Dive into the world of German artist Florian Schäfer, a leading force behind Forgotten Creatures. Supported by the folklorist Janin Pisarek, Florian spends hours researching descriptions of supernatural beings - on the internet as well as in dusty archives and crammed libraries. In his myth studio, realistic replicas of ghosts and beasts are created. We are happy that in his fairy-tale sculptures, polymer clay is often used, especially for faces, skin and hands. “The sculptures are painted with acrylics. Hair, clothing and other accessories are mostly made from natural products,” says Florian who pays attention to every detail and collaborates with photographer Hannah Gritsch to capture his art staged at historical locations. The belief in nature spirits, in goblins and fairies shaped people's lives for many centuries. Many orally transmitted folk tales were written down in the course of history - which is also documented by the well-known collections of the Brothers Grimm. Fantastic novels, films and series are on everyone's lips and inspire millions of people every day. Despite the continued popularity of such media, knowledge of the cultural origin of these traditional motifs is waning in the general consciousness and Florian believes it’s time to revive the fascination with the almost forgotten legendary figures. With his team they currently focus on nearly forgotten spirits of German folklore. “With the project Forgotten Creatures we set ourselves the task of bringing the beings of “lower mythology” to life today,” says Florian. This is done in an innovative way. Florian creates sculptures in elaborate manual work, the appearance of which corresponds to the descriptions from historical writings. Then they combine art with cultural history and thus create a modern level of experiencing our own cultural past. In August 2020 a book "Hausgeister!" (Household spirits) was published featuring both in-depth information on cultural backgrounds and many photographs on nearly 200 pages. “It is currently translated into english and will be available in Autumn 2022 by the publisher from Canada,” says Florian and we are amazed by the work he and his team has done. Congratulations!

When it comes to polymer clay and slabs, it seems like everyone is creating them when looking at Instagram feed. It’s true that with new faces in our community, many beginners and enthusiasts grabbed the first interesting thing in polymer, got inspired by each other and started creating these kinds of decorative three dimensional patterns. One of them is Abby from Love Athena, whose work is different. Her polymer clay slabs are precise, with fresh ideas and in modern graphic style often incorporating fruits, flowers, animals and other motifs. “I was born and raised in the Philippines and with my husband we migrated to the United States four years ago,” says Abby who used to be a motion graphics artist and did some 2d flat animation for big and small companies back in her home country. That explains her current artwork a lot. It’s not been a long since Abby got the clay in her hands for the first time: “My polymer clay journey started in July 2020 during the pandemic. I’m a stay at home mom so I thought maybe I could make earrings and try to sell them, somehow help my husband with our finances, and see if it will be a success,” she explains. Since then she has attracted more than five thousands of followers on her Instagram account, which is a great success. “The feeling of being fulfilled after you made your first floral design was a big sigh! But beyond those happy moments, doing this craft taught me to have a loooooot of patience,” says Abby who adds that you have to try again and again if there’s a technique or texture or look that you’re aiming for that you can’t make at the moment. Abby has a lot of plans for her small business but working and creating is hard for her as having two children can be a lot. “I can only work on my pieces when it’s peaceful and quiet, and during nap times,” she says. Abby wants to explore more in what she can do with polymer clay and we can’t wait to see her new creations.

Siberian artist Anna Kokareva, alias Annie Bimur, complempletely blown us away with her wonderful inchies that she created to exchange at the polymer clay event that was held at the start of October in Russia. “This micro-festival unites no more than 20 polymer artists from Russia and Belorussia. For three days we studied amazing new techniques and enjoyed a friendly atmosphere,” says Annie about the event she attended. Exchanging inchies, small squares from polymer clay created with different techniques and mediums, became a tradition for many countries. In Europe and USA many polymer clay events do the same. Trading and collecting little artworks from different artists presenting their skills and ideas in this clever form and can look back to those wonderful memories they created with other enthusiasts. Look closely at Annie’s inches that present little volcanos, a nice three dimensional effect. While her main occupation is editing scientific texts, her spare time she dedicates to creating from polymer clay as she has been constantly searching for new ideas, shapes, techniques, and original materials to play with. Check her Instagram to see more of her original art.

