Craftside

How to make a dog paw print plaque from the I Love Dogs! Activity Book

Congrats to Malachy, the Best in Show this year at The Westminster Kennel Club Show! If you have a four-legged friend you love and want to make something special to honor them, why not make this paw print plaque featured in the book I Love Dogs! Activity Book: Pup-tacular stickers, trivia, step-by-step drawing projects, and more for the dog lover in you!.

Click on these pages from I Love Dogs! Activity Book to enlarge and read the recipe for salt and flour clay then the directions on how to make a dog paw print plaque.

More about the Walter Foster book:

I Love Dogs! Activity Book
Pup-tacular stickers, trivia, step-by-step drawing projects, and more for the dog lover in you!

by the

Walter Foster Creative Team

Illustrator: Diana Fisher

Kids are sure to have a tail-wagging good time completing the pooch-inspired activities in this activity book. Inside, kids can learn how to draw an array of favorite dog breeds by following easy, step-by-step instructions. They can also increase their canine know-how with fun-fact trivia cards, answer entertaining diary prompts, and even learn how to make doggy treats. Full of stickers, postcards, bookmarks, and other canine accessories, this book is a must-have for all dog-loving kids!

More than 80 years ago, Mr. Walter T. Foster set out to prove that anyone can learn to draw. The “how to” art books he wrote, illustrated, printed, bound, packaged, and shipped on his own soon grew tremendously in popularity! Today the Walter Foster Publishing company carries on the tradition, developing books and kits that encourage creativity and spark imaginations.

 

Kristin Muller in a Consequential Tea, Opening reception May 21 at the Causey Contemporary

I wish I still lived in Brooklyn so I could go to this cool event:

 

Kristin is the author of this comprehensive book:

The Potter's Studio Handbook
A Start-to-Finish Guide to Hand-Built and Wheel-Thrown Ceramics

By Kristin Muller

Like blacksmithing or hobby farming, pottery-making appeals to individuals who like to be creative, work with their hands, and don’t mind getting a little dirty. However, it is a hobby that is largely underserved by the publishing industry, but difficult for someone to learn without a comprehensive guide because the tools and techniques are quite complicated. The Potter’s Studio Handbook guides readers through the process of setting up their own studio and teaching them how to master the techniques at home. Once techniques are mastered, The Potter’s Studio Handbook will remain an invaluable resource to the clay artist when looking to create beautiful, yet functional projects, at home with nearly 25 projects that build upon previously learned skills.

This book teaches the three most popular techniques: wheel throwing, hand building, and slipcasting.
Teaches readers how to make many functional and beautiful projects at home.
Step-by-step photos guarantee success.

Kristin Muller has been a ceramic artist for twenty years and an arts administrator for ten. Currently the education director for Brookfield Craft Center in Brookfield, Connecticut, she has been teaching ceramics there for more than thirteen years. She holds a bachelor of science in studio arts with a concentration in ceramics from Southern Connecticut State University. Kristin has attended countless seminars and workshops with leading potters and clay artists and is currently an MFA candidate at Hood College. She has a studio and wood-fired Anagama kiln in eastern Pennsylvania, and she exhibits her work nationally and internationally.

Here is a great tip from The Potter's Studio Handbook for throwing multiple bowls you want to be the same size.

 

Poke a brush in a chunk of clay as a guide.

To see more inside peeks with more clay tips from The Potter's Studio Handbook pop on over to this post.

Who's Your Dada? By Linda and Opie O'Brien

OK, it is super sneak peek time! This book will be out in October but I got my advance copy and I was practically pulling the tab on the envelope before it was out of the UPS guy's hands!

Who's Your DADA?
Redefining the Doll through Mixed Media
By
Linda O'Brien and Opie O'Brien

Inspired by the "Dada" notion of making art from materials that would not typically be combined or expected to go together, and driven by a similar sense of irony and humor, this exciting book by Linda and Opie O'Brien shares their unique approach to making mixed-media dolls. It is not only a "must have" volume for anyone interested in found object art and the human form, it is a thoughtful and provocative exploration of the power, symbolism, and cultural significance of dolls and representational figures.

The authors share detailed techniques for using surface embellishments, creating faces, heads, and limbs, using molds and molding products, and building and transforming disparate objects into whimsical, inspiring dolls. Starting with a variety of substrates--a wood block, a canvas, a tin can, a book, and a box construction--readers are guided step by step through five types of doll constructions.

Included:

-Complete instructions for making a box construction doll, a wood block substrate doll, a two-sided canvas frame doll, a tin can doll, and a book doll

-Numerous variations on each of the core projects for further experimentation

-An inspiring gallery of mixed-media dolls from leading artists who discuss their methods and share their very personal answers to the question: "What is a doll?"

Originally from New York City, Linda and Opie O'Brien are full time artists living on Lake Erie in Ohio with their cat Angelus and his cat Angel. They teach workshops nationally and internationally. Their work includes jewelry, Dada dolls, artist books, assemblage, collage, masks, music, and more, and has been featured in numerous books, magazines, galleries, exhibitions, solo shows, museum gift shops, and private collections.

