Talent Show Thread

[Kayte]

I just saw that you all had posted! YAY!!

Here is my first humble offering to the thread. They are polymer clay pens...

Also working on other things with my dds, like:

sent from an undisclosed location on a secret device.

Those are great! I haven't tried making pens. I did some crochet hooks for awhile but I always thought I'd do the pens wrong and end up with a melted mess in my oven.
It's also fun that you work with your daughters! I love seeing kids encouraged to get creative!

Those are too cute!

Here is my offering. I crochet blankets. And then watch my husband and son fight over who gets them, regardless of color...

View attachment 288772View attachment 288773View attachment 288775View attachment 288776

Beautiful work!! I'm one of those sorry people that can't crochet. I just have to treasure the gorgeous things my mom made.

Poet and spoken word artist. This is one of the better videos.

Nice! Another word smith! I enjoyed that. Thanks!

Pen and pencil Jar.....

sent from an undisclosed location on a secret device.

Love it!
Have you made anything to hold vape gear?

 

[Kayte]

Here are a few polymer clay miniature pots we made. I'm SO fortunate to have a husband that can take my work and make it good.






And a polymer clay box.

 

[Kayte]

We've made wood/clay bangles too. They're fun.


I was trying to make this one look like Lapis. Came close. Kind of.


Made this for someone that loves frogs.

 

[Kayte]

And one more of a few bowls/vases.

 

[chapeltown]

I just saw that you all had posted! YAY!!

Those are great! I haven't tried making pens. I did some crochet hooks for awhile but I always thought I'd do the pens wrong and end up with a melted mess in my oven.
It's also fun that you work with your daughters! I love seeing kids encouraged to get creative!

Beautiful work!! I'm one of those sorry people that can't crochet. I just have to treasure the gorgeous things my mom made.


Nice! Another word smith! I enjoyed that. Thanks!

Love it!
Have you made anything to hold vape gear?

Yes...but just one thing with scrap clay...working on a more complex project for it in the next few days...

sent from an undisclosed location on a secret device.

 

[FantWriter]

Love the beautiful work!

I kinda klutz around with polymer clay. One of my biggest problems is that a lot of what I do needs a heavy wire armature. What would be ideal is if I could roll some around a wire to make a nice, even, albeit very skinny, sausage and then bend it to the shape I need. Problem with that is the wire always breaks through. When I try to shape clay around a bent wire, it looks like a primitive wattle-daubed stick without the rustic charm.

Does anyone have a trick to evenly and smoothly coat wire?

 

[James Hart]

My wife crochets... here is her blog - - :: K I T T A L Y C r o c h e t s :: - -

and the current project she is working on (it is going to be a mobile of marine life strung up with kelp and with the shark as the center piece

I'm a musician but also geek out on a lot of things (I get lost in things easily and often)... seems the ones worth sharing are ones I've made money at. Here is a house I have almost completely gutted and soon to be finished rebuilding.
Home - Our Home Renovation
(the kitchen, dining room, and master bedroom are the most complete on the web (I need to organize and upload the newer stuff)

 

[chapeltown]

That is so neat!!!

sent from an undisclosed location on a secret device.

 

[chapeltown]

Love the beautiful work!

I kinda klutz around with polymer clay. One of my biggest problems is that a lot of what I do needs a heavy wire armature. What would be ideal is if I could roll some around a wire to make a nice, even, albeit very skinny, sausage and then bend it to the shape I need. Problem with that is the wire always breaks through. When I try to shape clay around a bent wire, it looks like a primitive wattle-daubed stick without the rustic charm.

Does anyone have a trick to evenly and smoothly coat wire?

I will be honest with you....wire is a huge challenge. Is it possible you could first shape the wire, then make rods, then cut them into easier lengths, then slice them lengthwise to then put around the wire in short sections? I have been thinking about your query for two days, and haven't been able to come up with a method less tedious than this.....

sent from an undisclosed location on a secret device.

