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Polymer clay cane covered eggs



 
 
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  #11  
Old April 29th 04, 12:55 AM
Sherry Bailey
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If you tire of answering the same question repeatedly then
don't. Don't say anything at all. There are other helpful people out
there. This is what people are suppose to do, help each other. The
world sure would be a much better place if people helped each other in
any aspect of life.

I just thought this point should also be made. Have a great day
everyone
Catdoodler


You know, this is sort of funny. Among others here, I was one of the
people who was here when this newsgroup was STARTED, when the votes
were taken in the beading newsgroup where we used to talk about the
medium, and when "polymer clay" was still only a SUGGESTION for the
generic name of the stuff we all have so much fun with.

Everybody was helpful. Nobody was demanding with some kind of sense of
entitlement. If you came up with a new technique, you shared it,
because everybody got so excited and came up with new ways to enhance
it. It was all new, it was all exciting. But then things started to go
downhill.

Newbies came in who had no idea of the culture of the group, who
somehow believed that the founders of techniques who worked hard to
come up with something new because they try to do this for a living,
OWED them detailed explanations, over and over. Some patient souls
tried to comply, including me for a long time.

I once wrote an article for a magazine reporting on one of the big
events -- I described a new technique taught by another artist
(assuming wrongly that the magazine would contact her for
authorization -- we all make mistakes) and she was extremely upset. In
the end, I don't think she lost any students, the technique is one you
learn best by seeing done, but it was a very bad experience. People
who couldn't attend the events started harrassing those who spent a
ton of money to go to give (for free) everything they learned. Then
the newsgroup started being a coffee-klatch where people simply made
inane compliments (NEVER, god forbid, constructive criticism, even
when it was desperately needed) and talked about their children and
pets. So I went away, as you suggested. (I only drift in occasionally,
even now.)

All of this is, in my opinion, why the moderated groups got started
and why this one is a ghost town. Unfortunately (again, in my opinion)
the moderated groups are also now *too* warm and fuzzy at the expense
of actually being useful, and talk way too much about unrelated
things. (What ever happened to using e-mail for the friendly side
chats? Why do people feel the need to POST "Wow, that was beautiful!",
especially when it frankly was an adequate but amateurish first try?
Why is it better to lie to make somebody feel good than to honestly
tell them how they might improve to BE good? Obviously not people who
attended a serious art school, where the critiques would send them
into a coma!)

Well, thankfully polymer clay has come far enough that the development
of new techniques no longer is quite so dependant on newsgroups. I
fear no new "Skinner blend" techniques (named within this group, by
the way, for the person who taught it so selflessly, much to the
chagrin of some co-discoverers who wanted to keep it for themselves)
will be happening.

And just so you know, I can tell by who posts that most of the
"elders" of the polymer clay community (in the sense of years of
knowledge and experience) do exactly as you say -- they don't comment
at all. BECAUSE of the atmosphere among other reasons.

There are lots of sources from which to learn techniques without even
asking somebody to type to you -- I again mention Polymer Clay Central
and Glass Attic. ( www.polymerclaycentral.com has links to many sites,
a Google search will give more.) Then there are books, to buy or
borrow from you library. If people can't be bothered to do a little
research, why should other people bother to make a special effort to
answer on demand, when they could instead be actually working with the
clay?

(By the way, I have nothing against Newbies in any context EXCEPT when
they fail to try to figure out what's going on BEFORE they start
making waves. And I have nothing personal to contribute on the
specific egg question because I seldom do eggs OR canes -- not my
techniques of choice. Sarajane and some others, however, DO have a lot
to say, and I definitely suggest looking at her book/s, even if you
spend an hour in Barnes & Noble withOUT buying.)

Best of luck

Sherry Bailey
Ads
  #12  
Old April 29th 04, 02:05 AM
Christina Poolie
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First I have to apologize to Catdoodler, I only replied to the message, not
to the whole group. I couldn't figure out why my message wasn't showing up.
See, I am new here!

