Book Description
Polymer clay has grown and grown and grown in popularity since the publication of Donna Kato’s best-selling The Art of Polymer Clay in 1997. And there have been so many technical advances, too. Now poly-diva Donna Kato presents an all-new look at one of crafters’ all-time favorite mediums. Donna Kato’s Polymer Clay Innovations begins with the essentials of polymer clay, including its working properties, plus tools, curing, safety recommendations, and color blending (with full information on the now-indispensable Skinner Blend). Photo-packed chapters focus on exciting projects—beads, bracelets, pins, pendants, and boxes--and showcase new techniques, including image transfers, surface treatments such as stencils, stamps, paints, and inks, sculpting, inclusions, special effects, and finishing. Finished pieces by some of the biggest names in polymer clay, including Kathleen Dustin, Pier Voulkos, and Nan Roche, plus Donna Kato herself, offer ideas and inspiration.
Customer Reviews:
Nice book.......2007-09-03
You get to know how to, to all the things the title of this page says but most of the projects are to make pendants, if you looking to make a lot of beads projects get " Making Polymer Clay Beads: Step-by-Step Techniques for Creating Beautiful Ornamental Beads by Carol Blackburn " as complement to this book, I think you gonna learn a lot out of this two books to start making polymer clay jewelry or whatever.
Any library strong in clay crafts needs this........2007-09-03
Ten years ago clay artist Donna Kato's first book ART OF POLYMER CLAY established her as an early authority on the topic: she's become a teacher and product designer since then, and her latest title The Art of Polymer Clay: Creative Surface Effects: Techniques and Projects Featuring Transfers, Stamps, Stencils, Inks, Paints, Mediums, and More expands the topic to the next level, featuring dozens of techniques for exciting surface effects and art options. Chapters cover everything from inkjet transfers onto clay surfaces to texturing and toner transfers. Any library strong in clay crafts needs this.
Wouah!.......2007-08-31
Superb book, to be recommended to whom wants to make with polymer clay something really special. Clear explanations, beautiful projects. It requires some material; but the results are the reward.
A must for any craft library.......2007-08-26
I just started working with polymer clay a few weeks ago and wanted a book that logically explains techniques as well as offering good photography. Being a librarian and fiber artist, I HAVE to have my own library of art/craft books for reference and inspiration. Kato's is one of the best I have for any media. It's well written and organized and the photos are inspiring. I highly recommend this book for any polymer clay artist or library wanting to add a high quality book to a crafts collection.
High marks for Donna Kato's new book.......2007-08-26
This book is so well done with instructions that are easily followed. It opens the creative channels and encourages you to explore and take things to the next step. Donna Kato is so sharing and giving and an inspiring artist. This is a valuable addition to your library.
Book Description
The fabulous techniques, found here with instructions, lavish photos, and projects open up endless creative possibilities. Combine the clay with lampworked and fused dichroic glass or enamel. Make exquisite jewelry, sculpture, and carvings. Try a new liquid gold for coating silver objects. Among the glittering, gorgeous projects: an African Mask Pin, Groovy Flower Earrings and Ring; and Puzzle Piece Bracelet.
Customer Reviews:
Creative Metal Clay Jewelry Review.......2007-08-31
An excellant book that is a great resource for new users and old hands of PMC. The inspiration I personally got from the book is awesome and has sent my creativity into a high.
The book is well written and illustrated perfectly.
Excellent book to inspire you to work with this magical material........2007-01-08
CeCe Wire has a winner here, projects that will guide you from initial forays with this material through to more advanced techniques, such as ring making and sulptural pieces. A good solid Introduction on tools and equipment. The instructions combine both lovely photos and sketches which are easy to follow, even projects that are a photo of the completed piece and written instructions only are achievable. Whilst some of the finished projects may not suit all tastes ( what book does!!), it is the idea and technique that is useful, it can be adapted to a design of your own making. One of my favourites is the Twig and Leaf Condiment Spoon, I have made a set of these and the awe factor from my guests is wonderful when they are used. Nice to go outside just jewelry. I recommend three books to my Silver Clay students, this is one of them, with Sherri Haab and Tim McCreight being the other two. Well worth adding to your bookshelf.