Many of you are already familiar with the work of American artist Melissa Terlizzi, who recently joined a show called “FEAR” hosted by an art gallery in her city. Artists from all over the country submitted artworks depicting things that scare them. “I chose to make a venomous snake from Africa called a bush viper,” Melissa told us about her submission. “I like snakes a lot, but many people feel a deep revulsion to them, so I thought this would be the perfect subject for the theme of the show,” explains Melissa why she chose this motif. She wanted her snake to be bright and beautiful, just as the real ones are, but also to make people feel a little uncomfortable which truly works nicely as the snake is slithering from the base into the space of the viewer. Melissa is well-known for her precise, often very cheerful sculptures from polymer clay. This time she composed the sculptural pieces onto a 12 x 12” wood cradleboard so the sculpture can hang on the wall and look ready to strike anyone passing by! In this particular sculpture her patience and sense of detail is very clear. The same for her style based on realism and stylization as well: “An actual bush viper has light-colored golden eyes, and its scales are keeled in the center, giving it a rough, dragon-like appearance. I gave my snake red eyes because I thought they would look more frightening, and made my scales flat. Creasing all of the tiny clay scales in half would have made me go crazy, so I created a scale cane with a line down the center to give the impression of a ridge,” she says. Are you curious about the way Melissa created this incredible sculpture piece? The snake’s head and body were shaped out of aluminum foil and covered with black clay. The scales were cut from her cane and layered on one by one from the tail to the head. Then the snake parts were baked while Melissa created the branch and gradient background, and then attached with Bake and Bond. “I pressed leaves from my garden into sheets of clay to create the foliage, and added clay vines and berries to make it look like the snake was hanging in the rainforest waiting to ambush its prey. After everything was baked together for a final time, I used heat set oil paints and Gilder’s Paste to liven up the leaves and add shadows around the snake’s eyes,” explains Melissa, about the process of her artwork. True masterpiece!

Well-known Australian artist Debbie Crothers recently showed us her love for textures. “Who doesn't love a good texture stamp?” she wrote. Mostly every polymer clay artist is fascinated by all those fancy products we can purchase to create some magic and push our creativity forward and Debbie is not an exception. “There are some pretty amazing designs around and I have quite a few in my stash but, in all the years I've been working with polymer clay I've never really explored textures fully,” says Debbie. By saying that, she means understanding how the clay moves and behaves when a texture stamp is used. “In the past I've simply squished the stamp into the clay and there you go - instant awesomeness!” she explains. We are very excited that Debbie found some free time to explore possibilities of Lucy Struncova’s Texture Stamps that Lucy gave to Debbie when they met in Australia two years ago. “Lucy has some amazing stamps for polymer clay but some of my favourites would have to be the spotty ones. I've actually been exploring the world of dots/spots and polymer clay so pulling these stamps out of hibernation seemed to be the natural thing to do,” she continues. Debbie actually had a project in mind that made the whole challenge more exciting. She chose to create earrings for her friend using simple components made from black wire that matches the polymer clay pieces perfectly. “It's actually really exciting for me to explore a product and see how far or how many different ways I can use it. These stamps were no exception,” talks Debbie about her experiments that went into the creation of beautiful sets of earrings made from discs of mokume gane patterns. Crackles, circles, dots, waves,... we have to agree, those patterns and all options seem to be really unlimitless. Debbie ended up writing a blog post about her experience and thoughts and has shared it on her website. Check it out and if you fall in love with Lucy’s stamps too, you can purchase them individually in our store here. Thank you, Debbie!