 

[FantWriter]

I will be honest with you....wire is a huge challenge. Is it possible you could first shape the wire, then make rods, then cut them into easier lengths, then slice them lengthwise to then put around the wire in short sections? I have been thinking about your query for two days, and haven't been able to come up with a method less tedious than this.....

Thanks. I've tried that, and variations of that. The problem is I'm hamfisted, and any sort of joining quickly gets mashed up. When I try to smooth it into smooth curves, I inevitably gouge out chunks.

The best I've been able to do so far is to roll out the clay, cut out two pieces as nearly identical as possible (and considering my skill (or rather, the lack of it), they're only vaguely the same shape), drape one piece over the wire, and press the other piece against it from the other side of the wire. The less I put my fingers to it, the better. Sometimes it works, sometimes it only sort-of works, but I always end up cutting and sanding a lot after it's baked.

 

[chapeltown]

Thanks. I've tried that, and variations of that. The problem is I'm hamfisted, and any sort of joining quickly gets mashed up. When I try to smooth it into smooth curves, I inevitably gouge out chunks.

The best I've been able to do so far is to roll out the clay, cut out two pieces as nearly identical as possible (and considering my skill (or rather, the lack of it), they're only vaguely the same shape), drape one piece over the wire, and press the other piece against it from the other side of the wire. The less I put my fingers to it, the better. Sometimes it works, sometimes it only sort-of works, but I always end up cutting and sanding a lot after it's baked.

Do you have any tools?
I find I am not terribly graceful, but tools bring me a long way in that respect. I have gotten "better" as I have continued to work with it, but I have a fair way to go. Of course....I may be doing better than I thought, because more than one person has told me that my pens are far better quality-wise than some that they have seen for sale at the local art league. I haven't seen them myself..

Now......why are you trying to wrap the wire itself???? I mean... Is it a specific look you are going for? Do you have any armitures that you could snap a shot of to show us? I know that if *I* was trying to cover wire in the manner you are describing, it would be an epic fail. There are a few things I can do well.....covering individual wires with clay? Definitely not one of them.

btw..........LOVE your sig line! So funny.....and scary, because it is true!

 

[FantWriter]

Do you have any tools?

Um . . . yes. I have something of a fetish for them. Whenever I need to do something and there's a certain tool which would make it faster or easier, I get it (if it's available). Earlier in this thread I posted a link to a video of a cabinet I made.

But it's only for things I need at hand when laying out projects. One of my next projects will be a cabinet able to hold nearly all of my woodworking tools -- it'll be five feet tall and eight feet long. I have no idea what I'm going to do with my machinist's or mechanic's tools.

Sadly, I can't find any tools appropriate to working with clay. There's only one craft shop in the area, and they carry a little bit of everything and not much in any one category. Ordering tools online is very difficult because of my disability -- since I can't use a telephone, eBay, Amazon, and many others sites won't let me have an account.

Now......why are you trying to wrap the wire itself????

Ashtray alternatives (some place to set down an e-cig between puffs) are about the limit of my abilities:
http://www.user29344qw.jymes.com/images/PVholders001.jpg

Wires are needed because the ears (the upright parts of the notch in which the e-cig rests) are weak and break off easily unless they're reinforced. My first ones, with no wires at all, were also prone to breaking in many places. The blue one in the picture was my most ambitious, and the first one I made, without wire, broke the first time I used it.

 

[chapeltown]

Wow!
Seriously. Wow!!! Those are really cool ecig holders!!!!!

I will show you at the end of the day (hopefully) what I have been working towards, that essentially accomplishes the same purpose, though not nearly as........sleek.

stay tuned....

and I have some ideas for tools for you.

 

[chapeltown]

Ahhhh!!! I had a semi-epiphany this afternoon!!! A couple, actually.

Fantwriter- two things.
One, have you tried wrapping your wire in aluminum foil (super tight) then masking tape? If you could bulk out your wire a little bit, it may help with the breakage issues. Also, you can do multiple bakes. So, you could bulk it out, cover it with scrap clay, do a bake, then do a layer in The clay you actually would like the finished product to look like.

