The past 13 months since I first got my hands on silver clay have been a time of intense study, practice and progress.  It has been truly exhilarating to discover just how this material makes my creative spirit sing.  An unexpected bonus of working in metal clay is the vibrant community of artists who support each other on line, in print and out in the real world.  Through forums, blogs and Facebook, I’ve gotten to know many metal clay friends.  Today, I get to meet lots of them in person for the first time.  So excited!

This evening I’ll attend a  social event where many artists will swap charms.  The idea is that you make as many charms as you’d like to swap.  I made 10 charms, so by the end of the evening, I will have a treasure trove of 10 charms from different artists, while my charms will be in the collections of those 10 artists.  It’s a pretty cool way to get to know people and share a small piece of yourself with them.  My charms are in my fins and spheres style that’s based on the original Blue Fin piece.  You can read more about the inspiration for Blue Fin here.

My next test will be fired in a new batch of coal carbon, which should arrive later this week.  I really want to fire in coal carbon to get those amazing colors right out of the kiln.  I’m learning that the coal carbon is an inconsistent firing media.  From what I’m told, you might buy a batch from a source today that works perfectly, and buy another batch next month that doesn’t work.  I don’t think it reflects on the vendor when you get a bad batch.  It seems to be just the luck of the draw.

Of course, I’m just trying to piece together all of the information that’s flowing in.  I’ll post again after the next test.  Many thanks to you all!

I’m just thrilled that these base metal clays became available right as I was getting into metal clay.  COPPRclay has provided me the opportunity to create with a sense of freedom that’s not always possible for me with the more expensive silver clay.  And during the 2009 holiday shopping season, about half of my sales were from my copper pieces.

Last night I fired  4 pieces with a variety of handling techniques, making careful notes so I would know what was what.  I slowed down the ramp to 225 per hour and boosted the 3.5 hour hold temp to 1530.  Results were mixed.  Two pieces split like the previous firing.  One piece blistered.  One piece came out perfect.

Bill Struve, the creator of the material, reached out and offered to help me work through the problems.  I’ll touch base with him this week.  Lots of folks from the community have offered suggestions.  I knew going into this experiment that it might be rough at first, but I’m not about to give up. I’m sure I’ll get there soon.

• Conditioned the clay according to the info on Margaret Schindel’s BRONZclay Squidoo Lens
• Rolled to 6 cards, then rolled over my texture plate at 4 cards
• Clay was totally dry as it had been in greenware stage for over 24 hours
• Buried in coal carbon in stainless steel firing pan (carbon purchased from WLW and never used before)
• Ramped at 250 per hour to 1516, held for 3.5 hours
• Firing pan pulled out of the kiln when still hot and allowed to cool at room temperature (kiln was not red-hot, but still quite warm - I didn’t note the temperature)
• Kiln is a Paragon SC2

I have a few ideas for what might have gone wrong:

• Maybe I needed to let the pan cool in the kiln, rather than pulling it out
• The lid on my stainless steel firing pan is so warped that it barely connects with the pan.  It’s almost like having the pan uncovered.  this hasn’t been a problem with firing COPPRclay, in fact I have stopped using the lid altogether for that purpose, but maybe the BRONZclay is more particular about oxygen exposure.
• I used SLIK as a release agent, rather than olive oil
• For the holes that split open, I probably need to leave a wider strip of clay on the skinny side of the donut

I think it’s significant that the pieces appear to be fully sintered.  I whacked on them with a hammer, and flattened out some of the domed pieces.  They are quite strong and even marred the face of my hammer (darn it).  To me, this points to a temperature shock from pulling the pan out of the kiln too fast.

Perhaps someone out there can provide some advice. I’ll also shoot this out to the MC forum for more insight.  I really want to create in bronze and I’m looking forward to trying Hadar’s formula and Bill’s new Fast Fire formula, which is coming out later this month.  Hopefully, I can figure out how to make something beautiful from the clay I have on hand.  I’ll keep trying based on what I learn from this experience.

My worktable is actually a modified TV tray, which is both portable and perfectly sized for how I work.  It accommodates all the tools I need at hand for any given project.  This arrangement encourages me to keep my materials well organized and to clean up at the start or end of each session.  Trust me, this is not in my nature!

