METAL CLAY TODAY MAGAZINE SPRING 2010 ISSUE

SPRING 2010

Jewelry with Soul Lorena Angulo explores her heritage

Whimsy meets Clay in Michelle Loon’s Imagination

Step-by-Steps guide you thru bronze woven pendant and silver syringe filligree projects

Publisher’s Notepad Dear Readers, How quickly these last three months have gone by. Here we are, ready to launch our third issue of Metal Clay Today, and an exciting and interesting three months it has been. The biggest thing I’ve learned is that the metal clay community of artists is an amazing group of extremely talented and generous people... creative people who are so giving of their time, their talent and their expertise. And speaking of generous, we received word from Holly Gage about the ‘Charms for Charity’ Fundraising Event. Metal Clay artists will create handcrafted charms for bracelets and necklaces, which will be raffled to raise money for cancer treatment and prevention. This fundraiser is not affiliated with any organization or guild, just individual artisans with a huge heart. The charities it will benefit are the American Cancer Society and the Marrow Foundation. For more information on this very worthy cause, please check Holly Gage at http://creativetexturetools.com/news/2008/03/28/morejewelry-on-a-mission-charms-for-charity/ We have received such positive feedback from our readers in response to the magazine. It is a great to hear that we are helping beginners to learn more about this wonderful medium, offering inspiration and motivation to all metal clay enthusiasts, and providing a venue for artists of all levels to display their creativity. It definitely made our collective day to receive the totally unsolicited e-mail below. -------inal Message y -------- Orig da To y la C al com> Subject: Met mple <semplet@c. Se am ni 22 To 4: : 10 om Fr , 20 January 03 Date: Sun, etalclaytoday.com m To: editor@ Guize: to write and I simply have day is! To y Metal Cla

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reading I have been deavor but months. That aside, en is th to veral ted I’m new eds any prin ciously for se about it vora ition (my first) far exce d design! ed an r ut te in yo la W your ation, in its inform n publication ys and I ca its early da ity publishing in time, effort and creativ p to sk de d I di is so uch iate how m ediocre product. Yours on, ec pr ap l el w m the Fall editi ing even a ement over great product, go into mak d the improv elf a beautiful - an und, and which is its r fo which I late al! is phenomen n’t ever , please do guys. Please iption price to keep u yo to f of My hat is y a subscr would, ld happily pa d I’ve no doubt others stop. I wou ming an co e in az the mag autiful as well. onderful, be ork and a w w rd ha ur all yo Thanks for al clay community. et gift to the m Best, e Toni Sempl w, OK Broken Arro

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Thank you, Toni, for taking the time to send us these kind words. We’ve been working fast and furiously on entering the great blogosphere. Check out Metal Clay Today’s blog at http://metalclaytoday.wordpress. com/2010/03/ Thank you to all of our contributors, who in the process of joinng us in the magazine, are becoming good friends. Enjoy this next issue of Metal Clay Today and remember... a clay day is a great play day!

Arli Wolfson Co-Publisher, Editor-In-Chief Metal Clay Today

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The Mad Hatter See the entries and meet the winners of Metal Clay Today’s Challenge.

March 2010 Volume 1, Issue 3

Artist Showcase Lorena Angulo

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In touch with her roots and her heritage

Rising Star Michelle Loon

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brings her imaginary world to life

Step-by-Step Barbara Hance

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creating filigree with a syringe

Step-by-Step Carol Babineau



— Features —

3 Publisher’s Notepad 22 Tips ‘N Tricks 28 Guest Blogger 30 Best of the Blogs 31 Trends, Forecasts and Predictions 32 Book Review 33 Metal Clay Today Challenge 38 Guilds 40 Greater Boston Metal Clay Chapter 42 Gallery

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captures copper within silver SPRING 2010

Jewelry with Soul

Step-by-Step Pat Evans

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explores Quick Fire Bronze

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Lorena Angulo explores her heritage

Whimsy meets Clay in ’s Michelle Loon Imagination

Our cover features:

Milagro

by Lorena Angulo Photo by Dean Powell

Step-by-Steps pendant bronze woven cts guide you tnru ge filligree proje and silver syrin

Subscribers are free to print this magazine for their own use or share with family and friends. The intellectual property and photos of the artists is copyright protected.

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Artist Showcase by Lori Phillips

The last words of Lorena Angulo’s credo are “jewelry with soul,” and what soul it has! Not only does her jewelry have a beautiful soul, but so does she! From the first time I chatted with her on Facebook, I knew immediately I had come across a generous and talented spirit!

When I was given the opportunity to interview her, I jumped at the chance! Within the first few minutes, I was assured that my first impressions were correct.

After Lorena’s first PMC class, her teacher insisted she was ready to get her certification through Rio Grande. Extremely reluctant and feeling inadequate when starting the class, she gained confidence when she noticed she was keeping up with her fellow students.

Milagro

Lorena Angulo Lorena’s incredible jewelry is highly influenced by her Flor heritage, growing up living throughout Mexico. She told me some of the happiest moments of her childhood were living in Chiapas, Mexico and being able to observe the “ El Dia de Calavera los Muertos” (Day Of the Dead) celebrations. These celebrations are traditional throughout Mexico on the last days of October and the first few days of November. They are filled with artistry and colorful pageant. Through this she learned not to fear death, it is to be revered instead. Lorena reflects this idea in her Calaveras or skulls, insisting that they all must be smiling and not frightening, each one of them ironically must “come to life” and emote happiness. She was introduced to PMC in 2006; however, she was no stranger to jewelry making or art in general, because she’d already had an extensive education and experience in traditional jewelry making.

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Yet even with this fantastic start, Lorena felt something was lacking in her pieces. She was making jewelry that did not reflect her own voice. She felt she was copying others, and making jewelry became somewhat unfulfilling. Lorena actually told me she had felt “like an Ugly Duckling” amongst her peers. She essentially stopped making jewelry for almost a year, till one day she Passion decided to take another metal clay class. Her teacher caught a look at Lorena’s journal and encouraged her to use her own drawings as inspiration.

Veronica Necklace

This ignited the fire that Lorena needed. She began working on a 5” highly ornate Milagro (heart) and became exceedingly motivated, now capturing the essence of her unique personality and culture, not someone else’s. She assured me after this turning point, ”she was no longer afraid of the clay!” Lorena has the ability to feel the clay and “knows “when it is the consistency she wants it to be. She told me that she “respects the clay” and that is why she rarely has cracks in her work. She never allows her clay to become dry unless it is part of the building process. If the clay does not “feel“ right, she is not afraid to crumble it up and rehydrate it rather than repair it. Heart

She is capable of visualizing her drawings in three dimension, making it easier to create her pieces. Her first option is to use silver clay, yet she will occasionally use traditional Spring 2010 • MetalClayToday.com

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jewelry making methods with it because she feels they complement each other. Whenever she uses silver clay she always uses a patina giving it an antique and organic look. Lorena absolutely loves bronze and copper clays because of the warm and natural feelings it gives to her pieces. When she uses copper, she only seals the area that touches the skin because she wants the copper to continue to age with the wearer, giving it more character. Lorena has gotten into the habit of taking pictures at each step in the construction of every piece she makes. The reason why, is because she wants to remember how she made the piece.

When she gets in her zone, she forgets which way she did something because she is concentrating intensely. Hours can turn into minutes when she is designing; therefore recording the steps also allows her to document how many hours are tied up in one creation. This process also assists her to price her items accordingly. Anyone who has been following Lorena’s blog at http://www.lorenaangulo.com/ can be assured she is certainly not afraid of the clay! Almost every day Lorena adds another well crafted piece to her site. She is involved in a challenge which started on Flickr in which 268 artists pledged to create a ring a day. I have been watching her rings and each one is better than the last.