Best for Beginners, in my humble opinion.......2006-07-20
I first borrowed this book from the library, and now I have finally been able to order it. I have used two other books on this subject, but I think CeCe Wire's book is best suited for me. I am a beginner with this material, however, I want my finished projects to have a certain streamlined sophistication, and I feel that of all of the books I have read on this subject, this book suits my needs and goals best. Ms. Wire has a wonderful grasp on the technical aspects of working with metal clay. Her projects are great for beginners, well illustrated and explained, but the final results are professional and stylish. One does not need to invest in many additional tools or materials in order to finish her projects. I also find that her projects and gallery of finished pieces provide a great springboard to encourage the reader to envision and create their own great jewelry pieces. There is a non-jewelry piece in here, but that does not bother me at all. It encourages the reader to consider other uses for metal clay, and who says jewelry must only be worn on the body? Why not create decorative objects as "jewelry" for the home? If you do not have a kiln, do not worry. I fire my pieces on my gas stove or with a small butane torch purchased from my local home improvement store. Also, I hear that bead and jewelry stores that have PMC or Art Clay Silver classes or paint-your-own-ceramics studios are often willing to fire your pieces for a reasonable fee. So give this book a try, I hope you will be as pleased as I am!
I'm not that impressed with the projects.......2005-03-09
I just received this book today and I leafed through it and put it down. Normally with a book of this type (art instruction, projects etc) I'll just get lost in it and read it from cover to cover. I bought this book based on the reviews here and also that Ms. Wire is the head cheese at the PMC Guild, but if I had seen this book first in the store I probably wouldn't have purchased it. The jewelry projects are not my style at all, and the layout and photography isn't that exciting either.
A better book about PMC is The Art of Metal Clay by Sherri Haab. I love the projects in there and the pictures are totally inspirational.
Great Clear Photos.......2004-08-31
This book has wonderful photographs that are clear enough to see the details of the jewelry and steps involved in creating them. I highly recommend this book.
spacedust
pmcer.com
Book Description
•A one-of-a-kind resource that shows polymer clay artists how to use historic design ideas in their work
• More than 30 exciting techniques and projects illustrated with clear step-by-step photos
• Features the work of today's biggest names in polymer clay, including Donna Kato, Pier Voulkos, Kathleen Dustin, Ford + Forlano, and KLEW
Thousands of crafters have discovered that polymer clay is versatile, easy to use, and just plain fun. Now they can use this exciting medium to create remarkable new work inspired by the decorative arts of the past. Polymer Clay Creative Traditions lets both beginners and experienced artisans draw inspiration form painting and drawing, ethnic carving, quilting, ceramics, sculpture, glass, metalwork, and more. Thorough 300 stunning photographs and fascinating text, author Judy Belcher reveals how these influences can be exptessed in polymer clay. Introduction on the history and handling, plus tips and techniques throughout the book, make Polymer Clay Creative Traditions an invaluable guide to creating works of art that blend a great material of today with the greatest design ideas of yesterday.
Customer Reviews:
Very Helpful Book about making Pretty Polymer Clay Stuff!.......2007-08-04
Very Helpful Book about making Pretty Polymer Clay Stuff! I really like this book alot. :0)
Polymer Clay Creative Traditions: Techniques and Projects Inspired by the Fine and Decorative Arts.......2007-08-03
This is the perfect and complete polymer clay book. Step by step are so clear and Judy Belcher is a talented and generous clay artist. Must buy.
Right Up There With the Best of Them!.......2007-06-13
This is a wonderfully inspirational polymer clay book, with a fresh approach and new ideas. The photos, diagrams, and written instructions are detailed enough to actually be useful and the projects are enticing enough to make readers want to actually try them, rather than just view the pictures. This is a fine addition to my polymer clay library and a book I'll refer to often.
A real inspiration!!.......2007-04-11
Polymer clay artists are frequently inspired by other art forms
-from fibre and metalwork to painting and sculpture.
Judy shows how to turn inspiration into reality and just how versatile
polymer clay is for this purpose.
Each chapter starts from a material-based art tradition, eg. glass, metal,
wood, and develops the techniques associated with these crafts in concise,
clearly explained projects. Each technique has a gallery of beautiful
examples of both the source artforms, such as exquisite pieces of
wood furniture, and several works in polymer clay inspired by the material
and sometimes combined with it in mixed media objects.
Judy has selected her gallery artists with care -the best work by the best artists-dazzling!
