In my previous Studio by Sculpey review, I linked to a couple of folks who mentioned their Studio by Sculpey projects turned brittle a few weeks after baking. That hadn't been my experience at all, but I was still basing my long-term strength conclusions on the clay packet I got from a preview sample. I decided to run a few tests to see how the new off-the-shelf stuff stacks up.

The Setup

A month ago, I baked 5 sheets (thicknesses #1-5 on my Atlas pasta machine, where #1 is the thickest) of each of these clays:

• Premo!
• Studio by Sculpey Sample -- the sample pack I received several months before the official release of the product
• Studio by Sculpey -- the official stuff

Each sheet was 3.5" × 2.5", and I used the same basic turquoise color of each to make sure color differences weren't affecting the results.

The Tests

The only polymer clay "strength test" I've seen mentioned is folding it repeatedly to see how many folds it takes before it breaks. (Anybody got other suggestions for testing clay's strength, by the way?) I tried the folding thing, but I wanted to try a few other methods too. Since I'm a little on the accident-prone side, I made a list of some of the (many) ways I've broken things in my life and tried those on the clay samples.

Here are the tests:

• Drop clay from 6 feet in the air onto (the hard) kitchen floor
• Toss edge of clay sheet at edge of countertop from about a foot away, allowing it to ricochet off and hit the kitchen floor
• Hit clay with a hammer
• Fold clay back and forth (til edges meet) at least 5 times
• Tear clay

The Results

All of the clay sheets (every brand, every thickness) did just fine on the dropping, ricocheting, and hammering tests. After each of these tests, I'd flex the sheets gently to see if any weaknesses had developed. They were all fine.

On the folding test, I was pleasantly surprised with all the results. I hadn't expected to be able to flex the thickest sheets til their edges met, folding back and forth. As long as I went slowly (& allowed it to curve, not bend), the sheets did fine. I had one Premo sample (#2) break during my first folding tests, but I suspect it was my hurrying the process that caused this as much as anything. All the samples were very strong.

After I'd done the initial folding tests, I decided to use the #5 sheets for some more rigorous testing. I folded back & forth at least 10 times, then I put pressure on the fold itself (like folding and creasing a paper sheet). When I did that, the Premo clay snapped. Both of the Studio by Sculpey samples broke as well, but theirs were more of a slow tear than a snap.

For the last test, I pinched the clay between my fingers and tried to rip it apart. I wasn't able to tear any of the #1 thickness sheets. I was able to tear the #2 thickness on both of the Studio by Sculpey sheets (I couldn't do a thing to the #2 Premo sheet). Any thinner than that, I was able to fairly easily tear the clay for any of the brands. For Premo, it was more of a break or snap; for Studio by Sculpey, it was more of a tear.

My Conclusion

I didn't see any difference in the strength of the Studio by Sculpey sample and the off-the-shelf stuff. They both seem equally durable to me. I saw no evidence of it becoming brittle several weeks after baking.

I also didn't see a significant difference between the strength of Premo and Studio by Sculpey. There's a difference in the way they break. Premo cracks or snaps, while Studio by Sculpey tears. To me, Premo seems to behave more plastic-like in this, while Studio by Sculpey is more paper-like. But they both seem similarly strong.

I'm sure there are lots more things to test in this -- for example, these were all flat sheets of even thickness. What about sculpted items that have weaker areas? Still, I don't feel like concerns about Studio by Sculpey becoming brittle should keep anyone from giving it a try.

Course, it all comes down to finding the clay that works best for you for the task you're working on. As Craftymule said, if you're happy with your "tried and true favorite clay products," then "stick to what works."

At the same time, you don't want to "stick" with good enough. I spent way longer than I should have settling for the weak & brittle Sculpey III. I got so frustrated when it broke -- but I stuck with it because I'd invested all that money buying all those colors, plus I was unsure about trying something new. Switching to Premo was very worthwhile. Fewer breaks meant less frustration, plus it allowed me to take my work more seriously. (You don't get too attached to something if you're expecting it to break quickly!)

Sometimes it pays to keep an open mind. Experimenting with new products may create whole new worlds for you, giving you options you didn't know you were missing!

