Asian Inspired Focals

Japan has been on my mind lately, of course, with the devastating Tsunami destruction all over the news. My heart goes out to the people there who lost loved ones, homes and livelihoods. My creative thoughts naturally turned to Asian themed pieces.

I have had these Newsprint Jasper puff coins for several months but couldn't find a use for them. I love the patterns in natural Jaspers and Agates. Aren't they amazing? I set out to duplicate the Newpsprint Jasper pattern using one of my faux jade color recipes, which matches very well, and these pendants were the result. Not too shabby a match, eh? I've got more of these in different colors planned.









I had a few scraps left over which I incorporated into a small batch of faux jade clay and made these Cylinder Beads; and continuing the Asian theme, created these Faux Bone Bamboo Textured Cylinder Beads and this Faux Bone Bronze Antiqued Asian Calligraphy Pendant. I believe the top piece of the pendant is a tax stamp or duty seal of some sort. Someone please correct me if I am wrong.







All of these pieces, with the exception of the bamboo textured cylinder beads, were sanded through 8 grits of wet-dry sandpaper and buffed with a Dremel. The bamboo beads were treated with Renaissance Wax Polish for a softer finish.

An Alternative To Sanding - Renaissance Wax Micro-Crystalline Polish

Several people have emailed me and asked about the shiny finish on the faux cameos and the red faux cinnebar pieces. Since I am known for sanding and buffing my work, they assumed I sanded and buffed the pieces as I usually do.

I did not sand these pieces, and it almost killed me not to, honestly. Sanding is a cathartic experience for me. I love nothing better than to sit down with a big batch of pendants and beads and a big bowl of warm, soapy water and just whale away on them with my 8 grits of wet-dry sandpaper until they are all perfect. Given the highly etched detail in the latest pieces, I knew I had to find an alternative to sanding to preserve the crisp details.

Some polymer artists seal their work with resin, Future floor polish, or some other kind of glaze or sealant. I don't like the mess or aggravation of having to wait for a liquid finish to set, and those freakin' bubbles drive me nuts. I felt like I was drowning all my hard work, and it really ruined the aesthetics of the piece for me.

These pieces are finished with several coats of Renaissance Wax, a micro-crystalline, fossil-origin wax polish that contains no damaging acids, which was developed by the British Museum to protect its priceless antiques. A very little dab will go a long way, too... a very, very little. A 65ml can will last forever.

There was a bit of a learning curve to begin with, I wasn't gettting the shine I thought I was supposed to get, but I realized you have to let the wax dry for a few minutes, even though the instructions tell you to apply and wipe. I buffed between coats with my Dremel, although you could certainly hand buff as well. The result is a beautiful, soft, lustrous and very durable finish.

It is still not something I would choose to do for every piece, I much prefer sanding and buffing. I have converted many people to sanding, but I realize there are those times when you just can't do it, like with these highly detailed pieces, and I am thrilled there is another solution available.

April Blog Giveaway Winner

Thank you so much to everyone who commented on this month's giveaway prize. Momma and I were very touched by the wonderful stories each of you shared with us. It is easy to see why the rose is the flower of love. I wish we could award each of you the prize!

The good news is that I think I have convinced Momma to create more of these tiny treasures for me to transfer to clay. I am keeping my fingers crossed, but hopefully, she will be doing some more roses in different colors, some multi-flower bouquets, and perhaps some tiny seascapes and landscapes. We shall see.

We had 20 comments this month:

1) B-Lee Kreations
2) Lupe Meter
3) Kozi
4) JuLee
5) M.E.
6) Lorraine
7) Betty
9) lynn
10) LynnEileen, a/k/a ChickyLE
11) Surrayah
12) Shirley
13) daisydawn08
14) Julz
15) Nena
16) Dragonfly Close
17) Raj
18) Jeanne, a/k/a GemChick
19) AllysaRoseDesigns
20) Jadeaxe

Our winner this month is #2, Lupe Meter!. Congratulations, Lupe. I will contact you shortly for your mailing address. I hope you enjoy this very special pendant.