By illustrating high standards of design and execution, she places polymer clay
on an equal footing with older art material traditions and demands that we keep aiming higher.
For me this is the real inspirational effect of a great book.
Well done, Judy Belcher.
Carol Blackburn, author of 'Making Polymer Clay Beads'
Polymer Clay Traditions.......2007-02-13
This was one of my first clay books and one that gave me a good start.
Book Description
“The instructions are easy to follow, plus the practice requires little in the way of expensive tools....There’s considerable artistry to the 48 projects....Great for rainy days.”—Booklist. “Combines basic information on jewelry-making, specific techniques...for working with polymer clay, and instructions for 48 projects....Highly recommended for public libraries.”—Library Journal.
Customer Reviews:
ONE OF THE MORE HELPFUL BOOKS ON THIS SUBJECT OUT THERE........2007-09-15
I found this work to be most helpful. It provides step by step instructions and is great for the beginner. The book is full of designs for use with Polymer Clay and is quite detailed. The photography is great and quite clear. The text is full of helpful hints and tips as to techniques that are easy to follow. I also enjoyed the great ideas for projects I gleaned from this work. One of the strong areas of this book, unlike some others I have in my collection, is that the author does not assume that you already know something and goes ahead and explains even simple steps. The only weakness I found was that some of the information is just a bit dated as so much progress has been made in this field over the past two or three years. This is not a big problem though as there certainly is no "bad" information. This is a good one to add to your collection as it is nice to have on hand to answer questions as you are working. It is also a very handy book to have if you happen to be teaching a course in working with Polymer clays. The instructions here can be worked into a lesson plan quite nicely. Highly recommend.
Good book to teach canes and give examples.......2005-12-16
The author shows how to make canes and that is pretty much all that is in this book. Not much if you are looking for other techniques.
5stars for us beginners.......2005-06-14
Im new at polymer clay and this book is just perfect.Ive loaned it out but kept track of it so no one forgets to bring it back too..I really couldnt have learned so much about canning and the craft of beads in polymer clay without this book..ITs a must add to your clay library.Mrs.C.
I love this book.......2002-10-14
This book got me into making jewelry. It has everything from the very simple, to complex canework. I've taken many of the examples in this book and made them into my own design. I would definitly recomend this book for anyone, if your just starting out or you already know what your doing.
Colorful projects ranging from basic to challenging.......2000-07-21
Creative Clay Jewelry is one of the many books that attempt to cover polymer clay work from the very basics to quite advanced. While other books are probably more successful at that (Sue Heaser's Polymer Clay Techniques Book, for example), Creative Clay Jewelry has some good projects and solid information, and would be quite useful to the beginning to intermediate clayer.
It's unfortunate that there's no real indication of level of difficulty in the projects; they don't follow any logical progression. Some of the early projects use very basic techniques only - jelly rolls, marbling - which could probably be discussed in the introduction section. However, just a few projects in, there's a geometric pattern that would be quite difficult and frustrating to do as your third or fourth PC project. I'd advise careful consideration when selecting a project from this book.
Dierks does provide a much more detailed ingredient list, including things like findings and clay amounts, which other books tend to skip. She even specifies particular brands and colors, but it isn't necessary to adhere to them.
On a more personal note, I got less use out of this book than most of my PC books, simply because the projects were very bright, busy, and colorful - and that's very far from my style. But for those who love the casual, cheerful look that polymer clay can provide, this book might well be great.
Book Description
By Jerome Rothenberg. Contributions by Steven Clay.
Book Description
Polymer clay jewelry is hot! A growing number of crafters are eager to learn the art form, while longtime enthusiasts are always looking for new, fun projects. Creative Techniques for Polymer Clay Jewelry will appeal to both groups with:
-An extensive overview of polymer clay and jewelry-making basics, including tools and materials, blending and finishing -A section devoted to making simple and complex canes such as the leaf cane, rose cane and star cane -20 step-by-step jewelry projects, each including suggestions for variations so readers can tailor the projects to their own taste
Customer Reviews:
Not bad.......2007-05-13
Some interesting concepts. Seemed a bit too project orientated for me personally but learned a few things and interesting to see her process.
This is the book I've been looking for!.......2007-02-14
If you wonder how polymer artists create all those incredible, minute details and delicate shading read this book. Ms. Bananto's designs may or may not be to your taste, but (hey, we're all different) the secret of HOW she achieves them is relevant for anyone who wants to develop such skills. Basics and general information are well written too. Good work, lady.