If you have been on the polymer clay scene for a while, you will definitely have heard of Carol Blackburn, a British polymer clay artist and tutor known for using bold and unprecedented colour combinations in her work. Just like the changing seasons in nature, artists have their own cycles in which they introduce new styles in their repertoire. This created an opportunity for us to learn about the new things that Carol has made during lockdown. It has come as no surprise that Carol has developed new polymer clay patterns for her signature lidded pots and boxes. After all, her boxes with their invisible seams and quirky designs are so unique that we simply cannot get enough of them. Now that days are getting notably shorter and evenings darker, a fun splash of colour in our lives is exactly what we need so pull out your cosy Coogi sweater from the wardrobe, make a cup of tea and dive into a colourful gallery showcasing more of Carol’s recent work here and sign up to Carol’s Facebook and Instagram where artist posts a photo of a new design every Friday. Carol revealed that many of her patterns use a repeated design and are often geometric in style but more recently she has been experimenting with Random Ribbon patterned pots. The tallest pot pictured is 13 cm/5 inches in height and we love how the black background helps to emphasise the illusion of three dimensions as the ribbons appear to float and drift effortlessly around the pots. ‘’This effect is achieved with light and dark Skinner blends,’’ Carol lays bare, ‘’The choice of colours in my work is very random and although I know the theory of colour I don't follow any charts or method and prefer to work instinctively.’’ Carol has just demonstrated to us that regardless of studies and knowledge of colour, sometimes following your heart and instincts is the right way to create something fresh and mesmerizing. Which box has caught your eye the most? Tell us in the comments section below.

Here at the Polymer Week blog we bring together artists from all over the world, each with their own different style and background, united by their love for polymer clay. Casey Cross has only recently discovered polymer clay and we are excited to welcome him into this ever expanding community of makers and enthusiasts. After seeing a few of Casey’s art projects, you may wonder if we have made a mistake as this does not seem like the work of a beginner. Before coming across polymer clay Casey was a scenic artist who painted and sculpted for Disney and Universal Studios theme parks so if you find yourself visiting Disneyland in Orlando, Florida, you will see a vast amount of props that Casey has created. Over the years Casey has worked with most sculpting mediums, but upon recently discovering polymer clay he has become hooked on it ever since, and we cannot blame him! Just looking at the ever growing polymer clay community we are part of, we cannot help but wonder if polymer clay has any additional ingredients that are causing addiction. Nowadays Casey stays busy creating custom made props, statues and collectibles for his customers. He owns a creature and prop shop called Darkheart Kreations. Connect with Casey on Instagram and find out more about his art.

How much do we take things in our lives for granted? Today’s story of Angelica from Sweden might open your eyes to appreciate all normal things in your life as something special. “I have chronic fatigue and wanted to find something creative to do as being home all day everyday can be quite tiresome and boring,” starts explaining her journey Angelica. Just one year ago she discovered polymer clay and found the right medium for her. Living with chronic fatigue might be difficult to imagine. Angelica is very open about her life and we really appreciate her honesty. “I don't mind sharing my struggles, I like to spread awareness,” she says. Angelica has been having this kind of illness for about eight years now. This difficult situation makes her really appreciate the time when her body functions normally. “On a good week I can squeeze in about three hours of sculpting. When having a bad week I try to sculpt for at least one minute a day,” says Angelica who sometimes needs to rest for a week and doesn't get anything done, even though she really wants to. Because of that she found polymer clay as the right material that doesn’t require starting and finishing work the same day. “The fact that there's no set schedule that I need to follow, that I can stop and start whenever I want is a big plus,” says Angelica about her favourite material that she discovered thanks to YouTube. She started off making earrings and small charms but has recently moved on to bigger and more detailed sculptures. “I really love the challenges they bring! I also make my own signature sculptures called Bubs, which are cute little noseless creatures that often have sad expressions,” clarify Angelica. “One day I came up with a fat cheeked cutie and liked it so much that I decided to make more. All of them have their unique look to them but they all share those cute and fat squishy cheeks.” As Angelica can’t work or study most of her time, she doesn't get out that much: “It’s hard to make new friends, that’s partly why I decided to make an Instagram account in the hopes of meeting new people,” she says. “It's hard not to get frustrated and depressed when your body feels like a prison. But I just try to focus on my sculpting and nothing else when I'm feeling blue. Being creative really helps me keep my mind off of the negative and that definitely brings me happiness,” says Angelica who also makes her friends very happy by giving away her sculptures. She is also planning to start selling her work soon so you might get a chance to support her, too. Thank you for letting us meet you Angelica, you are such a wonderful creative person that makes this world more colorful and interesting thanks to your little cute characters!

