Photo transfers – Ornamento

More Metal Etching Experiments

Last week I said that I would post some pictures of my etching experiments. Here they are.

This is a piece of brass etched with the Edinburgh etch solution. I copied the image onto a transparency and ironed it on to the metal before etching.

This is copper etched with ferric chloride. I drew the design with a Sharpie marker.

These are pieces of a brass charger plate I cut up. I stamped the image on the left with a rubber stamp and Stayz on Ink

This is a black and white image I reproduced onto a sheet of label backing with a laser printer then ironed on to copper. I used Edinburgh etch solution.

Here, I inked a rubber stamp with a black Sharpie pen and etched the copper with ferric chloride.

I made this resist pattern with a silk screen and thick acrylic paint. It worked well, but I found it difficult to get a paint that would not bead up on the metal.

Try making findings, components and texture sheets for polymer clay.

Vicky and Milton

Vicky and Milton are my Mother and Father-In-Law. Milton died in 1995 and Vicky passed in May. They were New Yorkers who sought a better life in Baltimore where they moved in the 1950’s. My Sister-In-law still lives there and my husband had to relocate there a couple of weeks ago to take care of her because she is very sick. I wanted to make something special for her.

The picture above is Vicky and Milton on a day trip to Bear Mountain State Park before they got married. She was seventeen and he was barely in his twenties. It was during World II and he had a tour of duty in the Pacific still ahead of him.

I made a polymer clay transfer of a photograph with translucent clay and sandwiched it between two sheets of glass. Then I cut and soldered on channel lead and jump rings for the chain hanger and the heart. I put a patina on the channel lead with gun blue.

I hope she likes it. She is not on the Internet, so it will be a surprise.

Ancient Patinas

Here are some new twists on polymer clay surface techniques I have been working on. You can see some earlier incarnations in the Keepsake Memory Book I demonstrated on HGTV, and my work in Ellen Marshall’s Polymer Clay Surface Design Recipes. More to come.

I’m at Polydelphia!

I’m at Polydelphia this weekend!!! To check out my newly designed web site, press HERE. See ya later!

I’m Not a Real Artist but I Play One on T.V.

Yes, I am a featured crafter on the third season of the HGTV show, That’s Clever, demonstrating how to make a polymer clay Keepsake Memory book and a polymer clay Festive Pen. You can read the whole dirty back story in the Spring, 2008 issue of PolymerCAFE. Ok, OK, so it’s not Britney running from the paparazzi while shaving her head, but it will have to do.

That’s Clever is known for having its crafters engage in amusing physical antics in the first part of each segment. They wanted me to do the same. I live in South Philadelphia where my garden is of a blade of grass growing under my front stoop, and drivers who barrel 45 mph down a one way street don’t think they have violated the law if their car is pointing backwards. I wasn’t gonna be hula hoopin’ on my front lawn, that’s for sure.

Here’s how this part of the production planning went down:

After we finished talking about the step outs, the producer started discussing ways to showcase me in wild and whimsical ways that have become the trademark of That’s Clever.

“We like to film crafters doing something physical for the intro,” she explained, “Do you play a sport?”

Running from muggers, I thought. “No,” I replied.

“What about hopping on a pogo stick?”

I mentally flash forwarded into the future and had a startling vision of myself hanging over a hospital bed in traction. “I have a herniated disc,” I replied, “and the doctors have put me on a strict no pogo stick diet.”

“What about a scooter?” she pressed.

“Oh, no,” I gasped. If I didn’t fall and smash my head on the pavement, some driver would get me. Even if he had to come up on the sidewalk to do it. They make them tough in South Philly.

She paused. “Do you do anything?” she asked hopefully.

“I use to play jacks,” I offered. “I was pretty good, too.” In fact, I was even better than Margaret Mary who had hands the size of Montana and could suck up jacks like a magnet crane.

Maybe that will work,” she sighed, “I’ll see if I can find jacks somewhere.”

They never came up with anything physical for me to do which is how I lived to write this Blog entry.

To check out PolymerCAFE, press here. If you want to buy a pen like the one I made on the show, drop by The Jurus Gallery in Baltimore, Md.

More Ideas for Polymer Clay Christmas Ornaments

Here are two more ideas for polymer clay Christmas ornaments. I made the one on the left by covering a store-bought paper mache form with a leaf cane made from a Skinner Blend of Pearl and Forest Green Premo Clay. The veins are done in gold with a bit of red sandwiched between the layers for depth. While there are many versions of this cane, I learned this particular cane from Leigh Ross. You can find her instructions at Polymer Clay Central. I used balls of red clay to make holly berries. After the ornament was baked, I attached a store bought tassel.

For the doggy ornament, I scanned a picture into my printer,changed the background and printed it out. I made a frame to hold the picture, decorated it with simple canes and made two matching beads. After baking the frame and letting it cool, I laid in the picture. I used a level to make sure the frame was perfectly level before pouring a layer Envirotex Lite over the picture. A level surface is vital when using Envirotex Lite. You also need a barrier, in my case the edge of the frame, because this material is self leveling and will run all over the place without something to stop it. I sprinkled some glitter in the background of the picture and let it cure for 48 hours. Then I attached the beads, tassel and a hanging wire.

I could not make a photo transfer ornament with my ink jet printer like I did last year because I had run out of the old Epson paper. You might know from Donna Kato’s announcement that the new Epson paper does not work. There are plenty of new ideas for photo transfers on Donna’s siteand on the Philadelphia Area Polymer Clay Guild’s blog, The Guild Reporter.

Last but not least, I also have a project article on how to make a silk screened polymer clay pendant in the latest issue of Polymer Cafe.

Polymer Clay Christmas Ornaments

By: ornamento.blog November 20, 2007November 22, 2007

Art, art, creativity, crafts, inspiration, Christmas, Christmas Ornaments, mixed media, Philadelphia Polymer Clay Guild, Photo transfers, Polymer Clay, Polymer Clay Photo Transfer, Polymer Clay tutorials, Seasonal decorations, UncategorizedLeave a Comment

Here’s an easy idea for a Christmas ornament that people will love. Make a photo transfer using the method of your choice. The above pictures were digital images loaded onto a computer and reversed. Then I played with the software to get rid of distracting backgrounds. After making and baking my transfer, I mounted it on green clay or gold rolled to the thickest setting. I used my wavy blade and needle tool to make holly leaves and berries. You could also use a leaf cookie cutter. On the ornament of Max the dog, I cut a bone out of bone colored clay and scribed his name in with a needle tool. After baking, I rubbed in brown ochre paint and wiped it off. I drilled holes at the top of the ornaments and used 16 gauge copper wire with wrapped loops for the hangers. On two of the ornaments, I drilled a hole in the bottom and looped store bought tassels through.

People who have a new baby in the house love these ornaments. Here is an example, made in a slightly different way, but you can get the idea by looking at the picture.

Ornament

For more information on polymer clay photo transfers, check out the Philadelphia Area Polymer Clay Guild’s blog, The PAPCG Reporter, Dotty McMillan’s instructions, and Donna Kato’s blog.

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