Sun Earrings

However one ring which stopped me in my tracks was a simple piece of paper wrapped around her finger with the words “One Touch Control = Life” and a small drop of blood. With this posting she revealed her struggle with diabetes. I highly encourage you to check out her blog to see this inspiring story. I would say more but at this point in the interview she and I went off on a tangent. Tangents can be fun! But what I gleaned from it was something she said which touched my heart,” The only person who can control you is you.” I am a firm believer that we can become better artists through our struggles if we keep on pushing. I asked Lorena what would she say to a new metal clay artist? Her answers were three don’ts. First, “don’t be afraid of the clay”, “don’t be afraid to get messy, “and

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her last was, “don’t allow yourself to get stuck... take risks, experiment. Make every ugly piece teach you something.”

Tree of Life

Survivor

She quoted her son’s favorite person, Albert Einstein: “Curiosity is the key to learning.”

“So if you have a thousand questions, you will get a thousand answers, maybe more.” She ended our interview telling me,“ As a wife and a mother I am complete, but now as an artist, I no longer feel like an Ugly Duckling! I believe I have found my wings!” Lorena, I truly believe you have! You are an inspiration to us all!

Nicho Corazon

Lorena was born in Mexico where she had a firsthand opportunity to experience the diverse cultural and artistic expressions of her country while traveling around Mexico. She lived in Chiapas, Mexico for the first years of her life, a wonderful experience complete with memories about the folk art and the amazing jewelry that native Indians wore, and made, for special occasions. Lorena initiated her studies in Mass Communication Sciences at the Universidad Iberoamericana Noroeste in Baja California, Mexico and later continued with her major in Mass Communications and Advertising at the University of Texas at El Paso. After several years of graphic design, as well as managing the business side of her family’s printing shop, she moved to Princeton, New Jersey to start her own family. In 2003 Lorena and her family moved to San Antonio, Texas where her passion and love for art motivated her to study metals at the South West School of Art and Craft. It was in this school where Lorena had her first experience with metal clay through the hands of a wonderful teacher, Claire Holliday. Lorena’s work is full of her culture and traditions from Mexico, every piece has a story to tell. Lorena earned her certification from Rio Rewards and is a member of PMC Guild, SNAG (Society of North America Goldsmiths) and MCASA (Metal Clay Artists in San Antonio).

Editor’s Note: Lorena was just informed that one of her fabulous Calaveras was selected to be exhibited at Perdue University during the 2010 PCM Conference.

Way to go, Lorena!

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Rising Star The Big Wheel bike was an experiment in firing metal clay on either side of a pewter finding. Even though it wasn’t technically challenging, experimenting with a torch was entertaining.

Cloudswing Hollow form cloud embellished with fine silver flakes. Lampwork bird created by Stephanie Sersich.

Incorporating wine corks with silver clay gives fine silver an unexpected twist. It was a chance Big wheel bike – Mixed media bike finding with encounter while on vacation spinning silver clay ‘rims’. that a wine cork literally popped out and said, ”Hi!.” Wine corks like metal clay are quite versatile.

Some have small artworks printed on them and some are blank canvases waiting for inspiration. I’ve been playing with different ways to decorate and set them into various types of metal clay pieces.

Michelle Loon

Having achieved Senior level Certification with Art Clay World recently, I look forward to teaching and sharing my love of metal clay with others.

My jewelry and metal clay addiction started in college during a break from biology classes. With the encouragement of friends, family and teachers, immersion in the jewelry world continued with a gemology certificate and attending traditional metalsmithing classes.

Copper clay bird with wine cork

Creating whimsical pieces with metal clay is a way to bring parts of my imaginary world to life. Strength and grace combined with a playful twist of fancy are common elements in my pieces.

Time to Fly Necklace

Neuron Ring

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Exploring untraditional styles of ring bands with the Neuron and Double Flower rings have been interesting construction challenges. Many of my pieces have been torch fired as it is an interesting process to watch.

Treasure map wine cork earrings

With the releases of the no-carbon fire bronze and copper clays, I am enamored with the idea of making miniature copper and bronze aerialists as aerial silks (tissu) and hoop (lyra) are my favorite apparatus to play on.

I find inspiration in aerial circus arts, mechanical toys, and architectural filigree among other things. With Cloudswing, the lampwork bird’s perch was inspired by the aerial circus apparatus.

Double Flower Ring Girly brass knuckles in silver Double Flower Ring side view

Original pair of Cork earrings

Small horned critters have been sighted lurking in my sketches recently too, so who knows what will end up coming from the clay? Honu at play brooch Inspired by a honu turtle who had gotten tossed in the waves.

Contact: http://laloondesigns.com http://www.flickr.com/photos/laloondesigns Class info: www.breabeadworks.com Spring 2010 • MetalClayToday.com

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Filigree

Hexagon Pendant

Using syringe work as a background texture and as a foreground embellishment. by Barbara Hance

Great syringe tips: As a cake decorator, using the syringe took a little practice but when I applied cake decorating techniques to the syringe the doors opened for many design uses. Once you learn to control the speed and pressure you use with the syringe, you can create everything from fine bezels to backgrounds and drawings. Much of the successful use of the syringe depends on the balance of the speed in which you move the syringe over your work, and the pressure you use on the plunger as you pipe. An inexpensive way to practice your pressure control is to squeeze toothpaste right from the tube into an empty syringe and place one of the small tips on the end. Practice your pressure control and movement of your syringe until you feel confident enough to work with your silver. Even though your silver filled syringe will produce much more resistance than toothpaste it is an inexpensive way to practice getting control of your syringe work. To start your design, place the point of the syringe on the surface of your work, squeeze out a small amount of syringe just to attach the string to the surface. Lift the point of the syringe slightly off the surface and continue to pipe. Working with the syringe slightly off the surface and dropping your lines will offer you more control, your lines will be smoother and more rounded than if you were to drag the tip along the surface of your work. To stop, touch tip back down to surface, reduce pressure, stop squeezing and pull away. A damp paint brush can be used to smooth away points and uneven surfaces as well as coaxing wayward lines into place. If the syringe line curls up as you pipe you can move the syringe faster over the surface of your work or decrease the pressure you are using on the plunger. If the syringe line is breaking as you pipe either slow down the movement of the syringe or increase the pressure on the plunger to achieve a smooth unbroken line.