“From a very young age, I loved art in all forms. I would draw, paint and create, whenever I had the opportunity to do so,” says Jennifer Sloan who is known for her incredibly cute dinosaurs and dragons that she loves to sculpt. “As I got older and started my own family, I still incorporated art into my everyday life. My oldest daughter loved Play-doh as a toddler. She and I would play and create for hours. When it was time to clean it up, she would always cry when we had to squish our creations and put them away,” starts Jennifer explaining her first sculpting moments. “I wanted to make things for her that she could keep forever. I did some research and found polymer clay. Jennifer read everything she could about how to use it: As soon as I got my hands on it, I fell in love with it and never looked back,” she says. She moved from baby sculptures, robots, animals and monsters to dinosaurs and dragons that quickly became her very favorite things to sculpt. “Now I even make some species of my own. I get an idea for a creature and immediately have this need to bring it to life.” When looking at her sculptures, you can admire the textures, details, natural color palette, or groovy characters that she brings to live. But in the beginning it all starts with an armature: “It’s the skeleton of the piece. It's usually constructed of steel wire, aluminum foil and masking tape. The next step is taking a small amount of clay and smoothing it over the armature to give a nice smooth work surface,” explains Jennifer who normally bakes the thin layer of clay, waits for it to get cool and then is ready to begin creating. During her polymer clay journey she has worked with several brands of polymer clay but Cosclay is her favorite brand. “For the teeth on my dinosaurs and dragons, I use Super White Apoxie Sculpt and make and cure them ahead of time. This allows me to make them extra pointy,” accounts Jennifer. There is a lot you can learn from her! Like what materials she uses for the eyes, which tools are great for creating the very realistic texture on her sculptures, and which paints she uses at the end when the sculpture is ready to get the face on. We are very lucky that Jennifer created a tutorial for her Stegosaurus for the Polymer Week Society, where you can become a member and enjoy never ending content created by artists from all over the world, including a step by step tutorial for this cute character. “For anyone starting their own polymer clay journey, my advice is, you will fail a million times before you succeed. Never stop learning. Don't be afraid to ask questions or take risks. Don't give up. Most importantly, have fun! You will be amazed at what you can create,” motivates Jennifer all the newbies out there. And we definitely agree!

Lindsay Locatelli’s work is familiar to our magazine readers, as we have published an article about her journey in the Polymer Week 2/20. Lindsay continues working on her colorful jewelry so we decided to present her new pieces full of great ideas to you again. When looking at her artwork, you might not guess that this material is actually a polymer clay we all love. Perhaps your first guess could be wood because it's relatively easy to see the influence of woodworking in her pieces as the process employs two major ways of working with the clay. The first technique is based on subtraction of material. She starts with a cured block of clay from which she carves the desired forms using her favourite tool – a cordless dremel and various carving tools such as chisels and even dental tools. Apart from the tools for carving, Lindsay lists acrylic paint markers among her favourite tools. They are always at hand and allow her to do super precise work. The second technique that Lindsay frequently uses is the fabrication of holloware. Jewellery made by Lindsay combines many, occasionally slightly opposite, elements – it is sometimes colourful, sometimes monochromatic, abstract and figurative, organic with distinctly geometric features. There are, however, some characteristics that all her pieces share. Lindsay’s work is original, bold and narrative. She bravely explores the limits of what is possible with art jewellery. “I wish there were more people who weren’t afraid to wear big and colourful statement jewellery,” she says and her huge rings say a lot about that! She admits that even though she has a tendency to get distracted and explore many other materials, she always comes back to polymer. “Polymer makes up about 90% of my materials, however, I enjoy fabricating my own sterling silver components,” she states, adding that silver helps to add value to her finished pieces. Lindsay's form of expression is focused on the narrative but also abstract: “I’m interested in storytelling and how these figures hang and lay over bodily landscapes,” says Lindsay in which portfolio we can also find jewelry made in abstract shapes covered by interesting handmade textures. We also have to mention the slightly glittering surface that Lindsay uses in her latest art. Well done Lindsay!

