WINGED

Polymer clay pushes all kinds of boundaries! These exotic bird pins came all the way from New Zealand, from a shop of Wilma Birdstock.

Wilma says: ”I live near the bush in New Zealand and make work which reflects my interest in the natural world, especially birds. I am particularly interested in the ways we use animal imagery to shape our identities. My bird necklaces are both a celebration of this relationship and a reminder of how destructive is our need to possess and collect. “

I think birds are a perfect subject for a polymer clay artist. They come in so many different shapes and colors, that you really need a material with endless possibilities, such as polymer clay, to depict all their beauty.

PETALED

These multi-petal fantasy flowers are from ZudaGay.etsy.com. What a beautiful combination of color, form, and texture!

Ther are more pictures of Zuda's work in her blog and photo album.

SUPPORTING

Due to its versatility, polymer clay plays a supporting role in art pieces as successfully as a leading one. The former is true for these richly patterned bracelets and earrings created by Sharon McLeod.

To make this jewelry, Sharon prints her own graphic art on thin paper, then she meticulously laminates it to various sizes of small tubing, and then assembles it with a variety of materials including polymer clay, glass, metal, rubber and plastic.

Find these and other creations by Sharon in her shop, designforest.etsy.com.

FOLKSY

Here are a few whimsical creations by Kim Owens to make you smile.

Kim sculpts each of them by hand, textures, and antiques each piece to give them her signature “Primitive” look.

Find more of these folks in Kim's shop, web site, and blog.

GORGEOUS

Lisa MacGregor, a British artist from ziggymac.etsy.com, uses metal leaf, inks, and resin over polymer clay to create her gorgeous focal beads and pendants. The process involves numerous steps and requires lots of time, but the result is definitely worth the effort.

To find more works by Lisa, visit her web site, www.lisamacgregor.com.

FUNKY

These funky face focal beads/pins are from the shop of Kim Cavender.

Kim says: “My philosophy is that life's too short to eat cheap ice cream and far too short to be ordinary.” These focals are surely not ordinary!

You can see more of Kim's artwork in her blog and photo album.

EXPRESSIVE

Did you know that polymer clay was originally marketed as a material for doll-makers?

These unique art dolls are from the shop of another Canadian artist, Sue Barton.

I love art dolls and have seen many of them, from many artists. Some dolls are moody and spooky, others are simply beautiful to look at. Sue's dolls tell their own stories, and that's what makes them true works of art in my eyes.

There are more pictures of Sue's art dolls in her blog and on her web site.

INDUSTRIAL

The beauty of polymer clay is that this material can be made to look like almost any other material. Kimberly, a Canadian polymer clay artist, makes it look convincingly metal in her industrial and steampunk designs. Her Industrial Hearts are my favorite. They simply overflowing with creativity!

You may see Kimberly's creations in her Etsy shop and on her web site. Have fun!

UNCONVENTIONAL

Switch plates and outlet covers decorated with polymer clay are quite popular because they allow an endless array of designs and colors to match any home décor. They are also quite easy to make – all you need to do is cover a plastic switch plate with a polymer clay veneer and trim off any access of clay.

Krisi from krisi.etsy.com takes her switch plates a step further and experiments with the form as well as with the design. Her sheet of music switch plate is my favorite.

CARVED

So far I've shown you polymer clay sculpted, painted, stamped, caned, inlaid... What else can be done with it? It can be carved!

Here are a few interesting examples of this technique from the shop of Julie Sweeney, juliespace.etsy.com

Visit Julie's blog, juliespacedesign.blogspot.com to find out more about Julie and her work.

INLAID

I found these elegant contemporary designs with a perfect balance between shape and color in Lizard's Jewelry shop by Liz Hall. Liz specializes in PMC (Precious Metal Clay), and uses polymer clay inlays to add some color to her silver pendants and earrings.

I completely felt in love with Liz's designs as soon as I saw them. These geometric forms with a hint of exotic flavor must be so much fun to wear!

Find out more about this artist and her work on lizardsjewelry.com.

BLOOMING

Today's collection demonstrates what can be done with the canes like those I showed yesterday. It is coming from a shop with a wonderful name, The color of Dreams Boutique. The artist behind this shop, Patricia, says that she sometimes have dreams about making her millefiori beads and jewelry...

Read more about Patricia and her work in her blog.

CANNED

Canes, or millefiori (if you prefer fancy words), is one of the most popular techniques for polymer clay. Adopted from the ancient art of glass-making, it suits polymer clay perfectly.

Charlene (Cat) Therien is probably one of the best masters of this technique. At her shop, you may find not only her beautifully-detailed raw canes, but also tools and tutorials for making and slicing your own canes.

Visit Cat's web site to see more of her work and to find a list of her free polymer clay tutorials.

IVORY

I mean, faux ivory. That is my favorite style among the creations by Caren Goodrich, a full-time artist from Aspen, Colorado, who sells her polymer clay beads and paintings in her shop, caren.etsy.com.

There are more pictures of Caren's beautiful polymer clay beads, watercolor paintings, and her horses in her Flickr photo album and her blog.

GREEN

For St-Patric's day, I found these beautiful green pendants and ornaments in the shop of Valerie Ashley from Rhode Island, ElysianFields.etsy.com. Valerie collects real leaves, imprints them in clay, and uses artist pencils and water colors to draw and paint tree nymphs and dryads.

Valerie donates 5% from each sale of these "Spirit of Nature Designs" to the Arbor Day Foundation to support public education and preservation of trees.

See more of her creations in her blog and photo album.

DISTRACTING

For those of you, boys, who are heading to work this Monday and simply cannot leave the weekend behind, I found a few interesting sets of accessories. These are cuff links from TheClayCollection.etsy.com by a Californian artist, Lauren Swingle. She decorates her original polymer clay cuff links with miniature copies of video game boxes, cartridges, and controllers, which would be quite distracting during a morning staff meeting...

DECORATIVE

Today's finds are from the shop of yet another talented Pennsylvanian polymer clay artist, Emily Squires Levine. I love the bright colors of Emily's creations.

Visit Emily's web site, www.emilysquireslevine.com to see more of her works.