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Filigree Hexagon Pendant Materials for Hexagon Syringe 1 20 Gram Package Art Clay Silver 1 9 Gram Syringe 1 8 MM Dicro or fused glass cabochon 1 Empty Syringe Liver of Sulfur Sanding Papers: 400, 600, 1200 and 4000 grit 2 Templates cut from plastic sheets

1

(plastic template sheets can be found in the quilting dept of a fabric store)

2 Adjust the size of the templates according to the desired size of finished pendant.

Bezel: 1. Condition the clay by placing a small amount of clay onto plastic wrap, spritz lightly with distilled water, fold a layer of the plastic wrap over the clay and knead the clay through the plastic wrap, turning over and kneading until the clay has a soft silky consistency. 2. Using a spray bottle, lightly spritz the inside of an empty syringe with water. 3. Place the conditioned clay into the prepared syringe. Push an open paper clip up through the opening of the syringe pressing plunger down slightly to remove any air pockets and compress the clay towards the point of the syringe. 4. Extrude a snake long enough to wrap around the stone and overlap. Spritz snake with water and cover with plastic wrap. Allow snake to sit for a minute under the plastic wrap before placing around the stone. (This will help to prevent cracking). Overlap, cut and join seam with paste, smoothing until seam disappears. Set stone aside to dry. When dry refine bezel. Bail: 5. Extrude another snake about 6 inches long. Spritz with water and allow to rest for a minute under plastic wrap. Pick up snake and make several wraps around a medium size straw. Be sure the straw is large enough to allow the chain you plan to use to pass through. These wraps are made much like winding wire around a mandrel to make jumprings. Make sure that wraps are placed close together. Allow to dry. Frame: 6. Roll 20 grams of clay 6 cards thick. Place clay on a surface that can be transferred to a drying source without disturbing the clay. This should be a surface you can work on throughout the making of your pendant. 7. Place template #1 on clay and cut with an exacto knife or blade. To keep the edges crisp and even, don’t allow the blade to drag along the edges or around the corners. Make your cuts long and cut past the corners as you continue your cuts around the template. Spring 2010 • MetalClayToday.com

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8. Center template #2 on clay cut from template #1, and cut out the center to complete the frame. Allow the frame to dry. When dry refine the inner and outer edges of the frame to prepare for the filigree background. Refining Facing of Frame: 9. After refining the inside and outside edge of the frame you will use 400, 600, 1200 and 4000 grit sandpaper to make a mirror like finish on the face of the frame. Start with 400 grit sandpaper and sand surface until smooth.Working in the opposite direction, use 600 until smooth. Progress through 1200 and 4000 until surface feels very smooth. This process does not take a lot of sanding to achieve a nice smooth finish. Work with a light touch, sanding only until the surface is smooth with each grit. Molded embellishments: 10. Roll tiny pieces of clay into a cone shape, push into prepared mold, remove and allow to dry. When dry refine edges. Place aside. Setting the Stone and Creating Syringe Background: 11. Using painter’s tape, attach frame to a prepared work surface... I used a teflon baking sheet. The teflon releases the finished pendant easily. 12. Place the refined stone in the center of the frame. Use a small amount of paste to glue the stone onto the teflon surface so it will not move as you work around the bezel with the syringe. 13. Starting from the outer edge using the blue or thinnest nozzle randomly work from the edge towards the center. Work in cursive c’s and r’s allowing syringe to curl and touch, using a damp thin bristled paint brush to coax lines into place as you work. Be sure syringe work is attached securely to the frame and the bezel around the stone.

Using a pair of tweezers paste the small molded balls you made earlier onto the frame of the pendant. 16. When pendant is completely dry, refine any place on your pendant that looks or feels rough to the touch. A baby wipe can be used to gently smooth the top of the large syringe work, and a final smoothing around the embellishments. 17. If the frame itself needs more refining, use the sanding papers 400, 600, 1200 and 4000 to gently remove any imperfections. Completing the Bail: 18: Remove the dry coiled clay from the straw. Using a pair of wire cutters cut the clay rings as you would wire jump rings. For this bail cut a ring in half, making a C shaped bail. Hold the bail and gently sand the edges flat using 400 grit sandpaper. The extra rings can be saved in a container for future use. 19. Paste the bail to the back of the pendant. 20. To give a finished look to the back of the pendant, cut a small circle of clay and paste over the back of the stone. 21. Refine and clean the glass cabochon with a cotton swab dipped in denatured alcohol (available at hardware stores). Fire: 22. Ramp kiln at 1000 degrees per hour to 1200 fire at 1200 degrees for 30 minutes. Turn the kiln off once it cools to 1000 degrees. The kiln door should remain closed until the chamber reaches room temperature. DO NOT PEEK!! If you open the kiln door during this cooling process the temperature change could cause the glass to crack. Finish: 23. Patina with LOS, add a chain, and enjoy your pendant!

14. When the pendant is completely dry, turn it over and using syringe run a thin line around the back of the bezel to reinforce the stone to the filigree work. A small line of syringe can be placed around the frame work, blending well as you work. Use only a small amount of syringe. You want to reinforce the stone and the framework to the syringe, but you do not want excess syringe to seep through to the front of your pendant. Work carefully, pendant is very fragile. Syringe and Embellishments: 15. Using the grey or largest tip place your design on top of the filigree work. Swirls are made one side at a time, starting at the center curling down and around completing the line by attaching it to the bezel. Use a fine bristled damp paint brush to coax lines into place, and adhere design to filigree.

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To see more of Barbara Hance’s beautiful work, go to: www.adornmentsbydiane.com

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San Jose, CA Classes with Pat Evans

METALCLAYARTS

Senior Art Clay Silver Instructor

IN - ABOUT - FOR METAL CLAY

(also Level III PMCC)

TOOLS - GLASS KILN SAFE STONES

LiL BeLLA Humidifier

Join me for beginning through intermediate classes in metal clay, fused glass, basic bead stringing & wire wrapping.

HAND CRAFTED ART JEWELRY

Art Clay Certification also available.

WORKSHOPS CLASSES PRIVATE INSTRUCTION GALLERY - LINKS - SOURCES

Fun, creative private or semi-private classes in my studio or your home... makes a great party activity for teens and adults.

Email [email protected] for more information

[email protected] www.metalclayarts.com metalclayarts.Etsy.com DonnaLewis.Etsy.com

LiL BeLLA

Dynasty Creative Arts Studio A warm, inspiring and relaxing environment where you can design and create your own one-of-a-kind jewelry designs. Novice to advanced, individual instruction to group classes and private parties. • Hand blown lamp work beads, • Precious and semi-precious stones • Chains, Accessories & Tools • Unique hand-made jewelry works of arts with emphasis on local and national artists

Visit, learn and make new friends. From one-of-a-kind jewelry designs, to unique components for jewelry arts...

Dynasty

is the destination. 27134B Paseo Espada, # 201 San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675 Studio Phone: 949.240.1800 [email protected]

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Classes in metal clays, Art Clay certification (both Level 1 & Senior level) and cross-over certification for PMC certified artisans are offered at Stan and Ann’s studio, as well as other classes. Contact Stan and Ann Rosier for more information. [email protected]

619-578-2075 Spring 2010 • MetalClayToday.com

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Copper Discs Captured In Silver

INSTRUCTIONS: Copper Discs and Washer Shapes 1. Roll out the copper clay to a red slat depth, 1.5mm. 2. Using the 10mm round cutter, punch out 3 disc shapes. Use the second cutter to punch out 3 washer shapes to complement the small discs. Set aside in dehydrator or on hot plate to dry, turning when necessary (it tends to curl if dried too fast).

By Carol A. Babineau

3. Once dry, sand top, bottom and edges smooth. 4. Fire with a torch for 3 minutes on the charcoal block. 5. Immediately immerse in cold water to help remove fire scale. 6. Continue with steps 3 through 5 for the remaining 2 discs and the 4 washer shaped pieces. 7. Pickle the copper discs if all the fire scale did not come off in the water. If using pickle, then immerse pickled items into very hot baking soda and water to help neutralize any excess pickle.

