Polymer Fun

I have dabbled here and there with polymer clay, never really taking it too seriously.  Sure, I'd made some buttons that were pretty good, but had not really done much else with it.  A couple of months ago I picked up a 3-pack of clay tools that are double-ended, each with a different function.  I hadn't used them yet only because I was trying to figure out a better surface to work on.  Last week I bought an inexpensive pastry mat at Wal-Mart and figured it was time to pull my stuff out and give it a go.

I attempted my first canes using a technique I'd found on Pinterest.  Rather than making 3 of these canes, still unsure as to what I want to do with them, I took the leftover blocks, laid them out, and made the cane that you see on the far left.  (This picture also shows the two stacked canes - that's what I've decided to call them - before they were cut to even them out on the ends.)





Once I cut the uneven ends off, so as not to waste any clay, I rolled them out a little and turned them into buttons.  My 10-year old daughter is in love with them.  Something tells me one of the canes is going to be used to make her another covered hook of her own. 

The remaining canes turned out great.  It is a frosty glittered white, rosy pink, fuschia, pearl purple, and deep purple all stacked and rolled up in brown suede. 

The cane that wasn't rolled in the brown suede was cut into slices to create the two canes on the right (one is my daughter's and the other is an extra hook I have in case I need a back-up).  The other simply has the colors marbled together and was used to cover the hook my daughter uses for her Rainbow Loom. 

I used extra clay in the same colors to create round buttons in 3 different sizes and some small square buttons. 

 Of all of my current clay creations, my favorite is the mini yarn balls.  I followed instructions from a current blog post on Repeat Crafter Me.   I made 4 in each color.  Two sets have been turned into stitch markers, while the other two sets have been turned into earrings - they can also be turned into necklaces, keychains, etc.  They were fun to make, though I have to admit they were more time consuming than I expected.  If you're interested in the yarn balls but don't have the patience to try them out for yourself, check back in for our Giveaway Extravaganza this weekend.  I'll be giving away a full set of the stitch markers (one in each of the 4 colors) as one of the prizes.

 

The buttons, stitch markers/earrings, covered crochet hooks, and canes are all available for purchase if anyone is interested.  If ordering a hat or other finished item, we'll happily add one of the buttons at no additional cost.  You can email us or message us on Facebook for price quotes.  Custom buttons and markers are also available.  This does not mean crocheting and pattern designing is taking a backseat to the clay - it definitely is not!  The clay is just a way for us to expand our horizons and allow us a temporary yarn break from time-to-time.