My Funny Bunnies Polymer Clay & Wire

I fully intended to decorate more ornaments but I got sidetracked with my Funny Bunnies.... they are more fun and don't give me fits .... I'll try ornaments again later.... maybe.

For the bunnies I make the wire frames first and then back them with clay.  Parawire had a new color of wire, Rose Gold, that is the primary color for the first bunny.

Click on the photos for a closer look.

Here he is before I added the clay background.

Once I added the clay I took his picture with some of my clowns, isn't he a cutie?

Here is a close up

I used copper and orange wire for the second Funny Bunny 

and then used clay scraps from the first bunny to swirl the background. I painted him with PearlEx to get the shine.

Next I made a floppy eared bunny. This time I used brown and magenta wire. 

I haven't backed him yet.... I know he looks a little chilly but he will have to remain naked until after I bake my Christmas cookie. I have my dough chilling in the fridge. I hope to get some of them baked this evening. 

See ya later.

Mixed Media Hearts and Things

I just this minute finished my Christmas shopping, I love the internet!!  We had our first snow last night, woke up to a glistening snow covered world, very pretty but also very cold so I was happy to do my shopping in front of the computer.

My tree is up, not decorated but it is sitting in the living room waiting to be adorned with twinkling lights and pretty ornaments.  I am trying something new this year, I'm doing the tree in blues and browns to match my living room.  I'm  little nervous, my eldest grandson is big on tradition,  I'm not sure how he will react to the change, he likes things to be the same at Grandma's house.

Here are some of the wire and polymer clay things I've been working one.

Wire hearts before I added the clay

Click on the photos for a closer look.

and here they are after I backed them with polymer clay

Here is another of my wire critters before the clay

and now with the clay backing

and I also made some wire "cage" pendants.  I will  add clay accents later. 

This one is my favorite

and this was just for fun... a wire "zentangle" inspired by the amazing zentangles by Ruth and Dora on their Flickr pages. 

I am going to go decorate the tree. See ya later!

Wire Jewelry & Polymer Clay Beads

It's been a while since my last post, I've had a cold plus we took advantage of the warm Indian summer weather and cleaned out the garage.  It was crammed full of stuff and the squirrels had a field day with the stuffing in the old couch and the boxes of magazines and books.  For little critters  they sure can do a  lot of damage. The garage is looking pretty good. There are still several pieces of furniture that will go to auction.  Once it's done Roger will have a place to store his vintage Mustang and his motor cycle. 

I've been mostly working with wire. I made lots of doodads and some necklaces. Here are three necklaces that I finished.

Click on the photos for a closer look.

The first one is made with blue and gun metal grey wire and blue square beads. It's quite large but I like it. 

The second is my favorite. I use 18 gauge amber wire to create the design and then wove in amber,  brown and bronze 26 gauge wire. The center is a metal button set with pearly gold stones. I made a coiled wire bail and strung the pendant of jasper beads and used brown glass seed beads for spacers. 

The third is gold and sea green wire set with a vintage celluloid button that I've had lying around for a very long time.  The button is missing a couple rhinestones but  it still looks pretty good and the "well loved" look is in right now. There is a little dragonfly bead on the wire.  The chain is made from matching wire.

I used one of the pretty coasters I got in the coaster swap as a background for this large wire bow doodad.   I like the way it looks on the coaster so I am going make a large tile to mount it on and make it into a large medallion style pendant.  According to the experts large is in.  I am going to do the same with more of my wire pieces.

This pendant has a wire frame with a polymer clay center.  Heather thinks granddaughter Amanda might like this one.

Plaid polymer clay framed with amber and sea green wire. 

The last couple months I have been using only Pardo Art Clay but since it doesn't come in metallics I got out my Kato clay to make these textured beads.  The difference in conditioning is quite striking, I had to get out my hammer and pound the clay before I used the pasta machine.  I still like Kato, it doesn't change color while curing, but oh the smell!  The Art Clay doesn't smell at all but Kato sure does.  I've always been a little allergic to it and it did make my eyes itch and my nose run.  

I mixed silver and blue to get the color for these beads. The design is the same on both sides. 

I added a little red to gold Kato for these beads. The design is on both sides.

I made more wire things but I want to mount them on polymer clay before I take photos. I'm working on an owl necklace that I really like.  I hope to get it done today so I can show it to you.

Thanks for stopping by.

