I made this piece a few months ago for a friend’s birthday.  She loved it and I enjoyed making it.  They are not my colours – they are hers, she is definitely an autumn!

Then I had to think about some Christmas gifts.  I had been inspired by a poser with a bright pink kind of sunburst (that doesn’t describe it very well I am afraid) and I made this using a 3 colour Skinner blend and transposing the colours.  Like the poster the colours are not aligned in a regular pattern and the “ends” are asymmetrical. I was very pleased with it and thought it was worth exploring further.  I made some with level ends and some with symmetrical ends.

I am really pleased with the results and the addition of a crystal really sets them off and I have received a few commissions.  This is my current favourite.

So now I need to kick start my creativity for 2011.  There is a lot happening in the UK Polymer world this year and I want to be a part of it!

I decided to start with something I know and in the last couple of days I have made these 2 pendants.  I am really pleased with them.  Although I have made similar pieces before, I thought by doing something I was familiar with I could get back in to the groove and then start off in new directions.  So watch this space.

This weekend I am demoing in Burgess Hill and then have a clay day in London with the London Polymer Clay Group.  Louise Fischer Cozzi will be joining us so that will be a treat!  For more information click here.

I am doing a children’s party at the weekend and I am hoping that will energise me.  Children are never too bothered about the colours they choose, they are much more intuitive and make things in colours that surprise me but look great (see my earlier post entitled Rosie’s Heart).

A week in Wales with 50 primary school children was not the most restful but a lot of fun.  It has taken me a few days to get back in to the swing of things as it is also the half term holiday where I live.  Not to mention the beautiful weather tempting me outside instead of being in the studio.  I did finish this necklace today.  It was a commission from a friend of mine for her friend’s 50th.  I really like the way it turned out.  I have made a couple in this style, the first with 3 panels, then 5 and now this one with 7.  It hangs beautifully.

I had a lovely afternoon with 10 year old Rosie.  She won a 2 hour workshop with me at a silent auction.  We spent some time looking at lots of the things I have made and she decided she wanted to make a heart pendant.  She chose the colours learned how to make a skinner blend, made the shapes to make the heart, chose some crystals, learned how to wire them up, added a bail made from a snake of clay and finally added a few embellishments.  While the heart was curing she chose dome matching cords to hang the pendant on and I helped her with the cord ends.  Finally the heart was ready and we strung it up.  This is the finished result.  I absolutely loved her finished result.  She is a complete natural and a lovely young lady to wile away an afternoon with.

I am off on an outward bound week with 50 10 and 11 year olds so I won’t be posting while I am gone.  Not too sure what the internet access is like in Snowdonia but anyway I won’t have time between the abseiling, canoeing, caving, climbing and sailing to get any creative work done!

Here is my original which you can see includes some beads in but I couldn’t find any beads in my “stash” that looked good with the autumn colours so I decided to leave them out.  Note to self – buy some beads in some colour combinations I might not wear but others would!

The weekend is expected to be very busy so hopefully this will be the first of several more sales.  The private view is on Sunday evening so perhaps a few more pieces will go then as well.