Great PC jewelry book. Love it........2007-02-13
Basics were covered well and her basic canework instructions (18 canes) were perfectly photograhed and explained. Considering I'm the visual, put things together by the diagram alone kind of person, I'm picky about photo demonstrations in clay books. There never seems to be enough. I think I could make up every cane solely instructed by photos in this book.
The projects include typical sliced beads, rolled beads, image transfers, a really cool fidget pendant and much more. She also includes the jewelry making steps as well as the clay making.
I especially enjoyed the color palette section (inspirational fabric samples) and the color palettes supplied at each project. That's a tip I will use regularly.
Well-organized basic book.......2006-05-26
Iam rather new to polymer clay but have a bachelor of fine arts degree and have done many arts and crafts, most recently being a stitchery designer for consumer craft magazines. I also have a Master's in Education in art and have taught in the public schools. Having said all that, let me tell you why I found this book above the average, even books by other polymer clay masters. First, this book is very well-organized. It gives basic cane making techniques and then puts those specific lessons to use in the projects shown in later chapters. I found the projects to be gorgeous for the most part, and the artist uses fibers, beads and other media with the clay. The projects make direct use of what is explained in earlier chapters.
Whereas some early polymer clay books showed very weak projects such as light switch covers or other tacky decorations, this book actually shows items I would be proud to make and wear. They have a high level of craftsmanship. What I particularly like is how the author names different color combinations of clay and shows how to use them in projects to great effect. Many artists who are self-taught have a lot of trouble with color and their choices sometimes make a reader wonder, "What were they thinking??" This author chooses a color palette for each project from among about ten or twelve shown in the front of the book and uses one of those palettes in each project. So the projects are created out of techniques shown in earlier chapters and also out of a specific palette. The end of the book has outlines of handy shapes for the projects shown, and even a page of clip art one can photocopy to make transfers. I read about fifteen polymer clay books so far and this is one of the better ones. It is not real wordy with baking tips and all, but it gives the basics. The book design is visually exciting, nicely laid out and colorful too.
Great book when used with other PC information.......2006-05-04
I recently began using polymer clay specifically to make jewelry and beads, and I loved the projects in this book. NOT because I'll be copying her patterns and colors and graphics on my own jewelry as is. I personally don't like some of the transfers Nanetta uses. But the directions are easy enough to understand that you can add your own graphics or use different colors or patterns for your own projects. Also, I picked up several other polymer clay books recently. I find that each book builds upon ideas that I've learned in other books. So this book shouldn't be viewed as an encyclopedia. It does offer some great creative sparks for a beginner like me.
Book Description
Two of today's most popular crafts have been combined into one with this unique book. Rubber stamps and polymer clay are brought together to create fabulous, easy-to-make items for gift giving or to decorate the home.
Barbara McGuire provides information on types of clay, stamps, paints and powders, as well as basic techniques for creating original stamps. Projects range from basic to advanced, and include such fun, fresh items as: • Handmade books, frames and pins • Bracelets, hair bands, necklaces and buttons • Translucent and embedded stamped images • Carved images • Holders, ornaments and more!
Customer Reviews:
Great Book for Beginner to Imtermediate.......2003-02-16
If you're looking to combine great rubber stamping with another medium, off paper, then this is a great addition to your stamping art library. The book shows great ideas, and shows enuf material on technique that you can do it easily.
Beautiful!.......2002-11-11
Very well done! I love this book-the projects are to die for.
Great for any stamp artist!
Sumptuous!.......2002-07-30
Barbara has done it again with another fabulous addition to the annals of polymer clay! Using her expertise as an artist, Barbara does an excellent job of show how limitless the possibilities of stamping with polymer clay can be. Her attention to detail and eye for color, form and function are well expressed in this book. The projects are well timely, well thought out and brilliantly executed. As always, Barbara does an extrodinary job with the finishing of each piece. And as always, her text is full of extremely helpful hints and tips that even the most experienced polymer enthusiast can use. I highly recommend this book!
Sophisticated designs and easy techniques.......2002-07-04
This book features many projects using rubber stamps and polymer clay. The pictures are great and the step-by-step instructions are clear. Instructions are given for many different techniques. Some use ink to stamp the designs, some use the stamp to create an impression in the clay. Others use mica, foil stamping and embossing powders. Projects include jewelry, small book covers, decorative insets for boxes and many other varied projects.
