BrandeeBlank.com

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Under Construction... ?

Well, the tutorial thing didn't really work out =\  That is too bad.  It was a lot of effort for very little interest, but I totally appreciate those of you who did follow the blog for the few posts I made.

Coming soon is an updated look and a new take on what this blog is going to be used for :)

FLOWER POWER! Due Nov 28

Soooo. I need flowers. In a big way!  I am doing silk ribbon corsage bracelets as my "main event" for the craft fair, and need to get my rear in gear!  So, here are 3 excellent flower tutorials.  Do one, or do them all!  They are all lovely and I hope to make some stunning flowers :)

"Spotted Langloisia " cane from Desiree's Creations:
  http://desiredcreations.com/howTo_CASpottedLanglo.htm

Zuleykha's petal / flower tutorials: http://zuclay.blogspot.com/2009/03/two-tutorials-in-one-post-flower-canes.html

And Ponsawan Sila's Daisy Cane:
http://polymerclaybeads.blogspot.com/2009/09/easy-flower-canes-i-used-to-wine-about.html

If you want your version(s) posted along with mine and/or if you want to be added to the email list to be sent reminders, please email me  (and a small caption  with the photo of your project if you so desire) no later than November 28th at 6:00pm PST.

Faux Ceramic - Results!

I loved doing this. So easy, and you can make a lot of different looks all at once.  I ended up making 2 batches and these will be part of my craft fair wares in December. Some of them came out much better than others, but that is to be expected with learning new techniques.

Here is a shot of the blanks before adding the color:

And here are the first batch after coloring, baking and varnish:

This one is my favorite and will most likely stay with me.  So pretty!

Progress shot of a few in the second batch.  You can also see all the colors I used - which is only about half of the alcohol inks I actually own.

I learned that alcohol inks, when baked, lose a lot of their richness, but it does come back somewhat with the varnish.  I also got some really neat ideas for using color on other pieces with dyed liquid clay.

This is a super easy project.  And it was great for me who has been in a SERIOUS creative slump for a couple months now.  I often don't even feel like touching clay and would rather just play Warcraft than get all my clay gear out. 

Faux Ceramic from Polymerclayweb- Due October 22

The Holiday Craft Fair is fast approaching, and I need some new stock!  I have several ideas for some pendants and bracelets, but I am looking to learn some new finishing techniques.  Hence the tutorial I have chosen for this round: the Faux Ceramic look found on  Polymer Clay Web, here.

The look that is achieved with this is so pretty and delicate. I am a real fan!  I envision using my own textures with this technique. We will see how that goes...

If you want your version posted along with mine and/or if you want to be added to the email list to be sent reminders, please email me  (and a small caption  with the photo of your project if you so desire) no later than Friday October 22nd at 6:00pm PST. 

Results!! Maggie Maggio's Split Ring Chains

I haven't been feeling to terribly creative lately, so this was the perfect project. I didn't even need to mix colors as I had a palette leftover and sitting in a baggie doing nothing that I decided to use. 

The tutorial is perfectly done. And the addition of the worksheet is simply brilliant!  No need for a ruler or anything. 

I made 1 of each size rings just so I could see how each turned out (the are the red ones you can barely see in the image below), but then did all the rest in the medium size.  I took the time to make striped skinner blends and use them on a mud core... but of course I made the stripes too small and it all ended up being rolled and I lost the effect entirely =( You can't even tell in these pics!  When I realized that happened, I just mushed my remaining clay and did a simple twist.

And here they are made into quite the bulky bracelet.

My impressions of this technique: it's really cool.  The rings are a little springier then what I was expecting, though. Maybe if I baked longer or used a harder clay like Kato (I use Premo) they would feel sturdier.  They are not my style, but I am really glad that I learned how to do it, as I can forsee using one of these split rings as an element in a design, just not the entirety of the design.

And finally, we need more tutorials like this one!  Maggie Maggio has done a great thing by providing this free tutorial.  I do have her book too and it's fantastic!

Stay tuned for the next tutorial post!  I am trying to do my monthly PCGOE challenge just now, so it may be a few days before I put up my next post.

Until then...

Maggie Maggio's Split Ring Chains - Due Monday September 20

This project just came through my reader today and I am in LOOOOOOOVE.  How fun are these split rings!  It seems like you can make so many things with them.  And how lucky are we that not only is there a VIDEO tutorial, but a downloadable worksheet that Maggie is supplying to her readers?

The tutorial and the spreadsheet are both available on Maggie's blog, here.

Here is a picture of the finished project as posted on Polymer Clay Daily which is where I saw the project in the first place.

This should be a lot of fun and I look forward to seeing what everyone does with this. 

If you want your version posted along with mine and/or if you want to be added to the email list to be sent reminders, please email me  (and a small caption  with the photo of your project if you so desire) no later than Monday September 20th at 6:00pm PST.