A few months ago, I added a larger board to the top of the tray to expand my workspace.  I screwed small strips of lumber on 3 sides to keep my materials from rolling off.  The entire addition attaches to the TV tray with Velcro, which is surprisingly solid, yet easy to remove if I ever need to fold the tray down.

Close at hand in my studio corner, I have efficient storage for tools, supplies, work in progress, books, and even my laptop computer.  When I’m not working, my chair and worktable tuck neatly back into the corner and out of the way.

We have an enclosed porch, which is a great place  for the rest of my tools and supplies.  This is where you’ll find my kiln and polymer clay oven; along with everything I need for torch-work, pickling, tumbling, patination, etc.  I like having these elements outside, since they are often loud, fiery or smelly.

I’m sure the day will come when it makes sense for me move into a real studio.  For now, this arrangement fits my lifestyle and actually encourages me to spend more time being creative. Perhaps someone will read this post and be inspired by my minimalist studio approach.  You don’t need a lot of space to create.  You just need a creative approach to using the space you have.  It certainly worked for me.

I just knew that a silver clay version would be really cool.  I created it in original PMC, which allowed me to work a bit larger and use the shrinkage of the material make the details even tinier.  I love how the dragon’s tail wraps up and around the chain.  Every bit of this piece was formed, sculpted and carved by hand.  There’s no mold or texture plate involved.

Now, I have to decide if I can stand to part with him.  Perhaps I’ll just make more to sell and keep this special one for myself.

But, this isn’t a story about car bombs, closed streets or close calls.  This is a story about a wall with an incredible texture and the jewelry it inspired.

Our dinner at Blue Fin was excellent.  In between savoring the delicious food and gazing into my husband’s eyes, I spent a good part of my time there staring at the wall behind our table. It was covered with ridges that undulated like ripples on a lake or gentle waves lapping at the shore.  I could hardly look away, so captivating was this wall. My trusty travel sketchbook (always in my purse) captured a few quick ideas, and this great photo of us (see above) provided a permanent reference.

Once we returned home, I couldn’t wait to get my hands in the clay to explore ways to interpret this look in metal.  I did a quick prototype in copper, just to work out the kinks.  This was the first piece I created in silver.  It includes several topaz czs, which were fired in place.  Since this creation, I’ve made several more in different shapes, and I’ve further refined the technique.  You can expect to see more of this look from me in the future as it just keeps bouncing around in my brain.  I’m thinking of developing a full line with pendants and earrings in both organic and more formal shapes.

One of the really cool things about this piece is the heft of it.  Once the ridges and spheres are built up on a thin foundation, the piece is quite substantial.  I also LOVE the way the colorful patina settles into the crevices of the design.  The photo doesn’t entirely capture the gorgeous golds, purples and blues that live in these nooks and crannies.

Perhaps you’ll become the lucky owner of one of these pieces from my new “Blue Fin” line, but don’t count on wearing this one.  It’s dedicated to my personal collection to help commemorate a very special night.

This one has a couple of special features.  It’s formed over a polymer clay armature, which means I sculpt the form in polymer clay and bake it, then drape the sheet of metal clay over the polymer clay bird shape.  It’s tricky to get the metal clay to take just the right shape, especially at the points of the beak and the tail feathers.  The reason for all these steps is to have a dimensional, rather than a flat piece.  Much better.  I use syringe clay to form the swirling surface pattern.  I like to lightly sand my syringe work down so the top of the syringe line is flat. I’m not sure why.  I just like that look.

The most special and unique feature of this chickadee is the bail.  I just love this flowing shape,which echoes the shape of the bird’s body so nicely.  I’m jazzed about how it just flows into the head and tail of the bird.  You know, bails present some unique challenges.  I’ve started making more of my pieces with hidden bails on the back so they appear to float on the chain.  So often, a visible bail just seems to be stuck onto a piece.  It’s there out of the necessity of having a structure from which to hang the piece on its chain.  And that’s why I was so pleased with this bail, which I think enhances the design of the pendant as a fully integrated element.

I usually tumble my pieces to a high shine.  This piece was made shortly after I took a workshop with Gordon Uyehara, an artist known for his gorgeous matte satin finishes on silver clay.  I was inspired to leave this chickadee with a satin finish, but brought out the shine of the swirls by burnishing just those lines.

What do you think?  Do you use polymer clay forms in your metal clay work?  I ‘m looking forward to hearing from you.

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!

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