Also, the projects are not bright, cutsey, whimsical items. They are more sophisticated, with simple shapes, relying on rich surface texture and images. This may or may not be a good thing, depending on your tastes. As it is sometimes difficult to find good polymer clay books for those of us who are not into whimsical, I would recommend this book highly.
Book Description
Write the romance of your dreams and capture the hearts of readers everywhere. You Can Write a Romance, designed for first-time writers, is the ultimate teaching guide for those interested in writing romance stories. Rita Clay Estrada and Rita Gallagher lend their expertise to show you how to take your story from idea to completed manuscript to signed book deal - even if you have never tried to write a novel before. They explain the writing process in easy to understand terms, and help beginning writer's find there niche in the complex writing market.
They also teach you how to build a strong plot, create compelling characters and sustain a dynamic beginning, middle and ending. You'll also learn what romance editors are looking for, and how stories are accepted. Create a novel your readers won't forget, with You Can Write a Romance.
Customer Reviews:
For every budding romance writer (yes, I mean you).......2007-05-17
Come on, admit it. Somewhere, deep down inside, you have this burning desire to write a romance novel.
If you're even remotely in touch with this particular muse, get off a good start by checking out You Can Write a Romance. Mother-and-daughter writing team Rita Gallagher and Rita Clay Estrada give you almost everything you need to embark on a career as a romance novelist. The talent and the dedication are still up to you.
If you're not sure how to define romance, Estrada and Gallagher have you covered from the first page. Chapter 1 delves into The Basics of Romance, including purpose, premise, sexual tension, conflict, point of view, character growth, and goals and motivations. They even draw a line in the sand between romance and chick lit!
The next two chapters explore Differences in Romance Novels and The Business Side of Romance. But where, you might ask, is the writing advice? Be patient. Before you get all hot and bothered to put quill to parchment, you have to have a firm understanding of the unique world you're thinking about entering.
Trust me, there's plenty of solid writing advice awaiting in the remaining chapters. You just need to be patient and understand the theory before you can move on to the practice.
Estrada and Gallagher deftly move through formatting your manuscript, creating the skeleton of your story, defining your hero and heroine, writing effective dialogue, and building a solid story through beginning, middle, and end. And yes, they talk about the importance of revision.
The best takeaways from You Can Write a Romance may well be in the last two chapters. Chapter 10 includes a handy Story Checklist that ensures you don't miss any of the planning steps that go into crafting a solid manuscript. And Chapter 11 provides the obligatory but indispensable list of Resources, such as groups and publications specific to the romance genre.
Even if, by the end of the book, you realize that becoming a romance novelist isn't in the cards, you can still draw valuable writing lessons from You Can Write a Romance. After all, no matter the genre you tackle, basic writing rules remain the same.
A Wealth of Information & Wisdom!.......2007-03-27
This book gave me the information and confidence needed to begin writing a romance manuscript. The chapters contained a wealth of information and wisdom on: The Basics of Romance, Differences in Romance Novels/Category Romance, The Business Side of Romance, Getting Ready to Write, The Skeleton of the Story, Knowing Your Characters, The Hero and the Heroine, Dialogue, Scenes, Revisions, and Resources.
The authors offered this pearl of wisdom on page 112, "One of our most heartfelt sadnesses is to realize there are people who believe that the worst thing to do is help another woman write, and thus grow competition... Yes, there is always someone to take your place. But without competition, there is no rising standard of quality. No industry gets better by being without competition. Competition in the marketplace keeps you growing, enables you to try new things, read new books and make new friends in different fields... Pay forward by helping others."
Romance is Queen in Rita Clay Estrada's hand........2006-12-05
This is a good book and after reading it, I gained knowledge about plotting, scenery, tone of voice and writing romance, as was my goal. "You Can Write a Romance" heightened my senses, not only for romance in print but for romance on the big screen. I just don't know how this book could have been better.