I have been lurking here, and in www.PolymerClayCentral.com for a long time.
You have this all wrong. These people are very helpful. All you have to do
is go to www.GlassAttic.com to find out. This site is maintained by Diane
Black. She doesn't get paid, all the costs of the site come out of her own
pocket. And she doesn't have advertisements on it either. She takes the
information shared by other clayers and organizes it so we all have this
valuable resource. From what I read in the posts, clayers generally will try
just about anything, so there is a huge amount of information there.

I personally appreciate any advise given by other clayers. Have you seen
some of the books available? They are amazing and it's obvious a lot of hard
work has been put into them. I love my books and refer to them often.

Christina Poolie

As a note, I always look for posts from Sarajane and read those threads
first.


  #13  
Old April 29th 04, 03:00 PM
Sjpolyclay
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Sherry, that was beautifully put. Thank you!
Sarajane

Sarajane's Polymer Clay Gallery
http://www.polyclay.com

see my current auctions at:
http://www.polyclay.com/Collage/auctionindex.htm


  #14  
Old April 29th 04, 09:05 PM
Katherine Dewey
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Aw geeze...a flame war almost got started and I missed. Shucks!
That's what I get for not logging in often enough -- missed a retort from
one of the best. Good words, Sherry.

I get emails every day from folks wantin' to know how I do this or that;
that's why I print (and sell) out the workbooks from this class or that or
write the big books that never cover everything because they, too, are
limited. The thing is time spent developing a process or expanding a
technique is hard time. There's a lot of frustration exploring the
possibilties, a lot of dead ends, but there's joy, too. When things work
out, oh, when things go right, that's pure joy.
So, if some of us say "it's in my book," we're not saying there's a price.
We've already paid the price in frustration and wasted clay. We're saying
"here's how it's done." The price of the book, or the class, or the tape --
that's a pittance for 30 years of work. In the end all it covers is the
printing.

Hadda say something,
Katherine Dewey

When I win the lottery, I'll give it all away



  #15  
Old April 29th 04, 11:26 PM
HonkHonk
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haha at the risk of causing disruption which I really never
intended... sigh ... let's put it this way, I lurk here, read
everything about clay, visit sites, auctions, etc., I've read the six
or seven books at the library on polyclay, done google searches to
find even more, etc., studied the tutorials, come back to them every
so often, study the pictures, tried to gain as much idea about what is
required to do a few relatively simple projects because to be frank
with you I haven't found the money to buy a cheap toaster oven! I
have bought a couple bars of clay just to work it, try rolling it out,
see what surface I could use without buying something, sniff sniff,
haha two things, 1) I've become interested in polyclay, in part,
because it is fairly cheap to start, i.e., don't have a lot of money
to devote to something I don't know if I'll like OR be any good at.
So I do as much homework as possible upfront. 2) this is why I came
off, prolly, as blunt in my original post, I don't like talking,
explaining, etc., it's not me, and I gotta be mmmmeeee~

so anyway I've been to all your websites, I understand several of you
make your money off polyclay, and ALL of you have devoted tremendous
time and effort in developing your techniques, skills, patience, and
creativity. As far as making money on what you do, believe me, I
applaud it, I'd be there with you if I had your talent.... BUT BUT ...

haha the lady JUST asked how to keep the cane slice from distorting
before applying to an egg! It's not like asking for the secret and
power of the universe. Tell her ... and this is a wild guess ... put
the cane in the frig, let it cool to gain firmness, slice and apply.
It prolly won't go perfectly but should be better than so far, and
with practice ...

thanks simply_annie for the links. Two I've been to over and over
again, and it's prolly time for another visit. The delphi one is new
to me, looks good, lots of msgs.

and really thanks everyone, I've been to your sites an enjoyed them
greatly. If I've stepped on anyones toes, tough noogies! If I ever
post again it'll prolly be short, not well or tactfully phrased, blah
blah ... be warned if it offends again, tough noogies.

after all this verbiage and ass-kissin, flame me, I want you to, I
feel my noogies are getting soft.


