Another Clay Picture in Progress

Here's my second clay picture in progress. I finished the sculpting and baked it yesterday morning.

And here's how it came together:


My clay sheet marked and ready for sculpting.


I shape a kitty and draw out the hill.

Tiny whiskers for a tiny cat. I place them first on one side, trim them and then do the other side.

Finished whiskers.


Then I add a tail and place the kitty on the hill.


I roll little blades of grass and plant them on the hill.


The grassy hill.


Next I remove three blades of grass and place flower stems.


Then I add the petals - each flower has six.

I add little grooves to each petal with a blunt needle and then I place a small dot of clay on each flower where the petals meet.

Now I place the butterfly's wings.


And its body with antennae.


Then I add a little detail to the wings.

Next I start adding the sunbeams and I also add a trail of flight for the butterfly.

Here I've trimmed the sunbeams even with my marking along the top. And I decided to erase (filling in the holes and smoothing the clay) the butterfly's trail of flight because it would have gotten mixed in with the sundrops.

The sundrops and the finished picture...And those rose canes are still waiting to be finished!

Sunflower Morning - A New Clay Picture in Progress

Yesterday I got bored of making the rose canes I was working on, so I began sculpting a new clay picture. I always have enjoyed sculpting with a solid color of clay - it gives me the freedom to take my design anywhere I like without having to worry about any colors just yet.

I titled this new picture Sunflower Morning. The photos below show how it all came together.

As always I start with a layer of clay on a sheet of glass. Then I lightly mark the edges of the frame so I don't cut off any of the picture once I place it in the frame.

Next I shape the hills.


And draw out a little curved mound.

Then I roll little dirt clods. I tear off tiny bits of clay, flatten them between my fingers and lightly roll them into balls, rolling them each just enough to make them semi-round.

The finished mound.


Next I place a stem for my sunflower and shape the leaves.


I scour each leaf down the center with a needle.


And press the leaves into place.


Now I briefly place the sunflower's center - just to make sure I like the placement.

I marked faint dots around the center before I removed it, that way I can get all the petals lined up.

Here I've added seeds to the sunflower's face and placed it in the center of the petals.


Now I start adding the curly sunbeams.


Once they're all placed, I cut the ends even with the mark I drew along the top of the picture.


Then I test the fit in the frame.

All finished and ready for baking. I hope I get some time to paint it over the next couple days. I still have two rose canes to finish and late last night I started another clay picture...I'll have photos of that one really soon!

New Winged Heart Necklace

Here's my newest winged heart design. I actually created this pendant a while back and then couldn't decide on bead and chain style. I finally went with vintaj brass with polymer clay stacked beads. I really like using a length of chain just above the pendant before stringing any beads - it puts more emphasis on the pendant.

Let your heart fly free! ...See it in my Etsy shop here.