TOOLS: Beginning metal clay tools... separate sets, one for copper, one for silver or washed well in between usage of clay types Water bottle with smooth sides Kiln Dehydrator, hot plate of coffee cup warmer Torch for copper Charcoal block Water and pickle for quenching and cleaning off fire scale from copper Brass cutters, 10 mm and 20 mm round Jump rings, 16 gauge, (10) 4.0mm, (12) 3.5mm, (20) 3.0 mm Brass brush for polishing Hammer for texturing copper pieces Heavy hammer for dapping Wood dapping block Art Clay Copper Clay Art Clay 650 Slow Dry or 650 Slow Dry Low Fire Clay, 20 grams Art Clay paste Art Clay syringe Pickle, sparex, or citrus pickle Glass pyrex cup for pickle Copper or plastic tongs to remove copper from pickle Baking soda and hot water to neutralize the pickle

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8. Using small hammer, texture the discs and washers in a cross hatch design, or one of your choosing. 9. Once the texture is achieved on all of the discs and washers, gently tap the discs with a wooden dapping block in the second largest setting to gently curve the small discs. Use a deeper setting to dome the washer sections. Curving the discs will enable them to sit correctly upon the curved silver sections. 10. Set the finished washer pieces aside, until assembly, and the discs will be used in the next step.



Silver Sections 1. To create the silver sections, have all your tools handy: roller, spacer slats, cutter, coil roller, etc. 2. Roll out enough clay (about 25 cent size) to a long rectangle using the red spacer slats. 3. Place the rolled out clay onto your texture and roll. 4. Trim the section to 20 mm wide by 30 mm long, then place upon the water bottle to create the curved shape of the bracelet sections.

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5. Press one of the copper discs slightly into your clay rectangle. 6. Roll out a tiny piece of clay into a coil with the coil roller. 7. Moisten the area around the copper disc and then use a line of syringe to adhere the coil to the backing, having one end come up into a curl on the top of the copper disc. 8. Create two more pieces following steps 1 through 7, in this section. 9. Allow all to dry on the water bottle form until completely dry. 10. Sand and finish the sections well.

3. The sections now have a ring on each corner, and two of the rings also have corresponding jump rings. Open (4) 3.5mm jump rings and connect the bracelet sections to the washer sections. 4. Now you have a strip of connected parts. 5. Open (6) 3.5mm jump rings and connect three of them on each end of the silver section (in a straight line) ending up with the last one attaching to the toggle ring end.

11. Drill two holes in each end, in order to attach jump rings, using gradually-sized drill bits until you get to the final size... 1.70 mm is for large jump rings made with 16 gauge wire.

6. For the bar end, open (6) 3.5mm jump rings. Attach two each to the silver section, then use one to gather the two rows of rings and attach them together at this point. Add the last ring, joining the toggle bar onto it at the same time.

Toggle and Bar

7. Tumble finish if desired.

12. The circular toggle section is made from one of the copper washers.

14. Allow to dry the slightly curved bar shape on the water bottle, just like the silver sections. 15. Attach a jump ring to the back of the bar using syringe. Just make a large ‘pile’ of syringe, set the jump ring into it at a slight angle and smooth around it. 16. Dry completely, adding more syringe if needed. 17. Clean copper discs of silver dust with alcohol before firing. 18. Fire all completed silver sections in kiln on a piece of fiber blanket that has been shaped into a curved form.

Assembly 1. Attach 3.5mm size jump rings to each rectangular silver section, one at each corner. 2. Open (6) 4mm jump rings, attach (4 each) to two copper rings and (2) to the toggle ring.

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Carol A. Babineau

Art Clay Master Instructor

ar t clay studio

llc

METAL CLAY CLASSES FOR ALL LEVELS OF INSTRUCTION

SILVER · GOLD · COPPER Transform your ideas into reality Small Classes Individual Instruction Certification Workshops All Levels artclaystudio.com • 603-560-5402

[email protected]

*2008 NAD Competition Presidential Grand Prize Award

13. The bar is made the same way the silver sections are made, (roll, texture, cut out, etc.,) a jump ring is then attached to the back of the bar. The bar should be ¼” wide and at least ¼” longer from the center of the bar to its overlapping end.

Carol A. Babineau is an award winning Art Clay Master Instructor and the author of “Metal Clay Beyond the Basics” Her work can be purchased at the League of NH Craftsmen Gallery, Littleton, Concord and Meredith, NH. For more information visit Carol at http://www.artclaystudio.com

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Tips ‘N Tricks

Reconstituting Dried Clay Most everyone working with metal clay has experienced that sinking feeling of finding an opened package of clay that has turned rock hard... or looking at a piece you’ve been working on, but just before you fire it, deciding that you hate it. I tried crushing the hardened clay, wetting it, rolling it, smashing it... hating it enough to consider throwing it away. But, silver clay is way too expensive to just toss. Then someone told me about using a Dremel to grind the clay back into powder. I tried that and found it remarkably easy to disintegrate the hardened clay, but got turned off by the powder that flew everywhere.

Remembering something that I had done years before, I took an empty plastic water bottle and cut the top half off. I slit the sides at almost the center point, leaving one side a little bigger and rounder than the other.

Sliding the neck of the bottle up over the Dremel’s grinder, open side facing down, made a shield which funneled the powder into a neat little pile right underneath. The clear plastic made it easy to see exactly what I was doing. It was such an easy and clean process. I found I could grind the hardened clay directly onto a piece of saran wrap, add a few drops of distilled water, wrap it up and quickly knead it back into usable clay. This is also a handy little device for polishing your silver pieces without spewing your polishing compound all over the place or back up ino your face.

Handy little tips to remember: 1. Drink all the water before cutting the bottle in half :-) 2. Leaving the main side of the shield a little bigger and rounder funnels the powder straight on down. 3. Make sure you hold onto the hardened piece of clay with tweezers or vice grips... the grinding wheel can be a little rough on your fingers.

Editor’s Note: I cut the smaller section out up at the neck of the bottle.

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I’ve discovered that the neck of the bottle fits snugly over the straight-edged chuck of my small Dremel, but I’ve had to wrap a piece of tape around the neck to hold it on when using it on my larger Dremel. It might be worth checking the supermarket drink aisle for a wider-mouth bottle.

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Instructions:

Woven Quick Fire Bronze Pendant Intermediate Level

by Pat Evans Since I teach metal clay, I keep hoping for alternatives to silver for my students who can’t afford the cost of silver or who want to practice with a less expensive material. The long firings of the first bronze clays just didn’t work well for my classes, and were hard on my kiln. As soon as I tried the new quick fire bronze clay, I was in love. At last I could eliminate the long firings, have a reliable bronze for my students to play with, and add a lovely warm golden color to my metal palette. I’ve gone through several hundred grams of the new bronze clay now. I’m using Prometheus from Turkey. Hadar Jacobson also has a quick fire bronze available, which I have not yet experimented with. Either one should be suitable for this project. In my work, I’ve learned a few tricks for working with the clay that have made my life a little easier (see Sidebar). Along with metal clay, I love basket making and weaving. I found that this clay is so supple and relatively slow drying that it was a natural for a woven technique.