On 20 Apr 2004 21:45:11 -0700, (Wanda) wrote:

Does anyone know how to make the cane covered eggs? I am not clear on
how to put the cane slices on the egg. I worked with the slices on
some small clay beads that I figured I would use for earrings but they
turned out so distorted. I have no idea how to get them on the
surface of the item and get them flattened enough with out distorting
them. Is there a trick to this?


  #16  
Old May 8th 04, 06:39 PM
Sherry Bailey
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HonkHonk wrote in message . ..
to be frank
with you I haven't found the money to buy a cheap toaster oven!


Keep an eye out at yard sales and thrift shops. I have seen them for
$3.

the lady JUST asked how to keep the cane slice from distorting
before applying to an egg! It's not like asking for the secret and
power of the universe. Tell her ... and this is a wild guess ... put
the cane in the frig, let it cool to gain firmness, slice and apply.
It prolly won't go perfectly but should be better than so far, and
with practice ...


As I mentioned in my previous remarks, I (for one) have no advice on
this to give. I don't do canes and I don't do eggs. The shape of eggs
makes for special issues to keep canes from distorting since no two
areas on the geometry of an egg are quite the same. Just as MY guess,
though, I'd say "yes, there is a trick... or two" -- but since I don't
know them, I can't relay them. And I would further guess from my
previous not successful attempts, that the tricks involved are not
simple one sentance things, but multiple steps that require a half
hour to write down, bringing me back to my other comments about using
the published sources even if you don't actually buy them.)

If I've stepped on anyones toes, tough noogies! If I ever
post again it'll prolly be short, not well or tactfully phrased, blah
blah ... be warned if it offends again, tough noogies.

after all this verbiage and ass-kissin, flame me, I want you to, I
feel my noogies are getting soft.


THIS is the attitude that not only shows in your posts but which
precipitates long threads that might be off the original topic. Just
so you know. (If you want the original topic answered, don't interject
stuff to derail it.)

(And to Sarajane and Katherine, you guys keep writing them and I'll
keep buying them! Glad you thought I made sense.)

Sherry Bailey

PS To Wanda, the original poster -- I hope you found your answer out
there!
  #17  
Old May 8th 04, 09:08 PM
Quin The Crafter
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Sherry Bailey wrote: "PS To Wanda, the original poster -- I hope you
found your answer out there!"
I did e-mail the lady privately and here is what I said to her. Hoping
this will answer some questions for any other "new to polymer clay" folks
that need help with this. Hope this helps!

I have my best luck w/ caning beads by slicing the canes as evenly as
possible. U can use a ruler with raised marks on it to impress into the
cane then slice on the marks. I use the 1/16th marks which gives a really
thin slice. But u can experiment & use the thickness that works best for
you. Not distorting the canes slices when you cut them helps to keep them
from distorting as u apply them also. Never try to slice a "just made"
cane. Let it rest for at least 1/2 hour. If u r in a hurry you can put in
the freezer for 5-10 min's. If the inside of the cane is still warm it will
move as you slice it, so letting it rest allows the interior clay to cool
and set up like jello then it is so much easier to work with.. These cool
down times will vary depending on the type of clay u r using also. Softer
clays like Sculpey take a little longer, then Premo (what I use) or Fimo.
Premo is the middle softness but holds a better texture. Fimo is the
hardest, it hold a texture pretty well but takes a lot more pressure to get
the texture on the clay. Fimo seems to polish up the best too! (I cheat
and polish my Premo on my buffer, after sanding w/ wet dry sand paper. Then
I put on a coat of "Future" floor polish.) That makes a really nice shine
on the clay. Use a really sharp thinnest clay blade u can, and slightly
roll the cane with the blade as you slice.

Now for adding cane slices to objects. If your cane slices are cold, then
warm them slightly in-between your hands first. Start by applying cane
slices to a flat surface. (for practice) If you have ever rolled out a pie
crust, it's the same principal. Try to use the same amount of pressure and
roll in the north/south direction with little or no distortion, then in the
east/west direction. Then in the northwest/southeast direction, then
northeast/southwest direction. Don't try to make the cane slices cover all
the little "diamond" shapes in-between where the slices meet. To cover
those you have a couple of options, you can roll small balls of clay in
same, coordinating or contrasting colors, flatten slightly into the opening
and then use the same pie crust rolling technique.

