WORKING OUTSIDE THE BOX: PURSES IN UNUSUAL SHAPES

3-day workshop for all levels except beginner (know how to make Skinner blend and simple canes.)

Polymer clay enables us to make containers in any shape we wish so why do we feel limited to making a purse that is rectangular? Kathleen discusses shape design principles and leads students through making an interior mold and a container with inside rim and attached cord like her purses. Students design their own shapes, colors and embellishments.

 

NEW TRANSLUCENT TECHNIQUES IN POLYMER CLAY

2-day workshop for all levels except beginner (know how to make Skinner blend and simple canes).

While making a brooch, each student learns how to layer translucent polymer clay to produce a rich depth of surface using polymer heat-set paints, simple millefiore, gold leaf and powder inclusions, carving, sanding and buffing. At the same time, Kathleen presents basic artistic principles to aid students in making decisions as they work with this involved technique.

                                          

INTEGRATED EARRING DESIGN: STOP USING THE SAME OLD FINDINGS – MAKE YOUR OWN

2-day workshop for all levels except beginner (know how to make Skinner blend and simple canes).

Too many polymer earrings are a bead hung on a boring pre-purchased French ear wire that has no relationship to the bead. Good design includes every aspect of an item. This workshop includes basic wireworking and tools as well as multiple polymer techniques, but students will concentrate on earring design using their own elements. Under Kathleen’s guiding principles of good design, students develop their individual earring lines that will sell like hotcakes for twice the price they sold for before. (In fact, you can probably pay for this workshop with the earrings you make.)

 

LARGE HOLLOW POLYMER BEADS

2-day workshop for all levels except beginner (know how to make a Skinner blend and simple canes).

It’s wonderful when large beads can be visually statement-making, but it’s not enjoyable  when they are too heavy to wear comfortably. In this workshop, Kathleen will teach constructing and assembling large light-weight hollow beads in organic/geometric shapes, then covering them with polymer patterns using a variety of techniques. As in her other workshops, Kathleen will also discuss basic design principles as she leads students through inventing and making their own beads.

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CARVING A LARGE FLEXIBLE BRACELET

1-day workshop for all levels except beginner (must know how to make a Skinner blend.)

Kathleen’s recent work is informed by tribal and ethnic carving, so this class explores improvised carving of baked polymer to produce patterns and texture. All students will make a flexible bracelet to carve designs onto and Kathleen will discuss ethnic design principles.