Materials:

Tools:

100 g quick fire bronze clay Lavender oil Olive oil or Badger Balm®

Container for paste Doming forms

Basic metal clay tool kit: • Roller • Nonstick work surface



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The Easy Rolling Sheet from the MCT Winter Issue is perfect for this project

Graduated slats or playing cards Tissue blade Craft knife Small round tipped paint brush Color shaper - optional, but nice Straws Emery boards and sanding pads Diamond files

MetalClayToday.com

• Spring 2010



I used the bottoms of two small plastic Easter eggs

Texture wheel Mist bottle with water Plastic wrap Empty syringe or coil roller Mug warmer or dehydrator Kiln Tongs, long tweezers Shallow stainless steel pan or fiber blanket Activated charcoal Metal or ceramic quenching container Brass brush Optional: rotary tool or flex shaft with sanding discs and extra-fine fiber wheel

1. Lubricate work surface, domes, roller and straw. Draw a line with permanent marker around the dome, about 2/3 of the way down, to serve as a placement guide. 2. Using approximately 1/3 of the package of clay, roll a piece 3 cards thick into a rough rectangle at least 3 1/2” long by 2” wide. 3. Use tissue blade to cut at least 14 strips the length of the clay, each about 1/8” wide. If you want to be precise, use a clear work surface and place a piece of graph paper underneath for a guideline. However, irregular strips can be an interesting look, too. If you have enough clay, cut a few extra strips to have as backup. 4. Remove alternate strips and reserve for weft strips, leaving 7 strips in place. Trim ends evenly with tissue blade. These strips will be your warp strips. 5. Fold back alternate weft strips slightly more than halfway. Place one of the weft strips horizontally across the center of the warp. Flip the folded strips back up. 6. Fold the warp strips that weren’t folded in step 6 down, close to the weft strip that is already in place. Place another warp strip across and flip the strips back in place. 7. Repeat Step 6, alternating warp strips and moving from above the center weft to below it, until all 7 warp strips are in place. Trim excess strips about ¼” from the weave. Spritz woven mat with water and cover with plastic wrap for a minute to let the clay absorb the water. This will help keep the woven piece from cracking in the next step. 8. Carefully peel the clay off the work surface. Work gently so as to avoid disturbing the weave. Center the weave on the doming form and gently shape to the form. 9. Use the craft knife to trim the clay in an even circle around the dome. Refer to the placement line you drew. However, since all weaves are slightly different, you may choose to cut slightly above or below the line to get the best shape. Just be sure to have an edge that is mostly even. You can clean up small imperfections later on. 10. Roll a long strip of clay 3 cards thick. Cut 2 strips, each about 3/16” wide. Keep one strip covered with plastic while working with the other. Wrap the strip of clay around the edge, overlapping at the join. Cut through the overlap (being careful not to cut the woven strip below). Seal the join with paste. Dry. (I found that the forms I used could take the heat from my mug warmer. If yours isn’t heat stable, dry until you can lift the piece from the form, and then finish drying on your heat source.) Spring 2010 • MetalClayToday.com

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11. Make lavender oil paste by mixing a lump of clay with water to a smooth, thick paste. Then stir in two to three drops of lavender oil. Fill any cracks or pits with the paste, using a small paintbrush or color shaper. Dry again. 12. Repeat steps 1-12 to make a second woven dome. 13. Make bail: roll a strip of clay 3 cards thick and at least 1 3/4” long. Fold around lubricated straw. Press ends together and trim the leftover tab to ½” from the straw. Trim corners of tab at a 45 degree angle. Dry. 14. Sand edges of domes flat and even. The bronze clay can be tough to sand. I like to start by using a sanding wheel with my rotary tool, then finish by placing the dome on a black emery board and rotating to get a level edge. Fill any cracks or pits and dry. 15. Make a thin coil: Fill an empty syringe with water and empty it. Then insert a log of clay in the syringe and extrude. Poke a paper clip or needle tool in the extruding end of the syringe as you depress the handle in order to remove air bubbles. Then extrude a long coil of clay. (I use Lorraine Davis’s idea, a large metal washer, to give me extra leverage while extruding. Commercial syringe helpers are also available.) If you prefer, you can make a thin coil with a coil roller. I like the evenness of extruded coils. 16. Dampen the edges of one dome. Place the coil around the edge. Dampen edge of the second dome and place on top. Squeeze gently to join the two halves. Clean excess clay from seam, smoothing with a dampened color shaper or paintbrush. Since you will be covering this seam later, it doesn’t have to be absolutely perfect. 17. Use a craft knife to open a slot the width of the bail tab in the clay between the two halves. Insert tab of dried bail in the slot. Secure the tab and fill any openings around it with lavender paste. Dry. 18. Extrude a long coil of clay. Place it in a straight line on your work surface. Use the texture roller to make a design in the coil. 19. Dampen the join around the woven pendant and place the decorated coil on top. Use a damp paintbrush to tap the coil in place and smooth the join. Dry. 20. Take a last look at your pendant for cracks, pits or rough edges. Fill with lavender paste as needed and sand or file any rough spots. I found that a triangular diamond file was perfect for getting in small crevices of the weave.

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• Spring 2010

21. Put about 3/4” of carbon in a shallow stainless steel pan. Lay the pendant on the charcoal. Sprinkle more charcoal over the pendant, letting it sift in to the center of the pendant. Cover the pendant with cover with another 1/2’” to 3/4” of carbon, mounding over the dome of the pendant so that a fairly even layer covers the entire piece. 22. Fire at 1530 degrees F for 1 1/2 hours. (I use a Paragon SC-3. Firing schedules for other kilns may vary. In particular, if you use a brick kiln instead of a muffle kiln, you may want to reduce the temperature by about 50 degrees.) I start my pieces in a cold kiln. 23. When firing is finished, you can open the kiln to cool slightly. However, it is best to remove your pendant while it is still fairly hot. Be sure to use appropriate safety precautions, including heatproof gloves, long tongs, etc. Use long tweezers to fish your pendant out of the charcoal. Shake as much of the hot carbon out back into the firing pan, then immediately drop the piece in a container of water to quench. 24. Brush the pendant with a brass brush, or for an even nicer and easier finish, with a fiber wheel and rotary tool or flex shaft. If you find parts that are cracked or unsintered, you can repair with lavender paste and re-fire. (The second firing should take only an hour.) 25. Hang your pendant on a cord or chain and enjoy! Tip: To make matching earrings, simply follow steps 1-12, fire and finish as above, and attach to an earwire with a bronze jump ring.

Tips for Working with Quick Fire

Bronze Clay Now that I’ve gone through several hundred grams of quick fire bronze clay, I’ve found some ways of working with it that made it even easier. 1. Bronze clay dries hard enough that sanding and filing can be difficult. I like to use a rotary tool if I have a lot of clay to file. When working by hand, I’ve found that diamond files and coarser grits of sandpaper or emery boards than I would use for a similar purpose in silver clay are necessary to make progress in smoothing or shaping the clay. The nice thing is that the greenware, although breakable, is less fragile than silver clay. 2. Because of the hardness of the greenware, it works best to work as cleanly as possible during the wet stage—smooth edges with a little water, make neat cuts, etc. As an added advantage, this reduces the amount of dust you’ll create during any later sanding or filing. 3. I had some trouble with plain paste not adhering well to the green ware. Using lavender oil paste solved the problem. Make a paste with a lump of bronze clay and water. Then add a couple of drops of lavender oil and stir in. I use this both before firing and for making post-firing repairs. 4. I was able to make scraps of clay nearly as supple as fresh simply by spritzing with water, tearing, stacking and re-rolling several times. This process, especially for clay you have refreshed more than once, can lead to more pitting in the finished project, so it’s best used for textured pieces. 5. I like kiln firing in a small amount of carbon because it is the most reliable way of getting a golden bronze color. The fiber blanket method that comes with the clay gave me more of a coppery color, and had more issues with sintering, as well. 6. Using a fiber wheel on my rotary tool made post-firing cleanup and polishing a breeze. 7. Always be aware of safety issues. Wear a mask when creating dust—filing, sanding or finishing. Use appropriate safety eyewear, both when using power tools and when looking in your kiln. Wear gloves or a barrier hand cream when working with wet clay, especially if you have a sensitivity to the metal. Your may not see immediate ill effects if you work carelessly, but your long term health could suffer!

