New Friendly Plastic Video - Photo Transfers to Friendly Plastic

Well...here it is...the FIRST in a two-part series on how to use your photos and transfer them to Friendly Plastic Pellets. In this first set, I use Avery T-shirt Transfer Paper and Friendly Plastic pellets for the first technique. The second technique uses images printed onto plain white paper using an ink jet printer. I chose these techniques first as they work best with pellets....and only with pellets.

Beginning with this month, kits are availablefor our video projects. This kit will include:

1 - 4 1/2 x 6 Artemboss Purple Aluminum light metal sheet (plain aluminum color on back)
1oz Friendly Plastic Pellets
1 each of the transfer designs above (subject to change)
1 flat sheet of double stick tape

Step out instructions included in this kit that will complete 2 basic focal pendants for $7.95 plus $3.00 shipping and handling (you will have some materials left over for bead making -etc)

(This kit is to make basic focal pendants only, it does not include personal embellishments, beads or chain)

To order this kit for $10.95 - shipping included

Click on this BUY NOW button

You can order Friendly Plastic Pellets in a variety of sizes by clicking here.

This technique and many others are available in my latest book -Metal Jewelry 101.




Click Here to order and for more details!

Summertime In Branson - A flash back to the 80's

Im sharing this story - mostly for my kids....so they know a little bit about me and when I was a teen ager. But this story is also about "Living the creative life" and a story of a very creative person I met when I was about 13 years old......

I loved this time of year - it was the 80's and I was in my mid-teens. We had moved to Branson, Missouri from Springfield, Illinois the summer of 1979. I was so mad at my Dad for that move. I thought he was moving me away from all my friends....but little did I know, just how many more friends I would make an how fun my teenage years were about to become!

I was talking to a friend of mine who I worked with in Branson last summer. She's working at a place called Stormy Point - a little cove just past the Table Rock Dam. What you see today is very different than what you would have seen back in the 80's.

Being a teen growing up in a tourist town and the lake, we always had a boat. Everyone had a boat and everyone would get together on Sunday afternoons - with our boats and with our families at "UU" or "Long Creek" - literally there would be at least a hundred people at our get-togethers. We would swim, eat, play, run around...and just have great family/friend time.

One family friend was the Larson family. They lived on an acreage on Stormy Point. John the dad, was probably one of the most interesting people I have ever met. He had been all over the world and he had a collection of stuff from all over the world.....and he had a house. It was a very unique house, as unique of a house as he was a person. You see, John could build anything...and I mean anything....but he would build it "just so it worked". He used lots of duct tape and vice grips - you know those things fix everything right? And so, he built his house. The entry way of the house was really his workshop full of tools. Then a few stairs and you found yourself in the middle of a room with an extremely high ceiling. There were really no walls at all in this house (except for the bathroom) and each room was built on it's own level. So picture a treehouse but from the inside. There was a level for the general landing area when you walked in the door. Up a few steps and there was a living area with a couch. To the left of that on it's own level was the kitchen and to the right of the couch area but down on it's own level was the dining area. (I think - remember...Im going back to the 80's...but this is how I remember it).

The Larson's were a very entertaining family. They often had get-togethers....and at such get togethers there were... you guessed it.....KIDS! Loads of kids......and a trapeze! You see... John had hung a literal trapeze from the enormously tall ceiling and us kids would get on the back of the couch, grab hold of the trapeze and literally "FLY" thru the center of the living room and swing like Peter Pan (I'm totally serious...You CAN NOT make up this stuff!). Talk about a kids paradise! And this event would be repeated all night long...each of us kids taking our turn flying thru the living room of their house.

I guess John was always a kid at heart! But, the story doesn't end there. About this time every year, John would put on his scuba gear for the "ressurection". That is, the resurrecting of the now infamous "Banana Boat", which sank every winter. It was an annual springtime event.

Now remember, practically all of our friends had boats. We had a bass boat, others had ski boats etc....but if you didn't have a boat, you would most likely be a guest on the Banana Boat. John had designed this boat from two huge army pontoons that he welded together to create a pontoon boat. And then he painted them the brightest color of banana yellow you could ever imagine. The decking was plywood, the railings were welded "L" bracets and in the center, there was a huge block chevy motor....which by the way, drug the lake and never ever worked. Instead it was powered by a 15hp motor on the back and a huge black and orange sail with a big pirate skull on it. Now just imagine this boat coming down the lake! You could see it for miles and it reached a whopping speed of maybe 5 miles an hour! (on a windy day).