Posted in: Polymer Clay , Reviews | Comments (12)

Lisa at Polka Dot Creations made my day yesterday by giving this blog a "You Make My Day” award. So today I'm sharing some of the blogs that inspire me on a daily basis. I've mostly picked blogs that are NOT focused on polymer clay -- I figure if you're a regular reader, you already know which polymer clay blogs I enjoy cuz I'm always linking to them!

• Ronna's Blog: Ronna is a Canadian artist and publisher of the ATC Quarterly zine. She frequently shares her own delightful ATCs on her site.
• StampingMathilda: I love Godelieve's stamping style & her project photos -- plus she's very generous with her techniques. Course, I think I especially like it cuz it's bilingual (Dutch/English) -- it's just kinda fun to see Happy Birthday cards in another language! :-)
• Paint Slinger: Nancy's a friend-in-real-life, & a wonderful artist and writer. Her blog is new, but the posts are superb! Don't miss this post about finding your voice and this one on artistic realism.
• Take Back Your Brain!: Lynn shares ideas for using advertising in a whole different way -- to advertise your goals to yourself. I love her tips & have implemented several in my daily life.
• HELLO, my name is BLOG!: Scott's posts range from marketing advice to creative inspiration. I love that each post ends with a question & a challenge.
• Feeping Creatures: And yes, one polymer clay blog did sneak in here. Daily photos of quirky polymer clay creatures make this one of my favorite light-hearted reads. What fun!

Thanks to this Google Reader tip (also from Lisa!), I finally made a blogroll to share more of my favorites with you folks. (Long overdue on this, I know!) My sidebar's not long enough for it all, so I've created a separate blogroll page. Check it out for a long list of those who inspire me.

Have a wonderful day!

Posted in: Inspiration | Comments (3)

Being a "conscientious clayer" (or blogger or artist) often entails keeping track of what inspired you. If someone blogs a tutorial or technique you plan to try, it's important that you have a way to find it again -- not only so you can double-check the instructions as you're doing it, but also so you can share the source of your inspiration with others.

But with all the information available online, it can be tricky to remember where you saw something. If you don't have a good system in place, the best intentions in the world (& sometimes all the searching in the world!) won't help. So here's a few online tools that have helped me keep track of polymer clay art that's inspired me:

• Flickr Favorites: Flickr is full of visual inspiration. If you see something you think you might want to find again later, use the "Add to Faves" link at the top to "star" it. You can view all your favorites on one page, and even search within them later, making it easier to find that elusive photo.

  Of course, it's nice to also leave a comment for the artist telling them what it is you like about the photo. And leaving a comment may help you too -- serving to jog your memory about what specifically you found interesting or inspirational.

• Del.icio.us: When I found something I liked, I used to bookmark the page in my browser. But that got a out-of-hand -- I had too many bookmarks, and the idea of getting them organized into folders was overwhelming. The browser-based bookmarking was trouble from other aspects too -- what if I was away from my home computer and wanted to bookmark something (or find something I'd bookmarked)? And were folders really the best way to organize my bookmarks? What about things that fit into multiple folders...?

  Del.icio.us is a good (free!) alternative to browser-based bookmarking. Once you create an account, you can use their site to keep track of bookmarks. To me, the main advantage is that it's tag-based. That means you can add one or more keywords (things like polymer_clay, inspiration, or tutorials) to keep things organized -- instead of trying to decide on a single appropriate folder for it. Another advantage is that, since it's online, you can access your bookmarks from any computer with internet access. And the search capabilities are very nice. For example, I can easily find things I tagged with both polymer_clay AND tutorials. I can also use it to keep track of things I want to take action on, with tags like to_read, to_try, or to_blog.

  Other features that make Del.icio.us a good all-around solution:

  • You can make notes about a page you're bookmarking (handy for specifying what it was you found interesting)
  • You can bookmark certain items privately (handy if you're bookmarking potential gifts for a significant other)
  • You can export/backup all your bookmarks (important for any online service)

• Del.icio.us Bookmark Extension: Del.icio.us is great -- but it wasn't until I found the Firefox Del.icio.us Bookmark Extension that I really became a "power user." This extension integrates del.icio.us bookmarking with Firefox's bookmarking and adds some handy buttons to the browser's toolbar. The "Tag This" button allows you to stay on the page you're bookmarking while you enter the relevant tags & notes into a pop-up window. It also suggests tags based on your previously-used tags, along with tags other users have used to describe that particular page. I'm much more likely to bookmark something when it's that easy to do!