Spring 2010 • MetalClayToday.com

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Guest Blogger Walking Through Life Linda Stiles Smith Metal Clay Today Blog Post – March 2010

I say this with the growing conviction that that is just what I’ve been doing, walking through life. Maybe sometimes it’s a stroll, but a lot of the time it’s a power walk. I don’t jog. Or run. I just keep on walking. Not always in a straight line, and there is some pausing along the way. I wasn’t among the first to work with silver metal clay. That’s a good thing for me because if I had been, I might have lost patience with the process and never gotten past my first piece. I like to let others work out the technical bugs in a product so I can concentrate on creating. Even so, that first piece was a disaster! I took a workshop even though I don’t work very well in the classroom. I’m easily distracted by other people and what they are doing, trying to absorb EVERYTHING at once. Usually I can’t design off the cuff and there wasn’t a lot of direction to the class. I had to beg to borrow tools to work on my unfinished piece at home, but when I took it out the next day the clay had melted into the wet paper towel it was wrapped in! Rule #1; don’t wrap metal clay in wet paper towels. It’s ok if it dries out in between work sessions.

With any craft, art, trade or occupation, you just have to keep on working to learn. Fortunately, the jewelry I make does sell. I love what I make, but I make what people like to buy and wear. And I really like to MAKE things. And as I learn, I keep raising the bar on the quality of my work. After a couple of years while I was just walking along doing my own work, people started asking me if I would teach them how to make jewelry with metal clay. Why not? I was certified to teach wasn’t I? My goal was not just to teach, but to help others realize a faster start than I had working with metal clay. For example, I had to teach myself how to torch fire my pieces because I could only find one or two paragraphs on the topic, it wasn’t taught in the classes I took. Now, every beginner in my classes learns how to torch fire so they can go right home and do it. Pulling the best information I could find for my students I realized that there was a plethora of how-to’s but not a lot of quality overall basic information (the brand wars seem to influence this). So I gathered up my notes and tips and all the knowledge I had acquired over the years and wrote a book for students: Metal Clay Basics & Bench Reference released in 2009. It’s all been great fun learning and working and MAKING something both beautiful and useful. Now, my journey in metal clay is walking me down the path of tool invention and writing.

Ultimately I really wanted to work with this new silver material, so I sought out the answers and grew my knowledge any way I could.

It’s amazing to me that I actually invented a tool to use that hadn’t been developed by anyone else! Linda’s Lid Metal Clay Syringe Holder is still a sought after tool for metal clay artists.

I love to read. Reading is my main method for learning anything. Since most of the books at the time (2002) were in Japanese and there wasn’t anything like YouTube yet, I kept devouring the information I could find from other artists in magazines.

And there are more ideas on my bench, as well as a growing list of topics to write about!

I also don’t travel a lot. I really like living in the Midwest, so my class experiences were restricted to what was available in my area, which hasn’t been much. But I just kept on walking: teaching myself and MAKING as much as I could.

Staying receptive to opportunities, keeping true to myself and ideals, spreading the joy of MAKING and walking forward are what it’s all about for me.

When certification classes became available, I took them. I am a Senior Certified Instructor with Art Clay World, USA and have completed the Rio PMC Certification course, and am now working towards my Level 1 Master’s Registry.

It’s an interesting journey... will you join me?

My initial plan though was to make jewelry I could sell. So that’s what I did, creating an occasional show piece here and there, if I had time. All the while I kept on walking and learning and MAKING.

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Do you see a theme?

MetalClayToday.com

• Spring 2010

Check out Metal Clay Today’s blog at http://metalclaytoday.wordpress.com/2010/03/

Spring 2010 • MetalClayToday.com

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Best of the Blogs

Trends, Forecasts & Predictions

by Lori Phillips

by Lori Delisle

Blushing Summer Brides

Hi everyone, a couple of inspirational sites are in my focus this time around. I say this because after you have seen the extraordinary creations of these metal clayers you will be inspired to produce your own. (P.S. never copy! That’s not good claymanship!)

The designers’ dresses for this summer show some very feminine details. Offer your own unique designs to complement these beautiful and elegant gowns.

With these sites you need to grab your favorite beverage, sit back, kick up your feet, assuming you have a laptop! Otherwise, you will knock over your monitor, spill your drink… stop, Lori, you’re rambling! Anyway, what you will experience is endless hours of ooooo’s and awwwws. Ok, with this in mind, we will start at the Mother Load, pun intended! http://www.etsymetalclay.blogspot.com is a site where you may not find how-tos or step by steps; instead you will be treated to posting after posting of eye candy. Yum! Yum! These are some insanely talented artists! Yet the best part is, if you enjoy what you see, you are able to click on the artist and visit their etsy store to make a purchase. I highly encourage you to do this and support your fellow artists. Somebody has to help them support their habits. After all, we all know how addicting metal clay is!

“Brown Paper Packages” by J2Jewelry.etsy.com

Trend — Lots and Lots of Flowers Often gowns can be seen nearly completely covered in 3-dimensional flowers, bursting into bloom from top to bottom, or as a virtual corsage at the neckline.

Trend — Lace “Garden Party” by DaisyJaneDesigns.etsy.com



So there you are for now. I hope you glean some fresh perspectives.

Then come and visit our fan page on Facebook! If you do, you’ll be the first to know about the new contests, the winners and anything else we decide to leak out to our awesome fans. http://www.facebook.com/pages/MetalClayToday/288344465863?ref=mf

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MetalClayToday.com

• Spring 2010

Lori

Not your Grandmother’s lace gown, these have contemporary lines, but are often filled with lots of layers of soft ruffles. Brides are not just looking to white pearls and clear crystal for their wedding day, but playing with little hints of color in their gown and jewelry. Pretty pastels and bright sorbet colors are popular for this summer.

Check out our blog at http://metalclaytoday.wordpress.com/2010/03/

Happy Blogging!

“The Uprising” by chocolateandsteel.etsy.com

Trend — Wink at Color

Don’t forget to visit our Featured Artist Lorena Angulo’s fabulous blog at http://blog.lorenaangulo.com/



Trend — Big, Beautiful Bows

Many designers highlighted their gowns with a large, simple bow accenting the waistline, sometimes in stiff white satin, sometimes as a thin belt in a contrasting ribbon, but always super chic.

Another blog came to us through a recommendation... keep those coming by the way! I was already familiar with this site and was going to tell you all about it because of its hamster. Huh? Its what? There is the cutest little hamster in a cage that you are able to feed and play with. What does a hamster have to do with metal clay? Who cares! I played with it for about 5 minutes till I could tear myself away to maneuver through the site. The site is http:// www.joyfunnell.blogspot.com. Joy Funnell is a wonderful enameller and a senior Art Clay instructor. She fills her blog with great pictures and stories about her current pieces. This is another perfect place for a budding artist or a seasoned veteran to receive a creative nudge. Elsewhere in this issue we welcome Linda Stiles Smith’s Guest Blog, offering her perspective on personal creativity. We can learn new methods, new ideas, and play with new clays. It all contributes to our inspiration to create!

“Silver Lace Sparrow” by TheLovelyOnes.etsy.com

“Lotus Blossom Earrings” By TZTUDIO.etsy.com

“Green Cherry Blossoms” by missemor63.etsy.com

Happy Designing! “Forever Forget Me Not” by artisticcreations.etsy.com

Spring 2010 • MetalClayToday.com

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Book Review

The MCT Challenge!