While this boat was no luxury liner, it was one of the most fun boats that I've ever been on. John would take all of us kids out in the middle of the lake. We'd climb up to the top and jump off into the water. Eventually, I think it had a slide on the back. Sometimes they would have 20 or 30 people on this boat! A truely generous family - giving of everything they had. And in relating that story to my friend earlier today, I can't help but smile.

She told me - you should blog that! And so I did....because it makes me smile...I had a great teenage years thanks to my friends in the Branson Congregation and to my parents who made sure that my teenage years were ones to remember!

ArtBead Madness and a little Friendly Plastic make the perfect combination!

I was excited to receive these beautiful and unique focal pieces from ArtBeads to incorporate into a design. I wish you could really see the detail in the canvas.

These lightweight pendants feature small prints of gorgeous paintings that will give your designs a touch of detailed color. The paintings are printed on real canvas with pigment paint and are coated with two layers of water-resistant varnish. Simply string one of these lightweight pendants from your favorite ribbon or cord from the attached bails, and show off these impressive masterpieces.

Sometimes I have to look at something for a while to be inspired. This week while I was working with Friendly Plastic, I decided to use Jana Ewy's fracture and fusion cylinder bead technique to create the perfect curved tube bead to accent the focal pendant. I attached the pendant using very tiny wire - barely visible.

Yesterday was Earth Day, and it was a big deal to our first grader Julia who called to ask her Dad if he recycled anything. Well....his answer was..Yes! A Fish! - (He went fishing and let a fish go)Hmm...I'll have to think if that counts or not...

In the meantime....Why not give an older piece a jewelry a fresh lift with a brand new copper enameled focal piece?

These enameled copper links offer an extremely versatile and handmade touch to your designs. These links are perfect for earrings and also make gorgeous backdrops for your favorite charms. You can even combine several links for a beautiful effect as a mosaic pendant. With these links' rich color and dynamic texture, you can add a vibrant effect to any design that your imagination and creativity can produce. As these links are individually handcrafted, there may be some subtle variance, but rest assured that you are receiving a high-quality, handmade product.

Check out these and other styles by clicking on their individual links or by visiting http://www.artbeads.com/!

Dollar Day sale at ArtBeads

Just a quickie post to let you know that ArtBeads is having a Dollar Day sale that lasts thru the week. There are over 1200 items on sale. For more information and to visit their website - click here!

Friendly Plastic Pellets Available

After lots of email requests, I am now offering Friendly Plastic pellets in a variety of sizes. In this way you can "try" a sample size. A word of caution - Not responsible for Friendly Plastic Pellet Addiction. At this time, there is no known cure!

Click here for ordering information thru Paypal -

Shipping and handling is included for US orders. International Orders, please contact me for additional shipping charges and options.

Springtime fishing and I got skunked!

While this post isn't about creating...it's still about sharing some good ole family time together.
Last weekend Elise and Dana spent a Daddy Day together at the Old Oar House Inn...one of our favorite catfishing spots. Dana couldn't fish because he was too busy baitin' and takin the catfish off Elise's pole - Way to go Elise!!!! (GIRLS RULE!)

When Im not in the studio creating stuff....or on set taping video's...there's a whole other side of me..the outdoorsy side. Okay...well a better description of that would be the 'Fair weather' outdoorsy side.

Yesterday was a beautiful spring like Ozark day. And I thought since the fishing was so great last weekend...why not have a 'date' day fishing with DH this weekend! Well........I got skunked...or should I say Goose Egged?? That's right...big fat zero fish for me! and just ONE "keeper" catfish for Dana. (He want's ya'll to know...he actually caught two catfish and snagged a drum....unfortunately, the "other" catfish needed to grow up a little and the drum broke the line when he got it up next to the dock....All I know is he lost alot of hooks and weights getting snagged all day.....)

ELISE!!!! I THINK YOU CAUGHT THEM ALL!!!

In a couple of weeks, I get to go on my first ever and hopefully annual fishing trip with my Dad, my Uncle Jim and my cousins Jimmy and Craig at Lake of the Ozarks......
You can tell Jimmy and I are family because as he says "I don't care what fish I catch...I just want to catch fish...and if an anchor will catchem..that's what I'll be fishin with!" Hopefully the fishin will be better in a couple of weeks....and hopefully the crawdadin will be too! Can't wait for a yummy crawdad boil! YUM YUM!!!

