Mix It Up Challenge for ICE Resin

It has been a little crazy here but I wanted to let you know you can find the directions for this fun mixed media piece over on the ICE Queen E-Zine.

There is also a quick video on how to use ICE Resin as glue there as well.

Be sure to check out the vast video library.

 There of all sorts of interesting things that can be done with ICE Resin.

I know I have watched many of them and picked up tons of ideas for new techniques, inclusions and more there....

Thanks for stopping by....I

Jewelry Affaire Featured Artist and a Giveaway

The Spring 2016 issue of Jewelry Affaire is now on news stands.

It is a really great issue.

And it is extremely special to me.

Did you notice why?

Yup, that is my name on the cover.

How can that be....?

The featured artist.

Wow.

A once-in-a-lifetime moment.

And you better believe I am savoring it...

I bet you can guess my favorite jewelry medium.

If you said polymer clay, you are right...

This is special for the obvious reasons, but this issue means so much to me for more reasons...

I think all artists know little pieces of ourselves and our stories are woven into the pieces we make.

This collection has a lot of my story woven in because of the things in my life that were happening while I created it.

When I asked my daughter if there was anything from this collection that she would like to have, she said the multi-strand bracelets...

She has great taste...

What can I say?

She must get it from her Dad...

One of the reasons I so love this issue is because my daughter also has 2 of her pieces in it as well.

Maybe she has just a little of me in there too....

And to top it off, my dear friend Melinda Barnett has her beautiful work featured on the cover!!!

Of course this issue is filled with over 120 beautiful pieces to inspire you.

One of my very favorites is this amazing bracelet from Peggy Sowers Heckman.

How gorgeous is that?

I am thrilled to give an issue of this magazine away.

To have the chance to win your very own copy of this issue, leave a comment and your email in the the comments for the blog, or on the giveaway also over on our Facebook page Artistic Endeavors 101.

I will be choosing one winner Saturday April 23rd.

If you win, Stampington and Company will send the issue right to you.

Good luck!

Thanks for stopping by....

Gourd Bangle Bracelets- Workbench Wednesday

 Have you seen the current issue of GreenCraft magazine?

If you are not familiar with it, it contains dozens of fun, green crafts and projects.

It has everything from organization to jewelry to home decor.

It is right up my alley.

I am thrilled to have a few projects in this issue.

Probably my favorite are these bangles made from gourds.

You can take a look at the magazine for the complete how to instructions.

I thought maybe I would share some of the behind the scene photos not shown in the magazine this week for workbench Wednesday.

Start with a dried goose neck gourd.

I got this one from my friend Linda.

Cut rings.

You can tell I took these pictures last summer.

No green grass here yet.

Every so often, I have to cut a watermelon slice on the curves to maximize the number of usable rings.

I will find something to do with these later.

Same with the bottom part of the gourd.

I have a plan for it.

The tiny top part is also saved.

The pithy center pulls right out.

Once sanded...

Let the fun begin.....

 These first bangles were a fun way to play around with the process.

This one reminds me of a giraffe.

A friend told me I should save this one...

I probably will...

These are so lightweight.

I love that.

They make a very interesting sound when I wear them...

Sort of like bamboo wind chimes...on my arm.

I like my slices sort of wonky so I did not measure them or mark  them when cutting.

If you like things precise, you can mark them with pencil or tape.

I tried to most different patterns on the Brave bangle.

If you want to learn how to make these, pick up a copy of GreenCraft.

You can find it on news stands in craft stores or large book retailers.

Or you can order it directly from Stampington here.

It is always a pleasure...

Thanks for stopping by....

            Linking up with these great blogs.

Keep The Kids Busy Craft Lightning

It is time for Craft Lightning again...

This time it is an activity to keep kids busy.

I am sharing a super easy idea that used to keep my daughter busy all afternoon in the summer.

You will need:

a spray bottle of water

small container of water

paintbrush

Let your child draw with the paint  brush and water on the sidewalk or driveway.

Or your child can use the spray bottle to make designs.

Change the spray to stream and play games, write words, etc.

Or just create fun designs.

When my daughter was small, she always wanted to help me with painting or whatever project I was working on.

I often gave her a bucket of water and a big paint brush and she would paint her playhouse, bike, deck, the house, trees or whatever caught her imagination.  

Because it was just water, it never hurt anything and quickly dried.

You could give your child a list of "assignments" to do such as paint your bike, draw a farm, play tic tac toe, see if you can paint the whole driveway before it dries, etc.

This activity can be adapted for winter by adding food coloring to the water and then can be used to paint the snow.

For other fun activities, be sure to check out:

Thanks for stopping by...

Faux Bone Sculpey Clay Bracelet Stacks

Sometimes I make something that I immediately fall in love with.

Enough to want to wear it all the time. 

 That is how it is with these bracelet stacks.

I used some of the faux bone polymer clay pieces I made in these.

I combined the clay with two of my favorite materials: wire and silk.

My husband and I worked for a couple nights balling the wire with his torches.

Then I brought them inside and wrapped and created.

I love the combination of textures.

They, along with a few other bangle bracelet stacks were featured in the Winter 2016 issue of Belle Armoire Jewelry magazine.

Thanks for stopping by...

Linking up with these great blogs.

Power Words ICE Resin Challenge

So far 2016 has been a year filled with surprises.

One of the best surprises is all the fun I am having as a member of the ICE Resin Design team.

I love using ICE Resin.

And I love a challenge.

Our first challenge was Power words.  

To see the project, click here.

I incorporated the power words I chose into these fun rings.

There is also a short video on part of the project on the ICE Queen E-Zine here.

In typical me fashion, I could not stop with one ring.

Instead a made a little pile.

Be sure to hop over to the ICE Queen E-Zine to see how to make this project and many more.

Thanks for stopping by...

Silk, leather and clay

I was playing with new ways to use polymer clay beads.

Of course, no design is complete without silk strips...

This one has a little leather cord as well.

Hope you are having a great Tuesday!

Thanks for stopping by....