. . . s i e g n e l l a h c our

by Patricia K. Evans

Enchanted Adornments:

Creating Mixed Media Jewelry with Metal Clay, Wire, Resin and More by Cynthia Thornton Interweave, 2009 I was thoroughly charmed by Thornton’s imaginative approach in Enchanted Adornments. Thornton believes that objects can hold magic, and her book centers around this theme. Part inspiration, part modern fairy tale, and part how-to book, this volume is both whimsical and practical. Like most books of this genre, this one begins with a ‘Basics’ section. However, what Thornton considers to be basic is finding and harnessing inspiration, and so that is the focus of her first chapter. She gives specific ideas for grabbing inspiration, such as deconstruction (breaking down the elements of a design for study) and symbolism. Next Thornton looks at ‘Essentials’ - materials and methods. While she does a nice job of discussing safety issues and organization, some of her other information is flawed. The author says, for example, that “adding pieces to a preheated kiln can cause bubbling and surface defects.” The only time I’ve ever heard of a problem with putting silver metal clay pieces in a preheated kiln is when the pieces are not thoroughly dry. The directions Thornton gives for determining the length of a toggle clasp are vague. And in listing types of metal clay and polymer clay, she completely omits any mention of some well-known brands, although in the project instructions themselves, she is brand-neutral. The section redeems itself with some solid techniques, including an in-depth discussion of how to make a poured silicon 3-D mold, a texture sheet technique using liquid polymer clay, and more. The heart of the book lies in the twenty multi-media projects, each introduced with a fanciful story about the mystical creature that inspired the piece. Reading this section, my own imagination took wing, flitting around ideas based on my own set of imaginary friends. I loved the concept of writing a story to find your way in to a piece. The projects that accompany the pieces are intriguing in their variety and skillful use of multimedia techniques. The styles range from vintage chic to natureinspired to whimsical and modern. A hinged locket with resin-embedded image and a tiny hollow egg with a watch crystal window were two of my favorite projects, although nearly every one spoke to me in some way. I was even captured by many of the projects that have no metal clay included at all. The directions are not as fully illustrated as in some step-by-step books, but there are sufficient photos to clarify tricky steps, and the written instructions are thorough and easily followed, even with challenging pieces. The book concludes with a gallery that provides further inspiration.

If you are looking for a book to make you flutter your creative wings, Enchanted Adornments has just the magic you need!

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Y

New Beginnings exploring new directions, new interests, new relationships, new materials, new friendships, new motherhood, etc. All entries should be named, and must be accompanied by a caption, in 25 words or less, defining how your piece represents a new beginning. Send us your 4” x 6” 300 ppi photos along with your name, the project’s title, and your contact information to [email protected] by May 1st, 2010. We will post your submissions at www.metalclaytoday.com and your peers will vote to decide who wins. Voting will take place from May 7th to May 21st. Winners will be announced on May 25th. Projects must include at least 50% metal clay.

First Place Prize - $100 Metal Clay Findings Gift Certificate Second Place Prize - ArtClay Coppr Kit Third Place Prize - 25 grams of your preferred Silver Clay

Spring 2010 • MetalClayToday.com

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The Spirit of Giving

Christiane de Haes

We thank all of the artists who participated in Metal Clay Today’s Winter Challenge.

Mad Hatter

Ginko

Colleen Wilson

Barbara Spong

Earrings

Nautilus

Barbara Spong

Barbara Spong

Cornucopia Rush Ardis Bartle

Ginko Leaf

Barbara Spong

Angel Fish

Large Magnet Clasp Pendant

Carol Faith

Celtic Knot

Barbara Hance

Barbara Hance

Silver Shield Carol Faith

Gracie

Gail Moriarity

Coiled Robin Beth Faulkner

Pam Annesley

Fish Locket Carol Faith

Tears of Joy

Jessica

Ronald Taylor

Connie Williams

Purple Lake Sherry Stone

Check out the new challenge at www.metalclaytoday.com 34

MetalClayToday.com

• Spring 2010

Check out the new challenge at www.metalclaytoday.com Spring 2010 • MetalClayToday.com

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The Spirit of Giving Our readers have voted... and here are the results!

Second Place First Place

Mad Hatter by Colleen Wilson

Colleen received a set of Dynasty Rubber Stamps

Colleen Wilson of (Riverview, MI *) has had a career as a dental ceramist for over 25 years. Her art of crown and bridge “sculpting” took her to a love of creating one-of-a-kind jewelry. She has been working with PMC for ten years and has recently expanded to Bronze Clay. Colleen credits her grandmother for inspiring her to be creative even as a child. She has explored many media over the years such as china painting, photography, ceramics, but always returns to her love of beading and jewelry. Colleen’s a certified artisan/instructor (Rio Grande) who teaches from her home studio. Her creations are available at local art & craft shows and at a boutique in Tucson, AZ. She is a member of the Downriver Arts and Crafts Guild, Downriver Council for the Arts http://downriverarts. org, and the PMC Guild. You may contact Colleen at downtherivergifts@ gmail.com or on www.facebook.com./ colleenwilsonpreciousmetalclayjewelry

Check out the new challenge at www.metalclaytoday.com 36

MetalClayToday.com

• Spring 2010

Tears of Joy by Ronald Taylor

Ronald received 50 grams of Silver Clay

“Life is good! In my retirement I’m finally able to pursue my artistic inclinations whole-heartedly. I believe those inclinations to be hereditary, for my father’s hobby was oil painting, but I like to think that it was primarily the artistic talent of my maternal grandfather, who was an accomplished coppersmith, that was passed to me. I’ve been creating jewelry for two years, and I’ve taken courses from some of the finest jewelry artists in bead & pearl stringing, lapidary, silver fabrication, and silver and copper clays, and I hope to take many more. I find it surprising, but also most gratifying, to find myself being referred to and introduced as a “jeweler” and an “artist,” and to now have won my second prize in a jewelry contest. My first win was a second place prize in the 2009 San Diego County Fair in the Southwest Jewelry, Modern category for a piece involving cuttlebone casting. I have been hoarding all my pieces, still unwilling to sell or give away a single piece, but I recognize that this is going to have to change. My jewelry has become a rather expensive passion, and, in the future, one generation of pieces is going to have to fund the next.“

“I have a compulsion to be creative. I feel I have to express myself through different mediums such as the contemporary clays and fibre arts. I have had aspirations to be an artist all my life. I can remember as a child of five I was constantly drawing or making something. I spent much of my youth exploring several mediums, including drawing, painting, sewing and bead making. I chose art teacher as a profession, while continuing to explore other mediums, such as photography and fibre arts. My art experience has been rich, not with any one medium, but in adding up what they all have to offer. Each has added to my sense of design and love of colour. Life to me is an adventure; there is so much to do, to see and to try. I am constantly exploring, innovating, and continuing to share through my artwork and teaching.” - Pam Annesley Pam studied Art, Painting and Photography in England. She taught Art in High Schools before migrating to Australia. Her jewellery can be found on sale at numerous galleries around Perth. Pam was a finalist in the mixed media section of the USA 2006 National Polymer Clay Guild’s International Juried Exhibition. She was placed fourth at the 2005 Fashion Fantasia Exhibition with a spectacular garment embellished with Polymer Clay textured beads. More recently one of Pam’s exceptional screenprinted Polymer Clay Journals was featured in USA author - Sue Heaser’s “Polymer Clay Techniques” Book. Pam enjoys sharing and encouraging her students to experiment and ask the question... “What if?”