Mixed Media PC & Wire Necklaces & A Prize

My muse has been on vacation the last couple weeks, I'm blaming it on the heat.  It's  to hot to go outside. I force myself out for short periods of time to water and pull a few weeds... but  most of the time has been used on my basement clearing project. Daughter Heather is helping me and we are making real progress... I can actually see the floor in a couple areas.  I should have taken "before" photos but I was afraid someone would turn me in to the "Hoarders" tv show.  It's time consuming because I have to go through all the boxes and drawers. Most things will go to auction or in the trash but we've also found lots of cool stuff to use in "altered art" and some interesting items for steampunk,  I was pleasantly surprised to find a treasure trove of antique jewelry... I took photos and will show them to you tomorrow.

Click on the photos for a closer look.

In the mean time I did manage to finish a couple pieces that I started a while back. The first is a polymer clay pendant to which I added laced wire and tinted fresh water pearls. The back of the pendant has cutout stars  The chain is links of black and bronze wire in two sizes.

The second pendant is a vintage glass button embedded in layered copper clay.  The top layer has a stamped design with gold highlights and then embellished with amber wire swirls. All the rhinestone had fallen out of the black glass button so  I filled the holes with Kato liquid clay to which I added copper PearlEx and a little glitter. I used fine amber wireto crochet a tube that I secured to the side with liquid clay. The bail is made from copper wire and black glass beads. I finished the necklace with black rubber cord.  For some reason this pendant didn't photograph well, I tried several backgrounds, this was the best... oh well,.... it's more attractive in person. 

This delightful pendant is the prize I won for voting in this months PCAGOE's challenge. It was made by Lynda of Diva Designs on Etsy . You can visit her shop at   www.scdiva.etsy.com 

Mixed Media Polymer Clay Pin & Pendant

First of all I want to report the painters are finished and the house looks mighty good. My feline friends and I are very happy. I can freely stroll around the house in my ratty pj's without someone peeping in the windows. Fritz can relax and snooze on the back of the couch and Corny no longer follows me around the house complaining in that high pitched whine .... peace has returned at last.

Since the house looks so good I spent the last few days sprucing up the yard.... well the back yard anyway, that's where my flower gardens are. I pulled weeds and pulled weeds and pulled weeds.... and pruned trees. There are still lots of weeds to pull but I needed a break so thursday hubby and I went to the nursery to buy plants.

Oooooo there was so many pretty plants, I love plants and I wanted them all. Hubby said get what you want so I grabbed one of those wagon carts and started loading it up. I finally stopped when it wouldn't hold anymore and we hauled it inside. Most folks there were buying one or two plants, the ladies that own the nursery were checking them out and when they saw us coming I heard the one say to the other "Oh this is going to be fun!". I think I made their day, which was fun for me too. I spend the afternoon planting and it looks pretty good. It always amazes me how much smaller the plants look once they are in the ground. I'm going to need more.

Friday we ran out to Wal-Mart to get one of those roller-up things for the garden hose and I needed zinnia, marigold and hollyhock seeds. I told hubby I would just take a quick stroll through their plant department.... I usually don't buy plants from Wal-Mart, they don't take care of them and the poor things are droopy and scraggly. A new order had just arrived, they were putting out some pretty nifty plants..... so I bought a cart full. I then hurried back home to plant before it rained. Darkness drove me inside although I still had several plants to set out.

I got up Saturday morning to rain. It let up around noon but it was to wet to plant so I went back to pulling weeds. It kinda misty rained all day and I got damp and muddy. My cats sat at the back door meowing for me to come in. My husband and grandson were busy watching tv.... every now and then one of them would call from the back door "You should take it easy... or... don't overdo it" The men in our family melt if they get rained on.

It was raining again this morning... I'm hoping it dries up a bit so I can get back to planting.

In the mean time I made some wire doodads to put on these polymer clay pieces.

Click on the photos for a closer look.

This one will be a pin, I haven't put the pinback on yet. When turned on it's side it kinda looks like a bird head.

This is a pendant. I added a wire charm and made the chain with matching blue wire. The beads are pink glass squares. The sun is out so I'm heading back outside. See ya later.

My Two Favorite Mediums Polymer Clay & Wire

No, I'm not dead. I did have the flu or a cold or a virus... something along those lines, I felt like crap and mostly slept but I'm better now.

