Finished in time for Christmas!

I finished the focal bead and some round beads to give as a gift in time for Christmas.  I think the colors match well... and I think she will like them.

I did mix the three colors of clay that I showed in my previous blog plus I added some Alizarin Crimson to the mix. 

So now I have some cookies to bake and some cleaning to do and we are ready to relax for a few days with our family.  Merry Christmas!

Christmas is coming! Last minute gifts to make...

The thing I love most about Christmas is spending the day with my family.  My kids are all grown up and not home much anymore.  To have a day that we spend together talking, laughing, playing and eating is a treasure.  It will be joyous! 

I do have a few last minute gifts to make.  I want to make some jewelry to match sweaters for my daughters and my sister.  Pink is the color.  A raspberry pink.  They are calling it "Honeysuckle"  by Pantone as the color for 2011.  We will see alot of it for the Spring and Summer!

The sweaters are a dark pink and a light pink.  I have decided to make a batch of clay to use for all three pieces of jewelry.  I have chosen the following clay colors to mix and match.

The Sculpey Ballerina pink is an exact match.  The Premo Violet and Fuschia will have to be mixed to get a good color match.  I better get busy.  We will be exchanging gifts on Christmas Eve so I only have six days that are full of two days at work and baking cookies and cleaning...  I will keep you posted!

The Pin for the Game

The Army Navy game was awesome!  We had a beautiful day at Lincoln Field in Philadelphia and I was thankful that Navy won especially since it was my son's Senior year at USNA.  It is the most patriotic event that I have been a part of... they describe the game as friendly strife. Seeing the flyover of the Army helis and the Navy jets is exciting.  Wathcing both the Army and the Navy parachuters land on the field is amazing.  And especially awesome is seeing somewhere around 8000 young men and women sitting side by side in uniform. The academy football games are always interesting. The tenacity of the players is different than most because of the training to focus and accomplish a mission.  I love the United States of America and I am very proud to be part of a military family!  I say a thank you to all of those who serve and have served our country!

On an artistic note I did make two pins out of polymer clay.  One for my friend who went to the game with us and one for me.  I kept them simple because I only had a few hours to get them finished.  We had fun wearing our Navy pins!

Army Navy Game 2010

I am super excited about going to the Army Navy game on Saturday December 11, 2010.   My son will graduate from USNA in May (hopefully!)  so this will be his last game as a Midshipman.  Off to the Marines for him next June... scary for a Mom... but we are very proud of him.  I think I might work on a "GO NAVY" polymer pin today.  I better get busy! My son Taylor is the CC for 1st Company.  He is front and center in the photo.

Finding My Way

Here I am finding my way.  Wanting to share my thoughts and passions with other kindred spirits.  I love to create and I work with polymer clay at the moment.  I have painted for many years on wood and paper and glass and metal and whatever.  Did you know that you can paint polymer clay?  I haven't gone there too much yet.  It kind of seems to miss the point for me.  Polymer comes in such beautiful colors why would you want to paint it?  But then I see some beautiful creations where an artist has added some paint to make a polymer treasure that is more beautiful because of it. I have used it to accent a focal bead that has been stamped into the clay.  It makes these beads look a bit more rustic don't you think?

This is my Partridge in a Pear Tree bracelet.  A few birds and a leaf and a pear.  The leaf came from a cookie mold that was a tail on a squirrel.  Now that is creative right!  It looks like a pine branch to me!                             

                                       

What I love about the cookie mold is that I found it at the Thrift Store... actually the one in Berryville, VA.  We were helping my daughter set up her first classroom as a new teacher in a new town.  I love Thrift Stores so I had to check it out.  I found this treasure that I have repurposed.  Don't worry I won't use it for cookies.  There are some great birds and other animals on it though.  Something to think about and a keepsake of a special weekend.