Third Place

Polymer Clay Inlay by Pam Annesley

Pam received 25 grams of Silver Clay

Check out the new challenge at www.metalclaytoday.com Spring 2010 • MetalClayToday.com

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Class Listings, Show Schedules, Organization News

Calling all Guilds! Tell the world where and when you meet. Send information about your class listings, show schedules... and meeting times and locations of your metal clay, artisan or jewelry making organizations. Please include your name, where and when, name and e-mail address of the contact person. We believe that it is important for all metal clay enthusiasts to have a forum for networking and promoting their work.

PMC Southwest Florida, is the southwest Florida chapter of athe national PMC Guild. The southwest Florida chapter meets in the southern half of Florida at least part of the year. We look forward to meeting you. Contact Helene K. [email protected] for more information. The Miami Metal Clay Artists, which is the local chapter of Art Clay Society, USA, meets on the second Thursday of the month at 6:00 p.m. for social and 6:30 for meeting and project. We welcome all metal clay enthusiasts. Contact chapter leader Bernadette Denoux 305 273-8829. [email protected] for more information.

Illinois

Suburban Silver Society meets the second Friday of each month, all metal clay artists are invited. We are a hands-on group, we work on a project at each meeting. New techniques and demonstrations are presented. For more information contact Deb Wojnorowski at [email protected].

Kansas

The Kansas City chapter of the PMC Guild is an eclectic group of artists from the great Kansas

International — Australia The First International Chapter of the PMC Guild

The Victoria, Australia Chapter, based in Melbourne. Meetings are held alternate months. For Information contact [email protected]

United States —

California

Metal Clay Alchemists Society of San Diego County

Meets quarterly at the Continuing Education, West City Pt. Loma Campus, room 127., 6:00 pm The address is 3249 Fordham St, San Diego 92110. Contact Stan or Ann Rosier for more information. All Metal Clay Enthusiasts are welcome!

Massachusetts

Greater Boston Metal Clay Guild meets every 4th Sunday of each month at Metalwerx, 50 Guinan

Street, Waltham, MA from 7pm - 9pm. Each meeting we discuss new topics, ideas, have a demo, and discuss our current month’s challenge. For more information visit them at http://bostonmetalclay.com/ or http://www.facebook.com/#/group.php?gid=130525423846

New Hampshire

The Merrimack Valley Metal Clay Collaborative

Meetings are held on the 3rd Tuesday of every month at 6:30 pm 5654 Mildred Street, San Diego, CA 92110 Blog: www.sdcpmcguild.blogspot.com http://www.pmcguild.com/chapters/sandiego/about.html Contact Person: Melissa @ [email protected]

meets every third Sunday of the month, except holidays from 11 a.m. until ? at Art Clay Studio, llc, 99 Factory St., Ext., Nashua, NH 03060 Contact Carol at 603-560-5402 No dues www.freewebs.com/ artclaysocietynewengland/

San Diego Guild

New York

San Diego County Chapter of the PMC Guild

Contact Louise Shadonix, Oversight Director San Diego PMC Guild for more information.

Colorado The Western Slope Metal Clay Artisans Chapter

aka Grand Junction Chapter of the PMC Guild and the Art Clay Society. We serve metal clay enthusiasts on the western slope of Colorado and in eastern Utah. We meet in Grand Junction, CO on the third Saturday of every month from 10 am to 2 pm where we have studio exploration time lead by our members as well as several seminars each year presented by nationally known metal clay artists. We are a ‘non-denominational’ group dually chartered by both PMC Guild (PMCG) and Art Clay Society (ACS) with interest in all types of metal clay. We have no local dues, but members are required to join both the ACS and PMCG after attending one meeting. Contact Cindy Holst Chapter Leader [email protected] for more information.

Florida Florida Suncoast Chapter of PMC Guild (Sarasota and Bradenton),

meets at 6:30 on the third Wednesday of each month at the Reinemeyer Studio, 2550 26th St., West Bradenton, FL. Contact Wendy Traver or visit http://www.pmcguild.com/chapters/floridasuncoast.html for more information.

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City metropolitan area with a common interest in metal clays—PMC, ArtClay, Copper, Bronze. We meet the 3rd Tuesday of each month to share a hands-on exploration of a technique or media. Dues are currently $10.00 annually. Contact chapter president Lynette Fisk at [email protected] or check out our website www.kcpmcguild.org for current meeting information.

MetalClayToday.com

• Spring 2010

PMC Guild-Syracuse/CNY Chapter

meets the 3rd Sunday of the month at 3:00-4:45 at the Manlius Public Library, 1 Arkie Albanese Way, Manlius

Upstate New York Metal Clay Guild

Studio 34 Creative Arts Center and Gallery, 34 Elton St., Rochester, NY 14607. Contact Marilynne at Studio34artists@aol. com or call 585-737-5858 for more information.

Ohio

The Northeast Ohio Chapter of the PMC Guild meets monthly in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. For more information please contact the chapter representative at [email protected]

d e t n a W

beta testers The Artists Gallery is an online Gallery devoted to Metal Clay Artists who desire to have a web presence, but do not want the expense of developing a website.

We are currently looking for beta testers for this program. If you would like to participate, email [email protected] with your name and contact information.

Spring 2010 • MetalClayToday.com

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The Greater Boston Metal Clay Chapter

Don Butler - The Carving Glove Guy

by Michela Verani

The Greater Boston Metal Clay Guild was organized by PMC instructor Marissa O’Brien in the fall of 2009. In the short time the guild has been meeting, there has been great interest in the group, with membership growing monthly. While the group is a chapter of the PMC Guild, it welcomes metal clay enthusiasts of all persuasions.

5 small Dockyard Micro Carving Tools

Group members currently include both PMC and Art Clay users who are metal clay novices, potters, silversmiths, metal clay instructors and Master’s candidates. This makes for a Amy Bruch diverse and wide range of knowledge and skills, all of which is shared freely with the other members. Such a varied group of members makes for meetings where conversation ranges far afield of the demos or challenges, but the group leader Marissa O’Brien, does a wonderful job of gently reining us all in and back on topic. In the short time since the group’s inception, members have given demos in areas of interest to the group as a whole, including polymer clay tear-aways, photo polymer plates, Viking knit and colored pencil on metal clay.

These tools are G2, G15, V15, 75V, SK 15... the smallest of the tools that Dockyard manufactures.

www.thecarvinggloveguy.com

Michela Verani

The group also has a monthly challenge with themes such as making a piece to accept colored pencil, name tags or natural influences. The natural influences theme saw results ranging from one member using 2-part silicone molding material to make molds of rocks, trees and other organic material from her yard, to bronze leaves, an silver metal clay acorn box and a treeshaped sleeve pendant.

Karen Karon

Plans for the future include scheduling ‘play-dates’ when members will gather for a day-long marathon of clay and camaraderie, as well as continuing the monthly demos and challenges. Members of the GBMCC will be exhibiting pieces at the PMC conference, and the theme will be New England.

The group currently meets the last Sunday of each month at Metalwerx in Waltham, Mass from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm. For further updates on the group’s activities you can check out the Greater Boston Metal Clay Chapters’ Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?v=wall&viewas=0&gid=130525423846 or visit www.bostonmetalclay.com.

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• Spring 2010

METAL CLAY CLASSES Learn to work with the marvelous medium of metal clay at the Bravo School of Art.

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Visit the BravoSchoolOfArt.com website for information on upcoming classes



To register, contact the Bravo School of Art 2690 Decatur Road, San Diego (619) 223-0058 www.BravoSchoolOfArt.com

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