More Metal Bezels and Bails with Friendly Plastic

In line with the newly released video, I thought I'd share with you, a take on my technique using ArtEmboss Colored Metal's. Jen Lowe set this piece of Friendly Plastic using ArtEmboss Bright Gold and then distressing the edges with a soft sand paper.


This is a great cost-effective way for you to create beautiful jewelry and it's light weight too! Be sure to check out all the colors!

New Video - Friendly Plastic TV- Making Bezels and Bails with ArtEmboss

Jana's post yesterday was GREAT TIMING for this video. Didn't she create some amazing bases in ArtEmboss Copper?

In this episode of Friendly Plastic TV, I show you how easy it is to create metal bezels and bails from ArtEmboss Pewter. But, don't just limit yourself to these effects to pewter...try them with any of the ArtEmboss colored Aluminum sheets too!






This technique and many others are available in my latest book -Metal Jewelry 101.

Want more idea's?
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Click Here to order and for more details!

SteamPunk and Altered Art....It's just art for my soul

I recently had to get real!....I had to go on a major dig of my studio and really really really...had to come to grips with the fact that I can not keep everything I see....

That was really heart wrenching because......junkin'....dumpster divin'...whatever you want to call it...it's in my blood. I come by it naturally...my Mother...my Aunt Molly...My Aunt Junie....(sorry gals...) But...you know...there is this inherent need to create something out of someone elses trash or throw aways. Fortunately most of what I cleared away was art supplies that I never used or havent used in a while and I was able to donate them to the school's art department...so there was a bit of comfort there....

Maybe that's why Im so attracted to designer - found object and now what they call SteamPunk Jewelry. Some girls like diamonds....and while I LOVE LOVE LOVE bling like any other girl...I'd take gaudy..funky...fun...original any day over diamonds... Call me weird!

A lady named Jane from the UK recently emailed me to share with me her version....and I felt that I must share it with you....(here is the link to her etsy store

It's a very simple elegant pendant that reminds you to explore....imagine...and dream.....

For me it's exploring the wonderful gift I have of creating...exploring God's nature and all the creativity he put into it and imagining what it will be like to be in a paradise and be perfect....and I dream about the Art that I will create in paradise when I'm perfect........

Isn't that what life is all about?

Happy Springtime everyone! Just in time for Spring's arrival, the new project of the month club is ready to download!

This bunny features the Six Simple Shapes technique. It's easy to do when you learn the Six Simple Shape Technique. To help you out, tomorrow I will have the Six Simple Shape technique video available on the blog to download. The first in our series of video's. It's free with your pom club membership!! Information on becoming a Pom members is on the sidebar.

The winner for last months froggie contest was Theresa M. So...Theresa...will you please email me your address so I can give the froggie a new home?

APRIL JEWELRY PROJECT OF THE MONTH CLUB AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD

Happy Spring to everyone! This month's Jewelry Project of the Month Project is ready for download....so if you are a member....head on over to the jewelry blog and download it. Also featured this month is a companion 12 minute video on making this piece in metal. I will warn you though...it is a large download. My suggestion is to download it...then go out to lunch...and come back and watch it. It's a fun video!

Video's are FREE to POM Club members.....if you are not a member and would like to purchase the video, email me and I will send an invoice thru paypal for $7.99 along with a link to download. If you prefer to have a CD mailed to you to view on your computer, there is an extra $2.00 shipping/handling charge.

Im sharing one of my favorite techniques. I love working with copper...its so rich and warm...and you can do so many amazing things with it.

Have fun!

These and other metal techniques can be found in my Metal Jewelry 101 too!

Now to work on the Polymer POM .....It has a video too!

Organization... A key to a Creative Space!

Have you ever read a magazine on organization, showing all these beautiful inspiring creative spaces the OTHER people have and just drooled??? Seeing one in real life is even better!! Jen Lowe has a way of organizing that just beats anything I've seen up till now. That made Jana and I want to get in gear and organize our creative workspace too!!

Jana actually beat me to it. Im re-doing my studio in sections and I have taken before pictures..but the after pictures are taking me a while, since my studio was purely functional, brown plain walls and very uninspiring. That means several coats of paint on the walls and installing new counters and shelves......and time.....never enough time!