So this is the first sneak peek I have for you. This doll is by Shelley D. Schorsch. I love how the paper is pealing up on the top.

 

I will be using this piece as my inspiration. Not having a stash of baby dolls, can you believe it? Me, not have a stash of something? I scored this doll at the thrift store.

 

Be sure to check back to see how I transform it with the help from

Who's Your DADA?
Redefining the Doll through Mixed Media

And now onto the day's Q & A

Toni asked this question:

Love these chicks and duck! I have boxes of broken china that I've been saving to TRY mosaics - these might be just the thing to start with! Thanks!
My question - if I've never done mosaics, would it be better to start with a flat project before attempting something like these chicks? Thanks!

Yes! I would highly recommend doing a flat piece first. Working dimensional adds the complication of gravity into the mix. When I did these mosaic eyeballs using bowling balls as a base, I was continuously having to rotate and let things dry in shifts. It made the process go a bit slower. So if you are working with new techniques why not keep it a bit simpler at first and then once you get the hang of mosaics then you can go crazy!

Keep those questions coming, a free book and bobbin winder could be in your future, not to mention the answer!

Jewelry Arts Workshop: Pure Silver Metal Clay Beads by Linda Kaye-Moses

Jewelry Arts Workshop: Pure Silver Metal Clay Beads
Linda Kaye-Moses

Metal clay is an innovative material that combines the workability of clay with the beautiful finish and durability of precious metals. The material is easy to manipulate and shape by hand to make beads for bracelets, necklaces, and other jewelry.

Jewelry Arts Workshop: Pure Silver Metal Clay Beads contains 15 projects for creating fine silver beads and a design gallery of 25 additional jewelry pieces. Intro chapters include information about tools and techniques. Projects are organized workshop-style, to build skills cumulatively.

Linda Kaye-Moses’s (Dalton, MA) work and articles have appeared in Lapidary Journal, Step-by-Step Jewelry, The Crafts Report, Metalsmith, Ornament, Art Jewelry, American Craft, American Style, the New York Times, and Craft Art International, among others. Her work has received several awards. She has also participated in numerous juried and invitational shows and is a member of several professional organizations, including the American Craft Council and the Society of North American Goldsmiths.

 

So the fabulously talented Cathi Milligan of Beadbrains Glass beads allowed me to crash her studio and play with some silver clay and try out some of the techniques featured in Jewelry Arts Workshop: Pure Silver Metal Clay Beads.

 

I cut a heart out of the PMC using a cookie cutter and then stamped the words "actual size" using a vintage Michael Strong rubber stamp.

 

The pieces were dried and then popped in the kiln for firing. Here they are on fire (the bonding agent is burning out)

 

And here it is all fired and polished up. I drilled a hole in the silver heart and linked it to ball chain with a jump ring. It just makes me giggle. If you are wondering why, I'll tell you. I joke that I am the Grinch and my heart is two sizes two small, so now I have an "actual size heart".

I made a bunch of other pieces and will share them with you as soon as they are incorporated into jewelry.

If you need to see more crafty goodness brought to you by Cathi, pop on over here to see a piece I designed using her book as inspiration or over to her website- Beadbrains for some cute and cool glass beads.

Today's question:

Are you snarky in your crafting? If so how?

Leave your answer and you'll be entered to win a free book!

And speaking of winners, congrats to our latest 4:

Eileen

Ellen, aka Singtatter

Janice

Cindy L.

How to fill an old charm with polymer clay, stamp an image into it and then add color

I had this fun old key chain charm that had a radio station call letters on it, well I loved the boot shape but not the lettering, and so I had the idea of filling it with polymer clay. And then I thought I would like to spiff up the clay, so off to one of my favorite polymer clay technique and inspiration books:

Polymer Clay Art
Projects and Techniques for Jewelry, Gifts, Figures, and Decorative Surfaces
By
Celie Fago, Ellen Marshall, Livia McRee, Georgia Sargeant, and Dinko Tilov

Make pretty home accessories using polymer clay.

A special collection highlighting material from some of Quarry's popular books about polymer clay art, this book presents a wide spectrum of the latest techniques and materials with many of the leading artists in the field. Learn how to create beautiful boxes, pendants, vases, wind chimes, book covers, jewelry and much more.

It only took a minute of flipping through this comprehensive book to figure out my plan and technique.

I conditioned the polymer clay by working a small ball with my fingers.

 

I then pressed the clay into the boot charm and with a small needle tool I pushed the edges of the clay back so that the frame edge of the boot showed.

I then pressed the gun rubber stamp image into the clay following the instructions from Polymer Clay Art and it worked great.

 

Click on the image to read the full instructions on how to stamp an image into polymer clay.

I then baked the piece per the instructions on the clay package.

I then took my finger and lightly rubbed a bit of black paint and then a bit of silver paint onto the raised part of the polymer clay.

Stay tuned to see the piece of jewelry I make with this charm!

Today's question:

What have you added polymer clay to?

Leave a note in the comments section and you'll be entered to win a free book.

And to see more inside peeks into other polymer clay books, click on the polymer clay link below!