• Google Reader: If you read a lot of blogs, you know they can be chock full of ideas and inspiration. Until a few months ago, I used Bloglines to keep track of my RSS feeds. But after you read something in Bloglines, it's gone. And I'd frequently find myself wondering, "Where did I see that...?"

  I'm so glad I finally made the switch to Google Reader. While it has several features I've found useful -- like not automatically marking things "read" and allowing you to download things and read them offline (handy for road trips) -- the one I've found most useful is the ability to search through all the old posts. So if all I remember is that someone blogged about layering with alcohol inks, I can use Google Reader's search to quickly find the right post.

It's important to give credit where credit's due, but it's hard -- if not impossible -- to do that if you're relying on memory alone. Using these tools has helped me keep track of where I've found ideas.

What do you use to keep track of the things that inspire you? I'd love to hear your tips!

Posted in: Inspiration , The Business of Crafting , Tips & Techniques | Comments (3)

I usually try to avoid conflict, so I've been tempted to let the latest version of this whole ownership debate pass by without comment. But since I keep pestering my husband with discussions about it & composing blog post drafts in my head, I figured I might as well say what I'm thinking. If you're already sick of the whole thing, you have my permission to skip this post and come back tomorrow for something a little less heavy.

I'm talking generally about the ideas, not specifically about the latest issue -- but if you don't know which debate I'm talking about, you can get the gist of it from these posts:

• Lisa started the conversation. Though the ensuing comments get a little negative at times, there are some interesting points -- I especially liked Jeanne Rhea's comments about utility patents (which protect truly unique techniques) and about her policy for others' teaching her techniques.
• Kim Cavender shares her perspective as a teacher. Lotsa comments on this one, too. I especially enjoyed Maureen Carlson's (towards the bottom).
• Lisa updated the discussion with links to several other online opinions.

Exclusive Rights to Subject Matters

First, I want to touch on something that -- even though it's not a key part of the issue -- keeps getting mentioned: subject matter. Ianavak mentioned peas in a pod, Molly mentioned roses, and I've noticed it referenced in several comments. Some people take the whole "ownership" idea to an extreme and think particular artists have exclusive rights to a particular subject matter.

No!

Just because someone else is making polymer clay peas in a pod, for example, doesn't mean you shouldn't. Do it your own way, sure. Express your own style, of course. But don't avoid making the same item out of fear that it'll look like you're copying. If all painters had avoided painting the Virgin Mary because it'd already been done, think how much smaller our art history textbooks would be! And that argument goes even more so for natural things -- like pea pods or roses -- where we're all copying the Original Creator anyway. There's plenty of room for all of us to examine the same subjects in our own voices.

Techniques, Classes, & What People Really Pay For

Now onto the crux of the argument: spilling the beans about techniques being taught in classes. I've noticed that the advertising for guild conventions & the like tends to focus on WHO is coming to teach (Maureen Carlson, Christi Friesen, etc.) instead of WHAT technique they're teaching.

It's my opinion that the workshop-going public signs up (or doesn't sign up) for a particular workshop based on the reputation of the teacher (things they've heard about the teacher & works they've seen by the teacher) as much as -- or more than -- they sign up to learn the particular technique that's being taught that day. When big-name clayers are concerned about the leaking of techniques hurting their livelihood, they're not recognizing what people are actually paying for.

It's not the technique.

It's the name. It's the one-on-one interaction with a respected expert. It's the trial-and-error in-depth knowledge that allows that teacher to explain why this particular method works best. It's the whole package. And that value-added package can't be matched by someone leaking a technique.

Some of you may be familiar with SXSW Interactive. It's held in Austin every year, and consists of a week of sessions with industry experts about computers, technology, & the internet. For several years now, they've recorded the sessions and made the podcasts freely available to everyone on their website. But even though all of that information is freely available, the conference keeps growing.

