Big World Studio

…you get a beauty like this one. Okay, so I must be honest and admit that everything did NOT go right as I was making this piece. I’m still struggling with the technique of setting stones with syringe clay. It just takes practice, and I guess I haven’t paid my dues yet. So, I did have to re-do the setting, and I nearly obliterated all of the texture while trying to clean up the edges and the join between the bail and the leaf. I added the syringe clay vines to help hide some of these imperfections and I’m so glad I did. These little details provided wonderful little nooks and crannies for the colorful patina to really shine.

This piece was a gift and oh, was it hard to let it go!  It was so worth it when I saw the look of surprise and joy and the face of the recipient.  Priceless!

What’s a girl with a full-time job and an obsession with creating  jewelry to do with all of her free time?  How about opening an online store?!  That’s right, folks.   Big World Studio is online and open for business.  Why should my Orlando-area friends have all the fun when the internet can help me reach folks everywhere?

The store is located on Artfire, an upstart Etsy competitor.  As I write, there are 14 pieces available in the store and lots more coming just in time for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.  So, why not avoid the scary shopping crowds on Friday?  Just stay home, log on, and shop Big World Studio for affordable, unique, handmade jewelry.  Support your favorite artisan and pass this info along to your friends and family.

Big World Studio Online Store:  www.BigWorldStudio.artfire.com

I’ll be adding lots more pieces over the next few days and weeks, so check back often.  Feel free to check out these two Flickr sets, which include my latest creations, most of which will be posted to the Atfire store as I have time to get it done.  If you see anything you like in the Flickr sets, just let me know.

Fine Silver Set On Flickr

Copper Set On Flickr

I’ve started experimenting with COPPRclay* and I’m having a blast!  The material is fun to work with and I’ve had great success with firing it to full strength**. It’s beautiful with a simple brushed finish, but the detail is really stunning after applying a patina and polishing back the high points.

My customers seem to love it too.  Over the past several weeks, I’ve sold a few silver pieces and LOTS of copper pieces.  I think the rich warm color is attracting people, and they tell me they like it because it’s just “different”.   It doesn’t hurt that the raw material is substantially less expensive than the silver, so my finished pieces are priced a bit better for this economy.  Whatever the reasons, I’m having fun making and selling these creations.

Working in copper is also great because its low cost encourages me to experiment.  If the experiment doesn’t work, I’m not worried about needing to recycle the materials.  It’s really very freeing and a great way to sharpen my skills, which will apply equally to my work with silver clay.  This process reminds me of my early days of free exploration with polymer clay, getting to know what the material could do.

The piece shown here features a pattern carved directly into a dried copper blank.  I rolled out a fairly thick sheet of clay, cut out the shape and dried it on a domed Easter egg to attain the gently curved profile.  After drying, I lightly sanded and smoothed the edges of the piece, then used my favorite Dockside MicroCarving Tool to cut the pattern directly into the bone dry piece.

Stay tuned for more copper creations!

* COPPRclay is the correct spelling for the brand name of the material I’m working with.  The finished piece is pure copper after firing.

** I’m using the firing schedule developed by Angela Crispin:  Open shelf fire, ramped at 450F per hour to 555F and hold for one hour.  Second stage firing buried in coconut carbon, full ramp to 1650F and hold for 3.5 hours.  My initial experiments with the manufacturers recommended firing schedule were not successful, but every batch fired with this 2-phase schedule has sintered perfectly.

We all need a sanctuary.  A place where we can relax into our own skin and just BE.  I think of my home as my feathered nest where I can shut out the noise of the word, enjoy my husband and my kitties and create.  So, I love the symbolism of the birdhouse.  For me, it represents home, family, nature and a safe haven. 

This little birdhouse pendant is created from fine silver metal clay.  I work in both brands, but this particular piece was created from PMC3.  The texture was made from a hand-carved polymer clay slab and the piece was dry constructed, with the body, the roof and the floor all being created separately and joined when dry.  A fine silver eye ring is embedded in the roof.

The creation of this piece was a practice in patience.  The process was fairly simply, but I was being klutzy that day and managed to crack the roof (which I repaired) and shatter the first cylindrical body (which was in too many pieces to repair).  But once I got through that teeth-gritting session, everything came together nicely and I’ve made two more of these without further  breakage.

For my non-metal clay family and friends, you might appreciate an explanation of why “metal” breaks or shatters.  The material is very fragile in its greenware stage, when the clay has dried into a rigid form, but has not yet been fired into its metal stage.  A drop from just a few inches above my workbench has been known to crack or chip a piece.  It’s incredibly frustrating, but I’m trying to believe that I NEEDED to practice more patience and this material is providing me with that learning experience.

If you’re one of my 3 family members who read this blog, you might wonder what keeps me from posting more often.  Like many artists I know, the drive to create (and the day job) sometime get in the way of regular blogging.  It just feels like there aren’t enough hours in the day!

But I do have a blog that gets lots of love.  Back in May, right before I went for my first metal clay class, I decided to start a second blog to showcase metal clay jewelry and art.  I had enjoyed reading Polymer Clay Daily for several years, and I wished that there was a similar site featuring metal clay art.  So, I decided to start one called Metal Clay Magic.  I committed to posting 2 to 3 times per week, and most weeks I’ve managed to keep that commitment.  I started connecting with folks in the metal clay community and used both Facebook and Twitter to spread the word about the site.

While I have featured many of the well known masters of metal clay, I’ve also featured newcomers that have something unique to contribute.  I’ve had so much fun scouring the web for metal clay artists and I get so excited when I find amazing work from someone I’ve never heard of before.  The metal clay community responded enthusiastically right away, and the interest has grown steadily.

This week, I decided to Google the term “metal clay” to see if I’ve made my way to page two or three - which would have made me happy.  Imagine my excitement to find that I’m on page one of the results, currently ranking at #5 (not including the paid positions)!  The site got over 1300 visits in the past month from 600 visitors and 34 readers have subscribed to the site’s RSS feed.  I’m doing backflips!

OK - so enough of the shameless self-promotion.  I just had to share my excitement with those of you who have been following my journey.  And, I’ll try to re-dedicate myself to writing on this site about my own creations.  I just wish I could get 30 hours in a day!