Since Jana's studio is finished, I just have to share!....it's so organized, and fun and welcoming. I would love to just go in there an explore (and mess it up a little). I just finished talking to Jana about her new studio makeover and she says...SHE LOVES IT and it was worth every penny!!!

Here she writes:

My Studio...Before and After

At long last... I have finally gotten to the AFTER. Well it is still a work in progress, but it is finally a nice workable place that I can finally call my STUDIO. I am sure... you all know what an undertaking it is to try to re-organize your craft space. WoW... It was a much bigger job than I had anticipated, but the out come has been well worth the effort. What a joy it is to enter this room now. Just take a look at the transformation.



Before... (personally....I thought it looked pretty good.....but wait...It got better!)

After... I was so crazy for these ribbon wall unites from Making Memories that I bought three of them. Only used the ribbon rods on the unite above my new desk, though. Look at how neat my alcohol inks are, in these little white baskets. The floating shelves gave me a place to display a few pieces of art work that were stuffed in the closet before. Oh... and look... there is my FP art piece framed and on display.

I have my lap top placed on the book-boxes in the corner and on the other wall unite is where I keep all my soldering stuff along with envirotex, mixing materials and mold making mixtures.

Before... a mess of filigree findings.

After... WOW... too neat... I need to make a mess here. This is my favorite place to sit, here in front of the window, plus I can spend hours playing with all these filigree pieces, so many fabulous designs to create with theses.

You can never have enough filigree jewelry findings to play with.

These divided jewelry displays fit perfectly into the wire drawers, and are easy to lift in and out. I love these... I would buy 100 of these just to fill them up. As a matter of fact that is what makes buying organizers so much fun... is having great stuff to put in them.

Before... can you believe I was able to create jewelry while sitting at this mess?

After... so neat and clean. I am so organized now that I can't find anything. My new desk and cabinet are from Best Craft Organizers, Can you believe I was able to fit all that mess into these two pieces of furniture. Each drawer has fifteen compartments in it. They were a great investment, not cheap, but worth every penny.

Look how beautiful my beads look.

Here is the unit where I used the ribbon rods to hold all my spools of chain. Everything fit perfect.

Mike, (my husband) helped me put up the shelves on this wall. They don't look as nice as the floating shelves but they can hold a lot of weight, that means... lots of good stuff can be collected and placed here. Books and Magazines too.

This is my Stainless steel cutting table. I cut so much Friendly Plastic that it had to be durable, plus the shelf under it, holds stacks of drawers, each one containing its own color of Friendly Plastic sticks. Talk about organized... before they were in zip-lock bags, tossed into one big bin. It used to be a 30 minute ordeal just to pick out colors I needed for a project. Not any more.

Finally... here is half of my closet where all the rest of my really good stuff is kept. This half got the make over, 12 x 12 drawers replaced the bins and has made it much easier to get the tools and things I use most often.

So... what do you think? Much better than before? I still need a new desk chair, something funky on wheels. Not your typical desk chair. The fun will be in the hunt. If you have any suggestions... please let me know.

Personally, I believe it's about what you do with the space you have. You can put ALOT of stuff in small area if you organize properly.... unfortunately I am no expert on the subject. I think Jana did an amazing job with tranforming a "workroom" into a "creative studio".

Recycle your Jewelry - A trip to the Dollar Jewelry Store

Yesterday, Mariah and I did what girls do best....GO SHOPPING!!!! We spent yesterday shopping in Branson, and that always includes a trip to the dollar jewelry store....So what can you get for a buck? Dollar JEWELRY!! Well...just look at all the stuff we bought! 22 different items for just a dollar each....

I know the picture's a little dark, but remember the bling spring pendant that I video'd with the rhinestone frame from Michaels? While that was not a bad deal at $3.99..... Just look at the center heart which could be used in a similar way for a $1 US..(about 60p for those of you in the UK....for everyone in Australia...sorry...I don't know the exchange..)

Most all of the jewelry, earrings, necklaces that I bought yesterday will be disassembled and reconstructed into jewelry incorporating Friendly Plastic. It just takes a little imagination to view found objects and jewelry findings in a different way. When you do....you'll save a whole lot of money! The $22 I spent yesterday would add up to way more if I had bought the findings individually....

Now.....what do you do with all that stuff? Take a look at the project below by Jana Ewy. She'll teach you how to create a Friendly Plastic Cabachon that you can use as a focal piece for Jewelry that you've repurposed.

Take a look in your stash...and if you just can't find what you're looking for...a trip to the Dollar Jewelry store should do the trick!