When an average person is preparing to watch a scary film, the checklist will include making popcorn, dimming the lights and getting a cosy blanket to hide behind if it gets a little too scary, but not for Vick Kumar. In the early hours of the weekend, while his family is still asleep you will find Vick turning ‘Super Sculpey Firm’ into his own fun versions of familiar and beloved movie characters whilst listening to horror movie director commentaries in the background. Vick calls it his ‘’Quiet time to play’’. During the week Vick works as a professional graphic designer. Outside of this, parenting has always taken priority in his life. That is, until early 2019 when the whole world seemed to stop during the initial wave of Covid-19 and Vick found himself with some spare time. Having always enjoyed the creative process, Vick decided to return to art and create small 4 x 5 sketches that can be completed in an hour or two to post to a new Instagram account. Soon after, at the beginning of 2020, Vick felt the desire to sculpt and he created his first sculpture ‘’The Wolfman’’. This displays a great knowledge of sculpting and modelling and the techniques used really bring the sculptures to life. Despite being his first polymer clay piece, the standard of Vic’s work is outstanding. In Vick’s own words: ‘’ I am on the computer full-time. It is therapeutic that when the work day is done, you can pick up a pencil or clay and get lost in creating. A clump of Polymer clay can turn into a beautiful Frankenstein sculpture or a piece of paper can turn into an amazing illustration.’’ It is obvious that Vick is a movie buff which influences his art but what may not be apparent is the support of the online artist community: ‘’I found my creative family of talented artists. I used their comments to fuel my passion to keep on creating.’’ We hope that you will join Vick’s creative family on Instagram and will be inspired to sculpt something you are passionate about.

Sometimes we have to lose what we take for granted to realize how important and impactful it is for our life. Taylor Dawn’s story seems to be a bit sad, but at the end it looks like she found herself in a beautiful place of mind that now transfers through her polymer clay art. “I have always been one with a huge admiration for nature and a keen sense of wanderlust, but after losing my first dog and hiking buddy, Yonah, in a tragic house fire in the fall of 2020, I found a whole new love for nature,” starts to explain her story Taylor who then began hiking, camping and hanging outdoors more than ever; doing all the things that she used to love to do. Taylor started coping with her loss by playing around and trying to recreate the beauty she found in nature in polymer clay. “It has brought me so much solace. I began recreating places that I’d visited, and places that I’d one day love to visit, and that got me here, making one of a kind pieces,” she says. Her landscape replication pieces are made just from polymer clay, based on photographs of the areas. And even though Taylor has started working with polymer clay only in 2019, she has already evolved her passion into a successful business. Many satisfied customers have been amazed by Taylor’s work and the way she creates. “From mixing custom colors, to every mountain peak and cactus arm, every impression is made one mark at a time.” While looking at Taylor’s jewels, we have to appreciate the way she uses her patterns. She doesn’t try to make two earrings identical, but it seems like the landscape naturally continues from one earring to another. When you think about it, it’s really beautiful how a plastic material can bring nature and evoke emotions to people wearing Taylor’s jewels. Well done.

"I am an illustrator and creator of objects,” says Marlen Migdalska who focuses on many different techniques and materials, among them also polymer clay. “I like to express myself through digital drawing, painting, or traditional embroidery, papier-mâché or polymer clay that I fell in love in my fourteen, when I discovered salt dough and then polymer, since that passion to create has never left me.” Marlen was born in Poland and her childhood was full of fantastic stories and tales, which left their marks in her imagination and still influence her. Looking at her artwork, you simply get a feeling of being in a fairytale while escaping your own reality. Working as a freelance designer and illustrator of children’s books, Marlen also devotes her time to renovating a little chapel that will welcome creative people for workshops and making art: “Three years ago me and my husband bought an old house. In our garden there was previously a beautiful castle but was destroyed during the revolution. To be honest, with two young children the whole project has been a huge challenge, but I do hope we will find a way to finance the rest of the renovation and organize first workshops for children and people with Alzheimer disease,” says Marlen. Marlen, who also specializes in pedagogy and psychology, found working with people with mental disabilities very important. “I got involved in various associations and it turned out to be a decisive step in the choice of my studies. Until recently I worked as an art therapist and facilitator in different structures for the elderly with Alzheimer disease,” explains Marlen who already found her way of art, her passion, and life mission. She combines many passions together and we are simply speechless when realizing there is so much more Marlen does in her daily life. “I have always liked to create with my characters a kind of illusion, and a few years ago, by combining another passion of mine, a photography, I started to do volume illustrations,” Marlen told us about those cute 3D pictures combining her clay art, illustrations and working with volume together. We are keeping our fingers crossed that life will continue treating you well, Marlen. Can’t wait to see your next chapter after finishing the renovation. You can support Marlen on her Instagram or blog where she writes about her colorful daily life.

