Last spring I created dragon wall hangings for my two nieces and my nephew for their birthdays.  I wanted to make them something special, that they would enjoy for many years, and I think these little dragons fit the bill perfectly.   Aren’t they cute?  Please click on the thumbnails for a closer view.

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Each dragon is roughly 6″ across and they are all carrying beads (secret treasure) in their dragon wings.  The tan and blue creature on the top belongs to Andrew.  I worked hard to make him more masculine, including the bamboo skewer and braided leather hanger.  Next up is the pink creation for Caroline, and below that the purple character is for Elisabeth.  Both of the girl dragons are a bit sweeter and are mounted on delicate wire and bead hangers.

I started making dragons after meeting polymer clay artist Christi Friesen at the Cabin Fever Clay Festival in Maryland.  Christi’s specialty is fun sculpture and she is well known for her dragons.  You can check out some of Christi’s work at www.cforiginals.com.  Christi is unusual in the polymer clay world in that she encourages people to learn from her and to copy her style, asking only the they give her credit.  So, if you travel around the web looking for polymer clay dragons, you’ll find loads that look almost like they could have been made by Christi herself.

I learned so much from spending just a short time with Christi.  Without her guidance, I would not be making these little guys with such finesse.  But not being a fan of copying anyone’s work, I have developed some ways to make my dragons unique.  One of my specialties is the tiny leaf cane that you’ll see on lots of my pendants and vases.  I discovered that these work really well as feather-like “scales” on the dragons wings.  I think it sets my dragons apart, and if nothing else, it makes me smile.