Rustic Clay Beads

So, I've been playing with clay for a while now and I am absolutely obsessed. You can see some of  the finished Artful Adornaments I've been making in my last post. But, I wanted to show you some of the beads I've been making with the Rustic Bead Tutorial from The Blue Bottle Tree. I have a lot more experimenting I want to do, but here are first attempts. I will probably be adding these to more Artful Adornaments, but it's possible I will play with some jewelry too. Ginger's tutorials are FABULOUS! I have also used Getting Up To Speed In Polymer Clay. She writes so well and conveys a great deal of helpful information without being too wordy. If you are interested in polymer clay, I encourage you to check her tutorials and her website out. I have learned so much from her.

These brown and blue beads on the end here are my favorites so far. 

Artful Adornaments

So, lately, I have been trying out clay and I am in love with it! I love the texture and the molding and the finishing. I have so many ideas swimming in my head. If you'd like to learn how to make these, I teach them in one of my Slimline Soul Food 2014 Lessons. Here's a few pieces I've completed recently.

Brave on Redeemwood Recycled Palette Canvas

Brave by Heather Santos
on Redeemwood Palette Canvas

I'm excited to share this piece with you. Recently, I was offered a sample wood "canvas" from Redeemwood (Facebook) to try out and give feedback on. These canvases are made from recycled wooden shipping palettes, which I think is a brilliant idea. They are very rustic and each is unique. The piece I received had 3 nails, which just adds to the character.

I love painting on wood, especially wood with character. I love sanding it in spots to let the wood shine through.

I've made a video below to show the wood as well as me painting. I'm very happy with the way this turned out. This was a JOY and want to say thanks to Doug at Redeemwood for letting me try this out! Close-ups below the video.

Music by Jenna Jackley (Facebook), used with permission.

Brave (close-ups) by Heather Santos
on Redeemwood Recycled Palette Canvas