Last year, Kathy Sierra's SXSW keynote address asked the attendees why they paid money and went to the hassle of travelling there if they could get the information for free. Her answer? That people wanted the face-to-face connection. They wanted to be in the same room, be part of something, network with others, and share ideas.

I think that applies even more so to a hands-on workshop environment. My most recent guild meeting was a perfect example of the joy that can come from learning a new technique in the company of other creative people. I could have stayed home and learned about the technique online, but that wouldn't have filled my creative well like the guild meeting did.

To me, it seems like the teachers' attitude of secrecy about what's discussed in a workshop may hurt them in the long run. I know I'm pretty well convinced that I don't want to take any workshops. (And it's not because I was secretly planning to come home & write up step-by-step tutorials based on them, either!) I'm not interested in the idea that I'd have to separate that technique in my mind as something I shouldn't build on -- or if I do, that I need to designate all future derivatives as "inspired by" that person and be careful not to share any proprietary information with others. The creative side of my mind doesn't work that way. To me, creativity is about random connections. I don't want to frustrate my creative mind by telling it there are some things it can use freely, and some things it has to compartmentalize. I only want to feed my mind things it's free to use and build on. This is the same reason I avoid reading blogs by folks who've demonstrated they're overly protective of their ideas -- I don't want to see a photo or read something that gets caught in my subconscious mind & results in a nasty debate down the line. I prefer to keep company with more sharing folk. And I think from that standpoint, the teachers who are arguing that their techniques need to be protected should consider whether they might be scaring off potential students.

Reverse Engineering

The other thing I have a problem with is the idea that if you "reverse engineer" something, it's wrong to share your technique. I agree that you should give credit for inspiration where it's due, but I don't agree that the "inspirer" should have exclusive rights to any process that could result in similar results. There are so many ways to achieve similar results. The way I end up doing something may be completely different than the way another person did it. My process may be better, or it may be worse. Regardless, if we arrived at the same place independently, it makes sense that each of us has just as much right to do whatever we want with our own process. (Not to mention the fact that if I can "reverse engineer" something just by looking at it, it's probably not a complicated enough process to be "owned" anyway.)

What I'm Doing (& What I Hope You'll Do Too)

The healthiest thing I've seen during this debate is Barbara's rules, which were actually posted during a previous outcry about the same basic issue. I think it's an excellent exercise for each of us to go through: think about the issues, define our thoughts about what we believe & why, and record our own rules (privately or publicly) so we can make sure we're always following our own standards. Everyone's rules won't match -- and as Barbara mentions, one person's rules may change over time. But perhaps as long as we all base them in a spirit of mutual respect and honesty, we can find ways to work through our differences when these issues arise.

I'm working on my rules... I hope you'll do the same.

Posted in: Polymer Clay , The Business of Crafting | Comments (5)

One of my favorite things about polymer clay is its ability to "be" just about anything else. I especially like the way it can mimic natural materials -- such as these stones. Today I'm going to show you three different materials you can mix into polymer clay to make "faux" rocks -- which you can then use for jewelry, for desktop rock-gardens, or for stamping with your own custom message.

1. Dryer Lint: Granitex clay uses fibers to achieve its stone-like appearance. So if you like Granitex -- but don't like having to buy it in multi-color sample packs -- try re-creating it using your own fibers. Dryer lint is cheap & easy to find, and it creates polymer clay stones that have kind of a dreamy, mottled effect. Just pinch off a piece of dryer lint, and put it in the middle of a piece of clay. If you notice any obvious cat/dog/etc. hairs, pick those out. Then fold the clay around the lint until it's incorporated. Depending on how much lint you use, the effect can be pretty subtle. I like adding alcohol inks to make the variations a little more pronounced.
2. Play Sand: Multi-packs of colored sand are pretty inexpensive and have multiple uses with polymer clay. Use the same folding technique to incorporate the sand into your clay, adding more until you like the resulting color. Use one sand color for a subtle effect, or try mixing two or three for more variation.
3. Embossing Powders: Embossing powders are available in the rubber stamping aisle and come in a huge variety of colors (and even some beautiful color mixtures). They're a little more expensive than the colored sand, but they're a good choice if you want a more pronounced effect. Just add the embossing powders into the middle of your clay, folding to mix, until you like the color. You can mix different colors of embossing powders to get more variation. You can also try hitting the clay with a heat gun after baking -- this causes some of the colors to "pop" and can be an interesting effect.