It’s been a while since there was a newly published book about polymer clay. It seemed as if our book A New Generation of Polymer Clay, that we published almost two years ago, was the last one. However when we got the information that Heidi Helyard from Australia is getting her own publication printed very soon, we were very happy. There is never enough of polymer clay projects, publications and classes out there as we believe everyone can find the most suitable source of education. We already wrote about Heidi and her artwork in one of our previous posts. She specialises in wearable pieces, earrings and pendants and also became a mentor to others who started working with the clay just recently. Heidi is very active with newsletters, one-on-one sessions and also on her social media accounts, so it’s no wonder that one day a publisher reached out to her about the possibility of writing her own book. It’s important to say, that there have been many different polymer clay books on the market already, so Heidi had to find her own goal: “I wanted to get a book out there that was contemporary and accessible. I really want people to see the book on the shelf, love the look of the pieces, buy the book, go home and immediately make something they then wear the very next day!” says Heidi who wanted to create simple to follow tutorials with beautiful, bold pieces as the final products. You will be able to buy a book with 144 pages called Creative Polymer Clay since the beginning of June or you can win your own copy as a member of the Polymer Week Society as we have just published an interview with Heidi about her journey and the book publishing including a giveaway for all our members to win their own copy of this book that should not be missing in your bookshelf. WIN YOUR OWN COPY OF THE BOOK ON www.polymerweeksociety.com

The internet and social media are full of sculptors and makers who love to create movie characters from polymer clay. Sometimes we have deep conversations in our team about what is kitsch and what we can call an art. The boundary between these two is really thin and usually stands on one’s subjective opinion. But to be honest, this artist’s work caught our attention! Let us introduce you to Elina Avchukhova from Moscow, Russia. Seven years ago she fell in love with polymer clay and since then she has made a huge progress in her art. “To put it mildly, I'm focused on detail! And I constantly want to improve and grow,” she says full of enthusiasm. On one figurine she spends on average from 20 to 40 hours of work and the passion in realism in her pieces is exactly what makes her different. Her artwork makes you think, makes you search for more information, makes you stop to give the piece your attention. This is what great art does. We met Elina on Instagram and to be honest, while looking at the picture of the Zootopia’s character, we were not sure if it’s made of polymer clay or if we are looking at a 3D animation. Elina is really able to breathe life into her figurines. When you start to see all that she creates, all those details, textures, the shading and way she works with colors, the way she imitates hair or combines the clay with other materials such as paper or fabric, you realise that Elina is a real master of this kind of art. “After all, it is a real miracle when a piece of clay, cloth or other material comes to life in your hands!” she says and we are truly excited to see her next piece in the near future.

