Wednesday, April 29, 2020

Introducing C. Rona

Preparing for my post this month in a time of continued stay-at-home orders, I was drawn to a cartoon on the internet by Don Landgren titled "Little Shop of Misinformation".  Many artists have been creating their own renditions of the "virus", so it is not surprising that as soon as I saw the drawing, my mind flashed to a project in clay...and Qtips...and watercolor!
Materials:
Delight Air Dry Modeling Compound
1 round glass (or plastic) Christmas ornament
Qtips (I purchased mine at the Dollar Tree)
Watercolor paints and brushes
Water
Scissors
Cutting tool (knife or blade)
Bamboo skewer or stick of some sort
Small piece of foil
Acrylic roller, rolling pin, or glass
Optional: bud vase 
Texture (I used a clean sponge)
Step 1: Remove the metal cap from your Christmas ornament and set it aside.  Wrap the end of the bamboo skewer or stick with foil and compress the foil tightly enough that it will fit inside the Christmas ornament.  (Note: This will allow you to manipulate all of the materials without handling them directly).  
Set this aside (I placed mine in a bud vase for stability).


Step 2: Prepare the Qtips!  Let me say to be sure you paint enough Qtips ahead of time.  I thought that I had enough, but once I started layering them (look ahead to understand what I mean) I discovered I needed more.  No real issue, since you can always paint them afterward, but so much easier to have them painted before placing!
You will see in the pictures that I only applied paint on one side of each Qtip.  Obviously, painting both sides would have been a better choice!
Dip the Qtip end into the water, then roll (trust me) in the chosen paint color.

By rolling in the paint, the Qtip will stay intact rather than shredding! Use your finger or a paintbrush to draw the color down into any areas that are unpainted.  Repeat with the remaining Qtips (I end up using about 30 total).  Set aside to dry.  
Step 3:  Cut open the package of clay and cut the block of clay in half.  Rewrap the part not being used (I put mine in a Ziploc baggie and squeezed out all the air).  Begin flattening the clay.  
NOTE: I start by flattening it with my fingers before placing it on a work surface to roll with the acrylic roller. I kept the thickness between 1/8"-1/4".  Once flattened, wrap the ornament completely.  Seams can be sealed by dipping a finger into water and smoothing over (I suggest using a finger over a brush for this step since there is more control).  Continue all around the form, adding more clay if necessary, until it is covered.

Step 4:   Press over the entire surface with your texture.
 

Step 5:  Now the fun begins!  As I mentioned, I was inspired by a cartoon, so I kept my inspiration close by for reference.
Pull off a small amount of the remaining clay (in Ziploc baggie) and roll it into a snake.  Taper both ends of the snake into points.  Dip a finger into the water and smooth the snake before placing it where desired on the form (I apologize but I don't have a photo of this step. It would help if I had more hands!).
Once placed, use more water to help smooth the seams (one finger at a time or you will be sorry!).  Once the first snake has been placed and smoothly attached, create a second snake from a little more reserve clay and repeat the above directions. Retexture areas as needed.




Step 6:  In the original sketch the virus had a tongue sticking out.  I tried to add this feature, but it obviously needed some support (it kept breaking off), so I made the artistic decision to change the vision (haha).  Even though my "virus" has what looks to be a smiling mouth, I began to add teeth...sharp teeth.  To create the teeth, pull off tiny bits of clay and pinch them into triangles.  Cut a flat edge.  Dip a finger in the water and apply it to the back of each tooth before placing it in the mouth.  Press each into place before moving on.

Step 7:  Time for the Qtips!  Begin by cutting the tips off each side.  
(NOTE: The Dollar Tree Qtips are on a great hollow plastic stick.  If using this brand, reserve the sticks to use later. )  Gather 3 tips together and press into the clay to resemble the virus barbs.  Repeat around the whole ball. "Barbs" are not necessary down the length of the foil-covered stick (this will be cut away after the clay dries).  Continue adding tips until you are happy with the look.  
Remember the unused sticks mentioned above?  I cut those into tiny bits and pressed them into the clay as well. 
If you do not have usable hollow sticks, bits of clay rolled into balls and pressed into place will work.  Beads are also a good replacement, but will probably need to be glued into place once everything has dried.
 Notice the white Qtips??  As mentioned above, I ran out of the painted ones, so added unpainted.  Trust me, so much easier to have them painted beforehand!

Step 8:  Time to paint.  I began with a teeny tiny brush and black paint to carefully paint the inside of the mouth.  I followed that with the lips (a mixture of red and pink, layered), "barbs" (straight red), and finally the "head" (grey overlaid with periwinkle blue).  If the paint is too dark, adding more water will help to thin the color and spread it.  HOWEVER, try no to use too much water or the texture will disappear and the red from the Qtips may bleed.
You may have noticed I peeled away the extra clay from the foil-covered stick.  This is an optional design choice.

A single "barb"? Again, design choice.  Make this your own by adding your own touches! Maybe you want to continue the clay down the stick and keep it covered!  Add some leaves (think of what silk leaves could add to this...oooooooo!)

You may have noticed places where the grey base touched the red "barbs" (Oops!).  This area can be retouched if desired...or not, you choose.

Once the painting is complete, set the piece aside for 24 hrs to allow all the layers to dry completely.  Once dried, if the barbs fall out, a dab of glue will keep them in place (I suggest "The Ultimate" tacky glue).  I pulled out the sick and cut the bottom even with the opening of the ornament.  Then I replaced the metal cap (Again, optional decision).
 