Then I got side tracked with rooting around in the basement... I'm never going to be done with the basement. The more I root around the bigger the mess gets and I keep finding things that I "can't" get rid of. Maybe I should go on that "hoarder" show. Yesterday I found some things that I thought should be in a closet upstairs... which led to sorting and organizing the closet so I would have room for the stuff from the basement. You get the idea, this is how I spend my days, just moving stuff from one place to another, no wonder I can never find anything.

Here is the Polymer Clay and Wire pieces I made recently.

Click on the photos for a closer look.

The pendant is made from polymer clay and the chain is copper wire accented with seed beads.

Close up of the pendant.I made this layered pendant some time ago. I used brown wire and pink square glass beads to make the bail and chain.

Close up of the pendant
I used one of my "rattlers" for the center of this pin and then added the wire and bead flower. The hand display is smaller than a real hand. I think I'll put a bail on the back so it can be worn as a pendant too.

I Beat the Deadline. Yahoo!! & Made a Necklace too!!

Finished our taxes one days ahead of schedule.... even got them signed and in the mail. I have spent the last 10 days preparing tax returns for all the kids and grandkids... not fun this year as most everyone owes money and I don't like being the bearer of bad tidings but at least it is done and I don't have to think about it for another year.

In between filling in forms, schedules and work sheets I took little breaks and worked on a mostly colored wire asymmetrical necklace. I did use the polymer clay bicone beads that I posted earlier.

Click on the photos for a closer look.

I used matte finish purple seed beads on the wire doodads.

and a cultured freshwater pearl in the center of the pendant. I like the 3-D effect of the pendant.
The chain in double links of green and brass wire.

Polymer Clay Buttons to Beads

I'm still slogging around in my basement. The cleaning is slow moving as I keep finding things that distract me. My latest find was a box of large coat buttons, many with attractive designs.

Click on the photos for a closer look.

I like the pattern on this button, it is simple but very attractive. I was running scrap clay through the pasta machine and liked the copper look so I used it to make a couple tiles.

This large coat button has lots of texture so I used it to make the hollow pendant.

In between playing with clay, cleaning the basement (actually I'm making a big mess down there) and doing a little yard work I made a few wire doodads.
I made a necklace using one of the "copper" tiles and the blue wire doodad strung on dark blue waxed cotton cord. I have dozens of large buttons with fun designs, good thing I saved them, right?

Polymer Clay Mixed Media Jewelry

I haven't posted for a few days, I have a cold and the meds make me sleepy so I've been sleeping a lot. I made these pieces, the first two are pins and the last is a pendant, from the same clay as the necklace in the last post.

The first piece I made by pressing the wire into raw clay the second was more of a challenge as the clay was baked before I added the wire pieces.

Click on the photos for a closer look.
And these are more wire doodads to use with clay.

Polymer Clay PINK Necklace "Thing a Day" Day 27

If you don't like pink cover your eyes.... this is PINK!! The lovely pink and silver beads are more loot from the Trash to Treasure Swap... they were donated by Miss Jackie of the The Pleasant Pheasant blog. (Check my blog list and pay her a visit, she has been making over the top beautiful canes)

I was going to use silver and pink wire but I was enthralled with the pink... and I'm not even a fan of pink. I am pleased with the way this turned out... fingers crossed that Jackie likes it too.

Click on the photos for a closer look.

Polymer Clay Asymmetrical Necklace "Thing A Day" Day 24

I made the polymer clay beads from one of the canes I made on Day 1. I made a sheet with the canes, cut out 1" squares folded the corners to the center so the beads are hollow. On one side of the necklace I strung the beads with dyed cultured pearls on colored wire. On the other side I made round links filled with matching beads and the pendant is a swirly lentil filled with pearls on twisted wire. I used long beads of coiled copper to complete the necklace.

Click on the photos for a closer look.

Polymer Clay on Colored Wire "Thing A Day" Day 23

Well I didn't use either of the pendants from yesterday... I ended up making a layered leaf/pod shaped pendant that I feel goes better with the chain and the teardrop MOP beads. I put matching yellow seed beads in the center space.

Click on the photos for a closer look.
Here are more of the tiles and beads that I made from the same group of canes. These have not been sanded yet so they look a little rough.

The top tile is a mirror image from the cane ends and the the other tiles are from the left over canes. They will be a bracelet one of these days.