Today’s blog is not only about Russian artist Olga Romanova who was born in St. Petersburg, the cultural capital of Russia. As it is still rainy behind the windows, the mood and thoughts are tending to go to more philosophical and spiritual realms. Since Olga was a child, mom taught her to sew, knit and embroider. Dressmaking therefore became her main job for years. “However, I never stopped engaging in other creative activities and exploring different kinds of crafts,” says Olga about her creativity roots. In 2013, inspired by the spirit of the ancient capital, she started creating bottles decorated with natural materials like leather and clay. This is where her brand name “Art Old Town” comes from. Around this time, her attention was caught by cold porcelain and polymer clay. “This amazing art material has conquered me with its versatility and infinite possibilities. I just couldn't stop! There was not much information on this subject in those days. So my actual skills are the result of much trial and error,“ shares Olga her beginnings with polymer clay. Well here in Czechia we have a saying that “The wise and skilled don't fall from the sky” - equivalent to English “There's no shame in not knowing”. You simply have to learn everything from the scratch and nobody is perfect when they start. Art is no difference. Artists have to learn all sorts of techniques and the way to work with various tools to achieve the image in their mind and in their heart. The source of inspiration and the creativity is not enough. Most of the time it is hard work, especially from the beginning it is even emotionally intense when the errors occur more often than the success. In 2015, after Olga went through this learning process and found out that this is what she wants to do, she quit her main job to dedicate herself to art practice with polymer clay. Ever since, she tried many different techniques and styles but then finally focused on a botanical imitating look. “I'm very passionate about my work and I'm really fascinated by creating stylized pomegranates and also flowers and berries, as realistic as possible. When the task is more difficult, when it has more details, for me it's more exciting,” shares her excitement Olga and continues: “Recently I've decided to expand my range of options combining polymer clay with bronze and silver. These experiments turned out to be very fascinating. All these new skills brought even more opportunities to my work. Thanks to this magical material, I was fortunate enough to meet many wonderful people working in different creative arts. I follow their creative development and find art inspiration in their works.” And this is what it is all about. Learning, challenging yourself, finding your physical and emotional limits, searching your heart, finding your source of inspiration, your inner voice, your style which brings excitement, fascination, joy, more energy, more inspiration, more ideas and happiness. What else could it be than the spiritual journey many people are on right now on this planet? Art is one way to set off on that journey without even thinking of it. Art brings it by itself, no guru following needed… just the guidance of your own heart.

Ireland is a beautiful country full of history and legends where people love their stories full of sprites and fairies… so no wonder art is flourishing there. Today’s blog is about a polymer clay artist living in a very rural area of county Donegal, Fiona Herbst. Art and creativity has always been part of her life. Both her parents and grandparents were collectors of fine art. Although she always wanted to go to art college, she was directed towards a more ‘sensible’ choice of career, her other interest - social work. However art was never put aside. In college, Fiona discovered polymer clay. Creativity became her form of relaxation. “I would knit, sketch, paint, write and then I discovered polymer clay. At first I started making brooches and earrings for friends and family and this led me to selling from a billboard on the streets of Belfast,” shares Fiona her beginnings. Plus those sales contributed to my much needed entertainment expenses during the hard times of student life. When starting her career as a social worker, Fiona retired from making jewellery to sell. But about eight years ago when she was asked to contribute something for a school fair, she remembered her old box of polymer clay and in this moment she rediscovered her passion for working with clay. “With the fair being a resounding success and my children older, I decided that the time had come to try a change of career. My mantra is that when life throws opportunity in your path, it is up to you to pick it up and go!” explains Fione why she came back to the creating. We have to say that this calling of destiny experienced a lot of artists. But only few are responding to it the way Fiona did. Since then she has been making beautiful polymer clay jewellery inspired by colors of nature. In her latest atwork we also see some influences of polymer clay masters from around the world but the inner voice is clearly heard. We can feel that when she was creating these pieces when she imagined the beaches of the ocean, flowers in the meadow, or sun in the sky. Good job!

