SALE First Friday Art Walk

Hey Guys!  This month I am participating in the First Friday Art Walk in my etsy shop.  Coupon Code BOCFFAW gets you 10% off your purchase at www.artisanclay.etsy.com I added this new pendant to the shop this week.

As well as this one....

January Artisan Clay Design Team Reveal!

Today is the day where the Artisan Clay Design team reveals what they have made with the mystery beads which I have sent them!

I can't wait to see what everyone has made.  I sent each designer a different kind of bead, so we should be treated to some very different styles of jewelry.

I took the day off from work today to have an Artisan Clay/Mental Health day and I am really excited about that.... The kids are headed to school in an hour and then I get to be alone.... well not entirely alone, because I live with other people, but more alone than I've been in a long time.

The big plan is
1) kids to school
2) find the sun on this rainy day and get my design team projects photographed and posted.
3) pick up my jewelry and pottery from a store that will no longer be selling it
4) go to a wholesale button appointment
5) find a better shop to sell my jewelry while still visiting the same town

So---- I will blog again once I get good photos of my project, but for the meantime, please visit the design team's blogs and see what they have created.

----UPDATE time--
I looked everywhere for my tripod and I have decided myself an expert tidy-upper... because it is so tucked away in such a perfect spot that it has made itself invisible to me.

So-- here is what I made this month.

It's not a new design for me, but it is new work and I really needed to break back in with some production type making time.... and I have been itching to get out and contact new stores to carry my work and this is what I want someone to carry. 

These necklaces are so fun to wear and I have made quite a few for friends/customers in the past few years.... and they have been loved, really really loved.  It is just a really simple natural style that suits my breezy spirit and seems to suit quite a few other natural breezy spirits too.

Now I'm off into the world-- new necklaces and buttons in hand and adventuring into the shopping district.  Wish me luck!

Don't forget to check out everyone in the design team's blogs.

This month Staci is auctioning off her necklace to help out a friend who is going through a tough time.  SO!  Check it out!

Thanks for coming!

And the winner is...................

Alice!!!!!!!

Thanks to everyone who participated in the Fashion Show and those who hopped along!

Alice contact me at staci.louise@hotmail.com with your address so I can get your prize out to you:)



Artisan Clay Fall Fashion Show Blog Hop

by staci l. smith

It's time for the Artisan Clay Fall Fashion Show Blog Hop!!!!

In case you missed the last post about the design team this month, here is what is going on- ILO a regular design team this month, we are doing a Fall Fashion Show of Artisan Clay Components in Jewelry.  The cool thing is, everyone can join in, even you!!!!
Just link up below, and make sure your blog is all about your Artisan Clay designs!

Make sure to visit all the blogs!  Because then you can stop back here and leave a comment (just one please) and let us know what your favorite design or component was.  You are then entered for a surprise giveaway~ I will be sharing one of my Artisan Clay components with one lucky winner.  Giveaway ends at the end of the day!

Like always, please make sure you leave an email or you have one linked to your blog to qualify.

Most of all~ have fun hopping!!!!!!!

New work, new studio

I was able to fire for the first time in the new space this weekend.  I fired tiles and I tried to get all the lingering custom orders finished.  Some of the orders lingered longer than I liked.  I am glad to get new work made and I am glad to get the space into working order.  We found an old door to use as a big counter and I found some high metal spinning stools for sale for $10 each down the street from the house.  The stools are the perfect height for the counters and have a nice adjustable back to them... and they spin!  Whoot!  That's a bonus.

tidy :-)

Along the back wall are more shelves made into counter space and my tiles molds and clay is all along the bottom shelf across the entire room.....I am so glad that my fellas helped me move all that clay!

My mom made that sculpture for me when I was pregnant with Lydia ;-)

I really like how the colors turned out on my tiles.  I love when I have multiples of the same tile in the studio.  I look forward to the day when I have a space to tile with my own handmade tiles.  For now, these will go to the Tile Gallery.... I live very close to the Moravian Tile works in Doylestown, PA

That's a town known for handmade tile.

Yeah.... I LOVE how they turn out!  I need to make more....

I made some beads too.... The long buttons are an order to be used on a cape.  Isn't that cool?  I love being able to work with other artists :-)

Most of my paintings are still at my old house, but I did find a few painted glass panels that I had started years ago around the garage to decorate the studio and make it feel more like home.

New donuts! 

And last but not least here is the finished glazed fairy sculpture that Sonya gave to my mom for her birthday...  She loves it! 

September Design team reveal-- Better late than never

It's been a while, hasn't it?  My life is changing.....hopefully for the better.
I just moved.... and man!  my schedule is crazy.  I went from working at my day job 3 days a week to 5 and school starting and moving and yikes!  it is really a tricky time for me. 

This month the design team worked with buttons.  I had been sewing recently and I really wanted to work on a few things that were not jewelry.  I found this great beaded bag at the thrift store and I found a fun fabric/lace/feather flower at the farmer's market.  At first I tried a bronze button....  but it blended a bit to much for my taste.

So.... I took it apart and tried it with a large size turquoise button.

I like it much better. 

I hope to get back in the swing of things around blogland... and etsy.... but I know I shouldn't make any promises.  I miss you guys and I will soon share my days with you once again.  One day I plan to  add mixed lots of older style beads to the etsy shop at quite a deal..... because upon moving them, I realize what a hoarder I have become.