NOT THE BEST BOOK ON THE SHELF!.......2006-06-03
I have read many writers guide books but this one is by far one of the worst. I have quite a few reasons why I feel this way but the main reason is that the style of teaching in this book seems to be a "MY WAY IS THE ONLY RIGHT WAY" kind of teaching. If you learn that way then go for it, I on the other hand like options and the book gives you the feeling that is isn't teaching you so much as demanding you to do it a specific way, the Authors' way, and only that way or you will fail! It implies that other ways will not work. Lots of the advice in this book contradicts advice that I've seen in several other how-to write books. The authors mistakenly believe because they have been published that the only way to get published is by doing EXACTLY what they did. I also found several examples where the authors say this or that will not work, yet I've seen the exact things they say NOT to do in alot of published books. There is a small bit of useful information but its of the kind that can be found in almost every romance writing book I've read. I honestly felt as though I wasted both money and time by buying and reading this book. If there was a negative rating I'd give it less than 0!
If you want to learn how to write a romance I highly recommend "THE ROMANCE WRITERS HANDBOOK" by REBECCA VINYARD. It covers all the extra advice of this book and it also teaches you in a less dictative way.
Professional genre writing 101........2004-01-04
Not much detailed ground is covered in this slim volume, but Estrada and Gallagher do show the novice romance writer the business ropes and how to best use them without strangling yourself in the process (something I wish more writing classes had done). This is the first book about romance writing I have read (and it will not be the last, of that I am sure), but it showed me that I still have much to learn about both the genre and the industry. Then again, one is always learning. Recommended.
Book Description
Encourage elementary and middle school-age kids to build their clay-sculpting skills at home with these lessons and projects designed for use in the classroom. They’ll model a pinch pot, coil animals, fossils, vases, masks, and tiles that they can embellish with rubber stamps. Best of all, these projects will foster children’s confidence in their abilities and stimulate new ideas.
Customer Reviews:
A True Teacher's Book.......2004-08-17
I have used this book since it's publication and it is a wonderful classroom resource for anyone involved with handbuilding in clay. The examples are authentic--you know they really were made by children. The project ideas are very timely and especially geared to younger children. A must for any visual art library.
Great ideas.......2002-10-23
This book has been very helpful for myyoung children's clay classes. We successfully completed several projects from this book and everyone was happy: teacher, kids, parents. It was fun seeing the older kids come over from their wheels and be jealous of the little kids' projects. The book has also been a source of joy to me since the animal projects we did in class were so much fun, I continued the projects long after class was over.
The writing is clear, sometimes sparse, but the pictures are good. I also appreciated the associated learning that can accompany the projects (or vice versa).
AN IMAGINATION BOOSTER.......2001-11-11
The concise, clearly worded directions are easy to follow. No wasted words; no partial explanations. In the photographs accompanying each project, I like the mix of student and mature work. Also commendable are the explanations of how basic handbuilding techniques can be combined to produce lively ceramic art. All in all, The Great Clay Adventure stimulates the imagination. I highly recommend this book for clay artists, art teachers and school libraries.
Barbara McKenzie, Ph.D.
Professional Potter
Instructor, Durham Arts Council
NC K-12 Clay Exhibit.......2001-07-08
The past three years I have had the privilege of chairing an exhibition of K-12 student work in clay for the NC Pottery Center located in Seagrove, NC. This year my grant was generous enough for me to present each teacher who participated in our exhibiton a copy of Ellen Kong's book, The Great Clay Adventure. Each receipient was thrilled and eager to begin new clay projects with students.
We at the Pottery Center feel confident that distributing this incredible and inspiring book across our clay rich state of 100 counties will definitely stimulate our next generation of potters!!! Thank you, Ellen Kong!!
At last!.......2000-12-20
I have been looking for just the right book to help me get started doing workshops with children in my small town. Today I came upon "The Great Clay Adventure" and I am delighted. The pictures are clear and colorful, the instructions easy to follow and 'extensions' given at the end of each chapter will enhance the total clay experience. I will add this book to my library and will use it often.
Book Description
Highly versatile and exhilarating to work with, polymer clay has set the art world afire with its infinite potential for diversity. Appliqué, stamp, carve, saw, and buff it; the clay can even capture the look of jade, turquoise, ivory, wood, and metal. Plus, it comes in an array of marvelous colors and effortlessly shapes into lamps, bowls, buttons, beads, and beautiful baubles. Find out about the latest and greatest in the craft-from the different clay types (including translucent and glow in the dark) to the variety of helpful tools to the limitless array of techniques (photo transfers, crackling, extruding and more). Novices will love being able to plunge right into projects like a Chinese Good Luck Lantern with translucent clay that resembles frosted glass; Chunky Art Deco Bracelet that looks as if it came right out of the 20s or 30s; pretty Miniature Bowls; and an adorable Tiny Jointed Teddy Bear.