Next month, my friend, the mega-talented Laurel Steven, will be collaborating with me on May's prize. I am so excited! She has promised it will be something really special, so check back here again around the 21st of April for the details and photos!

Thank you again to everyone who commented on this month's giveaway.

Red Hot and Fabulous Faux Cinnebar

I was supposed to be working on a custom image transfer order today for my friend Beth. But when I got up this morning, I was in a red mood and knew I would not do the image she sent me justice, so I am leaving that project for another day, like tomorrow.

You all know red is my favorite color, and I just felt like turning up the heat and making some really red pieces today. It is harder than it looks to get a good red to bake true to color, too, let me tell ya. Four batches later, I was satisfied with my Faux Cinnebar red and created these lovely little cabs and pendants.

The square floral mold used to create the pendants is my new favorite thing. I used it to create several of these 3-D cabs and pendants. The detail in it is incredible. I have tried making my own silicon molds and all I did was make a big, icky mess, but I just love this one!




Floral Gardens Series - Faux Red Cinnebar Pendant/Cab and Earrings with Black Czech Glass Drops

Then I had to go and experiment with other colors, just a bit.



Floral Gardens Series - Pistachio Green Pendants/Cabs and Earring Commponents & Wedgewood Blue Pendant/Cab and Earring Components

Okay, Beth. I got the red mood out of my system and tomorrow morning bright and early I promise to wake up in the right frame of mind to create some exquisitely delicate image transfer pendants, with not a speck of red in sight!

Look What Cara Did With My Faux Jade Tutorial!

I love for customers to send me photos of the beautiful things they create with my beads, pendants and tutorials.

It gives me goosebumps to see them included in a design. I am so proud to have a part in so many wonderful works of wearable art.

Cara Letho is a wonderful lady who lives in Australia. She is also an amazingly talented jewelry designer. Cara has purchased pendants and other tutorials from me in the past, and was one of the first to purchase my new faux jade tutorial. Just look what she did with it! I am stunned and truly thrilled to see the gorgeous beads Cara created from the tutorial instructions, and I love how she made them her own, in her own style. Just look at those faux jade beads! Aren't they amazing? They make my mouth water!

Thank you so much for sharing the photos with me, Cara! You are so talented, and I am honored to have a part in the creation of your beautiful faux jade beads!

Fooling Around with Faux Cameo Cabochons

I love nothing better than a good challenge, and getting a good faux cameo out of polymer clay has been driving me crazy for awhile now. I have tried several ideas, but by George, I think I finally have it.



I apologize for the lousy photography. My camera decided it had a mind of its own and my settings went all wonky on me. I had to shoot these outside, and the detail of the undercolors doesn't come through very well in the photos. These are all two-toned, ivory on top with pastel colors underneath: Peach, Lavender, seafoam green, yellow, coral, wedgewood blue, red, shell pink and black.



These would be great bezel settings for a beautiful clasp. They also make wonderful pendants on their own. I love the delicate little rose sprays, and I just purchased a small rose mold to see if I can make tiny, individual roses for spacer beads. I am really pleased with these, hope you like them, too!



These are faux milk glass cabs. I love the blue-gray/green color. Can't quite put my finger on the exact name of the color, but it is really beautiful in person.

April Giveaway Prize

I said after last month's collaboration with M.E. that I would be going solo with this month's giveaway, but that isn't true. The pendant I am giving away this month is a collaboration between my mother and me! My mother is a fabulously talented women. One of her many talents is for painting. She prefers landscapes, but I asked her to paint this gorgeous rose for me, which I converted to a digital file and transfered to polymer clay to create this pendant. I love it so much, I created pendants using the image for my Mother, my sister, my sister-in-law, and my niece, too. And you could have the very first one I made! It could be an early Mother's Day present for yourself or someone you love.



All you have to do is leave a comment on this post between March 21 and March 28, 2011. Next Monday, March 29, I'll draw a name from the list of commenters and publish it here. So, if you would like to own this beauty, just leave Momma and me a comment, and if you do not have email enabled on your blog or website, please put it in your comment so I'll know how to contact you for your mailing address if you are the lucky winner.

Thanks, everyone!