Fall Fashion Show with Artisan Clay

Guest post by Staci L. Smith

Kristie's life is busy right now, like, really busy.  Like, so busy, she let me guest blog.... (thanks Kristie, I am truly honored that you trust me with your bloggers). 

So, October is flying by, and I thought perhaps, instead of doing a design team challenge this month, which would be more work for Kristie, we could thank her by doing a Fall Fashion Show of all the wonderful pieces we have made with Artisan Clay components.  It would be the last Friday of the month, October 28th, and EVERYONE can play!!!!!  Just add your inlinks that morning to Artisan Clay's blog, and we will have an Artisan Clay Fall Fashion Show Blog Hop!  Sound good?  I think it would be fun to see some of Kristie's work (and ours) through the years....so if you have old stuff, dig that out too.

Just to kick it off.....here's one of her wonderful and addicting smoke fire donuts in a silver bezel and surrounded by baroque pearls. 

So share this, and spread the word, so we can see LOTS and LOTS of new people joining in the fun this month.  Its a party people, so bring a friend!!!!!!!

August Artisan Clay Design Team Reveal!

Today is the day.... It comes so fast.  Design Team Reveal Day! 
This month, our guest designer is Amy Blevins.  Amy has had an Artisan Clay Trunk show at her Bead Store, Bead and Glass Boutique.  Make sure to check out her necklace and blog... I love what she has done.  Imagine the fun of having an entire bead shop to work from when designing your jewelry!

This month I did the bead selection a little differently.  Staci suggested that I send out some of the half and quarter round Art Deco beads this month.  I was really happy for the suggestion, since I have started to feel like most of my bead types have already been used.  
     I found just enough pieces for all the designers and packed them up in boxes.  I shuffled the boxes and packed them in envelopes blindly.  I have no idea what beads ended up where...  It turns out that I was left with the largest bead, a crescent in my minty green glaze and made with a clay body that shows a manganese fleck when fired. 

I started making this style of pendant a long time ago and have never finished a piece of jewelry with them until now.  I have imagined them used so many ways;
highly stylized and playing on the Art Deco theme,
strung in a tribal theme,
used in a Native American design....
I tried to mix a bit of a natural, southwestern and native look?  Ha! 
The stacking a knotting of the red beads on waxed linen gave me a feeling of the southwest.  I played around with the idea of adding beads in a bead loom, bead weaving style, but decided I really wanted to open up the body of the necklace into multiple strands as I often do.

What do you think?  I don't have any more of these Art deco beads left here in the studio, but I do have quite a few in the dried mud stage waiting to be wet sanded and fired... Depending on how they are glazed, they have such a different feel.

So... are you ready to see what the team has made?


Have you made something with an Artisan Clay bead?-- then add your link below!

July Artisan Clay Design Team Reveal!

Check out the beads that the design team had to work with this month!

Recycled Glass fused Donuts-- The ones available made to order in standard sizing and colors to be exact.

Everyone picked one piece from this photo.

Except me that is.... for some reason I was dead set on green this month.

Could it get more simple?  Really? 
I had my mind set on furthering my ideas from last month and weaving another collar inspired by the ribbon of seaweed I saw on the beach in Oregon, but--- I couldn't do it.  It was just too much. Too much color, too much action, too hard to wear.   Life for me these days has been so complicated and difficult to figure out and I just long for simplicity.  If only life were more simple.... If only there was a clear yes or no....and people-- the wild card.   So~~ this is what you get, simpler than simple, easy to wear and no competition for the bead. 

When I decided on donuts, one of the design team members mentioned not using donuts in her work before.  They can be kind of tricky to work into a design, but some people seem to be able to find endless ways to do it.  I decided to go through my old photos and show examples of my use of donuts in the past.

I like to chain them up.

This one has a wire loop fired into the clay itself making it easy to string as you would a pendant.

This one also has a wire loop and I made it into a Christmas ornament.

Here I have used one of my cast donut bails in Bronze....

And this piece was chained up like the first few examples.

This last piece was made by Design team member, Carol Dean Sharpe, Sandfibers.  She is dealing with health issues this month and was unable to blog for this month's reveal. 

Carol made this piece for me to show at last year's Bead Fest Philly.  Carol has been so kind to make gorgeous display pieces for every one of my Bead show booths.  Carol has such skilled hands and a magic way with color and I am so lucky to have an Artisan Clay fan in her.  She is an awesome friend too!

So... are you ready to see what the team has made?

Have you made something with an Artisan Clay bead?-- then add your link below!

Week in pictures

July 4th firing, Design team beads

Don't you show everyone your messy desk on Wednesdays?  Today is Friday, that's not so bad....  All kinds of beads are piled up from making earrings for my friend Debra... Pictures follow. 

sunshine

The kids put on a play today at summer camp. 

She's acting

She's a great dog!  She's very good, she has a blast.

She's so fancy.  Had me curl her hair ;-) 

remember the throwing last post... all this still needs to be cleaned and painted

I inherited a new red plastic necklace last thursday....It broke while I was roller skating... I was pretty thankful that I took that picture.

I hope I eat my grapes this year.

Debra's earrings-- I had to wear them around for a day, and get my well wishes on them and make sure that they work, you know~~ test them out.  I'm a nice friend like that.

new to etsy shop soon

and this

and this

and this

I made these earrings too...

They might be for me.

I wear this necklace every week for years.  I love it.