For all of these, I had the best results using translucent clay, which I dunked in ice water immediately after baking to increase the clarity. The translucence allows the inclusions inside the rock to show (not just those on the surface) -- which gives it more interest and depth.

Here's a few sites to check out for more polymer clay rock & inclusion fun:

• Interested in trying other types of mix-ins? Marie Segal documented her experiments on Clay Factory with 7 pages of mix-in sample pics. Also check out this inclusions tutorial by Kris Richards.
• Glass Attic lists lots of faux stone and inclusion ideas.
• Recipes abound for custom embossing powder mixes. Check out these recipes from Cloud 9 and these recipes (with pics) from Rubber Stamps Club.

Posted in: Polymer Clay , Tips & Techniques | Comments (3)

Back when I taped my segment for That's Clever, they told me I could email them in Spring 2008 to find out my air date. I immediately assumed that meant my segment would air in Spring 2008. I figured it was just a matter of finding out the specific day, planning the watch party, etc.

No such luck.

I was going to be good, by the way, and actually wait til the first day of spring to send the email. But external forces (i.e., family members) urged me to take action. Mind you, my daffodils did bloom last weekend AND Sunday marked our first tornado warning of the year. Those seem like pretty clear indicators of spring to me!

So I sent the email, and today the friendly gal at the production company wrote back. (She didn't mention that it's not technically spring.) She gave me an episode number (HCLVR-517), but she said that the 500 series hasn't been scheduled yet. Not only that, but the 400 series hasn't started airing. In fact, I now need to wait til Fall to email again and find out whether my show's been scheduled.

Guess that watch party's going to have to wait a bit longer...

Update 2/6/2009: After a long wait, it looks like HGTV has started airing That's Clever again. The 400 series shows are airing now, with the last of that season scheduled for March 27th. (With any luck, the 500 series will be aired sometime too!)

I received a nice email from the segment producer I worked with way back when. While she's no longer with the show (and therefore doesn't have any additional air date info), she did have a few suggestions:

• If the website/contact info for your segment has changed, you can contact HGTV through their contact form. Tell them your show number, and they should be able to make the changes to their website for you.
• If you miss your show, look for it in re-runs. She says HGTV typically starts replaying episodes at the end of the season (so after March 27th). Some episodes are online now, too.

Thanks to all you fellow That's-Cleverians for the comments — may all your shows air and may they all be wonderful!

Posted in: That's Clever Show | Comments (29)

Polymer Clay Central just posted a great tutorial by Kathy Canuel on making custom word stamps with polymer clay. If you've ever wanted to customize a gift by stamping the recipient's name, or add your own custom mark to a finished piece, or just save money on word stamps for polymer clay, her tutorial's definitely worth checking out.

To start, Kathy has you carve your word, mirror-image, into the clay, then follow that outline with extruded polymer clay. If you're like me & not crazy about your own handwriting (or if you have trouble writing in mirror image!), you could start with an image transfer instead.

Be sure to print your word/image normally (not mirror image like you'd do for most image transfers), since you want the stamp to be reversed. The transfer doesn't need to be perfect since you're just using it for a guide. Following the same method I used in my extruded clay texture mold video, I baked the clay sheet before continuing (to make it a little easier to work with), then added a layer of liquid clay. The honey-like consistency of the liquid clay catches the extruded clay pieces and keeps them in place, making it easy to follow the image transfer lines with extruded clay. Once you're happy with the word (check it with a mirror if you're having trouble visualizing it), follow Kathy's instructions to add a cute custom handle & bake it.

Looking for more ways to get your message across in polymer clay? Here are a few things to try:

Posted in: Polymer Clay , Supplies & Tools , Tips & Techniques | Comments (2)