I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial.  I think it is a way to put a comedic spin on this challenging time.  I may have to add a little fabric or paper mask to him/her!  Prayers that things will soon return to "normal".  Until then...
Everyone stay safe!  








Friday, April 24, 2020

How To Make A Home Office Sign






Hello everyone, this is Cinnamon here and today I want to show you how I created this home office sign. Like many of us out there, I have been trying to convert a place in my home into an area that I can work efficiently. I felt like I needed a sign to remind me that I am at work to discourage me from lollygagging and taking multiple trips to the fridge.

Here are the supplies that I had on hand for this project.

Materials needed

  • Basswood strip
  • Hole puncher or drill if needed
  • Creative Paperclay®
  • Thick stencil
  • Twine, ribbon, or string
  • Acrylic paint
  • Metal ruler
  • Masking tape
  • Exacto knife




I started out by doing a rough sketch with the stencil on the wood to figure out what wording would fit on the space that I had available.





Once the lettering was set up with the space that I wanted to use, I trimmed the excess wood off with my exacto knife. Next I began to create my letters with the stencil. I chose to push the clay into the stencil to create the letters and carefully remove them instead of allowing them to dry in the stencil.  Either way would be fine, just keep a close eye on how the clay dries. The clay has a tendency to warp when it is in thin sheets.





Since I have a really thin piece of Basswood, I am able to use a plain old hole puncher to get my holes into it. If the wood that you are using is too thick, opt for using a drill to get the holes into it.





While the letters are drying, paint your piece of wood the color that you would like it to be. I decided to paint over the pencil instead of using an eraser.





This is how the letters dried. If your letters warped upwards, you can dab a drop of water on the back and put something with a little weight on top to help flatten them down while it dries again.





When the letters were completely dry, I used a sanding stick to smooth out some of the edges.





I looped a piece of masking tape and painted the letters on to the top layer to keep them from moving around.





When the letters dried I used wood glue to paste them onto the piece of wood. You can also use plain old white school glue, either one works.





I wanted to draw a nice border around the sign, to pull that off I used masking tape like you would use painter's tape. I knew that masking tape wouldn't interfere with the layer of paint underneath and it was the only tape I had on hand.





After the top layer of paint is dry, move on to adding the string that you will use to hang outside of your door. I wanted the sign to be a bit playful, so I turned a few of the letters backwards and made sure to not follow any straight lines with their placement






Thank you all once again for stopping by, and I hope that you enjoyed today's tutorial! You can find Creative Paperclay® at the following retailers Creative Paperclay® Online Store, Michael'sAmazon, Joann's.

See more of my work at Melandolly.com and be sure to catch updates on my Instagram page

Be Well, Stay Safe and Stay Home if you can!


Friday, April 10, 2020

Garden Snail Tutorial









Oh my!  Where did all my color go?  


Welcome to Second Friday Tutorial!  

Today I share with you the sculpting process of creating a fun little garden snail. 
It seems we are all going through changes in our lives in one way or another with current situation effecting the world in which we live.  I think we can agree that some days are more colorful than others, but we are going to get through this.  It was not my intention to create a tutorial without color, but I have to say it doesn't bother me either.  

Come back here for the big color reveal.  I will be painting it on Friday and will post pictures and a video link on this post so you'll have to pop back and see what this whimsical little guy will look like.  


Supplies:

CREATIVE PAPERCLAY®
18 gauge wire
foil
masking tape
water
simple clay tools
Acrylic paints
paint brushes


Click on the link below to see the video tutorial




EMAIL: Susiewhc@gmail.com
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WEBSITE:  https://artbysusiek.com sign up for my Creative Breakfast Club 🎨
ETSY: www.artbysusiek.etsy.com
PINTEREST: https://www.pinterest.com/susiewhc/

CREATIVE PAPERCLAY® Design Team Member  https://creativepaperclay.blogspot.com  

Monday, April 6, 2020

A Paperclay Easter Bunny!

Hello, I hope you are all staying safe inside and managing not to go mad! It's business as usual for me, creating tutorials, filming courses for my Skillshare and Youtube channels and running a busy household. In the middle of all the madness, I hosted Clay Talk and did a live demo making an Easter bunny ornament.


For those of you who missed the live show, the video is below. 


He really turned out nice didn't he? Be sure to give it a try and let me know how he turned out. Better yet share your photos with us on our Facebook pageWe would love to see them! For more inspiration have a look around the blog. There are tutorials for many levels using Creative Paperclay®. You can also visit my blog www.papermachepatch.com and check out my newest course on Skillshare and Udemy, Let's Make an Easter Bunny.



You can find Creative Paperclay® online at Creative Paperclay Co and also at Michaels, Hobby Lobby, Dickblick and, Amazon. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Suzette



Friday, April 3, 2020

April 2020 First Friday Fan Day


Need some inspiration for your next Creative Paperclay® project? Check out what folks are making with Creative Paperclay™.


Molded Leaves
Bunny Bowls
Cactus Candle Holders
Kid's Project: Coil Hearts

DIY Dragon
Easter Basket
Marshmallow Party Necklace

HELP US FIND YOU!!
  1. Use the hashtag #CreativePaperclay on all your social networks.
  2. When using Facebook, be sure the your posts and images using the #Creative Paperclay hashtag are set to public, otherwise we won't be able to find you.
  3. Share your projects on the Creative PaperClay® Facebook page.
I'm always trolling the web, looking for great Creative Paperclay® projects. If you find something, post it on our Facebook page.

GOT QUESTIONS???

Find the answers to your paperclay questions. See what other folks are creating. Stop by our Facebook group and say, "Hi!" Creative Paperclay Q&A
Carole