Customer Reviews:
Creative Ways with Polymer Clay.......2006-09-16
This book is really good for a person just starting out in polymer clay. There are helpful techniques on making canes, mosaic, skinner blend, etc.
Whether your interest is in making jewelry, ATCs, or even sculpture........this book will help you learn some very interesting ways to use polymer clay.
Highly recommend.
One of the Very Best!.......2003-03-22
I was totally thrilled with this polymer clay book. It is remarkably well written with all of the how-to details extremely clear and precise. The photographs are stunning and the projects exciting. I like the fact that there are projects for beginners as well as for the advanced clayer. The author has included not only her own projects, but those of some other fine clay artists which gives the book a wonderful variety. This is an absolute must for the clayer who is looking for creative ways to use the clay.
Disappointing.......2003-03-07
I was very disappointed with this book. It is true that it includes many exciting techniques, but the instructions are very poorly written (including editing mistakes and typographical errors) and frequently less than helpful.
Some of the editing choices that were made were questionable. For example, on one page there is an image of an (admittedly lovely) brooch and another "detail" photograph of the same brooch--only the "detail" picture is only slightly larger than the original and therefore doesn't add any extra information.
The artwork selected is also disappointing. I found the majority of the pieces to be somewhat unsophisticated. While there are several notable exceptions, on the whole this book failed to inspire.
In short, there are many excellent books on polymer clay already, and more are being printed every day. Pass this one over.
A great book for beginners too.......2003-01-21
I really enjoyed everything about this book
Creative techniques beyond Polymer Clay 101.......2001-12-16
This is a wonderful helpful book for anyone wanting to take a step forward in using this versatile medium. It is heavy on artistic applications, and the projects are richly elegant. She has shared some hints for working with some of the more intriguing methods of handling the clay.
The best part for me was the compared methods of doing various techniques, i.e. monkume gane.
While it gives a good description of what polymer clay is and lists the items one may use to work with it, it probably is not a good choice for a first PC book, as a lot of the basics are not detailed nor illustrated. However, for those who want to polish their techniques or need a kickstart for a new ideas, it is a real winner.
Books:
- The Art of Polymer Clay Creative Surface Effects: Techniques and Projects Featuring Transfers, Stamps, Stencils, Inks, Paints, Mediums, and More
- The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible
- The Complete Visual Dictionary of Star Wars: The Ultimate Guide to Characters and Creatures from the Entire Star Wars Saga
- The Fashion Designer Survival Guide: An Insider's Look at Starting and Running Your Own Fashion Business
- The History of Costume: From Ancient Mesopotamia Through the Twentieth Century
- The History of Costume: From Ancient Mesopotamia Through the Twentieth Century
- The Jackson 500 Volume 1
- The Nature and Properties of Soils (13th Edition)
- The Official Vintage Guitar Magazine Price Guide, 2007 Edition (Official Vintage Guitar Magazine Price Guide)
- The Presence of the Past: Morphic Resonance and the Habits of Nature
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- The Caged Virgin: An Emancipation Proclamation for Women and Islam
- Lincoln's Sword: The Presidency and the Power of Words
- Death by Darjeeling
- Germanicus Mosaic
- Guide to Oracle 10g
- Evolution and Ecology of the Organism
- Lanterns on the Levee: Recollections of a Planter's Son
- Picasso's One-Liners
- Deep Atlantic: Life, Death, and Exploration in the Abyss
- The Ceramiaceae
General
| Sculpture
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| Books
Making Polymer Clay Beads: Step-by-Step Techniques for Creating Beautiful Ornamental Beads
Faux Surfaces in Polymer Clay: 30 Techniques & Projects That Imitate Stones, Metals, Wood & More
Polymer Pizzazz: 27 Great Polymer Clay Jewelry Pro (Best of Bead & Button Magazine)
Polymer Clay Surface Design Recipes: 100 Mixed-Media Techniques Plus Project Ideas
Mixed Media Mosaics: Techniques & Projects Using Polymer Clay Tiles, Beads & Other Embellishments