OR you can roll a smaller cane of matching cane or different color and use
the smaller cane slices to use as the fillers.

OR you can roll out a sheet of clay to the same thickness or very slightly
thicker then your cane slices. Then mark the openings by gently pressing the
opening onto the sheet (like marking the clay when you make a butt joint on
the cane) then cut out w/craft knife and apply to the opening, then smooth
out with either roller or finger tips.

OR Make the balls of clay for the filler and just make them big enough to
cover most of the opening and gently press onto open space with just enough
pressure to completely cover the open space then dab the ball with a texture
sheet or texture the ball with a stylus or anything else you may use for
texture. This was one of my "happy accidents". It made a really cool
"knobby bead" My daughter doesn't like to texture the balls, so she just
leaves hers as little balls. Very cute!

Last but not least, if you cover the bead with the same color as the outside
wrap color of clay first, sometimes you won't need to even fill in the
little spaces between the clay slices. Becos the base clay on the bead and
the outside of the cane slice are matching in color, the spaces sort of
disappear.

Once you have achieved applying canes on "flat surfaces" with little or no
distortion you are ready to move on to curved surfaces. Do exactly the
same things as for flat surfaces with only one exception. Remember that
curved surfaces will require "darts" (small v-shaped cuts in the cane
slices) to make that curve. Use your clay blade or craft knife to make the
v-cuts and cut away a little at a time, because you have to custom fit the
slice to the curved surface. Better to cut too little and have to recut
then to cut off too much the 1st time and ruin your piece. I say ruin
because it is nearly impossible to cut out a v-shape from a patterned cane
slice then try to patch it & exactly match the patterns again.

To begin I suggest starting making caned beads on larger focal point type
beads then as you get more practice move on to the smaller beads. Also
laying out the bead design first will help to keep you from having the
larger spaces that have to be filled in. Like my 1st bead, I put four
slices around the middle then one slice each on the top & bottom. It was a
slightly flattened heart shape & of course I wanted the cane slice to
dominate the design so front & back of the heart got a cane slice smack dab
in the middle. But the cane slices were too large to put on each side, so I
had to roll a piece of cane down to a smaller size to fit the sides and not
overlap the slice already in the middle.

Getting really good with polymer clay is really just tons of PRACTICE,
PRACTICE, PRACTICE!!!!

If you have a VCR & cable TV, you can video tape the Carol Duval Show on
HGTV and/or also now on the DIY channel. Carol has a lot of the polymer clay
artists on her show & seeing them work will give you a wealth of information
for FREE!!! Seeing, is sometimes easier to comprehend then just reading
about a project and trying to figure out how they did that! LOL I have a
whole collection of tapes that I am converting to DVD, of Carol and her
polymer clay artists, which is how I got started in polymer clay in the 1st
place.

Well hope this helps and good luck!
eliquint



  #18  
Old May 27th 04, 02:26 AM
Wanda
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Thank you Catdoodler, nicely put. I have found a couple wonderful
links that will answer most of your clay questions too. I found one
that just dealt with covering an egg:

How To Make A Clay Egg
by byrd tetzlaff
http://www.pcpolyzine.com/march2001/eggs.html

I also found a link that covers a vast amount of clay techniques.
They are easy to follow and nicely photographed. There is even a
tutorial that shows you how to clean your pasta maker! How nice!
VERY useful "stuff" on this link and it's free,no books to buy. It's
a warm and FRIENDLY place to find what you need. One of the links has
a place where you can ask questions too, again, warm and FRIENDLY.
Here is the most helpful link I've found yet:
http://www.pcpolyzine.com/tutorials.html

I would also like to thank those who emailed me personally with tips
and instructions, it was greatly appreciated.
 




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