maureenthomasdesigns.com blog

Next weekend is the annual Placer County Autumn Art Studios Tour. More than 70 artists will present their works and the local wineries will be open for tasting as well. I’ll be at Fox Barrel Cider Company in Colfax as I have no “studio” to tour (I work at mini-stations throughout my house and garage).

The pendant/pin pictured will be given away in a drawing at the end of the weekend. If you’re able to stop by Fox Barrel to taste their delicious hard ciders please fill out an entry form!

Hope to see you there…

Maureen

I was so excited to finally see the November-December 2009 issue of Step by Step Beads on the magazine stand! One of my polymer clay necklaces, “Circles and Squares”, was chosen as a finalist in their first Colorworks Contest. The challenge was to create a piece of jewelry in the purple, green, and orange triad. Congratulations to the winner, Cheri Stewart, and the other finalists. I was so pleased to see two other polymer clay pieces on the page (by Lindly Haunani and Carol Simmons)!

Maureen
Maureen Thomas Designs

As a texture fanatic, one of my favorite tools for working with polymer clay is the texture sheet. Victoria James, my friend and fellow Clayville California member, creates the most amazing silicone texture sheets. There’s always at least one on my work table. Victoria started by using trees, moss, rocks, and plants to create the texture sheets, but she now offers sheets made from her vast collection of textile print blocks. If you work with any kind of clay I think you will find a texture sheet (or two or three or…) a wonderful addition to your tool collection! They are strong, flexible, and they don’t require a resist. (Note: the sheets are actually green in color.) The polymer clay box shown above is currently on display at The Art Building in Auburn, CA as part of a promotional show for the upcoming Autumn Art Studios Tour 2009. Click here for more details.

Maureen
Maureen Thomas Designs

I urge all polymer clay artists to consider attending what is sure to be a wonderful and inspirational conference. The theme is “Exploring Connections” and the emphasis is on artistic collaboration, from artists working together on a single project to a single artist expanding his or her horizons by combining other materials with polymer clay. Please check out the Synergy2 website for more information.

I am once again working with Judy Belcher and Mary Fassler to organize and manage the Synergy2 Gallery, where all attendees are encouraged to display and sell their polymer clay works. The 2008 Synergy Gallery was amazing and I predict the Synergy2 Gallery will be even better. Imagine the fabulous works of 80 artists lined up row after row all in the same room for you to see and purchase!

If you want to kick your work up a notch or two or three I strongly recommend that you consider attending the conference. The sooner you register the better your chances of getting into the presentations that are of most interest to you.

I thought I’d start posting a message now and then about an unusual tool, gadget, or material that I can’t live without. I used this little scrub brush a number of times today so thought I’d start with that. What artist doesn’t love having an array of tools to make their work easier? I’ve used these little nail scrubbers from Lee Valley Tools for years and have recommended them to lots of friends. They are sold in pairs or by the dozen so I have them stationed in lots of places in my house and polymer clay studio. They are actually manufactured for hospitals and surgery scrub rooms. I use them for scrubbing veggies, cleaning my rubber stamps and texture sheets, and they are especially great for cleaning hands and fingernails of polymer clay, paint, garden dirt, etc. Plus, you can’t beat the price!

I’ll be at the Gourd and Arts Festival in Folsom, CA this Saturday and Sunday (September 26-27). During setup today I saw the most gigantic gourds for sale. If you’ve ever cleaned a gourd to use for an art project you know what a lot of work goes into just the prepwork. There are sure to be some amazing gourd-related pieces and a lot of other artwork as well. I’m in booth 19 so stop by if you decide to check it out.

I’ve also had a few other art show confirmations in the past week or so. Please check out my website’s Events page for more details and links.

Maureen
Maureen Thomas Designs

A while back a generous member of Clayville California (my local guild) opened up her home for a metal play day. Because we have a number of artists who already work with metal we had lots of tools, gadgets, and materials at our disposal. I brough a sheet of copper and was able to texture, torch, use a dapping punch and block, etch in an etching tank, and watch a rolling mill demo! I was intrigued enough to invest in a few basic tools of my own and have finally gotten around to using the beautiful bits of copper that I have in my studio. I love making polymer clay beads and I enjoy mixing other materials with them in my jewelry. Here are some samples of what I’ve been working on. OK, back to work!

Maureen
Maureen Thomas Designs

At several recent art shows we received quite a few inquiries about the papier mache busts that Clyde (my husband) has made for my necklaces. They seem to be real conversation starters because they’re rather unique. A number of artists and gallery owners have asked about buying them so we have decided to place some for sale on both the website and in my Etsy store. We’ve called the collection OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!

Clyde has been furiously working in his studio (aka: the garage) to streamline the process as much as possible, but they are made individually and they require a lot of drying time on the form before they are removed. Even with the hot days we’ve had in Northern California recently they take surprisingly long to dry and set completely.

Clyde has been enjoying the creative process. If there is enough interest we may offer other finish and color options in the future. We’re hoping that fibers artists will find them as useful as they are for displaying jewelry. Fingers crossed!

I was shocked to see that I haven’t posted here since February. I’m going to make a New half-Year’s resolution to try to write something at least once a week.

Maureen

A few years back I watched a video by Gwen Gibson on making polymer clay bracelets. I was intrigued, but I got sidetracked. I finally got around to making a few of the tools she “invented” to streamline the process a bit and got to work. I am hooked! I am adding my own touches by using lots of texture and adding a vintage button clasp to each bracelet. I have the first set listed on my website and also on Flickr.