Clay Art.

I am speechless... aren't you?
Sigal just made a new batch of canes and if it is not enough she is also selling them on her website... go check

wall sculptures

Lundin Kudo was an artist in Stuart, Florida, best known for clay sculpture but also a gifted painter. Kudo's work is at once realistic and whimsical. Her wall sculptures of people and Florida scenes are in several public buildings and numerous private homes in Florida, and her free-standing, usually life-size sculptures of people, especially women, are in numerous private collections both in the United States and internationally. Her sculptures of pears, peppers, honeybell oranges, apples, mangoes and other fruits and vegetables and Japanese koi fish are in homes and offices across the United States and have been featured at numerous galleries. She received a 2001 Niche Award for her Bosc pear series and has been featured on the cover of Fine Art Ceramics magazine

Lundin passed away in 2006 but her work will live forever.

Personally I was atracted to her life sized figures - there is something so realistic and emotional about them

browsing through her site I came across some ladies that can be of inspiration for my ladies on a burnt light bulbs

A strawberry with a twist

this cute strawberry is made with a flower cane at the top. click here to find how it was made .

thanks to perlerouge where i saw this tutorial

Fillgrie and clay

Adaya's Creations from France created this lovely bracelets . I think it was made by pushing polymer clay into a filligrie metal pieace

this can look great as a cane....

Tagging

Being tagged as a blogger is a bit different than the childhood game of tag, being tagged as a blogger is more of a call out to say, “I read your blog, and I like it.” Much better than being tagged as a kid
After I was tagged by Kathi I decided to get into this cute game of tagging others..


The rules:
1. Place the name of the person and URL on your blog.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Write seven things about yourself.
4. Name seven of your favorite blogs.
5. Send an email letting those bloggers know they have been tagged.

Favorite Blogs:
1. Judy Dunn. A creative and forward looking artist.
2. Libby Mills. A very creative artist
3. Parole de pate . French blog with a lot of tutorials and inspiration
4. DrMom aka Toby. - brings you Judaism and Judaica art at its best
5. Polymer clay daily - a daily boost of inspration
6. Kim Cavender - A very creative person.
7. the Crafty Goat - lots of experimants and ideas

Seven things about me:
1. I am a mother of two wonderful daughters
2. I work as a Director of special projects in a biotech company (in profession I am a Certified Public Accountant)
3. I Founded and manage the Israeli POlymer clay guild
4. I wrote a project book about PC back in 2005
5. I was born in Israel. I live in northern Israel in a beautiful town that was established in 1882.
6.I have a dream to be come an Industrial designer
7. As a rule - I never go to bad in a bad mood - it effects my dreams... :-)

Funny Patchwork

gRIS bLEu makes unique jewlery combining polymer clay and wire. I love her patchwork series in particular.




in this necklace she uses the wire in a way that reminds me of knitting

Third teapot 3/4

o.k. so here is the third one - here I used bold colors in red green and light blue.
again I was trying to maintain the "series" theme in mind...


close up of the spout

close up of the "blooming top"

Lampwork beads

Jolly Jumper Focal, originally uploaded by melaniemoertel.

Melanie Moertel from Germany makes amazing glass beads.

i can imagine skinner blends,millefiori flowers,carvings and inlays... can you?

first prize winner- R&T 2008 Contest

first prize winner in this year's contest in Lynne Ann Schwarzenberg.
here is how she describes this piece -
Artist: Lynne Ann Schwarzenberg (Ansonia, CT)Grand Prize / First Place, Polymer Clay“I'm a polymer clay artist who works with millefiori canes and I mainly create flat tile designs. I am also a proud mom of an 11-year-old girl who is fascinated with flowers, fairies and jewelry. My daughter often remarks that my work is always flat, and that I need to make something dimensional ... Working flat has always come naturally to me; each tile is like a mini painting and I enjoy creating the illusion of depth in 2D. But when I saw this contest opportunity, I thought I would challenge myself, take my daughter's advice and make some "shaped stuff." The first idea I had was to make the pods that cover the ends of the nylon necklace cord. I have purchased many of these cords from R&T and I always like to make something wonderful from clay to cover the cord ends. The pods looked something like tiger lily buds, and so the necklace began to take shape in my head.
“Three gorgeous lilies surrounded by flowing leaves and those little pods to complete it. It was a design fit for a fairy queen ... The leaves and petals are all made from canes. FIMO® is an ideal clay to cane with as it holds details well and is firm enough to sculpt with. This piece was designed to look like a wreath of flowers that a fairy would wear out in the forest.
“The design took me approximately 40 hours to complete from concept to final baking. The obstacles were too numerous to count, but a bit of magic saved me every time I had a problem! The processes used were millefiori caning, antiquing, carving, back filling, sanding, highlight painting, armaturing for strength, sculpting, wire working, etc. The entire piece – exclusive of wires in the stamens, necklace cord and armatures in the leaves (sized card stock) – is polymer clay. It's an amazing medium with endless possibilities.” – Lynne Ann Schwarzenberg

to see more entries click here