I have been polymer claying for over 20 years, most of that time has been spent making custom cane designs, jewelry, sculptures, and pictures in clay. It's difficult to express how much I love polymer. I just do. The smell of clay baking in my oven is lifts my mood better than any scented candle ever could. Creating in clay is my happy place.
How did I find polymer clay? When I was in seventh grade, I was in an after school art club. The teacher that ran it brought in this stuff called polymer clay and explained that it was just starting to take off in the art world. She made a few sample projects for us to follow along (I still have that first fish I made). While we worked at sculpting, she told us about this technique called millefiori, where a design was built into a log of clay and you are able to take a many slices of one picture to decorate your work.
I was already hooked on the clay from that first time I touched it, and hearing her talk about it's potential had me intrigued. I needed to know more about this millefiori technique and play with more clay. My birthday was only a week or two away and I asked for polymer clay. I hunted down one of the few books on the subject and bought it so that I could pore over it and learn all I could. I practiced at my dining room table until I finally got a workspace set up in my bedroom. Just about every birthday and Christmas during my teenage years, polymer clay was always at the top of my "wish list"
Along the way, I have developed my own distinct style. During my teenage years, I had only two polymer clay books to study (before the internet took over). Those books were good for learning the basic techniques clayers used, but they also had gallery sections, places where established polymer artists could display their work. And they didn't give lessons for achieving those results. At some point I just started studying these other works and thinking about how they did it. After a few light bulb moments, I was set off in the direction I'm still headed in today. I'm primarily self taught I look at each cane as it's own piece of art and I'm still learning new things with every design I make.
Last year, I decided it was time to take my lifelong hobby in a different direction and open up shop. I'm excited to see where this takes me and my art. After years of being single mother of one and working full time, I find myself now a married, homeschooling mom of four. I hope to inspire my teenagers and encourage an entrepreneurial spirit.