We have seen many new polymer clay artists presenting their art on social media and especially on Instagram during the last months. They all have something in common. They are new to the craft, mostly beginners, which we are really happy about, and they create in modern, contemporary style. To be honest, that is exactly what we, as a community, needed. New faces, new enthusiasts, fresh energy and different ways of working with the clay. One of them is Janka Tivadari from Hungary who discovered the polymer clay around 2018. “I have been a fan of all creative activities since I was a child, I especially loved to draw. I learned the love of creating from my mother, she also taught me the basics of sewing but I dared not pursue my studies in the arts, although I secretly longed for it, because I did not consider myself talented enough,” says Janka. Three years ago she decided to give it a try to work with the polymer clay when seeing some inspiring pieces on the internet. Janka told us that in the beginning she found it hard to find her own style: “Then I realized that floral and animal designs are the most typical in my creations. I always draw in my notebook when I get an idea, often in bed, even with my eyes closed, I can see, for example, matching colours of my future projects,” she explains. What we really like about Janka’s artwork is the precision, simplicity, and modern ideas she implements in it. “As a business owner, I think I have a lot to improve on, because I have learned that creativity is not enough to run a well-functioning business and try to meet customers' expectations in all areas,” admits Janka. And we appreciate her honesty and passion for being better. We are really curious to see the next stages of new polymer clay artists working with tiny shapes of clay and creating slabs for cutting shapes of modern earrings. One advice we would love to send to all of them: “Explore and learn. The polymer clay community has a long history of hundreds of talented artists that invented and created many interesting techniques. Your presentation and reinvention of them might be spectacular!”

You would not believe how happy we are writing today’s article! We got in touch with Janine Brookland from Germany a few months ago and we were literally chasing each other. We really appreciate Janine’s time she gave us so we could get to know more about her interesting story and inspiring sculpture. Now we can tell you more about it! The first thing that will definitely catch your attention is Janine’s love for details and textures. Her latest Turtle sculpture is a great example of her incredible skills. “I don’t try to reproduce the appearance of the animals 1:1, much more I choose the attributes I like and exaggerate them a bit,” says Janine about the process of her work. This gives her sculptures the unique and yet lifelike character. She definitely gives the sculptures a soul. We got really surprised when Janine told us she started working with polymer clay just a few years ago. “The endless possibilities give me the option to change and manipulate the clay until I decide to bake it. That's one of the attributes I like the most.” That gives Janine the time to think and dive into the process until she is satisfied with the result. “I just kind of forget about the time while sculpting, it's a meditation. Sort of grounding me and muting my thoughts. Sometimes I listen to audiobooks, but sometimes I need a complete silence.” The sea turtle sculpture means a lot to Janine. She started working on it when she was pregnant with her first child and slowly finished it during the first year of her son's life. “Whenever I got a little bit of time I worked on it. Many corals have taken a lot of time. But the time factor does not interest me when creating a sculpture. Each sculpture gets the time it needs to become the way I imagine it. No matter how long it takes, for me it's always worth it in the end.” The composition of this sculpture, including the arrangement of all 3D elements is spectacular. You get that feeling that the turtle is floating around the corals so naturally. Janine was really devoted to every detail from modelling the shape, to working on textures and patterns, making eyes by herself and shading the sculpture with paints. Well done!

Falling in love happened to Russian polymer clay artist Tatiana Butuzova aka Veda who creates fantasy dragons in beautiful colors and details since 2010, in a very similar way as to most of us. It is like any other love. You don't expect it and then BANG and it is here. With polymer clay it is usually starting by entering the craft shop because you need some brushes or canvases and leaving with the bag full of small colorful cubes and that zombee look in your eyes as the imagination and the creativity have already started to eat your braaaaaaain... And so the story continues. The cubes can be cured and become hard, yaaay, that's amazing, right? It is not as plasticine, it can be actually preserved in the form we want. Genius. And Veda confirms: “When I sculpted from plasticine as a child, I really wanted to be able to make it as hard as stone and keep my work - in its bright colors, small patterns and details. From that day on, polymer clay captured me,” yeah we know the feeling. When one falls in love with polymer clay the waves of inspiration start to crash against the shore of your creativity, the fingers are starting to be restless, you are missing what people are saying to you, forgetting to recount the change in the shop… Everything is suddenly an inspiration. For Veda it is animals, birds, insects, sea creatures, corals, plants, spiders, flowers and fruits, algae and invertebrates. Interesting color combinations in things and interiors, natural phenomena, buildings and everything around. Each item inspires you to try something new, capture and convey emotion. “I love the creation process and hope to share my experience with others!” says Veda and we really admire her dragons made of shimmering clay, added hand painted details and very gentle color transitions which make them look even more off this world.