She “Puts It All Together”

So, here I am at the last chapter of  Polymer Clay Color Inspirations, “Putting it All Together.”   To put it all together means using  the lessons learned  in the previous chapters to make a final project-in my case a polymer clay collage box that  corresponds to my paper collage and color palette. To make my project, I covered a cigar box with  multi-part Skinner Blends and canes, and used  back filling,  stamping,  inlay, texturing, and pattern sheets.  You might recognize some materials from earlier exercises.  Here is a picture of my collage and  and some of the clay I used.

Before starting, I auditioned and rejected lots  of patterns and canes.  As I was covering my box, I was constantly applying clay and  taking it off  or applying clay  and baking  and then prying it off! And I made even more patterns and canes in the process  because, as every polymer clay artist or beader knows, no matter how many colors and beads you have, you never have enough.  Never.

I had so much fun trying different things that I don’t consider this time wasted at all.  I took my time and tried not to use  something unless I thought it was right.   I must confess that  I did go against my better judgment a couple of times as I was nearing the end.  But they say that finishing  a project like this  is usually more an act of surrender than the certainty  that it’s as good as it can be.

Here are pictures of some of the canes and patterns I considered

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Somehow, everything came together in the collage box.  I am still not one hundred percent that I made all the right choices, but I do like the majority of them.    And one of the hardest things in art is knowing when you’re done, isn’t it?

One last time: the top of the box, the collage,  and a sampling of the materials from which I made my selections.

My next post on Polymer Clay Color Explorations will be the  “course evaluation.”