Elegant Marbled Necklace Pendant

By: Jana Ewy for AMACO

This jewelry project teaches you how to create marbled pendants or "plastic cabochons" for elegant jewelry. Select the components and colors of your choice for a pendant that looks like a colorful opal, for much less.

Materials:

• 1 1/4” Oval shape cutter (Keep in a small dish of ice cold water with a few drops of oil.)
• Friendly plastic marbling comb
• 7” Friendly plastic sticks: 1 Turquoise/Blue, 1 Avocado/Black, 1 Swirl/Blue, 1 Gold/Black
• Cutting mat
• Acrylic ruler
• Mat knife or utility knife
• Craft knife
• Scissor
• Needle tool
• Electric griddle set at 200 to 250 degrees
• Non-stick baking sheet
• Envirotex Lite, resin sealer, or any high gloss acrylic sealer
• Non-stick cookie sheet
• Jewelry components and findings of your choice

Directions:

1. Using the cutting mat, ruler and matte knife, cut one 1/4” strip from each color of plastic. Now cut each strip in half with a scissor

2. Pre-heat the griddle. Place the baking sheet onto the griddle. Place the plastic strips onto the baking sheet one at a time in the color pattern of your choice. Make sure each strip is stuck in place before adding the next strip. Try to press each strip tightly against the one before, to prevent any gaps. Allow the plastic to soften and seal together. If any gaps do appear, simply tap over them with your finger pressing the softened plastic together.

3. When all the strips have softened and sealed together, place the teeth of the marbling comb against the baking sheet and draw the comb towards you in a wavy “S” pattern cutting through the plastic.

NOTE: It is very important that you keep the teeth of the comb against the pan while cutting through the plastic. If you only rake over the top, you split the metallic finish and take the chance of exposing too much of the base plastic.

4. Place the teeth of the marbling comb in between the lines you just cut. Now push the comb away following the same wavy pattern, bisecting the previous pass.

5. Remove the pan from the griddle. While the plastic is still warm, cut out the oval by pressing the cutter into the softened plastic. If you are cutting several ovals be sure to dip the cutter back into the cold water after each cut. This will help keep it from sticking to the plastic.

Allow the plastic to cool. You may place the pan under cold running water to speed the cooling process along.

Use the needle tool to press under the edges of the cooled plastic to remove it from the pan. Pop out the ovals. If needed use the craft knife to cut around each one.

6. Apply the Envirotex sealer following the manufactures instructions.

Note: I like to place my pieces on a non stick cookie sheet. This way if there is any run off, it will be easy to remove later. Once I have the Envirotex mixed, I like to pour it into a small squeeze bottle. The application will be more precise and much easier. Blow softly, through a straw to pop any bubbles that remain. Allow the resin to dry at least 12 hours. If there has been any run off, remove the piece from the pan by pressing the needle tool under it and lifting it off the sheet. You can cut the excess that has run off with a scissor. Envirotex cures completely in 24 hours.

7. Gather your jewelry components and findings and assemble them in a pleasing design.

The marbled cabochons are the perfect focal piece in any style of jewelry.

Remember there's a whole lot more projects on http://www.favecrafts.com/ or http://www.amaco.com/ websites. Don't forget the videos too!

Have to brag a little bit!!! Image transfer's for Friendly Plastic

Sometimes when you discover a new technique or a new way to do a technique on a different product you just want to shout to the world. So....IM SHOUTING!

I've received soooo many emails and there has been so much discussion on the Friendly Plastic Yahoo group about image transfers to Friendly Plastic. So, I decided to take this entire week and devote to discovering ways to make it happen.

Remember the spring photo's I posted a couple weeks ago? I manipulated them in photoshop to give them an artsy flair..... so here's a couple of the images I designed...

There are many ways to accomplish this with polymer clay....however.... since Friendly Plastic is in essence the exact opposite of polymer clay, this proposed a challenge. BUT...today....I can honestly say that I have discovered three different ways to transfer an image to Friendly Plastic.

All three of them have different looks for different effects and so far, they are pretty fool proof. Use them alone...combine them...the possibilities will be endless....

Do I have your curiousity??? I hope so! You'll have to stay tuned as that is the subject of this months Friendly Plastic TV videos. But I'll have a preview ready for you by the end of the week - they're still drying...sorry for no finished pieces.. but Im too excited not to post this!!!