New 2015 Challenge?

After finishing my Snowman a Day Challenge last year, I realized that one a day is too ambitious for me to achieve.  I did finish, but this year I would like a more relaxing challenge.  One item a week is what I'm going to do this year. 

Now is my decision of what to make.  What should I make?  What would you like to see?  If you have any ideas, please send me a message.  Should it be snowmen again, bears, angels, Santa, elves, fairies, pigs, lambs, bunnies or ???  Or should it be bracelets, necklaces, earrings, pins, etc.

Button Bracelets and Necklace

Look at the bracelets and necklace created from buttons. A few weeks ago my friend asked me if I would like some buttons. Of course, I said yes. There is something inside of me that loves buttons, maybe it comes from my early days when sewing was my passion or maybe it was from looking through button jars at my grandmothers house. I don't know what it is, but there is just something intoxicating about buttons. Campfire will be using the extra buttons at summer camp for incentives. Today has been fun, creating something different from my clay creations. Now don't get me wrong, my mind was wandering off to clay land while I was making my button creations, thinking about ways to incorporate the two. I'll put it on my bucket list.

Extruded Bead Dangle Bracelet

Handcrafted extruded polymer clay beads, bugle beads, metal disk beads and matte black square beads adorn this antiqued brass bracelet. This very simple designed bracelet is fun to wear.

Creative inspiration

A couple of weekends ago was the Northwest Bead Society Bead Bazaar, I renewed a friendship with another clayer, Fanita Brandeis. She has a unique style. Most of her beads are larger in size and incorporate many layers, mixing paints, foils, papers, and textures. Our polymer clay guild is lucky, Fanita will be giving a demostration at our meeting in January and I'm looking forward to her presentation.

After the bead show I came home and sitting in front of me was a veneer sheet of polymer mokume gane waiting to be used in some manner. Immediately inspired from my bead show experience and Fanita, I used that veneer to make the beads on this necklace. My beads don't have the level of depth to them that Fanita puts into her beads, but she inspired me. Thank you Fanita for the inspiration you have given me.


So the inspiration didn't stop with the previous necklace, it kept going. The smaller round word beads were also sitting on my work surface waiting their turn to be incorporated into a creation. This next necklace and bracelet set is more rustic and organic, but allowed me to use those word beads, many of which are inspirational.