Art is a Blessing: Polymer Play and Mixed Media Musings

by Staci Louise Smith

Art is such a blessing.  I think someday's I take creativity and that I get to do this for a living for granted.  Art is such a huge part of who I am.  I see art in almost anything.  I take in colors, and textures and composition no matter what I look at.  It leaks into all parts of my life, and for that, I am grateful!

It's that time of year, where I have spent the entire year making beads and jewelry.  I try to allow myself some playtime around the holidays.  It allows time to make gifts for people and get out some of my other art supplies.

One of the blessings, is that my children get to be creative too.  they learn the fun of play, and the business of selling their work too.

To start off the season of creative playtime, Julia and I worked on some polymer pendants for the Hereford Bazaar.  It's a craft show her school puts on.  All three of my kids made stuff for it and I got them a "real" crafter table there!  

It was a lot of fun to prep for a show that was NOT my own.

Now, Julia (age 11) is not known for her organizational skills, and she brought me these bags of polymer clay.  They contained every color of the rainbow and then some.  So I said, how about we mix them up and swirl them, and then she could use that as a base to stamp her designs onto!  

We had a blast putting odd colors together and running them through the pasta machine and finding the  surprise patterns that arose.  She is a color junkie, so she was in rainbow heaven!

After that was done, she stamped them and cut out the circles to add to her bezels.

I had so much fun with the kids in the studio.

Collin (9) made little owls and got to use alcohol inks for the first time.  I showed him how to make these easy little "squish" owls and he picked it right up!

My oldest, Aiden (14) makes jewelry.  

Here they were at the show- they all did really good and had a blast, and I must say, IT WAS THE MOST FUN SHOW I DID ALL YEAR!

Here they all are, and yes, I am a proud mama!

Here are Collin's key chains and bracelets he made

Here is Julia's set up, with magnets and necklaces in polymer

 And here is Aiden's work.  He loves working in gemstones and beads, but has started doing more wire work and polymer too

So, that was a great week to get the creative juices flowing.

As you may know, I have dabbled in mixed media before.  But I have wanted to add more of my polymer into the mix.  I have had ideas, but no time to try them.  

So finally I gave myself a week to play.  It's almost up, and I am almost done these piece.  They are finished, all but the three in the lower right corner.  I hope to make a few more today and finish these, and then its back to business for a week.

I love being able to pull from all the different media I have worked in to create art.  It is such a blessing to my soul to be able to freely make what is in my head and heart.  It is also nice to know that I get to use all those things I have learned through the years, a million different ways.  I REALLY encourage you to always keep learning new techniques and mediums.  You never know when the skills you learn will pop back up!  

So be blessed and create art!  Never stop learning and playing.  It's all part of the process.

what is your intention?

mary jane dodd

mjd - 2014

you are a maker -

whether you work with raw materials like metal, textiles,clay or glass or you purchase handmade components and artfully assemble them into something that speaks your language.

you use your hands and both sides of your brain.

mjd - 2014

i think most of us agree that making is a therapeutic activity, one that we cannot imagine living without. 

you put so much of yourself into it. 

do you think about how you release it into the world?

mjd - 2014

what i wish for first is that my work connects with people - not everyone naturally. but with those who are like minded, your tribe.

do i hope that someone might buy it? of course. this is how i make my living. while i wish i could give it all away, i can't. 

but what i can wish is that it brings someone joy, or peace. that it perhaps gives them a chance to step outside of our demanding world and connect with something that was made by hand. to appreciate the depth of meaning in the simplicity of a stitch. to connect back in time to others who worked in a similar way. 

and so how do i release it into the world? 

with intention and love. 

i hold each piece in between my hands & give thanks for the ability to give voice to my heart through the use of those hands. i give thanks to the person who values what i do. i give thanks for the ability to connect with people.

you do all the work you do to create your finished piece - whether it be a necklace, a bead, a finding - why send it out from you without a blessing of your own?