Second- I just caught what you said about machinist tools. Are you still able to use those tools or did you lose that capacity with your disability?

sent from an undisclosed location on a secret device.

 

[FantWriter]

Those are really cool ecig holders!!!!!

Thanks. They're really easy and require no talent. I roll out the clay, cut a shape, drape it over an upside-down cup or ramekin, press the wire into it, press another cutout shape over it, and press the two together. After baking, it takes a lot of sanding to round the edges and smooth out the surface.

I'd like to try some more free-form shapes, but to do that I'd have to have a good way to coat the wire (which is why I asked).

One, have you tried wrapping your wire in aluminum foil (super tight) then masking tape?

I tried using aluminum foil for a slightly different reason. I found it's a perfect way to make clay shards -- it seemed like each and every fold became the mold for a pebble or spear, and they fell apart when I first handled it.

I'd be a little leery of baking masking tape -- my kitchen doesn't have a good exhaust fan.

Second- I just caught what you said about machinist tools. Are you still able to use those tools or did you lose that capacity with your disability?

I still use them as well as ever. I'm speaking of hand tools (trick sticks, scrapers, micrometers, etc.). I have a Dremel, but I'm really clumsy with it (as I always have been) -- good for cut-off and sanding off burrs. Anything else I cut or sand is adequate if it'll be hidden during use.

 

[chapeltown]

I'd like to try some more free-form shapes, but to do that I'd have to have a good way to coat the wire (which is why I asked).

I'd be a little leery of baking masking tape -- my kitchen doesn't have a good exhaust fan.

I don't have an exhaust fan at all right now. I sometimes use the masking tape.... One, If you essentially seal it behind the layer of clay, you would not see, smell, or burn it. Also, What I have learned to do when baking clay....I have a covered roasting pan that I don't use for turkeys anymore. Inside of that is a tile. On the tile is parchment paper. On the parchment paper are the pieces I am baking. When I am done baking, I leave it all in the oven until it is completely cooled off. Then I take the entire roasting pan outside (even in rain or snow) and set it down before removing the lid. It contains the fumes, and when I open the lid it releases them.

I still use them as well as ever. I'm speaking of hand tools (trick sticks, scrapers, micrometers, etc.). I have a Dremel, but I'm really clumsy with it (as I always have been) -- good for cut-off and sanding off burrs. Anything else I cut or sand is adequate if it'll be hidden during use.

And so am I!!!! My Dad was a machinist. He used to make some of the neatest things with scraps materials from work. He made me some of my favorite clay tools with work tools. What you need (other than micrometers and such), you could probably make yourself! It is a start anyway! If you want, I can take pics of some of it to give you an idea.

 

[papajeep]

I'm not really sure its a talent, but here's what I do for a living. Custom closets . Pretty much any kind of storage.

 

[chapeltown]

I love it! Definitely a talent, if you ask me!

 

[K9Lover]

Well, I just read this thread from beginning to end and thoroughly enjoyed all your pics and talents. I cook a little (gotta eat ya know) but don't paint, write, or garden BUT I do train dogs some unusual talents I trained my Border Collie Nevada to dive to the bottom of the pool then a photographer caught wind of it and took some photos of her and my student Bardot the yellow lab and walla viral on the internet. Here are a couple of the famous photos of her and her video.









and here is her slowmo video diving 7 feet to the bottom of my pool

http://youtu.be/XuhE-OC_U-c

Enjoy!! Shari and "Nevada the Diving Dog"

 

[FantWriter]

What you need (other than micrometers and such), you could probably make yourself!

Give me a lathe, and I can make just about anything! Without some sort of machine tool or the ability to move things in a precisely controlled manner, I'm totally useless. Making tools is far beyond my capabilities.

I did buy a couple pumpkin-carving tool kits when they were on sale after Halloween. Maybe I can figure out some way to use them on clay.